In 1942, my father and my father-in-law received draft notices informing them to report for military service for the duration, not for a few months, not for a year or two but for the duration of the war. Both served in Europe.

My father returned in half a body cast with severe leg injuries and a Purple Heart. My father-in-law fought with the units that relieved Bastogne and that seized the bridge at Remagen.

Meanwhile, my mother and mother-in-law stayed at home and worried if they would ever see the men they had recently married alive again. My mother worked in the defense industry. My mother-in-law taught. Both dealt with anxiety and the rationing of gasoline, sugar, meat, butter and a variety of other basic commodities. They all sacrificed for the freedom we enjoy today. They never claimed their freedom was being threatened by their government or that their actions were exceptional. My father declined to have a Purple Heart license plate on his car precisely because he didnt think that what he had done made him special.

Today we are under attack from a very different kind of enemy, a virus. We are being asked to sacrifice by wearing masks in public settings, by washing our hands more frequently and by keeping 6 feet away from others not from our own household. We are advised to avoid crowds and are deprived of many forms of entertainment.

Most Americans are willing to make these small sacrifices. They understand our economy cannot be restored as long as the uncertainty of a pandemic hangs over us. A loud and dangerous minority chooses to see these measures as an attack on their freedoms. Some claim that they violate our Constitution, without demonstrating that they have ever actually read that document. Mostly they are either uninformed about the rationale for these measures or they have utter disregard for the health and safety of their fellow citizens or both.

Wearing a mask has nothing to do with party affiliation. It doesnt make you more or less macho. It is about protecting your fellow citizens. It shows that you care about our country and its freedoms. It shows that you accept your share of the responsibility for defending our country as the Greatest Generation did.

Is that really too much to ask?

Peter Chaveas

Brevard

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Freedom And Responsibility - The Transylvania Times