SHARED SACRIFICE? MANY SDSU STUDENTS PASS

The student fury that greeted San Diego State

University faculty’s decision to scrap the traditional week-long March spring break in favor of four spaced-out “rest and recovery” days was no surprise. Students want relief from stressful times and believe SDSU is badly mishandling the coronavirus pandemic. They also resent not being consulted before the spring break decision was made.

But their complaints can also be seen as a rejection of the idea of shared sacrifice in response to an awful, worsening national health crisis that has killed more than 275,000 Americans. Given that partying and travel are associated with the sort of risky behavior that has fueled the coronavirus’ recent surge, canceling spring break is reasonable.

Yes, children and young adults are much more likely to fully recover from a coronavirus infection.

Because of this, some authorities think that it is relatively safe to open K-12 schools with proper safeguards. But the Centers for Disease Control reported in September that those aged 20-39 — often people who don’t heed guidance on masks, social distancing and the need to limit time indoors with non-household members — were driving the pandemic’s spread in more at-risk communities.

Mature, cautious behavior by people of all ages has allowed nations including Taiwan and New Zealand to resume much more normal times, with packed music and sports events. Americans — even college students — are capable of such prudence.