He said it might be child abuse. The doctor, an infectious disease expert, was angry and incredulous because the news story centered on children burning their masks in front of the Idaho state capitol. The doctor thought these kids were being manipulated into believing that wearing a mask was more an infringement on their rights as Americans than on the health of their fellow citizens.
Our country is COVID weary these days. College students in Boulder, Colorado gathered by the hundreds and unmasked, partied like there was no tomorrow. Hopefully, for many of them, there will be many more tomorrows. Their arrogance and stupidity will soon be forgotten, but when the next uptick in infections correlates with these actions, they will have to pay the band for all their liberated dancing. They may want the pandemic to end, but their behavior says otherwise.
It's not enough to be tired of wearing a mask and washing your hands, and social distancing. It's been a year, but only a year. As inconvenient as it has become, it beats the alternative.
Is it that the anti-maskers are unaware of the necessity to protect themselves and others? Possibly, but what stands out for me is that they have a rather poor understanding of just what their rights are and how they function in a democracy.
They behave as if their right not to have to wear a mask is absolute. Not so. Those rights they clamber for are limited by the good of the order. If we take the old cliche about hollering fire in a crowded theater, the same applies here. Colorado students, kids in Idaho (and their parents) you do not have the right to impact someone's health adversely. Whether you agree or disagree, you have entered into a social contract that does not guarantee any rights when they endanger others.
That these folks don't know this is perhaps the worst tragedy. Something will have to change.
Why? With the vaccine shining as a light at the end of this tunnel, aren't we almost home safe? Not quite. What about other tunnels in the years to come? Viruses mutate, new ones come to light all the time. Save those masks.
Picture yourself being interviewed 20 years from now telling some high school student how it was before masks became an essential accessory. Yes, there really was a time when we sat side by side in a movie theater, and people by the thousands packed the biggest stadiums and arenas.
Our biggest challenge now seems to be playing for the same team. Getting everybody through with a new understanding of both safe practices and how they operate in a democracy where rights are tempered by what is best for all.
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