Minnesota restaurant (and bar?) defies shutdown orders

[progree]

Havens Garden in Lynd, Minnesota (in the low populated southwest part of the state).

Governor Walz ordered partial shutdown of bars/restaurants on effective November 13 (10 pm closing times and the physical bars themselves to be closed - people can still be served food and alcohol who are seated at tables).

And then he ordered all bars and restaurants closed period effective Saturday November 21 (2 weeks ago).

But they've defied all that. Have gotten their food license suspended by Southwest Health and Human Services Department on November 27, and a letter from Attorney General Keith Ellison on November 23, but no matter. They haven't had a liquor license since October 2019, but no matter, They remain open and maybe still serves alcohol (I can't find anything in their self-presentation about alcohol, but one recent review had "classic cocktails" ).

They've become a darling of the right wing, been on Fox, and a lot of right-wing kooks on their Facebook page, but fortunately there's some pushback.

https://www.facebook.com/havensgardenmn

This article from December 4:
https://www.marshallindependent.com/news/local-news/2020/12/they-want-me-to-comply/

Minnesota ranked number one in the U.S. Saturday morning with the highest per capita number of new cases, 7 day moving average (I just looked at it now and Minnesota is #2 after Rhode Island at the moment).

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/coronavirus-us-cases.html

and Lyon County, where this restaurant is located, is even worse in that metric (148 per 100k people per day) than the Minnesota average (104 per 100k people per day).

[progree]

1. Minnesota and its 4 U.S. neighbors

Daily new cases per 100,000 population, 7 day moving average
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/coronavirus-us-cases.html

104.5   Minnesota (#2 in the nation, behind only Rhode Island)
100.2   South Dakota
85.7    North Dakota
80.8    Wisconsin
73.4    Iowa

Alternatives to New York Times

## CovidActNow: https://covidactnow.org/?s=1124253   -- the states are numbered in the listing so don't have to count them like the NYTimes

## Global Epidemics: https://globalepidemics.org/key-metrics-for-covid-suppression/   -- also numbers the states

## Reuters: https://graphics.reuters.com/HEALTH-CORONAVIRUS/USA-TRENDS/dgkvlgkrkpb/index.html

## John Hopkins 50 states' minicharts "map" page, alternative to the NY Times from John Hopkins University
The below "map" of the 50 states' minicharts (which are scaled by daily new cases PER CAPITA), is from the John Hopkins U.

https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/data/new-cases-50-states

-- at that page you can click on individual states on the "map". Showing 3-day moving average of new cases. I prefer the nytimes' charts which are 7 day moving averages).

[dflprincess]

4. I wonder if Minnesota's counts are limited to Minnesota residents

or if they include the overflow the state is getting from North and South Dakota?

[progree]

6. I haven't heard of any adjustment of the statistics for that /nt

[progree]

7. MN Hospital bed use: counts everyone including out of staters. Admissions data: only Minnesotans,

and the admissions data includes Minnesotans admitted to out-of-state hospitals.

Weird but true, according to MPR's David Montgomery

http://view.connect.mpr.org/?qs=153b5fc00fcd4806a1a258cacf087a6f2e834661fad868b35eb8f326e0786e1606e06405429004b0e7c4c1ace4cff19dbf29c0a0167d35f877321acd543e11696cc4d4a47b6009ae1b9b1521fbd57d72

I talked above about how hospital admissions have been improving recently. That's also true for hospital bed use , which incorporates length of stay and death rates as well as admission rates. (It's also not quite apples-to-apples, with admission data measuring Minnesotans admitted to hospitals, and bed use data measuring people admitted to Minnesota hospitals. That is, a Hudson resident hospitalized in St. Paul would show up in the bed use data but not the admission data; a Pipestone resident hospitalized in Sioux Falls would show up in the admission data but not the bed use data.)

[dflprincess]

8. Thanks,

I find that interesting it's done that way.

[question everything]

2. I can see cynics, and R's saying: we get infected anyway so why bother

A friend with a science degree is unhappy that schools are closed, that the kids are climbing the wall and especially that high schools sport is not allowed for kids to socialize and to burn steam..

[progree]

3. Yup. And we will all die anyway, none of us is immortal. Fewer old people to take care of

(sarcasm of course, but definitely reflects RW philosophy: life sucks and then you die)

[progree]

5. 1 in 3 recent deaths tied to COVID. 40% of deaths recently due to respiratory vs. 5-10% normally

https://www.mprnews.org/story/2020/12/06/latest-on-covid19-in-mn

Minnesota’s daily death counts from COVID-19 have been especially hard to handle over the past two months. More than 1,100 people died in November alone, about 30 percent of the total in the entire pandemic.

It’s now killing Minnesotans at a rate far higher than any recent flu season. Roughly one-third of all recent deaths in Minnesota are tied to COVID-19.



In the past few years, respiratory illnesses have been a major contributing factor in about 5 to 10 percent of all deaths in Minnesota, depending on the time of year.

They accounted for around 20 percent of deaths during the state’s May COVID-19 wave. Now it’s even higher: nearly 40 percent of all deaths in Minnesota in recent weeks have been attributed to a respiratory illness such as COVID-19, influenza or pneumonia.

There are other articles that say that flu deaths are way down. So Covid is not only replacing flu deaths, but adding many more deaths.

In case some fuckhead tells you its just the flu and we didn't shut down over the flu since 1918 or so, so why are we doing it now (yes, saw that kind of crap many times on the Havens Garden Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/havensgardenmn -- people there who are pushing back would no doubt very much appreciate a "Like" to their posts).

Then there are postings like if you are such a scaredy cat, then stay home but don't tell me not to go out and have fun, that's my choice to take the risk, FREEDUM, (in their sociopathic minds there's no concept of how spreading this shit around infects people who are choosing not to take risks, such as vulnerable people who, no matter how much effort they make to isolate etc., still get it, e.g. from caregivers who are also doing their utmost to stay clean).

And its not my choice to pay your hospital bills through higher insurance rates and taxes.

Anymore than say a drunk driver isn't just putting themselves at risk, but everyone else on the road (or sidewalk), and we all pick up most of their medical bills, including the insured ones.

[progree]

9. Update - now there are two of them, the 2nd one is in East Grand Forks

As for the Havens Garden one in southwest Minnesota, I posted before that the Southwest Health and Human Services Department on November 27 rescinded their food license. But then the board of this organization voted to give it back, so it has the food service license again. The board is made up of representatives from 6 counties in the area.

Meanwhile, Havens Garden got something from Minnesota Department of Health a couple days ago taped on her door/window "Order to Cease Activity" and "all food and beverage service activity must cease until violations are corrected and approved by the Minnesota Department of Health ... and a video that I had trouble hearing where she read the letter.

But she's ignoring that because its "unconstitutional" and violates her freedom and is standing up against tyranny, and a mandate is not a law and on and on with the tropes. She's still open, including tonight (Friday 12/11) 8 pm - 11 pm.

There's still time to drive out there. And hell why not drive drunk (without a seat belt of course), there's nothing in the constitution about that, and freedom! As long as I don't hurt anyone that matters. (sarc)

Edited to Add - the Southwest Health and Human Services Department gave no reason for reinstating the license. Despite on their website that one of their responsibilities is to prevent the spreading of disease, according to Bring Me The News. No doubt a lot of pressure put on them by this "real American" part of the state.

[progree]

10. Update - Havens Garden still open (just posted), Boardwalk B&G - silence, Alibi's closed til...

I've been daily following these 3 resistor Facebook pages --

Havens Garden (Lynd, SW Minn) just posted (noon 12/28) that they are open M-F and their hours

Boardwalk Bar & Grill in East Grand Forks hasn't posted anything since 12/16.

Alibi Drinkery (Lakeville, just S. of Burnsville) says its closed while waiting a court ruling. That's the one in the OP picture above.

[progree]

11. Update: the State of MN is asking the court to pick up the pace and increase sanctions

re: Havens Garden in Lynn Minnesota.

This is the court papers she was served with today (Dec 30), from Action4Liberty.

To me, it looks like in essence the state of Minnesota, by Jan Malcolm, Commissioner of Health, and signed by the Attorney General, is asking the Ramsey County District Court to pick up the pace and add more sanctions in that $250/day fine is not sufficient in that Havens Garden so far collected enough from well-wishers to pay that for a long time and therefore remain open --

https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/action4liberty/pages/371/attachments/original/1609365404/Larvita_-_Motion_for_Further_Contempt_Sanctions.pdf?1609365404&fbclid=IwAR0LI9g-yXr2a0d78wlmoORFeNADSGiighXM3o4Te1I9Dmc38sLbxAkg85I

She remains defiant and remains open. She has so far collected nearly $40,000 in a crowd-funding campaign, obviously enough to pay the $250/day fine for months.

https://www.facebook.com/havensgardenmn

FREEDOM! CONSTITUTION! Ummm...

“The Constitution,” Justice John Marshall Harlan wrote for a 7-2 majority, “does not import an absolute right in each person to be, at all times and in all circumstances, wholly freed from restraint.” Instead, “a community has the right to protect itself against an epidemic.” Its members “may at times, under the pressure of great dangers, be subjected to such restraint, to be enforced by reasonable regulations, as the safety of the general public may demand.” States also have the power, beyond criminal law enforcement, to make quarantine and isolation effective. If presented with widespread noncompliance, governors may call National Guard units to put their orders into force, to safeguard state property and infrastructure, and to maintain the peace. In some states, individuals who violate emergency orders can be detained without charge and held in isolation..."
- Jacobson v. Massachusetts, Supreme Court, 1905

[progree]

12. Update: Alibi Drinkery is re-opening

https://www.facebook.com/Alibi-Drinkery-135111020497320/?ref=page_internal

They posted this on their Facebook page at 932p 12/30/20:

We will be reopening tomorrow at 11am. Three years ago tomorrow we opened our doors at Alibi Drinkery. And we will open our doors tomorrow.

No indication of what led to that decision after closing for several days on the advice of counsel, while awaiting a court ruling. No indication if the court ruling happened yet or not.

This one bothers me in particular because they had their liquor license revoked (EDITED: no they haven't, just threatened to revoke) but are opening anyway .... whether they will be serving adult beverages anyway, I don't know.

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Nothing new at Boardwalk Bar & Grill in East Grand Forks -- last posting is still December 16.