Coronavirus spreads. But don't panic! (topical thread)

[Mad Hatter]

Hand sanitizer and gloves are to protect yourself from the virus.  Good for you, using them.

Masks aren’t intended to protect you from other people.  They are to protect other people from you, in case you happen to have this virus and are a carrier or not yet showing symptoms.  

So deciding not to wear a mask, while taking those other actions, in my opinion is not a nice thing to do, because it increases the risks to those around you.  However, if you can’t be bothered, please at least try not to talk loudly or forcefully when you’re around people, because that’s one of the ways that the droplets containing the virus are energized and transmitted to the air spaces of those around you.   

It’s not just about protecting yourself, it’s about all of us protecting each other.

I still keep one handy just in case the  store or other businesses I go into require that I wear one.


Other than that, our State is not mandating that we wear masks here. I choose not to wear one unless I have to. Besides, there's just so much debate and new information coming out about COVID that it's hard to decide what to believe. In the very beginning Fauci was telling us that there was no need to worry. Then he advised a nationwide stay at home order and shutting down businesses that weren't deemed essential, and now he's saying that extended stay at home orders could cause the U.S. 'irrepatable damage'. Another doctor on the news yesterday said that one would have to be in close contact with an infected person for an extended period of time of at least 15-30 minutes in order to catch the virus. Another study that was reported on the news is that COVID is not as easily transmitted from contact with surfaces as first thought. Until they figure things out I'll live my life as I choose. As I said, our State is opening up and is not mandating masks or much of anything else except for 6 feet distancing at restaurants and bars, and you must be seated. I'm not breaking the law here if I choose not to wear a mask.

You do you.  I hope you don’t get sick, and I hope you don’t get anybody else sick.

Thank you, julep but I believe I'll be fine...and so will others outside my 6 feet radius. Other than choosing not to wear a mask I still take the same precautions as I would with any other strain of flu virus. Social distancing, washing hands, wiping groceries down when I get home, covering my coughs and sneezes with my elbow. Another precaution I take that most people probably haven't thought of is to get my groceries, canned goods, and ice cream from the back of the shelves and not the ones sitting in front. Last Summer this "challenge" was the latest craze on YouTube and Facebook...