First came the virus. Then new rules for recreational tennis.

screenshot from the John Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center website, May 27, 2020 (click)

Nassau County is one of four on New York’s Long Island. It’s therefore close to Queens and Brooklyn (aka Kings County), the two jurisdictions in all of America that have suffered the highest number of coronavirus deaths so far.

Laura Curran, Nassau’s chief executive (mayor), knows this virus is no joke. Her own county is currently number eight on that list.

Big picture, she appears to be an able and sensible leader, performing a tough job in stressful times.

At a press conference last week, Curran’s sense of humour carried her through some awkward moments. While running for election a few years ago, I’m sure she never imagined solemnly uttering this phrase aloud and in public: “You can kick their balls, but you can’t touch them.”

Yet flanked by police officers (apparently her bodyguards), she said exactly that last week, while attempting to instruct the public on how to safely recommence the playing of outdoor tennis. The video clip is here:

What an absurd time. This is what we’ve come to. In the land of the free and the home of the brave, politicians now provide minute instructions about the right and wrong way to participate in recreational sports.

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