Posted on 09/21/2020 4:57:14 AM PDT by Kaslin
Our familys visit to a Virginia restaurant the other day wasnt particularly unusual in the coronavirus era, although that states requirements are more stringent than most. The staff were all wearing masks and, in this case, plastic gloves as well. The iced tea bin was behind the counter where customers couldnt touch it, and Virginia restaurants are apparently required to give customers a new plastic cup for every refill. (Somehow, the left went from banning plastic straws to probably tripling the amount of plastic waste generated by restaurants but hey, there could be a .000001% less chance of someone possibly catching the WORSTEST VIRUS EVER, so screw the environment, right?)
Anyway, I won't name the restaurant, but it was one of those places where you walk in, place your order, get your drinks, pay, then sit down and wait for your food to come up at the counter, at which point they call your order number. Of course, you had to shout through the giant plexiglass screen, then bend your head just to hear the muffled voice of the cashier, who was asking questions and punching buttons with one ungloved finger on an otherwise gloved hand. From the stains as well as the home-cut finger opening (so he could push the buttons), it was obvious he hadn't changed his gloves in quite some time, and certainly not for the two customers in line before us.
Even more disturbingly, as he spoke to us the cashier adjusted his obviously moist, stained mask with his gloved hand at least five times, at one point putting his thumb and forefinger across his entire mouth and moving the mask farther up the bridge of his nose. Thank God we were spared any potential droplets from his nose (because we all know how those nose droplets barrel through plexiglass), but it did come at the cost of spreading whatever nastiness was on his mask to pretty much everything else he touched.
We placed our order, paid with a credit card, then then watched the cashier grab our cups from the stack and proceed to put his gloved fingers inside (INSIDE, I kid you not) three of them at once as he made his way to the ice maker and tea bin to get our drinks (COVID restrictions in Virginia apparently do not allow us to get our own tea you know, for safety).
Now the last thing Im trying to do is bash hard-working restaurant employees. Ive been one myself and I know how hard and thankless the work is. I wont go into any more detail on the incident above, but suffice it to say I wouldnt have dreamed of being rude to him. What I am trying to point out, however, is how supposedly well-meaning COVID restrictions - and even restaurants trying to 'help' by going above and beyond, as the gloves seemed to be - have turned our reality into a place where the 'letter of the law' (or mandate) is more important than common sense or actual results.
Indeed, if you had told me in 2019 that there would come a day when virtually the entire world would seriously believe there are absolutely no negatives to wearing a moist, bacteria-laden germ-collector on ones face and breathing through it all day, I wouldnt have believed it. Yet, here we are, where even the esteemed head of the Center for Disease Control is telling people with a straight face that masks - yes masks - are MORE protective than a vaccine. At this point, face burqas have become more than simply a talisman to encourage the public to venture out and engage the economy - they have become a religious cult. Dare to question it in any way, and theyll shut you down - or attempt to - and they typically wont even bother to try to respond to any of the points you make.
Take last week, for example, when I attempted to post that amazing mask article by Daniel Horowitz I mentioned in last weeks post on my own humble personal Facebook page. (I typically dont plug this page, but lately Ive gotten in the habit of posting some great clips and COVID-related news items there, so youre welcome to visit and follow it if you like.) After a few days, the fact-checker bot discovered and flagged the post as partly false information. Why, you ask? Because Big Tech has apparently deemed fit to decide that this is settled science, or something. Masks work, dont you know, and thats all there is to it. To refute the post, Facebook oddly linked to an article written by healthfeedback.org in May responding to an entirely different anti-mask post. It goes through the usual ridiculous model-based studies to prove that mask-wearing works, but then it also notably says this:
The post is correct in stating that improper handling of face masks or cloth coverings creates a risk for infection, as infectious droplets may potentially contaminate the external and internal surfaces. However, this is far from an insurmountable obstacle, as this risk can be minimized by exercising caution when removing the mask. The CDC has advised that individuals should wash their hands and avoid touching their eyes, nose and mouth after removing their mask, and that cloth masks should be regularly washed.
Now lets put aside the other arguments, many if not most of which I have covered in past posts, and just get real for a second with some gold old-fashioned common sense. Does anyone sincerely think that most of the public, who are non-medical professionals, handle masks correctly? Just take a look at the masks on most restaurant employees or even people you pass in the street. People are constantly touching them and theyre often visibly dirty, which suggests they arent being laundered daily or even regularly. Most people I know carry them around in their cars, in and out of their pockets, and leave them lying around wherever with little regard for the biohazards they are. Instead of potentially dangerous droplets falling to the ground where theyve fallen for the entirety of human history, weve chosen to catch them in one convenient place so they can then be distributed to surfaces humans touch on a regular basis.
In other words, even IF correctly used masking worked to stop the spread of coronavirus in theory - a goal Im not even sure we should have in the first place (as long as hospitals arent overwhelmed) - the practice and subsequent real-world results are an entirely different thing. This could be why in place after place that has instituted mandatory masking, from California to Israel to Peru to Columbia to India to countless others, the virus continues to spread unabated and seemingly even faster than in non-masked places, only finishing when it runs its course at 15 to 25 percent seroprevalence.
Please consider staying informed with the latest and BEST COVID-19-related information by joining the over 2,100 people already following my brand-new COVID Team Reality list. Its a great first step in the long-haul fight against corona fascism!
Masks are being used in nursing homes, yet infections and deaths are still at high levels.
In Pennsylvania, nursing home deaths are over 70% of the total Wuhan deaths.
My mask is my passport.
Its like a large-scale game of Simon Says, but instead of Simon - its Science.
They do not work in theory, nor practice. In simple terms, the virus is small enough to penetrate the fabric of a mask. That’s the theory. The practice obviously has proved itself as wanting.
Wearing a mask is as effective as stopping mosquitoes with a chain link fence.
Masks are like a screen door on a submarine - no protection and very dangerous to your health.
This is ridiculous. I went to a store recently, after the customer in front of me checked out and left, an employee proceeded to spray and wipe down the counter, the key pad, etc. I probably picked up and put back a dozen or so different items as I looked for what I wanted. As far as I know, no one swooped in to sanitize each item after I set it down.
It is ridiculous and doesn’t make any sense, because for one thing they wouldn’t have the time to do all that.
What it says on the backs of the disposable masks we buy: Not for use in healthcare settings.
Nuff said.
BTW, we can’t find disposable masks made anywhere but in China.
We’re going through at least a box of the dang things a week.
Wonder if Cuomo is getting a kickback from the ChiComs for the fricking mask mandate.
Yeah and mosquitos like me, or hate me?
The Chinese have made $$$$ on manufacturing a thin piece of paper with two rubber bands and convincing people it will save their lives.
Id like to see some data on how much money is being made on masks. Something tells me its a factor.
Follow the money.
It’s the appearance, not facts, that matters.
It’s not just medical physics, geometry and math is too tough for most.
Virus can be tens sometimes thousands times SMALL that bacteria. Masks are designed by the weave thread count to stop the size of bacteria, not virus. Yes the vector, droplets, can be reduced which reduces the number of virus exhaled. Virus attached to water MOLECULES will not be stopped at all. Molecules are smaller yet and masks don’t stop molecular size anything.
If you are going through a box every week, and they are not effective...why are you going through a box a week?
Masks are public submission, not public safety.
bump
Because if I touch it, I toss it. And the second I leave a place where one is required, it comes off. I dispose of it in a bag in my car, clean my hands, then get a fresh mask if I have further errands to one in any place requiring one.
I’m more afraid of Noro, actually. I’ve had that. I’d rather have WuFlu.
Unless a mask is N-95 rated or better all it's good for is virtue signalling and to condition the public to follow stupid orders from petty tyrants.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.