Okay, let me point out that I know better than to write about this topic. About half of the people who read it will agree and the other 80% will think the whole mask thing is ridiculous. (Yes, I can add)
Social Media and Blogging “experts” have told me to stick the topics I’m known for. Those would be sales and leadership but heck, I haven’t had a good beat down over a blog post in a while so let’s go for it.
We should get this out of the way right up front. Yes, I wear a mask when I’m in a public area and I can’t stay at least 6 feet away from other people. Actually, I wear a mask pretty much all the time in public because very few people carry a tape measure with them. These are the same people who struggle with what 6 feet looks like. So to be safe I wear a mask….not for me, but for them. To keep them safe from me in case I have the virus and I’m asymptomatic.
That’s the whole point of wearing a mask…to keep other people safe.
I understand most of the reasons for NOT wearing a mask. One person told me the whole COVID thing is a hoax. No one, not one single person has died from the virus because the virus doesn’t exist. I pointed out that “they” indeed seem to be burying people. I was informed that the government is actually paying those people to stay in hiding so their loved ones will think they are dead. I was shocked!
I’m not sure what the end goal of the government would be for doing that. I do know the end goal of wearing a mask is to keep other people safe.
I also understand that the government can’t tell me I have to wear a mask. When they attempt to do so it infringes on my freedom. Few things are more important to me than my freedoms. Especially the freedom to needlessly and carelessly infect other people with a potentially deadly virus. Many brave men and women have died so I can have to freedom to not give a damn about anyone else.
But thanks to those same brave men and women I’m also free to attempt to keep other people safe, which is the whole point of wearing a mask.
The one thing I don’t understand is the idea of being too cool to wear a mask. I’ve never been that cool so it’s very hard for me to comprehend that concept. I’m surmising that when you’re too cool to wear a mask that you assume other people are cool with you infecting them with a potentially deadly virus. I kinda get that…I mean if I was to get infected I’m sure I’d feel better on my deathbed knowing that at least I’m dying for a good cause…. helping a really cool person continue to look cooler than me.
But I also can’t help but think that if the person was all that cool they would want to help keep other people safe, which is the whole point of wearing a mask.
So when I’m out in public and I see people not wearing a mask I can only assume a few things.
One, they are a massive conspiracy buff. Not only have they correctly identified this pandemic thing as a complete hoax they also know where Elvis is currently living.
Two, they have a very confused view of the definition of “freedom.” That confused view is causing them to do things that sadly, very sadly, some of them will deeply regret one day. Once Grandma is gone all the freedom in the world ain’t bringing her back…but hey, sacrifices must be made.
Three, they really are way cooler than me. My being near them or them seeing my face uncovered could adversely affect their coolness.
In that case it’s really really good that I’m wearing a mask, after all, the whole point of wearing a mask is to keep other people safe…even very cool people.
Great post! I totally agree.
Thank you, let’s hope lots of people do!
I agree on the whole concept of wearing a mask, enhancing preventative measures to keep all us safe. What I think it is a shame is the whole circus on the quarantine over a disease that, according to the numbers, is not as deadly as H1N1 and some other we are living with from years now. Something is wrong… Very wrong.
I guess it all depends on how you long at it. From a demographic standpoint it is FAR MORE deadly for certain age groups than H1N1. It is far more easily spread than any virus the medical community has seen. As in certain countries, like Brazil for instance, it is absolutely devastating the indigenous communities. I do think shutting down the world economy was an overreaction. Most of the medical community know says the US could have cut the 120,000 deaths to around 50k just by wearing masks. But I guess “we” continue to learn all the time.
Here comes your first challenge to this pattern of thinking…
“One, they are a massive conspiracy buff.”
Or realistically maybe many free thinking individuals have realized that covid-19 is not a hoax, but that the unconstitutional shutdowns, panic, and fear induced madness from the so called experts and feartube were completely overblown and unnecessary. The extreme example you give is extraordinarily rare and not common as you appear to suggest. How many times have these “experts” performed complete 180s since March on what they’ve recommended or said? It’s been too many times to count, it’s difficult to keep up with the flip-flops day to day. And when one of these medical experts suggests something different, other experts shame and pile on and said person(s) miraculously retract their statements, I suspect out of fear of public persecution of an UNPOPULAR opinion that doesn’t jive with the supposed consensus. And before someone comments expressing that they’ve learned new things along the way that have shaped their OPINIONS, these same people have understood the science behind coronaviruses for decades and this one spreads and acts in a similar manner to many we’re accustomed to. They are simply changing their minds and everyone is falling in line, almost without question. Further, how many times have their models and the covid data been almost criminally inaccurate, manipulated or absent? Many seem to forget that it was predicted that millions were going to die and that we only needed 2 weeks to “flatten the curve”. That was over 3 months ago; 40 million lost US jobs and untold number of livelihoods destroyed later. I live in NC and Democrat governor Cooper refuses to release all the covid data they have, even after lawsuits from multiple news agencies. It’s become painfully obvious he fears the truth coming out regarding his inept response to the pandemic and the manipulation of data during an election year. Corruption at its worst.
“Two, they have a very confused view of the definition of “freedom.”’
Since the vast majority of people are simply using ineffective cloth masks (n95 are the best option, if we’re going to be serious about containment), your insinuation that if you don’t wear a mask you want to kill grandma is absurd and divisive. Since asymptomatic spread almost exclusively occurs when coughing or sneezing (as studies have shown the virus doesn’t stay on surfaces as originally suggested), doesn’t it make more sense to just stay home since obviously you’re not asymptomatic? But for this conversation, say you do have to sneeze in public, wouldn’t it be more effective to do what we should have always been doing and sneeze into your armpit and away from others? I for one would suggest that this method is FAR more effective than actually believing a cloth mask is going to stop the spread of a virus if you cough or sneeze. The vast majority of us are smart enough to understand the distinction and can take the necessary precautions. We can also talk about the micron sizes of virus particles vs cloth mask fibers if you like. Additionally, almost every study or recommendation in favor of masks uses weasel wording that “Suggests” or “Possibly” or “Could” help stop the spread of the virus, but these recommendations ALWAYS ADDITIONALLY state that this method only works with a combination of social distancing, washing hands, staying home, etc. So yet again, the variables involved are too vast to speculate on the absolute effectiveness of masks, and still absent are studies that have been performed in controlled environments. I mention all this to tell you that NO, you are not going to spread a virus simply from walking near or around someone. Anyone that suggest otherwise is a fool. And no, this virus is not airborne (most have no understanding of that term), that has been proven false after multiple studies as well.
“Three, they really are way cooler than me.”
Yet again, your attempt at shaming and antagonizing people that make different choices than you is irrelevant and non-essential (to borrow a maddening term) to this discussion.
But let me ask you and others, did you ever stop to think how many people you might have killed in the last decade+ because you didn’t wear a mask and spread your (a)symptomatic germs to others? I’m betting that 99% of people have not considered this or even care. Let’s take this mode of thinking a step further and ask you how long you suspect you’ll wear a mask, as the many viruses that exist in the world will NEVER go away, including covid-19…even after a possible vaccine is created years from now. Do you plan to wear one until your last day on Earth? If not, then why do YOU want to kill grandma? Do you and others not see how absurd this line of thinking is if you take it to its logical conclusion?
Finally, your speculation on how many lives could have been saved if EVERYONE JUST WORE MASKS, is patently false and has no scientific basis whatsoever. Especially when you consider that the vast majority of deaths have been the elderly and immunocompromised in clinical settings like nursing homes.
So here’s the deal…I have a rule that I try to follow, it really helps me maintain my sanity when confronted with less than sane thinking. The rule says never try to make sense out of someone else’s nonsense. Sadly, that rule also prevents me from effectively responding to your comment. I only write and comment in the real world, my work doesn’t translate well in fantasy land. I will how we make an exception and respond if you can tell me where the government is hiding those 120,000 people…I really want to know.
Who said anything about 120k people disappearing? You responded to my comment with something completely unrelated to what I actually said?
Well those you described as “free thinking” some of those free thinkers believe the government is hiding the 120,000 (nearly) reported dead people. Most of your comment does not make sense (aka…nonsense) to rational people. My self preservation rule does not allow me to directly respond to that type of comment. Plus, it’s really hard to type cause this damn mask keeps making my glasses fog up…
Thanks. This is sensible and you put into words how I feel about this topic as well. While no one likes to wear a mask in public it makes sense to do so for the protection of others, at least for the foreseeable future until we know more about this virus.
I agree, the mask is only for a time and it just might give someone a longer life.
A better title would have been:
Virtue Signaling- best practices during turbulent times.
Thanks for the advice, I’ll use that if I ever feel like getting beat up again for writing a post about wearing a mask.
Steve, you predicted a backlash; no surprise that your analysis , as sensible and rationale as it reads, gained some. Thanks for sharing it, all the same. I wouldn’t expend time or energy in retort to people who will never see it that way,… sadly there will always be the ‘me’ view getting in the way of the ‘us’ view in this ‘democratic’ world ( ie small ‘d’, literal Greek word!- Heaven forbid we open that political chasm!)
Thanks Russell, some of the comments we so hateful they were funny. But sad at the same time. I knew the post could create some controversy, it shouldn’t but I knew it would, but the wide variety of accusations still surprised me. We truly live in interesting times!