We are, each of us, entirely on our own. (Perhaps that has always been true.) Nobody from the government will save you. Your and your family’s health is yours alone to protect.

Fortunately, though, nobody can be compelled to appear at a school. Not staff, not students. If you so much as sneeze or sweat, you’re too sick for school.

Death is only one possible risk. There’s new research linking covid infection to permanent organ damage and now, brain damage and mental illness diagnoses. Ain’t no public school education that can compensate for even one of those outcomes. The good news is: You don’t need the President’s permission to opt out. Vote with your feet.

Then grab a book, gather your babies, and read to them. They’ll turn out smarter than any of their masked, plastic-wrapped peers.