Back in the Fall my men’s soccer team went down in the second round of the state playoffs to a Jacksonville team that was one of the best I’ve ever seen.  They were strong in every facet of the game, athletic, and well coached. At one point I looked at my Assistant and said, “I love good soccer; I just wish it wasn’t happening to us.”  Soccer is something that I love almost to the point of compulsion and I was experiencing the beautiful game in its purest form but it wasn’t bringing me much joy that day.

I’m beginning to feel the same way about the current pandemic crisis and the real life civics lessons that it is providing.  You see another compulsion of mine is introducing students to our government, its role in our lives, and the responsibilities required of its citizens.  I honestly try to include as many legitimate perspectives as possible and I challenge my students to make informed decisions. Unfortunately, I can’t be around them right now but if I were these are three things I would be teaching them.

One of the unique characteristics of our style of government is the interplay between the nation as a whole and the individual states.  Federalism can be pretty dry but when doctors have to start prioritizing which patients get life-saving ventilators, arguments between governors and the president become a little more compelling. Add to that the fact that different states have vastly differing approaches would allow me to point all the way back to the Articles of Confederation and trace our historical preference for local control. I would illuminate this by describing how we are hunkered down at home in North Carolina while our neighbors south of the border shoot fireworks from the back of their motorcycles which they ride with no helmets. Classic Foster. 

What about the government’s role in the economy? 10 million unemployment claims over 2 weeks means that families will be hurting. How far should a government go to take care of people and where is the line between government and personal responsibility? At this point I would probably bring up my Facebook feed and how political ideology affects this view. Then I would joke that there should be plenty of money for those in the middle because the “He’s not my president” folks evidently don’t deserve a check and the socialism haters would never take a handout from the government. “Man, he’s hilarious”, my kids would think. 

Some of the lowest fruit would come from the clash of civil liberties and public safety. Dearly held freedoms like assembly and religion crash head-on into public health directives to socially distance for the good of society. Once again, where is the line? Pastors getting arrested would probably catch their attention and then I would toss in my patented hyperbole.  “Could I drive my tank to church when the governor says stay home?” Before they could answer I would follow with “and could I bring my three-year-old son who is being treated for cancer and has a severely compromised immune system?” From humorous to a serious conundrum. Another Fosterism. 

Learning Civics is a big deal and a lot of what I have seen lately makes me curious if some folks were sleeping in class. I’ve been disappointed by the public’s misunderstanding of government so often I’m almost numb to it but this living civics lesson isn’t the most important one to learn from this crisis. You see my boys lost that game to Jacksonville but they played their butts off and they fought like hell for each other. The lesson I’ve learned is that Americans will do the same. Whether they know how their government works or not.