This May of 2020 brings with it the challenge of reopening our US economy vs. the risk of a setback in the recovery from the Covid-19 virus that has plagued our nation and the world over. Our country seems divided on the issue of heading back to work vs. the fear of contracting the Coronavirus. One thing is for certain, as we begin to reopen our states for business, things will not be as they once were, at least for the near future.

Tim Walz, the governor of our state of Minnesota, recently announced that we will proceed with our planned reopening on May 18^th, 2020 with some non-essential businesses being permitted to reopen. He understands the stress that have been put on families and especially small business owners for the last 50+ days not being permitted to operate. He stressed the importance of acting responsibly both to take care of ourselves and our fellow Americans. I believe that he acted rightly in easing some of the stress that has been weighing on our great state.

On the other side of the coin, proponents of a continued lockdown claim that we will revert back into another wave of mass sickness which will further set our country back. However, I believe that these people need to understand that the US economy does not restart with the flip of a switch. First, the CDC wanted to “flatten the curve” and now it seems like they want the virus to be all but extinguished from our planet. While I do advocate for safety, it is time for Americans to get back to work and to act responsibly.