I have to confess, every time I see/hear Floridian I hear Floridiot 
. My stepdad grew up in Miami and that’s what he called everyone here. Not all are idiots, of course, but all the “Florida man” news stories don’t help. 
As much as those stories either make me laugh or cause me to shake my head, I’ve seen plenty of other states in my area as well.
I don’t really understand why they are here. I mean it’s been cold and snow for weeks. We have snowbirds that leave PA for the warmer states during the winter. There’s nothing like seeing a southern license plate out in bad winter weather. I give them a lot of room when I’m around them.
And it’s not like where I live in a big tourist area or anything. 
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This is me chewing my fingers til they bleed, rolling back from my computer and going on with my life muttering something about “over my dead body.”
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Fixed it for you
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As a military dependent that kept my tags/registration to our home of record, I benefited from having out of state plates where ever we lived. Now that I’m back home… I can’t play the lost tourist anymore 
I’m sad to say I miss that I share this as a means of possible explanation for Florida plates in the snow 
Personally I think people are blowing this way out of proportion. Talking about potential options is not the same as doing them. At most, I think we’ll see a testing requirement to fly which I think is a good idea, as long as Biden puts a stop to all these testing sites that are charging money. Testing should be free.
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FACTS!
I haven’t watched a single WH briefing but that was funny.
Way off the titled topic…I have always wondered if people treat me differently in snow and ice, like a baby giraffe just getting its legs steady. Oklahoma falls into a weird place, some say Midwestern, some say Southern, some even say a Black Hole of Stupidity. (I promise, some of us have experienced the world, and have reason and common sense.)
In my direct area, no trees, no hills, all wind, all the time. We can see Texas on a good day, and see storms in Kansas. If you don’t teach your kids to drive in snow and ice, you never let them drive. We know how to handle it, but going to CO and NM, I’ve always wondered if we are the “Oh geez, give them space” people. 
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Driving in the snow on a flat surface is totally different from mountain/hilly driving. A friend of mine from Ohio - equally snowy, flat and windy. When she moved to the mountains and was very cavalier about driving in snow bc “she’s got this.”
She ended up in a 10 car pile up because driving in the mountains is completely different.
So while you personally may know what you’re doing, I’d still be avoidant if I saw an OK plate.
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And I get that! I totally do. We spend so much time in the mountains for our mini-vacas that it has become normal for us. We never fly and drive anywhere and everywhere. I’ve just always wondered if we are viewed in that way, too. We see the slightest twitch from another car and we know what’s coming. I notice how people hold their hands when they drive, if they are busy playing with the radio or their phones, coffee. My DH lived many years in MI for college, CO for years, traveled northeast for work tons, and handles things smoothly.
Agree. The Miami Herald article is littered with very tentative language:
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The Biden administration is considering whether to impose domestic travel restrictions,
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a review of potential travel restrictions
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potential travel restrictions do not target a specific state but focus on how to prevent the spread
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There are active conversations about what could help
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But we’re having conversations about anything that would help mitigate spread,”
And then there is this very clear and firm statement: which seems to be ignored by much of this discussion
- Two federal government officials underscored that no policy announcements are imminent
IMO folks need to chill the heck out, cool your heels, and wait for more information. I absolutely don’t want any domestic travel restrictions implemented. If I have to cancel my trip once more not only will I be emotionally devastated but I will begin to incur financial consequences as well. But dang, I am willing to do whatever it takes on a temporary basis so that we can get back to living. And these variants have me skittish.
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I agree. I think it’s probably more of a threat to try to get state/local officials to take the spread/variants more seriously than an actual policy plan.
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Absolutely. Nothing can be done to stop it, but things can be done to slow it down (which is important now with vaccine roll-out). It is much better to have 500 people bringing the new variants into a state each week instead of 1,000.
If they have a testing requirement to fly and I have to pay hundreds of dollars for my family of 5, I’m driving to Florida in November.
There would also need to be a mandated refund policy on tickets if someone came up positive.
I get that the Florida issue is just in talks. I’m just asking about the feasibility of doing it.
Yeah, sorry. I’ve seen the stories on accidents in the South when there is an inch of snow. I’ve also seen some out of state drivers who seem to have no idea what they are doing driving in the snow, even when the roads are 90% clear. So I’m giving them some space.
I wonder what they have been doing with airline tickets to Hawaii (a state that currently requires a negative test before boarding a flight to Hawaii) in those situations. I have a friend that had to delay his family’s flight to Hawaii by about 10 days because his son tested positive (asymptomatic), but not everyone has the flexibility to change the dates of their vacation like that (and plane tix to Hawaii are generally quite expensive).
My mom was supposed to go to Hawaii in September, but her whole trip was cancelled (not because of testing). She did get a refund and credit for her flights with 2 different airlines. But I’m not sure what they would do if someone tested positive and couldn’t fly. And I agree, not everyone has that kind of flexibility.
I’m thinking this is part of why airlines are not in favor of this policy.
It’s basically the idea of mandating nationwide what New York is already doing. You must have proof of a negative test taken within 72 hours of returning to New York. Which stinks, but it isn’t necessarily a dealbreaker. Just very, very logistically inconvenient.
Yes, my state has that too. I can tell you though that there are many people that don’t follow it, especially when driving to and from neighboring states.
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Psaki has just stated in the daily briefing that while they are always discussing options, there are no in depth discussions or plans to change domestic travel at this time.
I think the press ran with an off the cuff comment and turned into something much bigger than it was.
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