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I cannot breathe with it for more than a few minutes. Talking about a cotton bandanas. Maybe I have COPOD? Don't know. When nobody is looking in the supermarket, I pull it down and take a deep breath.
It is still cold here in the mountains. My glasses also fog up. No, shaving cream does not work. When you see all the pix of people, doctors and nurses included, with their masks how many do you see wearing glasses?
Cannot breathe and cannot see are just "minor inconveniences" like not getting your hair cut? No, we do not have Grub Hub or Uber Eats in my neck of the woods. I'm 71, not a Spring Chicken. My kids live over 100 miles away. Forget the few younger neighbors I have.
It is not one size fits all, or one easy solution.
I work in an animal hospital. One of the doctors wears glasses. I wear glasses. Our practice manager wears glasses.
I also have asthma and am over 60.
We are required to wear masks any time we interact with anyone else in the hospital or with clients, so, 95% of the time we are at work.
This is not negotiable.
Yes, the fog is annoying. The alternative is worse.
Yes thank you for noticing the flip flop. Apparently in here when you point out things like this, you get called out and OMG you're the devil if you don't wear a mask. Like another poster stated, we've been covering our mouths and noses when we sneeze or cough, before the government "mandated" you wear the fashion and political statement mask. Even if some professionals say that the mask MAY or MAY NOT help. That's the point I was issuing before getting attacked by CooCoo or whatever it's name is.
1. The masks help.
2. The masks are not intended to prevent the virus from spreading. They are intended to provide RISK REDUCTION. Look it up. It's a thing.
3. I've seen people covering their mouths and noses when they sneeze and cough. And then they put their hand right back on the shopping cart handle. It's disgusting when people do it and there isn't a virus going around. It's downright dangerous when there is a virus going around.
And that is why we have actual rules and laws and regulations about wearing masks and stay at home orders. Because there are those few people who insist the rules don't apply to them, who ruin it for everyone else.
3. I've seen people covering their mouths and noses when they sneeze and cough. And then they put their hand right back on the shopping cart handle. It's disgusting when people do it and there isn't a virus going around. It's downright dangerous when there is a virus going around.
Not rhetorical. Curious what everyone's take is on this current "new normal" and when it will morph into a newer new normal.
In that case my own opinion- ETA I assume you mean when will the average person deem it safe, not health officials
"at what point in time will it be deemed safe to go mask-less"- within 48 hours of our first phase of reopening maybe 25-30% of people were still wearing mask in my area. I think that other than hot spots they will have mostly disappeared by the end of summer. So many people are afraid it makes them look silly, or like sheep, or that it means they've lost their rights or their independence, far too much resistance for wearing masks to last very long.
"give handshakes and hugs as greetings"- I could see handshakes going away entirely, many people already didn't like them before this virus and most are aware that handshakes can transmit a host of other nasty things too. There are also alternatives such as bows or nods that people are likely to feel more comfortable with at first that I think could simply replace the handshake.
Hugs? Between friends and relatives they'll probably be back almost immediately. Hugs from strangers and acquaintances I hope never return, but realistically the 'compulsive huggers' will likely be at it again as soon as things start to feel safer, a couple of months from now. Maybe I'll catch a break and they'll stay away from older people longer.
"sit next to someone on an airplane or at an adjacent table in a restaurant?"- I've seen surveys that suggest a LOT of people are still quite uncomfortable with those things so that might be the type of thing that takes longest. Wild guess, roughly a year for things to get back to normal levels. OTOH, if businesses are allowed to offer enticements, like really low airfares for instance, I'm sure it will take less time than that.
stop being spoiled children about public health advisories. Stop bitching about wearing a mask when you’re in public places. Stop pretending that that is somehow infringing on your rights. Get over yourself. I wish all businesses would grow a pair and refuse service to people who refuse to wear a mask “out of principle.” Police aren’t inclined to enforce it and that’s fine but, spoiler alert, private businesses have and reserve the right to refuse service to anyone. Don’t tell me it’s ok for a bakery to refuse service to a gay couple for a wedding cake on religious grounds but not ok for a convenience store to refuse service because they don’t want the outbreak monkey strolling through their place coughing all over other patrons and their staff. Stay outside the 6ft bubble, wear a damn mask, and wash your hands. It’s that easy. Stop pretending they’re asking for a kidney. It’s as much to protect yourself as it is everyone else. People wonder why we have things like stay-at-home orders and closing of non-essential businesses. It’s because of you, jackass, you’re the problem. It’s your lack of ability to exercise common sense and your refusal to follow simple, insanely simple advice that forces the government to exercise it for you. And even then, you still thumb your nose at it in all your ignorant glory. Sorry that you feel like they’re infringing on your right to be an irresponsible child.
As noted in an earlier post, I work in an animal hospital. We’ve been doing curbside check-in of patients for a while now and will do so through June because our veterinarians, being epidemiologists themselves, are taking this very seriously.
We have big stop signs on the front doors instructing people to not come into the lobby.
Do they stop people from coming into the lobby? No.
Once every single day we have to ask someone to not enter and to call us for assistance.
Some large percentage of those are personally affronted because, apparently, the rules don’t apply to them never mind that we are all leaving the safety of our homes every day so that their pets can get the medical attention they require.
It seems not to occur to them that if we are exposed, we may have to shut down.
How much more inconvenient would they find that, do you suppose?
DeanGuitarist, I think that it's pretty important to address your point. I did go and read ALL of the articles that you shared.
All of them are basically rehashings of the same source material by different news outlets. If you read one of these, you've pretty much read them all.
I get that we are bombarded with a lot of information, that we see tons of headlines, which often don't tell the whole story, but if the headline reaffirms what we WANT to believe, then lots of people will latch onto it to justify a position that they hold.
The main thing here... The WHO, was putting about that masks will not necessarily protect people from catching the virus, and is questioning if they should be worn.
Here's what's up with that: When this came out, they were really freaked about PPE shortages for front line workers.
What nobody wants: Regular folks buying up all of the medical grade masks, leaving too few for medical pros. That's bad. Medical pros wearing improvised cloth face coverings rather than proper PPE, because there is a supply shortage and some folks seem to think that a bandanna is somehow good enough. Also bad. People getting a BS false sense of security from going around wearing face coverings, thinking they can simply go back to life as normal because they tied a sock across their face. Also bad.
THIS is what the WHO had behind the rationale of saying, "but should everybody actually wear a mask?"
What they said instead? Medical pros and front line essential personnel should wear proper PPE and EVERYONE ELSE SHOULD STAY THE HELL HOME.
Are you staying home?
I doubt it.
What the WHO was definitely not saying, is that America's population ought to go right on ahead and wander around public bare faced, getting as close to others as they damn well please, because you can't protect yourself anyways and might just as well git back in da pool.
So don't twist the message they were putting out there, to mean that.
What really SHOULD be taken from the concerns posited by the WHO, that has not been clearly stated in these articles (because they are click bait, and you get clicks by appealing to what certain folks want to hear) is this:
Regular Americans should stay home as much as possible, but we understand that some trade must continue or the economy will be destroyed, so for when you MUST go out, please do not buy up all the damn N95s and whatever that our doctors and nurses need, but do wear the more available face coverings, NOT to protect you from inhaling any possible virus, but rather to better contain your moisture laden breath that could carry it further from yourself. At the same time, along WITH covering your face, do your absolute best to keep 6 feet of distance between you and others, because WITH A MASK on both people, and at that distance, you're both actually pretty safe.
We do not want high quality filtering PPE to be diverted from the medical community - they need it most.
We don't want nurses wearing bandannas. They are treating patients who can't be masked and are spewing viral particles everywhere.
We don't want people to have a false sense of security and think they can be all up close to others, hugging and crowding like normal, just because they covered their faces with bandannas.
But if you're going to say, "well I dunno, the WHO says I don't need a mask" then you should go all the way and actually follow their direction, and not leave your house at all. That's what they say you (and everyone more or less) should do. You gonna do that? I doubt it.
According to the "wear your mask!!!!!" crowd, the masks are not to protect ME, they are to protect YOU.
So, that mask doesn't protect ME if someone else sneezes and sprays their spittle and snot all over the place.
Further, I've already said it at least 5 or more times, when some ahole does that, I leave. I don't stand there, like so many others do, and just let the germs come on in. I leave.
I'm already a germaphobe. Half the stuff you all are just now doing, I've already been doing, but I will not wear a mask.
Well here's a thought: the reason the mask won't protect YOU when you're wearing a mask and they're not - is because - they're not. Why aren't they? Because they have the same attitude you have. They figure their mask won't protect them from you, so why should they bother?
The answer to this: if you BOTH wear a mask, then neither of you have to be disgusted, or upset, or leave. You can all enjoy a reasonable distance from each other, while still being in each others' company, and everyone gets to do pretty much what they want to do.
As soon as ONE person refuses to wear a mask, all bets are off.
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