Dr. Depressor and Mayor Second Wave speak out of school on the front page

The front page in the Sunday, May 3 edition of our local chain newspaper (ownership to be decided pending the bankruptcy) presented some confusing information to its dissatisfied readership.

Dead center above the fold was a paragraph in a story under the headline, City council turns to economic recovery, eviction protection. It was an unattributed statement by an anonymous county Public Health Department “official” that, if the county had adequate testing, the number of COVID-19 cases would be closer to 450 than the Public Health’s “official” figure of 140 with three deaths.

Do two “official” anecdotal figures make an accurate one? Readers wish to know.

Below the fold is a story about a letter the mayor of Merced sent to the governor asking him to allow rural businesses to reopen. Apparently the mayor is chafing under the weight of his law practice or the lack of it and volunteer political activities (the mayor gets a tiny stipend for a large ceremonial and deliberative position).

In  the fifth graph of the story, Mayor Mike “Second Wave” Murphy told the newspaper that he acted without the approval of the Merced City Council.

Did the governor know Second Wave was speaking strictly for himself, city staff more interested in economic growth than in health,  and his donors, not for the elected body he represents?

Will the City Council meeting this evening answer any questions?

Yes, there was an answer at the evening meeting. The entire council supported his letter.