Cyrano'ji. East Asian countries wearing masks out of courtesy is different from Mask Mandate. If someone is *not* wearing mask out of uncourteous behaviour while exhibiting symptoms of flu, cold or COVID., that person is not behaving maybe socially appropriate.Cyrano wrote: ↑06 Sep 2023 14:57 Disha ji,
...The mask issue has been largely blown out of proportion IMO. In many East Asian countries, people have been routinely wearing masks when they have a cold or flu since decades. Its out of simple courtesy to avoid exposing other people to something you are carrying that you know is contagious. My freedom to not wear a mask doesn't mean I can expose others around me to an(y) infectious virus that has caused a lot of fear and panic. The govts need not enforce such mask mandates if people were a bit sensible and wore them voluntarily. I havent heard of anyone dying solely because of wearing a mask.
Similarly this anti-vaxxer sentiment is also hard to understand. There have been a lot of claims about premature deaths etc etc. But most are anecdotal and do not amount to any conclusive evidence that vaccines are the primary cause and the risks of not being vaccinated - at a population level and not at an individual level - outweigh the risk of serious illness and death...
Would you kick that person out, deny them service, deny them their rights, just on the suspicion that the person might be "contagious" of Covid?
Take a step further, if the person is healthy and has no visible symptoms, would you enforce a mask mandate? To the point of arrest? So let's say you step out to get a government service to renew your DL or go to utility to pay your bill or go to a bank to withdraw cash. And you have no symptoms. And are vaccinated, thrice, particularly after getting a bout of covid and you are threatened, denied service or arrested with a gun at your head just for not wearing a mask? Or not wearing your mask properly?
What about the two year old who throws away the mask? What about the 82 year old who cannot breathe through mask? What about the 50 year old who has asthama? Or a 30 year old who has allergies and sneezes once? Do you think it is right to arrest them? Calling them uncouth etc?
The mask mandate that is, forced masking, was stupid and is stupid. It just preys on the fear of the people. Mask can be recommended just like it is nice to say "good morning" when we meet people in morning.
Now coming to vaccination, here are the facts:
1. Person survives first wave of Covid. Vaccine is now available. Gets vaccinated. Gets Boosted as well.
2. Gets second covid (omicron)
3. Then gets boosted again by vaccine booster.
That is 2 Covid and 3 Vaccines in total. After this the person goes to a government office, gets an appointment after a long time and the covid card carried has a damage and does not show the 3rd vaccine. The *stupid* baboo (or babooni) gets the person thrown out of office. Denying service.
Worst is the person does not get necessary medical care. Do you think that person is anti-vaxxer if the person is not going for 3rd booster (& 4th vaccine)?
What about the person who has exhibited allergies in past to vaccines is skeptical to getting a vaccine? Not all people are aware the mRNA vaccines are not same as egg-based flu vaccines of past? https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3890451/ <- study on vaccine allergies and alternatives.
Do you think such persons are anti-vaxxers? Do you think that person must be thrown out and his rights curtailed? And of course demonized as anti-vaxxer?
So to broad brush people who do not wear masks or do not want to get vaccine without knowing the nuances as uncouth or anti-vaxxer is being judgemental and moralizing. And raising that as an issue is wrong?
*Thankfully, no gun to my head. But yes, the rest is true and also true that a 2-year old was made to sit out till the parent had to rush back and pick the 2-year old up.
Here are examples of stupidity:
https://deadline.com/2023/08/lionsgate- ... 235524039/
The virus can read which floors it can go to and cannot go to.Amid rising Covid cases in Los Angeles, Lionsgate has brought back the mask mandate for nearly half of the company’s employees at its flagship office at 2700 Colorado Ave. in Santa Monica.
The policy change was announced internally by Sommer McElroy, Response Manager for Lionsgate/Starz, in an email, a copy of which was obtained by Deadline. Implemented in response to several employees recently testing positive for Covid, it involves a mandatory mask mandate effective immediately and until further notice for the 3rd and 5th floors of the five-story building, the email said.
https://www.dillard.edu/covid-19/
Effective Friday, August 25, 2023 the following mandates will be instituted:
1. Indoor masking will be mandated for all students, faculty, staff, and visitors our campus for the next two (2) weeks while we assess the trends on our campuses and;
2. Sponsors (internal or external) of all indoor events will be responsible for monitoring compliance with the mask mandate.
Please be assured our top priority is to maintain a safe environment for our students, faculty, staff and visitors. The Dillard community continues to follow the guidance of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, LDH, and our CMO. We will adjust protocols as necessary.
^Just plain stupid.
https://www.syracuse.com/health/2023/08 ... ck-up.html
Patients suffering from other diseases/morbidities have been left to die just because they tested positive of covid.Upstate Medical’s two hospitals, University and Community General, reimposed mandatory face-masking Thursday morning after reporting an uptick in Covid-19 cases.
Covid testing is now also required for all patients being admitted to the hospitals, according to a memo sent to Upstate staff and provided to Syracuse.com.
“Effective immediately, mandatory masking is required by all staff, visitors, and patients in clinical areas of Upstate University Hospital, Upstate Community Hospital, and ambulatory clinical spaces,” the memo reads. “Clinical areas are defined as any location patients gather, wait, transport through, or receive care. Masking is strongly recommended in all non-clinical areas.”
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Now here is the study that makes the entire forced masking and social distancing and lockdown look completely stupid.
The study is a challenge study, that is people volunteered to get Covid and they were monitored. This makes it more relevant. The study was done on healthy individuals who were infected with covid and studied. Study was published in lancet microbe: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanm ... /fulltext
My interpretations:Findings
Between March 6 and July 8, 2021, 36 participants (ten female and 26 male) were recruited and 18 (53%) of 34 participants became infected, resulting in protracted high viral loads in the nose and throat following a short incubation period, with mild-to-moderate symptoms. Two participants were excluded from the per-protocol analysis owing to seroconversion between screening and inoculation, identified post hoc. Viral RNA was detected in 63 (25%) of 252 Coriolis air samples from 16 participants, 109 (43%) of 252 mask samples from 17 participants, 67 (27%) of 252 hand swabs from 16 participants, and 371 (29%) of 1260 surface swabs from 18 participants. Viable SARS-CoV-2 was collected from breath captured in 16 masks and from 13 surfaces, including four small frequently touched surfaces and nine larger surfaces where airborne virus could deposit. Viral emissions correlated more strongly with viral load in nasal swabs than throat swabs. Two individuals emitted 86% of airborne virus, and the majority of airborne virus collected was released on 3 days. Individuals who reported the highest total symptom scores were not those who emitted most virus. Very few emissions occurred before the first reported symptom (7%) and hardly any before the first positive lateral flow antigen test (2%).
1. So out of 32 participants with infections, only 2 contributed to 86% of airborne virus.
2. If you have strong symptoms does not mean you emit the most virus.
3. If you do not show symptoms, it is as well likely that you are not transmitting virus. Corollary, if you show symptoms, just isolate yourself.
4. Yes, there are few super spreaders.
5. Nose is the most source of emissions.
6. Self-Isolation on first symptom would curb transmission more effectively.