Good Citizens Unite!

When I was in the fourth grade, our teacher Mrs.[1] Weiner, taught us to be “good citizens.” She did not teach us to be “patriots.”

Good citizens: voted, didn’t litter, stay home when sick, didn’t violate the law, stayed informed, looked out for their neighbors and acted consistently with FDR’s “Four Freedoms.[2]”

Unfortunately, some folks, who see themselves as patriots, are not good citizens. They decided that their individual privileges include not wearing a mask in public during our Covid-19 pandemic. They raise their individual “right[3]” above the needs of their community. However, patriots raise their communities’ or nations’ needs above their own.

We treat the 412 first responders who died on 9/11 as patriots. The 2,501 Americans who died on D-Day are considered patriots. So are many of the 2,403 Americans who died at Pearl Harbor. Our nation made their memory almost immortal.

There are 220,000 American dead from Covid-19 and counting. They have not been included among America’s patriots. Certainly, there are first responders, health professionals and care-givers among them. However, they are not even treated as victims of an American tragedy. They’re treated as “statistics.”[4]

Horribly, there are citizens who refuse to prevent further tragedy by wearing face-masks in public. They are not being good citizens. And, being a good citizen is a lot easier than being a patriot. They are putting their own comfort and convenience ahead of the nation’s well being. They are endangering, themselves, their families and neighbors.[5] That’s unpatriotic.

So, Citizens Unite! Wear face masks in public! Protect yourself and the rest of us. Be a good citizen. You don’t want to piss off Mrs. Weiner.

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