Here’s something to lose sleep over:
The front window of biblion, the Second Street bookstore in Lewes, displays this quote from Bob Dylan: “A hero is someone who understands the responsibility that comes with freedom.”
The line lacks the clarion call of the early, fiery Dylan, but I suppose the times they are a-changin’. It struck me because we’ve been hearing a lot about freedom and liberty lately.
A few weeks back a letter-writer lamented her lack of sleep. Her insomnia wasn’t caused by the loss of thousands of lives and millions of jobs taken by the coronavirus but by the “hit our liberties are taking.”
The writer was referring to Gov. Carney’s emergency declaration directing Delawareans to wear face masks.
Is this what we’ve come to? Liberty defined as our right to infect others?
The face masks aren’t meant to protect the wearer so much as to protect others. Refusing to wear a mask isn’t an assertion of a “right.” It’s a refusal to accept responsibility.
It’s a way of saying, “I have no responsibility to protect your health.”
It’s a way of saying, “I have no responsibility to protect the health of your family, friends and anyone you may come in contact with.”
It’s a way of saying, “I have no responsibility to protect the health of medical professionals who will treat me if I become sick.”
Back in ninth-grade civics class, I learned that our right to swing our fists ended where someone else’s nose began. It’s a pretty simple concept.
But if you’re concerned about an assault on our liberties, try this: The president of the United States is threatening not only our health but our right to free speech.
Many states are working to expand mail-in voting. This would make sense at any time, but especially during a pandemic. That people should risk their health to vote is as horrifying as it is unnecessary.
On May 26, the president tweeted that mail-in votes would be “substantially fraudulent,” part of a myth about widespread voter fraud that has been disproven numerous times, including by congressional Republicans.
In a new policy, Twitter added links to Trump’s tweet telling people where to “get the facts” about mail-in ballots.
The president then tweeted, “Twitter is completely stifling free speech, and I, as president, will not allow it to happen.”
Please note that Twitter did not take down the president’s tweets. Please also note that the president’s own tweets disproved what he was tweeting.
The company in no way restricted Trump’s freedom of speech. It merely exercised its own right to free speech by showing people where to get more information.
To President Trump, free speech means the freedom to say whatever he wants, including baseless accusations of murder. It does not allow others to disagree with him.
And, Trump made clear, he was willing to use his power as president to threaten a private company and take away its most basic freedoms. I have no idea how supposed lovers of liberty can accept that.
That’s something to lose sleep over.
On the bright side, however, I’ve been heartened by the number of locals who accept the simple logic of wearing masks to protect their fellow citizens.
We will get through this, as long as people get out and vote this November.
Don Flood
Lewes
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