If everyone(who doesn’t know whether they are infected, i.e., everyone not tested or recovered) wore a mask, we might substantially decrease the spread. The mask would be to protect others from airborne spread from simple talking or breathing in the presence of others.
From the article: “If the coronavirus is airborne, that could help explain why it is so contagious… Large droplets are still a means of infection, but researchers now say that tiny airborne particles may also carry infectious virus. “Currently available research supports the possibility that SARS-CoV-2 could be spread via bioaerosols generated directly by patients’ exhalation,” researchers from the U.S. National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine wrote in an April 1 report to the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.”
Problem: We still don’t have a proper supply of masks. (Thanks T rump administration.) We are still rationing masks for frontline healthcare workers.
People in other countries who are already thru their 1st wave, look aghast at Americans not wearing masks in public, like they all did and still do.
So the Whitehouse got that report yesterday. Let’s see how long it takes for them to respond functionally.
I expect they will do nothing about it until the “liberal media” starts berating them for continuing to do nothing about it. Then they might prance about the issue with happy talk or denial. Then days or weeks from now, (after many more have continued to be infected by airborne virus) the propaganda panel will proudly announce what they are doing about it, as if they are riding in on a white horse like a champion.
But we are just a poor capitalistic nation, incapable of producing (or purchasing) mass amounts of things like surgical masks.
It’s not like the days of WWII when we became the most productive nation in the world. Back in the day, it was like, “What? you want a battle tank, sure, here you go.” Now, it’s like “What? you want a little mask for your face? NO! It won’t help. Only frontline medical care people need it. There’s not enough for others.” (Of course we see everyday that there are not even enough little masks for frontline care staff.)
Anyway a mask would not be to protect your self, but to protect others, in case you are an unknown carrier.
If it wasn’t so serious, it would be funny. So yesterday the networks were showing a clip of the different kind of response you’re likely to encounter now from your local police - donning masks and gloves before they approach. I felt it conveyed a confused message, as if the cops were protecting themselves - not much there to help clear up the confusion. Then Faucci did try to clear it up saying in his opinion EVERYONE wearing masks would probably contribute to limiting the spread. But then he qualified by implying that what our fearless leaders were trying to do was ensure that those on the front lines had enough to protect themselves and others.
Groan.
Yes, if you are out and about in public, maybe forced to be there because of your “essential” function, wear a mask, no qualifications. No, it doesn’t have to be a manufactured one, anything you can fashion to restrict expelling your own oral/nasal… stuff, would be a positive. What you would need to protect YOURSELF from an aerosolized virus (very small organisms) which remains persistent (suspended) in your immediate environment would be full coverage ppe with a true respirator and not a filter mask, and preferably disposable, or in sufficient quantity to be used, cleaned/disinfected and re-used.
I do woodwork , but I haven’t taken the plunge to invest in an expensive dust collection and filtering system. I found the run-of-the-mill dust masks to be too restrictive for me (COPD) so I tried slightly more expensive surgical masks. Worked better for me, but the most comfortable and breathable was tying an old cotton t shirt around my face - disposable and washable.
I would be interested to find out in those global regions where everyone appears to be wearing masks if they understand that they are protecting others, firstly. Not saying they don’t - just curious.
“Remember, keep your stick on the ice, we’re all in this together, and we’re pluggin’ for ya.”
Just thought of this. The current brouhaha concerning the Navy is a 21st century example of how “Loose lips sink ships,” in more than one figurative way.
Our DOTUS “leader”, today in his daily Pandemic Propaganda Panel, lead the way for the new guideline for people to wear masks in public. In his true style as a “leader” he said that he, personally would not be wearing a mask. He said it’s up to you if you want to wear one or not. He said it’s just a guideline.
Does that apply to all of the guidelines from the CDC. We can all just decide whether we want to follow any of their recommendations? is it “It’s up to you if you shelter in place, or gather in large groups and crowds.”
Did you catch what the woman specialist on the panel said about the aircraft carrier “Theodore Roosevelt”? I think she said that the military was going to test all of the personnel on that ship with antibody tests. Did I just imagine that?
I mean it’s great if we have a good test for antibodies that we could use to do the surveillance testing on that population of sailors. We could potentially learn a lot.
Yes, Oneguy, I, too, have been wondering about my insistence that T rump is a Dictator, just because he has arranged things so that he is above the law and has his cabinet working for him and his re-election rather than for the country.
He is suddenly all about States’ and individuals’ being in charge of everything. I think he just doesn’t want the responsibility when things are going wrong. Remember, he has not yet fully consolidated his position as DOTUS, and will not until he remains in power after the upcoming election. Everything for T rump is about getting re-elected.
I made one of those homemade kerchief masks per the video, above. I left my self isolation and went to 7-11 and tried it out. I was the only one there wearing a mask. (I like 7-11 coffee, cause you can put whatever flavor of creamers you want in it.)
Seriously, you guys think that T rump is “maybe a little too nice”? He is a perpetual troll waiting to happen. He is petulant and partisan, favoring red state governors over blue ones, unless the blue ones dance just right for his dementedly needy ego. He is NOT being a champion of States’ or Individuals" rights. T rump doesn’t have any ideological ideals of any sort. He simply doesn’t want to take responsibility for anything that goes wrong, in times that not much can go right.
To me, it is sort of pitiful that you guys are such apologists for the T rump. And that you can’t look at what he has done in the previous 3 + years and figure out his path of undermining the structures of our government AND his gaining more and more power to his office simply by taking it (recall that he is now above the law) AND turning his entire Cabinet into Departments of Building T rump’s Ego and especially Departments to assist in his re-election. The motivation for everything he has done has been to get re-elected in 2020. And IF or when he does, his crown as DOTUS will be secure.
And how is it okay for our supposed “leader” to not follow the guideline recommendation to wear a mask around other people?
How is his vanity more important than setting an example that could lead to lives saved?
He justifies not needing to wear one, since he just had 2 tests that showed he is negative for C-19. Is he going to keep regularly getting tested so that he can continue to somewhat safely avoid wearing a mask?
T rump and all his associates, and recently a slew of corporate guests, ALL got tested. While there are reports of frontline medical staff who can’t get tested while they are literally risking their lives to deal with this crisis.
