solewoman
Staff member
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Yeah I have small kids and I always wear my mask. Even at work. I only take it off when no one is talking to me or near. And I have a partition up.
Hide Ya Wives, Hide Ya Kids: Worldwide Coronavirus Pandemic!
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Aerosols don’t respect social distancing or partitions. Think smoke…
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Because most people (myself included) do not think the danger of the virus necessitates that.
There are countless things we could do to make society safer - but at some level - we have to become more comfortable with risk and the fear.
Why can’t we normalize the fear of covid the same way we normalize the fear of car accidents? I am much more fearful when I get in a car than I am of the virus. And feel the same way about friends and family - seen a lot more close to death scenarios inside a car than in any other circumstance.
I’m down for common sense things like don’t see people if you’re sick. But living life with a mask is not something i’m ready for as a society. It’s one small step away from environmental pollution is so bad we gotta walk around with a hazard suit.
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I'm back in the office on Wednesday 
solewoman
Staff member
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I think your car crash scenario is a good metaphor. A mask would be your seatbelt.
And to be fair it’s not like thousands and thousands of people were getting in car crashes everyday aka catch Covid. If they did I’m sure we’d all be walking around for a while.
At this point, we just need to be civil to each other and respect each other's views because none of us live in the other's shoes and know what everyone goes through.
The person that is super healthy and low risk needs to be respectful of the views and concerns of the immnuncompromised. The person who works from home needs to be respectful of the person that works in an office and is required to wear an uncomfortable N95 for 8 hours a day that leaves marks on their face. And so on.
If we want to decide to require masks for the rest of our lives, we need a greater investment in comfortable N95 masks that can be worn 8+ hours a day because if a seat belt left red marks on your waist and shoulders after a long drive, we would see way less people wearing seat belts.
A big problem is messaging. What are we trying to accomplish. Philly's policy is almost a 0 covid policy, but what does that look like going forward - that needs to be explained to the public, not a back and forth of dropping and reinstituting mask mandates every few weeks. Covid policies have been too similar to gun policies in which every state and city wants to do their own thing.
The person that is super healthy and low risk needs to be respectful of the views and concerns of the immnuncompromised. The person who works from home needs to be respectful of the person that works in an office and is required to wear an uncomfortable N95 for 8 hours a day that leaves marks on their face. And so on.
If we want to decide to require masks for the rest of our lives, we need a greater investment in comfortable N95 masks that can be worn 8+ hours a day because if a seat belt left red marks on your waist and shoulders after a long drive, we would see way less people wearing seat belts.
A big problem is messaging. What are we trying to accomplish. Philly's policy is almost a 0 covid policy, but what does that look like going forward - that needs to be explained to the public, not a back and forth of dropping and reinstituting mask mandates every few weeks. Covid policies have been too similar to gun policies in which every state and city wants to do their own thing.
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Homegirl went to VA for a sales meeting and a damn near everyone got covid and shes feeling kinda sick. Welp.
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That’s just it though - there are thousands and thousands of car crashes everyday. There are approx 18k car crashes a day with over 100 deaths a day.
And we’re not stopping driving.
I’m not disagreeing with people wearing masks. Im saying that forcing society to do stuff doesn’t really work and usually has the opposite effect.
We could reduce covid related deaths in half if we cut obesity by 10% (making this up). Why don’t we focus on improving health instead of the mask. And i really mean just resources - society is about resource allocation.
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Normalization of mask use is not the same as requiring it. Do you wear a seatbelt because it’s the law or because it’s proven to keep you safe? That’s exactly why I continue to wear a respirator mask indoors in public. I don’t want COVID, or any other “mild” respiratory disease that we no longer have to accept as part of daily life. At minimum, people should wear a mask when they aren’t feeling 100% but are well enough to continue going to work, school, etc.
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I’m the only wearing a mask now at the office. The two other people that were probably felt weird and just ditched it. I’ll keep rocking it!
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These sentences back-to-back are amazing.
Admits to making up a statistic, then uses that made-up statistic to advocate for the alternative plan. Just..
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It’s not even about death to me. It’s the wide array of other complications caused by COVID that can reduce the quality and/or length of life that concerns me the most. Why F around and find out the hard way just because you couldn’t be bothered to wear a mask? To show off your pretty smile? I don’t understand the logic. Wearing a mask doesn’t keep me from doing anything, but instead makes me feel more comfortable doing (almost) anything.
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Last I checked, covid related deaths were higher than car and flu deaths combined. I'll keep wearing my mask, I love playing basketball too much and can't risk having compromised lungs.
kdawg
Staff member
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And that’s part of the problem - they’re not at lower risk of catching it, just being seriously unwell - but then they spread it to others who may be - that’s where your driving analogy falls down completely - car crashes aren’t contagious and what you do doesn’t affect more than a couple of people.
Personal responsibility isn’t the answer if some folks think that they are special so don’t need to make any adjustments to their lifestyle.
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I'm back in the office on Wednesday
Immune system getting put through a boot camp them first few days.
I remember my first day back after lockdown. The A/C alone almost took me out
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wearing seatbelts is normalized
having car insurance is normalized
obtaining a driver‘s license is normalized
penalizing individuals who don’t meet the standard for being on the road or break the rules of the road, is normalized
having people whose specific job is to make sure people adhere to the rules of the road is normalized
not drinking while driving is normalized
not driving while impaired is normalized
rigorous vehicle testing is normalized
recalls on vehicles or parts is normalized
law suits against car manufacturers is normalized
law suits against individuals is normalized
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Nothing like normalizing inflammation of the nervous system. Imagine not being able to smell black smoke or not being able to recognize what you ingest.
We should just have a catalog of crazy sentences that make sense we never thought we would say.
"Viruses don't read mandates"
Would you feel differently if you had caught covid in the past and had very little or no symptoms?
kdawg
Staff member
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You shouldn't feel differently - because that doesn't stop you catching it again, and there is beginning to be evidence that multiple infections cause problems - so just letting it tear through society doesn't fix anything and will probably cause significant harm.
kdawg
Staff member
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The only symptom I have left 2 weeks on, other than a niggly cough and fatigue, is numb hands - it's my ulnar nerve so my fourth and fifth fingers on each hand are constantly tingling. Definitely different to any cold or flu I have had before - and will be really frustrated if I have to live the next 40 years like this. Hopefully it will resolve soon.
What have you observed or learned about regarding multiple infections causing problems? That's not something I have heard much about.
I remember hearing about a conservative anti vaxxer that died the second time he caught covid. I am curious about how multiple infections impact the vaccinated and boosted people.
On a side note, the news has been talking about that massive outbreak at that DC gridiron dinner. Does anyone else find it interesting that the most important people in our government are mingling without masks with many of them catching covid and we want the public to go back to wearing masks in some places.
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Politicians are not special. They are humans with mucous membranes and ACE 2 receptors like you and me. The main takeaway should be that any indoor gathering where people are talking and eating is a potential superspreader event because aerosols are being generated and inhaled in massive amounts. COVID is not done and we are all susceptible to infection and the potential short/long term effects whether we have been vaccinated, infected, or not.
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I do not find it interesting. Not surprising if people gather without wearing masks and they catch covid.
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Went to a get together over the weekend and I was the only one wearing a mask. One dude tried to 'joke' why I still had a mask through out the night.
At this point, why are people still bothered by others who still choose to wear mask?
At this point, why are people still bothered by others who still choose to wear mask?
