President-elect Biden has announced plans to ask all Americans to wear a mask in public. Something which I 100% support. But as Americans are divided on wearing masks, some because the soon to be former President Trump has politicized wearing one, others for a variety of reasons, including the belief that they are ineffective, unnecessary, unattractive, etc.
Mayo Clinic Mask Study
By way of informing the reader, I am no expert on infectious diseases, but it’s not hard to explain how and why the mask dramatically reduces the risk of transmission of the Cov19 or any other virus. But it’s rarely done or explained by a Republican authority figure. Whereas Trump and his minions have daily and repeatedly misinformed the general public. My humble suggestion, if I were an advisor to President Biden, would be to meet with and tape a round table discussion with doctors representing different segments of America, discussing using the mask and how they work. And present that video as part of a national message to the country by him.
Even primitive masks reduce the amount of potential viral and bacterial material which projects forward and directly towards a person you are near or talking to. As well as viral particles trapped in tiny drops of saliva. It does not have to be anywhere near 100% to dramatically reduce the spread. The above video is one of many similar studies that have been done. It’s not rocket science.
Explaining Risk Factors
It is also would be beneficial to explain why indoor settings can spread the virus much more easily, both because people tend to be together for longer periods, and because air does not circulate like it does outside, and additionally because the virus has been identified as being air born, and can linger for longer periods of time.
I’m guessing that President Biden already has something like these suggestions in mind. It is hoped that some video along these lines will be shown. I also think seeing and hearing doctors and nurses reporting on the horrible overcrowded conditions they are facing in our hospitals should be an essential part.
Finally, the point should be made that people who show or experience few or no symptoms can still spread the disease, and that wearing the mask helps protect the more vulnerable and our seniors, possibly even our own parents.
One more closing thought that might be worth mentioning, especially for those claiming that the entire pandemic is a “hoax”. This is one that I’ve experienced personally from living near a hospital, and that is the stress that comes from hearing the constant drone of ambulances arriving with sick or dying patients caused by a pandemic spike. It’s time people are confronted face to face by the conditions in the hospitals. Yes, there’s been reports on the local news and some on national news. But this is something that there has not been on a lot of news reports, or in right wing/Trump controlled regions, or on Fox and other right wing mass media. So nearly half the country is mired in falsehoods and lies on Cov19.
Thoughts on Countering Demonization of Government
As a postscript, it’s been no secret that for many years a key Republican mantra has been anti-government, less government propaganda, and to label every attempt to improve it an attack on white America and the non existing “good old days” — even as they themselves are often the government themselves. Trump took it so far as to politicize even fighting the pandemic, and succeeded in the eyes of many Americans. Biden and the Democrats must finally find ways to counter these messages aggressively, which continue to go largely unchallenged in Republican states and middle America. When is it more important to have a strong federal government that during a pandemic? And to have a president that does not ignore and misinform on it. Meaning Biden should not be afraid to use Twitter and social media to counter Trumpism. That means just as Trump’s authoritarian brand of politics was revolutionary in a backwards way, the Democrats must counter in a positive fashion, and get a positive message daily into Trump territory as well as into friendly ones. A difficult thing to do if one is mired in attempts to bring back bi-partisanship, which the Trump led clique has all but buried. President Biden and the Party need to find ways to reach out to the millions who have abandoned the Democratic Party and counter the treasonous message Trump has interjected throughout the party. No easy task, but a necessary one if we are to avoid the civil war conditions that will eventually follow. Finally, it’s time to shatter the myth that big government is necessarily bad government. And that will take a look at long term national financial policy and dramatic changes in the tax structures and how the Senate functions.
1- www.wthr.com/...