Americans have always been ornery about rules, citing constitutional rights for personal freedoms, but today’s level of self-interest and non-cooperation have reached a new high. What has changed? Two big things, among others – the internet and a growing mistrust in government. The internet and its social media progeny have distorted truth and gives a soapbox to nuts, while mistrust in government, arguably well-earned, exacerbates non-compliance.
Public health compliance and vaccination during the COVID pandemic are so much worse than they were during similar historical events so as to defy logic. No doubt the Spanish Flue pandemic actions saw some grumbling and non-compliance, but nothing like today. For decades, parents complied willingly with vaccination mandates for children to attend school, notwithstanding a small minority of anti-vaxers who disregard or don’t understand the science that has clearly dispelled their myths. But all of a sudden, school vaccination mandates are widely viewed as a violation of rights. Americans embraced the polio vaccine, when it became available in 1952, so much so that we achieved herd immunity. Now, two-thirds of parents mistrust the COVID vaccine. What changed? The internet and a mistrust of government is what changed. The internet allows parents to reinforce their fears with misinformation and today’s average citizen, who feels more downtrodden and isolated than ever, feels government is not to be trusted, nor are companies, nor are scientists who are viewed as too elite (aka, the enemy).
Why does the average citizen feel so downtrodden and isolated? Because the rich are getting richer and they are getting poorer. That is certainly something to resent. More and more people work hard but can barely get by. Basic services provided by most governments, such as paid parental leave (only 8 countries in the world don’t have it), are denied by American government. So many aspects of our country are starting to resemble a third world nation that we have little left to be proud of as Americans. No wonder so many want to go back to the past. Our one remaining beacon, the world’s most threatening defense organization, is a dubious achievement at best. Isolation is fostered by an American democratic representative system that does not really/fairly represent it’s citizenship. And both those in the majority and in the minority feel the frustration. The majority despairs because policy on popular issues goes the wrong way (75% of the country wants to keep abortion rights as they are, but governments are doing their best to erode that). The minority feels a right to have their (minority) issues pursued because American democracy was designed to over-indulge the minority (e.g., filibusters, senate composition, etc.). So, everyone is frustrated and distrusts government. Add to that renewed inherent racism (e.g., opposition to critical race theory) and Nuevo Nationalism (e.g., anti-immigration) and everybody mistrusts everybody. The “wild west” is back.
In countries where people listen to their government, public health responses have been more successful at minimizing COVID infection; Taiwan, for example. In countries where the government (and/or its leaders) is viewed as outrageous, COVID has run rampant; Brazil, for example. Some countries leave no choice (“follow the rules or we will kill you and your family”), but even they have mixed outcomes. The good advice is actually quite simple and proven to be effective – distancing, limited gathering, masks, and now vaccines – and effective governments, which will have commensurate good public health practice, have people that cooperate for the success of all.
When did Americans lose faith in their government? Certainly, over the past 10 years it got worse – Congress gets nothing done, can’t even write good legislation anymore, politicians can be bought cheap, partisanship stymies leadership, the Supreme Court disappoints (e.g., Citizens United and the shadow docket), and local governments don’t have enough money. Not much to be proud of. And transparency, never a pinnacle of American government, is more opaque than ever. Such a loss of trust, combined with Americans’ spirit of independence, results in people feeling a need to look out for themselves.
But this new individualism (aka, “patriotism”) is dangerous. It is obvious in pandemic behavior. The “new individual’s” public health non-compliance endangers other people. Outrageously, their response is “it’s my right”. No one has a right to endanger other people when the safer actions are so straightforward. It is obvious with guns. “It’s my right to bear arms,” even AK47s. Their belief is so blind and strrong that they shrug off mall, school, and church shootings as long as they can keep their “right” – 470 just this year to date – more than one a day! As if the Founders had that in mind when writing the Second Amendment.
This new individualism has led to tribalism, which is bolstered by the internet. With the internet, it is so easy to spread misinformation and amplify false justifications for new individualism, so that more people get converted and the converted get more adamant. The tribalism has become so extreme that death threats to those with opposing views are commonplace. The new individual hates government and anyone with a different view – they fume. This is different than it was, and it’s clearly destructive. Beware the new individual who won’t wear a mask and won’t get vaccinated – he/she will kill you for your food if it ever comes to that (climate change?). Their justification will be that it’s their right to eat.
Trump is front and center in this picture but in a strange way. The biggest liar ever to be in politics, his base is unfazed by his lack of truth and it loved his government. One would think that a purveyor of lies would be the definition of untrustworthy government. However, the base actually sees it as defiance of the swamp and the deep state, neither of which are well-formed concepts, and thus embraceable. Add a dose of internet bias-reinforcement (e.g., conspiracy theory) and Trump has whipped up a frenzy. Trump created the original pandemic skepticism/non-compliance, which fed right into the new individual’s sense of “rights” (which is probably why he did it). Now, it is out of control, even for Trump. That’s a lesson for demagogues – create a monster and it might eat you. Moreover, by destroying faith in elections, Trump offers a death blow to trust in America’s government, further proliferating new individualism. The real question is, however, if America’s new “patriots” succeed (it’s not just the yahoos, many are in government), what comes next? There doesn’t seem to be a Plan B.
Will it end? Will pandemic behavior become sensible? Will the growth of hate subside? Will we regain a regard for our neighbors? Probably not until (if?) we get good government and reign in the internet.