Letter to the Editor: On Independence and  Dependence

~ Submitted by Don Marshall

First let me say that I generally agree with the comments in the Letter to the Editor by Matthew Derman on February 11, 2022. The reason why case numbers have gone down is the extreme precautions that we have been taking.  I fear case numbers will just go up again when the mandates start to disappear or new virus variants appear.

Second, let me reiterate the points that I tried to make in a Letter to the Editor last year entitled “Declaration of Dependence.” When we agreed to that momentous Declaration of Independence on July 4^th, 1776 we, as a community, became independent of Great Britain and King George. But, also as a community, we became even more dependent on one another and needed to establish laws and regulations that were in the common interest and agree to follow them. We had the right to change these laws as time went on, but only by agreement as a community, not as individuals. Thus we have laws restricting individual rights when it comes to murder, theft, rape, libel, speeding, pollution, and the like because we, as a community, deem it in our best interests to have these laws.

If we don’t like these laws, we may work to change them or we may look around for a different community to join.