Monday’s continued public hearing was another six hours of testimony from the public, and again, the public was overwhelmingly against the ordinance by Assemblywoman Meg Zalatel, to make masks mandatory in Anchorage.
Since last week, the Assembly has taken nearly 20 hours of testimony about the mandate, which is intended to stop the spread of Covid-19 in the community.
Unlike previous nights, Assembly Chair Suzanne LaFrance used her gavel lightly and rarely admonished the crowd when they clapped after testimony. Unlike last week, no one in the crowd was handcuffed and hauled out of the chambers, and in general the mood was improved due to LaFrance relaxing the decorum rules in what has been a highly contentious battle between the Assembly’s leftist majority and the public.
After 18 months of anger about local Covid policies that have created unintended harm, LaFrance’s approach seemed to soothe the annoyed Anchorage residents.
A few from the public spoke in favor of the proposed mandates. One, Travis Neff, used to be a paid tracker to do damage to the campaign of U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan on behalf of Senator Mark Begich.
A clip of his statement, which was in reality much longer and accused Mayor Dave Bronson and Assemblywoman Jamie Allard of being Nazis, he used his three minutes to make personal attacks on Assembly members and the mayor, while Assembly Chairwoman Suzanne LaFrance refused to call him out of order until he had finished:
Another supporter of the mask law is a federal healthcare provider, who likened the audience of ordinance opponents to “communist China.” He said he was there to oppose them and his testimony was especially dramatic:
Most of the people who approached the podium were respectful but passionate about their experiences with Covid mandates over the past 18 months of public policy that has impacted their lives. One woman, who spoke through a voice box due to having had throat cancer, gave a profound accounting of the impact on disabled people, who are discriminated against by those who don’t realize they cannot wear a mask:
Assembly Vice Chair Chris Constant was the enforcer on the dais, pointing at people who were too loud and threatening them, “You’ve been warned.” It was good-cop, bad-cop with LaFrance holding the gavel.
Assembly members Zaletel, who is the maker of the ordinance, Pete Petersen, Austin Quinn-Davidson, and Felix Rivera stopped showing up at meetings weeks ago and only call into them now. They refuse to face the public outcry over their attempts to enforce masks.
Assemblyman Kameron Perez-Verdia was present for half of the testimony on Monday, and then left, and was said to have called in after he departed.
The hearing continues at the Anchorage Assembly chambers at 5 pm on Tuesday, with evidently several more people who intend to have the ruling body of Anchorage hear of the impacts the masks have on their health, their businesses, and their quality of life.
So, a majority of the Marxist Assembly are too cowardly to show their faces and listen to the people of Anchorage?! It’s time to fire them for cause— refusing to do their job and attend basic public meetings.
I continually remind my Assembly members that they have a duty to represent the best interests of their constituents. They continually ignore it.
Cases are declining. That means we don’t need the mandate and we got through the spike without it. About the only thing these leftists hate more than the electorate, is when events conspire to show the world how useless these authoritarians, actually are….
I just hope all these people who oppose the fascist mandate are ready for non-compliance when the leftist power grab is issued. As we have seen over the last 18 months…compliance has not returned us back to normal no matter mask or vaccine. This re-branding of the flu to covid has always been a tactic to gain control over the population & scare you into destroying your natural immune system with un-proven drugs…many of the patients seen in the hospital are having adverse reactions & many healthcare providers are speaking out while they refuse the mRNA shot.
It was supposed to be a fight against the pandemic to protect the people.
Now, it is a fight against the people to protect the pandemic.
If the “Marxist Nine” on the municipal assembly do manage to pass their outrageously authoritarian and nonsensical mask mandate, I for one will NEVER comply with it! NEVER! And I am sure that there are tens of thousands like me in the Anchorage area who will do the same. I almost wish and hope that the Marxist Nine DO pass their perverted mandate, just to demonstrate to them that they are powerless in the face of those who would, and will, oppose tyranny.
At the end of the day this is all theater.
The ordinance will pass, Bronson will veto. The Assembly will override the veto. Bronson will not enforce the ordinance.
The Assembly will then call on their army of flying monkeys to recall Bronson.
Which has been the goal from the beginning
???????
That. Right there.
Yep, unless enough people continuously show up to testify so they can never vote on it.
How do we fire these assembly persons. They want to have the assembly room to themselves like last year.
Fulfilling one’s contract as agreed in specific performance. We didn’t agree to be represented by shut-ins when they are in superior health. Anchorage attorney are you able?
Not going to show up Austin Quinn-Davidson? Can’t face the music? And the numbers are dropping. Keep going public. The longer this goes, the more the numbers will drop without any mask mandate and then whatever. Go ahead and vote for your radical ordinance. The more ridiculous you look, the better. That’s how Bronson won and that’s how you all will lose your seats. We are taking a stand and the more you ignore us and the numbers AND the science, the more you look like reckless vindictive arrogant tyrants that have the maturity and wisdom of a 15 year old, and the better off we will be in the long run. Austin – you can take your black belt in the ACLU and go home and let us deal with the homeless with compassion instead of ACLU pity so that some of them can find some honor and respectable accountability in their life again.
I can tell you one thing, the left ones are showing their true colors in real time with many of us there to witness.
After each testimony, it is Jamie Allard who repeatedly has follow up questions. Doing her best to engage with the people. The leftist of the assembly barely pose any inquiry, as if they just want to get it over with, but have no interest in actually hearing anything that people have to say.
To the left, we are numbers and data.
I AM an individualized spark of consciousness, not a number.
Well if enough people keep signing up to speak maybe we can keep them from ever taking a vote!
Not going to happen.
The scary headlines keep coming, despite the real case numbers dropping. The Assembly will declare it is too dangerous to have public testimony. And, they will do so after the deadline to sign up has passed. (It is 5PM day before the meeting, BTW).
.
Net result, they will have an assembly meeting, no one will be able to testify, and they will pass the AO.
Yeah hahaha it was funny when Chris was trying to be all alpha! We said “Ooooo” and laughed. And yes, Madame LaFrance was much more relaxed and things did go more smoothly. Maybe, just maybe, they’ve learned that while you can treat the far left like children and get the results you want, it simply doesn’t work that way for grownups. Especially conservative ones. We really do just want to be left alone.
While I was watching I really hoped someone would remind him and the viewing public about the Anti-Semitic remarks and Anti-Israel attacks we all hear coming from Reps. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn.; Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich.; Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass.; and Alexandria Cortez, D-NY. Those Four need to be defeated. Mayor Bronson and Member Allard in comparison to those four women, they are hardly anti-Semitic.
Where is the Jewish community speaking out against those four congresswomen’s remarks? These four women should have lost their reelections, yet they are still there.
The continued disdain for the general public needs to be called out in the public square and they need to be firmly defeated in upcoming elections. We the People of Anchorage are sick and tired of there decrees that we are just their loyal subjects when in fact we are the higher authority to them not the other way around. If you want to wear a mask then so be it but do not suppose your belief on me.
It seems we are coming to an equilibrium in regards to public decorum. Yes, We The People did come in a bit strong and in response, Madam Chair attempted control the situation with reprimands. Last night was much calmer. People clapped, but silenced themselves in a timely way so the next speaker could be heard. I think many of us had not been to an assembly meeting and we are all adapting to how each other behaves. Not all of us are drones and not all of us are free spirit.
Maybe it is in these meetings that we begin to truly recognize the humanity in each other and come to some true agreement on how health should be administered.
Stay tuned.
Oh my oh my I am a person with a Laryngectomy also.
This Lady from Wasilla with the Larnygetocmy you have my support my admiration respect.
I will say this if any of those who attacked this Awesome courageous woman attack me. You could look down the barrel of my pistol. Your ignorance toward laryngectomy patients is beyond belief
Must Read Alaska if you know who this awesome courage lady is, please I like to meet her
Is it a proposed law (US Constitution) or an attempt to destroy the US Constitutional rights of Anchorage residents by an overreaching local ordinance by nine individuals who have sworn to uphold the US Constitution and without the consent of the area residents?
Wow. Unabashed leftist strategy with Neff calling the Mayor and Jamie Allard Nazis, and the healthcare provider comparing those fighting for individual freedoms to communist China. Hence classic deflection and illusion by accusing those they oppose of what they themselves are doing. So Nazis upheld personal freedoms? Really Mr. Neff? Nazis forced with an iron fist all sorts of mandates, imprisoning those that didn’t comply, and then experimented on death camp inmates with all sorts of experiments, medical treatments and procedures. Communist China? Oh yeah, the upholders of freedom and personal choice ? it sounds like our esteemed healthcare provider has seen or read little of the world and current events.
As for Monday night, “Unlike last week, no one in the crowd was handcuffed and hauled out of the chambers”. Congratulations! You’re all well on the way to civility!
Evan, you sir are a Totalitarian. Your view of civility is one of the People being demure and quiet as they are ramrodded into the Box Cars. Clearly you have no concept of respecting the rights of others.
All assembly persons should be required to be in attendance or at least on zoom or some other web application so we can see they are truly in attendance. Just saying they are on the phone doesn’t mean they are. They are not participating in discussions.
Make sure you bring a camping chair to tonight’s meeting. I don’t know why no one as thought of it since Tuesday 29th as people have been waiting and standing in line for hours over 8 days.
Maybe! If SOME people had their camping chair to use in line they been less agitated and less likely to had been thrown out and arrested.
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