COVID violators are not American heroes
During World War II, did Americans cheer for those who refused to use ration cards for their meat and butter? Did we pour into the streets to support keeping public pools open during the worst of the polio outbreak? Did news outlets give space to anti-science misfits who denied any link between open city sewers and the spread of deadly cholera? No doubt there are examples of all three, but in each instance, the vast majority of the nation sucked it up and did the right thing, often making considerable sacrifices for the greater good and for the welfare of future generations.
On Monday, Maryland State Police announced the running tally for police agencies statewide that have been enforcing those COVID-19 restrictions from limited indoor seating in houses of worship to shuttered playgrounds. The numbers loom large: 42,166 compliance checks, 4,688 calls for service and 132 charges filed or arrests made. In theory, police should never have to be called to enforce rules during a pandemic that has already killed more than 280,000 Americans, but human nature being human nature, there are inevitably people who are indifferent, unthinking, unaware or some combination of all three. The same could likely be said of some during World War II, but back then, we didn’t hold them up as heroes in some form of culture war.
And there’s a lot of that going on. Just tune into Fox News or One America News Network. Want to get some adulation by the right-wing? Charge an elected official who approved COVID-19 restrictions with hypocrisy for eating a meal out, preferably a pricey one. Or make a video explaining why restrictions hurting your business aren’t fair because there’s another business (it need not be comparable or even especially nearby, apparently) that is not as heavily restricted. In either case, you will get around-the-clock coverage and sympathetic news readers pleading your case.
Make no mistake, nothing about the pandemic is fair. But it would be nice to think that Americans come together in our “finest hours” when times are tough just as they did 80 years ago fighting the Axis powers. The reality is probably never quite that simplistic or tidy, but surely it should be our proud, patriotic aspiration.