NYC mayor Adams was a big supporter of forced masking, and, after that ended, telling people they should wear a mask. You know, those masks which really do nothing, but, if they did make a difference, wearing them inside around others would be where you’d wear one
New York Mayor Eric Adams has a clear message for retailers: If you want to prevent theft, don’t allow shoppers to enter with face masks on.
“Do not allow people to enter the store without taking off their face masks,” Adams told a local radio station Monday. “When you see these mask-wearing people, it’s not about being fearful of a pandemic. (They’re) fearful of the police catching (them) for their misdeeds.”
Adams said that stores need to be able to use technologies to “identify those shoplifters and those who have committed serious crimes,” but that face masks — an item that has become commonplace, albeit decreasingly so, due to the coronavirus pandemic — make it hard to do so. He added that once in the store, shoppers can feel free to wear face masks.
Adams’ comments come as retailers have sounded the alarms about above-average theft rates for months. Walmart President and CEO Doug McMillon said in December 2022 that stores would close and prices would rise if theft levels did not drop.
Very interesting. Adams is putting this on the stores, rather than the government policies which enable shoplifting, how the city restricts police officer actions, demonizes cops so they leave and aren’t replaced, prosecutors releasing criminals that were caught, and, you know the rest. Masks helped inflame the crime.
Adams probably witnessed what happened to Lori Lightfoot in Chicago and doesn’t want to lose his cushy gig, but, he shouldn’t put this on the stores who are under assault. Will stores post someone at the door to tell people to lower their masks? Will they require old folks with canes to take their masks off? Even if some of the “youths” drop their masks for a bit, they’ll still steal. If they have their faces recorded, will cops do anything, and, more importantly, will the prosecutors?
Why bother? Prosecutors still will not charge shoplifters or give them jail terms. NYC policy will still discourage police from giving chase to criminals.
The wheel turns round and round!