Wearing of masks indoors should be mandatory
I was bothered by the letter by Wayne Neville which, given the health crisis we are in with COVID-19, comes close to being not only frivolous but also dangerous as it adds to the anti-mask agenda of various ill-informed groups out there.
He says that wearing masks spreads fear. Not wearing masks spreads the virus without a doubt. And shouldn’t that be our main concern so we can keep the suppression of the virus first and foremost? When I see people without masks in stores, I think either they are ignorant or selfish, and probably both.
People not wearing masks scare me more then the inconvenience of wearing a piece of cloth over the mouth and nose.
Yet, what should be a no-brainer, is fought against by a diverse and motley mob of far-right preachers and right-wing social conservatives (often one and the same), by numbskulls who are devoted to every loopy COVID-19 conspiracy theory embraced by QAnon, and by others who refuse to accept that this is a health crisis and not a political one.
Personal freedom does not give anyone the right to put my life at risk or anyone else’s. Wearing a mask won’t kill you, but you not wearing a mask might kill you or others. For all our sakes, people, just grow up.
Until there is a vaccine available, the wearing of masks and maintaining social distancing outside our bubble groups is the most effective way to stop the spread of the virus. That isn’t rocket science but some people would have us believe that it is.
It should be mandatory that masks are worn in all enclosed spaces. It is not an attack on religious freedom that is claimed by those who put supernatural religion ahead of science and the common good. It is not an attack on personal liberties as it is a reasonable demand to stop the spread of this virus so we can get back sooner to a normal life.
With schools soon to reopen, wearing of masks shouldn’t even be an issue as no mask, no school, plain and simple. Children are not totally immune to this virus, and their teachers certainly aren’t as this virus puts most of the risks on them. In the U.S., schools that have reopened are being shut back down as the virus has spread in them without a mandatory policy of mask wearing.
I applaud stores that say no mask, no service. How did common sense become so politically charged? All the education about the virus isn’t getting through to too many people.
Young people are especially balking at masks and spiking the rise in COVID cases as a result. So rather then being scared about masks, tell the government to get draconian and order the mandatory wearing of masks indoors. The alternative is far scarier than being frightened by a small strip of cloth.
Robert T. Rock
Mission City
