When the Starkville Board of Aldermen announced a change in its COVD-19 regulations to accommodate the opening of most retail stores in the city during a special call meeting Monday, some citizens began howling in protest, a predictable, if unfortunate, response.

The primary condition attached to retail shopping stipulated that all customers and employees must wear protecting mouth and nose covering, a measure health experts say will help prevent spread of the virus.

Those who defy the ordinance will face a $1,000 fine.

For most citizens, the requirement is reasonable, despite relatively small, passionate protests have at state capitols around the country, including Mississippi, The protesters are loud. They are visible. Yet they represent only a small percentage of Americans.

Support for shelter-in-place and other precautions have support across political party lines. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation’s polling, 61 percent of Republicans agree that these measures are appropriate, Among Democrats, the support is 94 percent and among Independents, it’s 84 percent.

In our politically polarized nation, you’ll seldom find anything that has that kind of broad agreement.

For the small minority who protest this measures, it means ignoring the real threat posed by the virus — almost a million cases and almost as many deaths (56,259) in two months as in the entirety of the 10-year Vietnam War.

That seems to mean little to the protesters, though. They see these restrictions as an attack on the individual liberties enshrined in the U.S. Constitution.

That’s a fundamental misunderstanding of those rights. The truth is, our nation has suspended certain rights during periods of national crisis almost from the start. The U.S. Supreme Court has consistently ruled that the state does have the right under the Constitution to suspend certain rights provided A, they do not target a specific group, B, they are temporary and C, they serve a compelling state interest.

The current restrictions check every box.

Most people understand this and are willing to forfeit certain rights for the common good in times of emergency.

It’s part of being a good citizen.

In the case of Starkville’s new rules, it’s very likely that the city will show great restraint in enforcement. The goal isn’t the slap people with a fine as much as it is to remind citizens of the rule.

At a recent “Open the Economy” protest in North Carolina, a photo of an SUV bore the message on its rear window: “Your health is not more important than my liberties.”

That is a summation of the attitude not only in North Carolina, but in parts of Starkville, too, apparently.

The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.