I’m a Trumper too and that really bothers me. My neighbor, who is a doctor and spent 20 years as an Air Force flight surgeon, basically gave me this rundown of face masks:
The paper medical ones: are designed to be used in sterile operating rooms. Anywhere else, they’re worthless.
N95 masks? blow air unvented, so they don’t stop you from spreading disease via breathing out.
T-shirt material/homemade: worse than worthless, they collect spittle around your mouth and subject you to all kinds of infections. It’s like walking around with a rotten chunk of food taped to your lip.
It’s not a medical decision, it’s a political one.
N95 masks - there are different models, and plenty do not have the valve.
T-shirt - multi-layered-panels - has some efficiency, but is of course not “perfect protection.”
Using any mask, requires proper handling and maintenance -— but some people cannot be bothered.