It’s doubtful downtown Ellsworth will ever appear on the nightly news with looters running in and out of burning stores hauling away as much merchandise as possible before order is restored.

Most of us in rural Kansas would be horrified at the thought of unruly protesters destroying our retail communities. And, yet, since March — when the coronavirus pandemic appeared and continues to sweep through our state like an out-of-control prairie fire — talk of business boycotts has been frequent.

The issue was raised again at Monday’s meeting of the Ellsworth County Commissioners, who a week ago approved a mask mandate to slow the spread of a virus that has infected more than 500 local residents as of this week.

“We have come to realize that not everyone has a right to voice their opinions, even at an open county commissioners meeting; said Andrea Reed, whose husband, Dan, operates a local insurance agency. They oppose a mask mandate.

They have company; unfortunately, too many can’t separate a storefront from public policy.

“Here are a couple of the comments from the I-R Facebook page after the mask mandate was approved:

+ “Yelp, time to take business out of the county then. Never thought good ol’ Ellsworth county would turn communist.”

+ “Salina isn’t forcing the masks so ... that’s where I will take my business!”

Our purpose here is not to defend masks; we’ve done that in previous editorials. The goal is to defend our local businesses that — mask or no mask mandate — have their hands full trying to survive a pandemic that started in another part of the world and landed here without an invitation.

Our revenue at the I-R is down 15 percent from a year ago. Most of that reduction comes from other local businesses that have cut their advertising budgets in the wake of COVID-19.

These are businesses that like the I-R pay property and sales taxes, write checks to support local events and projects and contribute to Ellsworth County’s quality of life through their donations of time and dollars.

These are the businesses a few in Ellsworth County would avoid because of a mask mandate. That may not be the same as striking a match, but telling a small town merchant you will no longer shop at their store because you have a difference of opinion produces the same result.

Over the years, rural Kansas has been known for the way its residents come together during times of difficulty. This is one of those times.