OPINION/LETTERS: I'm vaccinated but mandates are wrong

Until 1776, societies had never been at liberty to choose their own destiny and fate, the freedom to make choices of what they felt was best for them and their families. Until that time, cultures had been ruled by emperors, kings, tyrants or "enlightened despots." The Founding Fathers were the architects of “the great experiment," according to all the precepts of individual freedom, liberty, and self-governance. Of course, America has not been without her flaws, but we have always made every effort to correct those shortcomings ... even involving a civil war with the expenditure of life, blood and treasure.

Full disclosure, I’m vaccinated. That said, what I witness today is gut wrenching.  Families turning on one another, disowning friends, co-workers, and the exclusion of the un-vaccinated segment of society. I made a calculated, personal choice to get vaccinated. This should be the same for everyone, and people should have the right to choose for themselves whether to get vaccinated, not Washington or State bureaucrats by employment of threats, coercion, or shame. The Rhode Island “proof of vaccination” mandate for businesses is wrong. I refuse to bring my card when I go out to establishments because, frankly, it’s none of anyone’s business. Those who cheer on this requirement should tread lightly, as history has shown, when all this is behind us, those who wielded such unchallenged power implementing a “simple mandate” will not stop there.  Someday they will focus on something you hold sacred, or you come to view as government overreach and assault on your freedom, liberty, and human rights. 

I have spent my adult life defending, supporting, and protecting the rights of every American. We should all take a step back and consider how we view these mandates being forced on us by unilateral fiat and dictate, without legislative debate or voice, and ask: Is this the American way? Is this the America I want the future to grow up in?

I recall a quote that has resonated with me since I was a young man after visiting the Holocaust Museum. It’s on the wall as you exit, presumably to remind us to not stay silent to something because it doesn’t affect you personally. Although circumstances were astronomically different and much worse then, I think the reference is relevant: “First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out — Because I was not a socialist. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out — Because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out — Because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me — and there was no one left to speak for me.”

Warren Caldwell III, Portsmouth