Get Out of Clallam and Jefferson Counties if you’re worried about OMG! Omicron! Counties with the least restrictions seem to be doing the best during the Omicron “surge.” Clallam County, struggling under Dr. Allison Berry’s exclusion of the unvaccinated from dining and drinking establishments and a strict masking requirement for indoor public spaces, has one of the highest rates in the state. The Wild East, those counties where they look at you funny if you wear a mask into a bar, are beating not only Clallam, but also Jefferson County in the 14-day Covid rate matchup.
The Stats Tell the Tale
Clallam County’s 14-day case rate stands, as of this writing, at 1808. That makes it one of the highest rate counties in the state, according to the latest Washington Department of Health data.
Rates per 100,000 Population of Cases, Hospitalizations and Deaths by County
1/11/22
Only King, Pierce, Snohomish, and Thurston County are experiencing a higher rate of positive cases. King County, which like Jefferson and Clallam also bars the unvaccinated from dining or drinking establishments (but allows negative test exemption), has the highest 14-day rate in the state, at 2209.
All those draconian Dr. Berry orders, the burden on restaurant staff, the loss of business for food and drink service businesses, the societal divisions and stresses don’t seem to be making much difference—at least not in the right direction.
Ferry County, where just about no one wears masks and where a vaccine passport requirement would earn the Public Health Officer a ride out of town on a rail, has a 14-day rate of only 594. Other “Wild East” counties also show rates lower than Clallam: Adams, Asotin, Benton, Chelan, Clark, Columbia, Cowlitz, Douglas, Franklin, Garfield, Grant, Kittitas, Klickitat, Lewis, Lewis, Okanogan, Pend Oreille, Skamania, Spokane, Stevens, Walla Walla, Whitman, even Yakima. On the western edge of the state, Grays Harbor, Island, Pacific, San Juan, Kitsap (where Jefferson and Clallam’s unvaxxed go to dine out), Mason and Wahkiakum are doing better than Berry’s locked-down Clallam.
I have been traveling around Washington since June 2020 reporting here on how most of the state is getting along just fine and is operating close to normal. But when you re-enter Berryland, you feel the curtain coming down. The restrictions are supposed to but are not producing superior public health results to what we are seeing in counties where the Public Health Officers and Board of Health are not imposing a kind of medical apartheid on the populace.
What of Jefferson you ask? Jefferson County is also ruled by Berry’s dictates and is doing no better than much of the state. Jefferson’s 14-day rate, as of this writing, was 1010. This is worse than 16 counties (all of them “Red” conservative counties with loose Covid rules and enforcement). Berry’s proof-of-vaccine requirement is not paying the health dividends that would justify the damage it is doing to businesses and community spirit.
But if you’re really, really, really terrified of OMG! Omicron!—I mean if you’re terrified it is going to kill you—where, oh where can you hide?
The answer is: just about anywhere. Only Yakima and King County are showing any deaths. Yakima has a whopping 7-day death rate of 0.4 and King’s death rate, despite having the highest case rate, is only 0.1. The marginal death rate is dropping so fast statewide it is pulling down the cumulative death rate for the entire period of the pandemic. That’s what weeks of zero will do.
And if you are still scared silly, take solace in this week’s admission by the Director of the CDC that throughout the pandemic “the overwhelming number of deaths, over 75%, were among people who had at least four comorbidities,” something we’ve been pointing out here for a long time. Fatalities occurred in people who were already very, very ill in several ways. Dr. Scott Atlas, the Robert Wesson Senior Fellow in health care policy at Stanford University, reports that two-third of deaths reported as Covid deaths were in people with six comorbidities.
Clallam County recently reported a Covid-related death. Whether the death was contributed to by the virus or whether the person died from other causes while also having Covid we don’t know. This sad event apparently has not made it yet to the DOH’s data base. The fact that Clallam has had a Covid-related death while counties without Berry’s proof-of-vaccine order have not further undermines the case for her extreme order.
So, relax. Your chances of dying from OMG! Omicron! are pretty much a big goose egg, the number you will find in DOH’s latest table on death rates in Washington counties.
Jim Scarantino was the editor and founder of Port Townsend Free Press. He is happy in his new role as just a contributor writing on topics of concern to him. He spent the first 25 years of his professional life as a trial attorney, then launched an online investigative news website that broke several national stories. He is also the author of three crime novels. He resides in Jefferson County. See our "About" page for more information.
I’m sorry that I can’t give you a contrary opinion. Your article substantiates facts on masking that I found last year. Sweden and Germany had the same number of deaths per million for the same period of time. Germany was over 85% mask compliant. Sweden was less than 6% mask compliant. Those who constantly wear masks are unable to analyze facts due to loss of brain cells from oxygen deprivation.
Keep up the good work.
Intelligent people, when they try something and it doesn’t work as expected, re-evaluate the information and make changes. Only Dr. Allison Fruitcake doubles down on ineffective bans and restrictions. Anyone with a multi-digit IQ can quickly see that masked and vaccinated people are catching Covid, yet she doubles down on these ineffective, annoying, and commerce-hurting restrictions. Why? What would a RATIONAL person do under these circumstances?
Dr. Berry– how about doing your job of informing and advising, but leave the matters up to the people involved. We don’t need your misinformation. We want you to leave us alone. End your restrictions and let people live their lives. Omicron is “God’s Vaccine”, giving most people essentially 2-3 days of cold-like symptoms, then a dramatically increased immunity against ALL variants. But playing cop? Playing totalitarian tyrant? Nah– we can deal with it without you. If people want to dine out or shed masks (PROVEN ineffective– don’t you read, Dr. Berry?), let them. If they are fearful, they can stay home, hide in the basement, wear 15 masks, and get fed under the door if they wish.
This is a free country. Show me where it says, in the Constitution, “…unless it’s declared an emergency”. You will not find it. And, We the People, will increasingly ignore your mandates and you will destroy your career as a public officer. ENOUGH! End these restrictions NOW and let us be adults. We don’t need you as a dysfunctional parent.
Are people going “test” crazy? How accurate are the tests? Are tests reliable? What happened to the flu and the common cold? Depriving people of fresh air is probably making them sick. Thanks for another great article.
Passing the PTFP along to all my out of state friends who will probably be laughing their buns off after they read the link(s). I’m sure a few condolences will be sent in return. We will persevere, no matter the odds.
Thanks again Jim, keep it going.
Omicron is God’s vaccine, if it is a natural variant, or is the antidote released by the perpetrators of Covid, otherwise, now that their agenda has been completed. I believe Covid was intentionally released to do what it has done– promote global fascism, to prevent an honest election– and now that midterm elections are coming, Let’s Go Brandon wants to appear to have defeated it. It will likely be announced as such on March 1, when he does his SOTU address.
Outstanding commentary with great facts backing it up. Now we can hold our breath to see what today’s “online meeting” of the State Health masters come up with regarding proposed quarantine facilities and other atrocities our Fuhrer has been cooking up in his midnight cauldron.
I was told today by my health care worker that next week the Food Bank will no longer serve people without a vacine card, including health care workers picking up food for their charges. This was mandated by our wonderful Governor Adolf Binslee.
I just recieved an email that the Director of the Food Bank has said she was mis-understood and that will not happen.
Well said and I agree 1000%!!!!
Jefferson and Clallam counties are a LAUGHINGSTOCK…a JOKE… for the whole country! People traveling to other states and counties report everything is just fine. No masks, no mandates, no vaxx ID. Just healthy people going about their business. Port Townsend we can understand the mass psychosis, but WHY does Clallam county put up with silly ignorant alison berry? Can’t they declare their county will have it’s own health commissioner??? What’s wrong with them?
Here are some HARD COLD SCIENTIFIC FACTS for alison berry to choke on. These links have continually updated lists of all the studies showing the effectiveness and safety of Hydroxychloroquine and Ivermectin when used against covid 19. Ivermectin studies: https://c19ivermectin.com/ Hydroxychloroquine studies: https://c19hcq.com/ When COMBINED properly into a synergistic protocol they are even MORE effective. For example, Drs. Tyson and Fareed have treated over 7000 patients in their clinics and now have a 100% cure rate if treatment is begun in the first 7 days. After 7 days, their cure rate goes to 99%. Dr. Zelenko’s team has also treated over 6000 patients and hasn’t had a single death in almost a year. Sorry, alison berry, the FACTS about effective covid treatments are already in! The CDC, NIH, FDA, that she loves to quote as the ONLY source of scientific knowledge, are NOT reliable scientific or medical sources! They are POLITICAL appointees who do the will of their masters. We need to get our facts from INDEPENDENT scientific and medical sources who have no conflicts of interest. Courageous doctors and scientists who risk their licenses every day to save the lives of their patients from the cruel bureaucrats who would let them die. MILLIONS of people around our country and the world have already been effectively treated by these brave doctors who refuse to tell their patients they have “no treatment” as alison berry does. SHE and the other county bureaucrats are killing the people of Jefferson and Clallam county. NOT covid. As Dr. Peter Mccullough recently stated: “The only people who are dying from covid now are those who have been refused treatment.”
Q.Wayle…… Exactamundo!
We are planning a trip to Port Townsend in February and we are trying to find out if there are vaccine or mask mandates still in place. Can anyone steer us in the right direction for information?
Better get fully vaccinated (and have your papers in order) and bring a mask if you want to enter any bar or restaurant. Port Townsend businesses almost all enforce the mask mandate, to the point of ejecting people for wearing the wrong masks. Many people downtown also wear masks outdoors. Jim Scarantino
We don’t even bother going there anymore. It’s so full of leftist liberals It’s disgusting.
Thank you. We are cancelling our reservation and will go spend our money elsewhere.
Hi Jim, here’s a contrary viewpoint from Greg
Overstreet to share on “Free Press.”
www.https://bitterroot star.com/2022/01/30142/
“When it comes to COVID. Greg Overstreet has a message for you, don’t fool around.”
This is a great link. https://thehighwire.com/videos/are-you-delusional-about-covid/
Thanks to everyone who obviously has put in many hours in search of…….sanity.
Annette, Anna, Stephen and Jim. This body of work and the work of so many referenced should assure those contributing that they live lives well spent.
Time always gives perspective.
Personal stories can seem self-indulgent. I relate this as an illustration for a gradual return to sanity, and kind of exercise to see if I am myself part of a Mass Delusional Psychosis. Or just dipping my toe in it when needed for survival dealing with a varied public.
I do know that polarization serves no one.
Since the 2 and a half month lockdown, myself and my manager have been “front line” as information and disinformation evolved or devolved. We process things differently.
We have differing views on many aspects; it has not killed mutual respect.
I know many who have withdrawn and live in fear. During the lockdown and images of bodies piling up I had to head to Northern California to meet with artisans. Stagnation is and was not an option. Whatever the price. At that time I didn’t even know if we would re open. At one point I told my landlord I would be out of the building in May. I was strongly reminded that many supported this business staying. So we waited things out as rent and other expenses were paid from savings. No government money. A $60k SBA loan was taken out as insurance and banked if I ran out of money. That was repaid within the year and not used.
The message to me as business resumed better than ever was what I was doing specifically at my business was bringing in customers, not driving them away. And erring on the side of caution. That continues to this day. Things are exponentially up, as are my efforts to keep new artisans and old working with us and elsewhere.
Masking outside and in your car are the far end of the spectrum. Understanding why some ask that you mask in specific situations is…….understanding. Shades of grey are all around.
Take a chill pill and do come into my business if you like. Or not. Sunday eve I got a chance to talk to a traveling ER nurse for 2 hours who is currently in Port Angeles. I stayed past closing and didn’t care. We went over everything from mind body connections to big pharma to hospital politics to the FWPDA and corrupted PT. It’s all related. Human nature, greed, and psychology.
My business attracts tens of thousands of folks over any given year in close quarters. Upon re opening I purchased 2 of the best quality air circulators and purifiers. My manager came back to work and is responsible for the last 2 years success. She could have lived in fear and stayed home.
We limited and will now always limit the number of folks that are in at any one time. The side benefit, although wearing damn masks, is that the evolution to greeting visitors outdoors, letting folks in who are showing some degree of respect, and making eye contact and explaining a bit about what we are and do has eliminated much negative behavior from the careless and self-absorbed. Less of those come in.
Our regulars would come in if they had to wear mickey mouse ears.
We do offer better quality masks at cost and often comp them depending on the vibe we get when the chin strap folk arrive. Every business is different. Sometimes when I get nasty blow back I will say “you’re lucky you are here this week, next week I am requiring big red clown noses to come in”. Or not.
Everyone and anyone is free not to enter. We often have paying customers who care and will leave if someone is in our limited space with noses hanging out or has a see thru gater on. It is a business. Personally, it seems to work in our specific situation, nasty reactions are fairly rare since we moved to outside greeting.
Before outside greeting some would throw tantrums when we were concerned about mask quality. On one occasion a guy flipped out and left. The remaining folks said “you didn’t lose anything by him leaving”. I replied “I know”. He was pre stressed. Bad vibe from the get go.
That said, I wince when sheepish folk want to and are proud to show vaccination cards. I simply say we don’t play that here.
Not all one, not all the other.
When we re opened after two and a half months of closure, the official narrative was pretty much as it is now. Corrections aside, and down the memory hole for many.
The free press has given the chance for anyone to learn of different narratives. When sheepish folk universally dismiss a body of work like this as rubbish, it speaks of their Mass Delusional Psychosis.
Not anyone else’s.
I like and respect Eric Clapton more than ever. Neil Young lost me this week. Go Joe Rogan. What happened Neil? I wonder if Stephen Stills thinks “Its time to stop children what’s that sound? Everybody look what’s goin’ down”.
Just some insight as to why we are doing masks in my specific case. Take it or leave it. I don’t give a rat’s ass. But that’s just me.
This is a sunrise on a cold day’s dawn. It will warm up. Keep it up Free Press and Free Thinkers. Have some compassion for those gripped by fear they don’t understand fully.
Yet.
Masks don’t work for the same reason that chicken wire does not stop mosquitos. Vaccines don’t prevent contagion, nor transmission; all they do is add risk of stroke, heart inflammation, and unknown long-term side effects. https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2022/02/the_covid_narrative_is_falling_apart.html
This is what the vaccines are causing:
Myocardial infarction (heart attack) — 269% increase
Cancer diagnoses — 300% increase
Miscarriage — 300% increase
Bell’s palsy — 291% increase
Congenital malformations (for children of military personnel) – 156% increase
Female infertility — 471% increase
Pulmonary embolisms — 467% increase
Neurological issues — 1,000% increase
When are people going to wise up and stop being sheeple???