Covid mania needs to end
I was committing my daily act of blasphemy when I noticed a change.
People maintained eye contact and walked with confidence. They did not fidget with their masks to ensure a secure fit.
There were a few bewildered looks. Understandable. I was walking maskless outside. Still, most people moseyed on by.
It seems the palpable fear which permeated our city is subsiding.
So, are we done with our collective descent into mass hysteria? Maybe.
Are we finally going to take off these dehumanizing masks?
I don’t think so.
Just Part of the Routine
I think we’re all familiar with this situation:
A hostess seats people and as soon as she leaves the diners take off their masks.
They peruse the menu on their phones, discuss which drinks look good, quibble over the appetizers, and then their server approaches. They stop talking and grasp their masks and wrap them over their ears.
As the dinner drags on the guests no longer bother going through this dog and pony show. Servers come over and ask if they need any more water. Busboys take their dishes off the table. The masks stay off the entire time.
Dinner ends and the diners pay their check. They pat their pockets checking for their keys and wallet, reapply their masks and walk out of the restaurant.
Wearing a mask is unfortunately now part of many people’s routine.
We like routine.
Routines give us a path to follow during our daily lives. A sense of steadiness and comfort. These masks have become paradoxically comfortable.
The mask itself, a piece of cloth which impedes breathing, is uncomfortable. The habit of wearing one is comfortable. The latter will trump the former at least for the time being.
There will come a time when people (finally) conclude that there is no point in wearing a mask. Even then many people will continue to wear their masks.
I doubt they will be able to explain why. They’ll just do it. Mask wearing has become reflexive for the majority of our city’s population.
I expect the removal process will proceed like Hemingway describes bankruptcy in the Sun Also Rises. Gradually, then suddenly.
Some people will lose the mask when the laws arbitrary rules are lifted. Some people will stop wearing one now that the CDC guidance has changed.
The process will accelerate when more people have the temerity to allow themselves to breathe normally. This will instill confidence in others to make such a daring move.
Still, it’s been a year of incessant mask wearing. I don’t imagine they’ll come off anytime soon. I certainly hope I’m wrong.
Obviously I wear the mask
I was with a friend at Lafayette Park when a young couple sat down at an adjacent picnic table. They took off their masks and pulled some water and powerbars (throwback I know) out of their backpacks.
My dog ran over, gave a skeptical sniff, and then began to chase their pug around my table. We ended up chatting for a bit about our dogs, the neighborhood etc. Pretty typical dog owner to dog owner exchange.
The small talk fizzled out and I heard some squawking in the nearest tree. My friend pointed to the branch,
“Look between those shaking branches”
I squinted, hoping to glimpse a Parrot of Telegraph Hill. Much to my chagrin, a Raven emerged from behind the trees.
The parrot was perched behind some other branch. Evading me. Those dastardly parrots.
I gave up on the search for the parrot and glanced back at the couple. They had finished their power bars and the water bottles were in their backpacks. Now they were playing chess, one foot apart from each other, wearing masks.
We were still about six or seven feet apart and there was not a soul close to them.
In San Francisco you wear the mask. It’s just what you do.
The mask has created the classic in group/out group situation. Wear the mask and you are in. Maskless and you are out.
The mask denotes care, intelligence and a willingness to sacrifice for others. The wearer understands the gravity of our situation. Naturally, they follow The Science. It’s really just the right thing to do. All the smart people wear masks.
The maskless troglodytes only care about themselves. They don’t even care that people are dying!
It’s unfortunate our society is riddled with such stupidity. Conspiracy nuts. People who are just incapable of understanding The Science.
Not all mask wearers hold such fervid views. It doesn’t matter though.
A young, healthy person may believe that wearing a mask is unnecessary, but they’ll keep that cloth over their face.
It is the easier thing to do. There is no risk of judgment. No unnecessary explanations. Most importantly there is no risk that people might think you are dumb.
Thankfully, I have reached a point where I no longer care about fitting in with the mask truthers.
I realized quite quickly that I was at minimal risk and that putting flimsy pieces of cloth over our faces is an unserious public health policy. I still wore the mask out of care for others.
Well, I attributed my actions to caring. Honestly, it was cowardice. I’m pretty over it by now. I will no longer participate in mask theatre to assuage people’s irrational fear.
Hopefully you guys will join me.
The Patron Saint of Science
It was hot. Joggers doused themselves with water. Families searched to find grassy spots in the shade. Lake Temescal’s toxic water looked so appealing that a dip may have been worth the downsides.
At the playground there were thirty or so children. Most of them were under 10 years old. Probably even under 7 years old. They were running around, swinging on the swings, doing kid stuff.
Every single child was wearing a black muzzle.
Less than 300 people under age 17 have died from COVID. In the entire country.
Their parents stood under trees keeping an eye on their children. The adults occasionally pulled their masks down to drink some water or just to breathe some fresh air on a hot day.
Their kids continued to run around in the heat with the thick, black cloth covering their breathing cavities. Afterwards, the parents probably returned home to watch the Sunday shows.
On Sundays Dr. Fauci makes the rounds on the network shows.
“…Dr. Fauci is joining us now. Dr. Fauci, we have learned (insert something new) about the virus. How should we view this?”
“If you just look at the data (‘The Science’) then we should do x, y, z. This is not my recommendation or a judgement call of any sort, I am only speaking for The Science”.
“Understood. Understood. So when can people take off their masks and live their normal lives again?”
“Well look, I understand that people want this over. We all want this over. But there may still be a chance of viral infection. I can’t speak to the specifics because the CDC guidance is not out yet. If we can only hold on a little longer then we can be out of this by (insert time frame that will inevitably be pushed back)”.
Just follow The Science…
There is an obvious contradiction in ‘following The Science’. How can we ‘follow The Science’ when science is never definitive?
Science is an ever evolving process which can be used to inform our decision making. Science itself cannot determine a proper course of action.
This apparent contradiction makes sense when you realize that “The Science” is not science. This is a religious movement operating under the guise of ‘Science’.
Dr. Fauci and The Experts consult The Science and then they inform their disciples on how to comport themselves. For all of their equivocations the expert’s instructions are usually clear: Mask up, social distance, wash your hands and wait just a little bit longer.
The conclusions regarding any question over Covid are already known. Masks are a panacea. Lockdowns are effective. This is settled science.
Datapoints and state-by-state comparisons which contradict the prevailing wisdom are disregarded. This “evidence”, pshh, only exists because people were not practicing the faith properly. If they wore their masks and socially distanced this could all be over. We would all be safer if there were less heretics in this world.
No amount of reasoning, logic, data or simple risk can pierce the armor of a true believer. This is where we run into the true problem.
People will wear masks until they are told not to.
Nobody will admit to this. Common rebukes are,
“I will take off my mask when the science dictates it..”
“I will take it off when we reach herd immunity”
“This comes off when something, something variants”
You’ll notice though, few people have a threshold at which they will take their mask off. There is not a set percentage of people vaccinated. No fixed number number of cases or fatalities per day.
There is only the word of the Fauch. The law of the Fauch. And the idea that this will all be over soon.
