Interstate 40 NewMexico TRAVEL ALERT

[SloPoke]

New Mexico governor orders roads closed to city of Gallup

Beginning noon Friday, all roads into the city were shut down and businesses were required to close from 5 p.m. until 8 a.m. in the city of 70,000. Additionally, only two people are allowed in a vehicle at the same time.

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/new...navirus-spread

[THE MEEKER]

Jawohl, mein Herr!

[CAG]

Originally Posted by THE MEEKER

Jawohl, mein Herr!

Snarky response and if you were really aware of the current problems with the virus and the problems the Navajo were having you might reconsider that.

[rgolding]

Its time for citizens to take back our Country! These politicians are drunk on power. People need to make decisions for their safety, not politicians in a free society. 2 people in a car, really?

[RPR]

Problem is not all but some citizens are not being or acting in intelligently ways.

[pconroy]

Originally Posted by rgolding

Its time for citizens to take back our Country!

Had those citizens acted responsibly to **their fellow citizens**, this would be completely unnecessary.


It's the classic "your right to swing your arm stops when it gets to my nose..."

[CAG]

Perhaps I can explain this one a little better. Now I understand that some think that they are being put upon by states taking some actions to limit the spread. You have the right to feel how you want with that and of course voice those feelings. This situation is a little different.

1. Gallup is pretty much surrounded by the Navajo Nation.
2. Almost all of the business conducted in Gallup is Navajo.
3. The Nation is just that, a sovereign government.
4. The Navajos have a very serious outbreak of Covid-19
5. They have instituted road blocks and a curfew on the Nation.
6. Many on the Nation do not have running water in their homes and other sanitary conditions so the virus is spreading rather than flattening.

Gallup has taken steps to protect those that live there from those that are not following Navajo Nation directives and coming in off of the Reservation.

You can take back any part of the country you feel you are able to but this is not the same situation and try as you will you will not be doing that on the Navajo Nation or any other reservation for that matter.

[madmaxmutt]

[Tunce the traveler]

Originally Posted by rgolding

Its time for citizens to take back our Country! These politicians are drunk on power. People need to make decisions for their safety, not politicians in a free society. 2 people in a car, really?

What a dumb response!

[madmaxmutt]

Originally Posted by CAG

Now I understand that some think that they are being put upon by states taking some actions to limit the spread.

Feeling "put upon" is in the eye of the beholder. Everyone's situation is different. Thank the Lord, I don't have this issue, but there are people that cannot work, to earn money, to put food on the table and pay rent.

[AKRUEBBE]

Originally Posted by madmaxmutt

Feeling "put upon" is in the eye of the beholder. Everyone's situation is different. Thank the Lord, I don't have this issue, but there are people that cannot work, to earn money, to put food on the table and pay rent.

x2

[SloPoke]

the reason I posted this... is because a lot of people are traveling I-40 and Gallup is a primary stopping point for fuel and food. If you are coming on 491, you will be turned around just south of Gamerco and not permitted to merge onto I-40. If you need Fuel, you need to find it before you reach Gallup.

Friends updated me this morning - you can pass thru on I-40, but not get off. This is a very popular route we take every year... Check for updates frequently.

[pward]

Originally Posted by madmaxmutt

Feeling "put upon" is in the eye of the beholder. Everyone's situation is different. Thank the Lord, I don't have this issue, but there are people that cannot work, to earn money, to put food on the table and pay rent.

So they can die, or worse, cause someone's else's death? Stupid is as stupid does.

[madmaxmutt]

Originally Posted by pward

So they can die, or worse, cause someone's else's death? Stupid is as stupid does.

Yes, everything is a simple either, or question in some people's mind.

[Kim Gass]

Thanks CAG for the explanation. Many seem to be unaware of the conditions some First Nations live in. Nor do they understand the necessity of intergenerational living among the less affluent.

And the less affluent have of course the riskiest jobs.

If you have an RV you are blessed. Be grateful. If you need money sell it.

[Forelyndogs]

First, I-40 was never closed at Gallup, Gallup was closed. You could merrily drive by the town on I-40, but you could not go into town. It has been explained by others that Gallup is essentially surrounded by the Navajo Nation. It's important to understand the term "nation" as used here. This is Navajo land, it is in the USA but belongs to, is controlled by, managed by, and ruled by the Navajo tribe. This is what's left of what was their land before the Europeans came and took it away from them. Not to get into a discussion of who took what from whom, but it is worth noting that people have been taking land from other people since the Neanderthals and probably before that. The native reservations are a poor attempt at justice to the natives. This is not the US government or the government of NM usurping your ability to visit Gallup, but an acknowledgment that the Navajo's who own the surrounding land have the right to request that we respect their rights and give them a chance to get a grip on Covid-19.

[cekkk]

Originally Posted by SloPoke

New Mexico governor orders roads closed to city of Gallup

Beginning noon Friday, all roads into the city were shut down and businesses were required to close from 5 p.m. until 8 a.m. in the city of 70,000. Additionally, only two people are allowed in a vehicle at the same time

Where do we drop the kids?

[rtaylor]

So reading this I feel the need to jump in.....
I fully understand that your age, income, race, financial situation and much more influence how you view the social distancing measures and economic shutdown/slowdown.
Need to make two points.
1. Unlike your right not to wear a motorcycle helmet, where your risky behavior endangers only you, your failure to wear a mask or flaunt social distancing protocols endangers everyone.... especially the old, sick and poor. Selfish and inconsiderate.
2. I respect your right to protest the shutdowns....just don't wrap yourself in the American flag and talk about freedom and patriotism when you do it. We are at war. People are dying and the economy is getting crushed. Disregarding social distancing and not wearing a mask is aiding and abetting the enemy. Doesn't make you a patriot.....makes you a traitor.

[cluedigger]

Be careful who you call a traitor. I am following the guidelines but believe the government is trampling all over the Constitution. This virus has not been nearly as bad as we were warned it would be. The government has a responsibility to warn us of possible disaster but no authority to confine me to my home or prohibit me from assembling with like minded individuals. I respect the right of businesses to refuse me service for not wearing a mask. I took several oaths to defend the Constitution and I take great offense at being called a traitor.

[CAG]

Traitor is a pretty strong word and not one that really fits this thread. The thread had to do with traffic in and around Gallup. If you are not aware of the issue with the Navajo Nation and the virus you should educate yourself and stick to that issue and not wander off to whom is trampling on who's rights. You do not have the same rights on the Navajo Nation.

The Navajo Nation has now passed the entire state of Arizona for deaths and infected per capata. The Nation has 175K residents. Arizona's population is over 5 million. Gallup is surrounded by the Navajo Nation and a major commercial center for the natives on the Nation. Many are employed at businesses in Gallup. What happens on the Nation has a major effect on the city of Gallup.

Bottom line to this is this is not life under Covid 19 as in the rest of the country. The Navajo's can make what-ever rules they want. They are not governed by the US. Gallup needs to do whatever it can to protect it's citizens.

This is not a debate of rights in New York City or Kentucky or God forbid California. It is a different world here.