Being quirky and independent no excuse to put others at risk

EVERYONE will have stories of the way some people are failing to adhere to the lockdown rules as Britain battles its way through the appalling coronavirus pandemic. And there will always be some who stick rigidly to the rules while others pay too little heed to them – that is just human nature.

But if a whole town – or significant elements within it – gets a reputation for taking a lackadaisical attitude to something as fundamental as maskwearing and social distancing, then it becomes a wider problem.

And that appears to be what is happening in Totnes, famous and – for the most part – loved for its quirky nature, its embracing of the alternative lifestyle and its independent spirit.

Many inside and outside the town cheered when Totnes rejected attempts by a major coffee chain to move into the High Street, insisting it preferred to stick to local independent cafes, thank you very much.

And there were chuckles and cheers when one of the road signs on the edge of town was subtly altered to read: “Totnes – twinned with Narnia.” In an age when so many high streets look the same and so many communities leave visitors feeling as if they could be anywhere, the special nature of a town like Totnes deserves to be celebrated. But the suggestion now being made in some quarters is that such kicking against authority has been extended by some in Totnes to mean rejecting the advice on mask-wearing and social distancing to reduce the spread of coronavirus. And that, it seems, wins the town fewer friends.

One resident warns in today’s Western Morning News that shoppers are being driven away from the otherwise excellent market because of “crowds of anti-vaccine protesters” refusing to wear masks.

Paul Wesley told a question and answer session of Totnes Town Council: “People won’t come in to town when there are so many antimaskers or anti-vaxxers around in the centre of town.”

He has a point. In a free society, people who take a different view to the majority on the risk posed by Covid-19 have a right to make their point. There is no compulsion to be vaccinated against the virus; nothing to say that you have to back the way the Government has chosen to tackle the disease, with lockdowns and closures.

But you do have to obey the law – if for no other reason than in failing to do so you potentially put others at risk. And you do have to behave in a way that is acceptable to the majority, if you live and work in a community with others close by.

Along with its reputation for quirkiness, Totnes has, in the past, shown a very strong community spirit. Residents support local business; the homeless generally get a helping hand, there is a generosity within the town that is not always reflected in other parts of the country in the 21st century.

But much of that positivity could so easily be undone if the ‘anti-vaxxers’ and those ready to put others under threat to make a point continue to behave in the way some have been doing. When rule-bending puts others at risk, it has to stop.