Californians dining out must mask up 'in between' bites of food

California Democrat Gov. Gavin Newsom's office issued a directive on Oct. 3 in which residents who are dining out should be wearing their mandated face masks "in between bites" of food.

The Office of the Governor of California tweeted: "Going out to eat with members of your household this weekend? Don't forget to keep your mask on in between bites. Do your part to keep those around you healthy."

Some may have thought this was the work of satire sites such as The Onion or The Babylon Bee. But it wasn't.

"No, this is not a parody. But it is why satire is dead. How can you keep satire alive in the face of such overwhelming absurdity," wrote Daniel Greenfield for Front Page Mag.

"This isn't advice, it's a physical comedy skit. But it's also life in California where the authorities expect the populace to eat with their masks on. Mask down, food goes in mouth, and then the mask goes up again," Greenfield added.

"It ought to go without saying that the authorities themselves won't be doing any of this stuff. But the public is expected to not only do it, but enjoy it too."

California Globe writer Katy Grimes noted that the directive from Newsom's office "is about as ridiculous as being told by a restaurant hostess to wear a mask outdoors on the way to an outdoor table. Yes, that has happened twice."