Mike Collins: Those pandemic crowds in Annapolis were voting with their feet

There was a demonstration in Annapolis the other weekend that showed people’s attitude toward government-imposed restrictions on people and businesses. I am not talking about the event held by ReOpen Maryland on May 15, in which a couple of hundred demonstrators assembled at the State House.

That was a sideshow, although the heavy police presence and the many reporters on the ground and in the air made it seem otherwise.

I mean the truly massive demonstration that took place the next day, when thousands of people descended on downtown Annapolis. Luxuriating in the bright sunshine and warm temperatures, they crowded City Dock with little pretense to social distancing, sitting cheek to jowl along the sea wall surrounding Ego Alley. Pedestrians were everywhere — along Dock, Randal, and Main Streets — and traffic was jammed.

Some shops were open, and potential customers browsed in them. Some restaurants were busy, too. Prohibitions against sit-down dining, combined with the ability to sell takeaway food and drink, meant that people were wandering around, sipping from open containers of booze. It was one big street party.

The only people who didn’t turn out in big numbers, it seemed, were police and reporters. Perhaps, they were tuckered out after Friday’s rally.

Despite the differing turnouts and tones, the two events sent the same clear and unmistakable message: people are fed up with their communities being run in accordance with executive orders. Both were pure “people power.” The Saturday event was just on a scale that was far beyond the police to control.

This phenomenon is not limited to Annapolis. Across the country, people are increasingly chaffing under restrictions imposed by governors, mayors, and county executives using emergency powers and acting outside of the legislative process. They claim their fiats are based on science and data, but too often they seem merely capricious.

For example, Michigan’s governor has decreed that buying vegetables is okay, but buying vegetable seeds in the same store is not. In Minnesota, the governor says shopping at Walmart and Home Depot is fine but attending church services is verboten. In many states, marijuana and liquor stores can operate, but barbershops and hair salons cannot.

Another reason people are flouting these restrictions is the inconsistency of expert advice. In January, experts — such as the World Health Organization — lambasted President Donald Trump’s decision to stop flights from hotspots in China and Italy, saying it was premature and unnecessary. By early March, they grudgingly agreed he was right. Early on, experts told the public that they shouldn’t wear masks unless they were sick. Today, they tell us everyone should wear masks.

Perhaps most annoying to people, however, is that politicians appear to be playing bait-and-switch. The stated goal of the lockdowns was to “flatten the curve.” We needed to stretch the infection rate out over a relatively long time to keep our medical system from being overwhelmed. No one claimed that the disease would be stopped. Just slowed until we reach “herd immunity.” But, now, many politicians are claiming restrictions must continue until scientists find a cure or develop a vaccine.

Adding to people’s ire is the reaction of these politicians whenever their actions are questioned. Rather than patiently explain or demonstrate the “science,” many seem angry that anyone would dare challenge them. Some petulantly threaten to extend their restrictions until people shut up and do as they’re told.

Americans certainly are willing to sacrifice to help achieve an important, clearly stated goal. But when politicians move the goalposts apparently on a whim; peremptorily trample civil rights and restrict business; and sneer at those who don’t unquestioningly obey, they lose their moral authority.

That’s when, as they did in Annapolis, the people will ignore them and vote with their feet.

Mike Collins is a long-time resident of Annapolis.