American character MIA

To the Editor:

Two recent articles in the Democrat reveal tragic changes in our national character.

The first article commemorated our response to the attack on Pearl Harbor. The 1941 editor of the Democrat lauded the “spirit of service and sacrifice” inspired by the attack. He proudly observed, “Japan has made the first attack, but to America goes the first victory. We have found ourselves. We are united.” And history proved him right. Everyday Americans united. Some worked at home to build an incredible fighting force. Others left home to fight, and 420,000 would never see those homes again. Through their selfless sacrifices, America was victorious.

An article later that week struck a heartbreaking contrast between our historic response to Pearl Harbor and that of present-day Americans to an even deadlier attacker, COVID-19. It noted that since August, the number of Tuolumne County residents killed by COVID has doubled, with the vast majority of deaths among the unvaccinated.

Though COVID has killed over 800,000 Americans, more than any war in our history, almost half the people in this county refuse to join the fight. They have become “conscientious objectors.” They refuse vaccines and masks, enabling the enemy to evade our defenses and continue its rampage. In 1941, Americans aiding the enemy were called traitors. Today, these Americans wrap themselves in the flag of personal freedom and declare themselves patriots. They ignore the fact that personal freedom unfettered by responsibility to others has never been an American value, but is merely thinly disguised selfishness and entitlement.

On Dec. 15, California's indoor mask mandate went into effect. I saw only two Safeway customers wearing masks that day. The “greatest generation's” spirit of service and sacrifice, and its unity against a common enemy, were nowhere to be seen.

We have lost ourselves. We are divided.

Nan Fuller Cedar Ridge