A Response to Governor Bullock's Mandatory Mask Directive

Friends and family
Even though the majority of Montanans voted no, Governor Bullock of Montana issued a statewide mandatory mask law. At the time of writing this, we've had 34 COVID related deaths, most of them elderly individuals that were to die shortly regardless. Those people matter and they will be grieved over. But life insists that we not forget the rest of Montana. 
We must live. But because of those 34 we are told we may not operate fully. 
What happen to the pursuit of life, liberty, and happiness? The governor believes he may dictate to us just how we pursue those rights, namely in that we don't. 
The issue isn't the mask. It's merely a covering for so much more. Yet we must focus on the mask for a mere moment in order to fully address the heart of the issue. 
Today I'm addressing the mask. 
Bullock said, "If you see, only those of us who need to speak aren't wearing masks." 
 And who gets to decide who NEEDS to speak? 
 "It's like a seat belt. You only take it off when you need to, but keep it on to save lives." 
 And yet, not wearing a seat belt saved my dad's life ... He would have been completely crushed if he hadn't been thrown from his seat. Some disagree on the stats, but I've heard that seatbelts are only a 50/50 guarantee. Disagree if you like, but from what I've witnessed it seems to be true. 
Back to Bullock and the rest of those who wish to tell us how we may speak, work, eat, marry, and live. 
Need. Necessary. Essential. Safety. 
These are not words that belong in our government's vocabulary. 
We've had 34 COVID related deaths and want to mask a million people. But what of the 90 Montana highway fatalities we've had (around a 10% increase from last year)? 
Are we going to shut down our roads and take away people's vehicles? 
Our local fair was recently shut down, except for the 4-H department. Normally the 4-H'ers camp together as it is a many-day event. This year they were going to close camping and make everyone drive home each night. For Montanans, this is a big deal. Most of us live an hour or two away from anything. Thankfully, someone used common sense to persuade the camp, saying that statistically there was more of a chance of a family crashing their car and dying from exhaustion than there was of C19 spreading between the 4-H'ers. 
May more such common sense enter into the people of the so-called freedom-loving States of America.
And may you all disregard the governor who right now has completely forgotten his place. 
Just think about it for a moment. A long moment. I've been a hard critic of Trump. Partly because people speak of how great he's been for us and how he's done so much for America, and how I've seen absolutely no evidence of this. 
"Well," people say. "He's only one man. He can't just abolish abortion like we wish."
If this is so, then why can our governor pass a directive without Montana's consent that tells ALL of us what we may or may not do? How can the Health Department Board write up initiatives and have the police enforce their initiative when the Health Department is not even elected by us, but rather elected by some other official? And how can they pass something without our vote? 
And yet ... Trump is powerless to do anything, you tell me? You are saying that governors and health officials have more power than a president? More authority? To be obeyed absolutely? 
No, we are only obeying our governor because we are being ruled by something much larger than any ruling man: fear and ignorance. 
I refuse to participate in such. If not wearing a mask means no shopping, then so-be-it. I've never much cared for shopping, and in all honesty, I've been able to find establishments to support who also understand the underlying root cause of today's issues. 
Someone recently asked if Yeshua/Jesus would post a selfie of Himself wearing/ not wearing a mask. I don't think He is much into selfies, but I could totally imagine a group-selfie of Him and His crowd, all of them smiling unafraid and fully aware. 
He knew where His place was and where the government's place was; that He belonged everywhere and they only where He allowed. 
Our smiles belong. They are always NEEDED, more than anything that Bullock could ever think to say
Friends, drop the masks, and share your smiles. Remind the US government that the constitution was written for them, to protect us and to limit them. They do not tell us how we get to live our lives.