Now that vaccines for COVID-19 are beginning to be distributed across the country, including Connecticut (See story by Debra Aleksinas on page A1 this week), yet certainly not in the quantities to cover the wider population, there remains urgency to the question: To mask or not to mask?
Even with the hope of vaccines immunizing the public, 10 months after COVID-19 hit our shores, it’s hard to believe that people in the U.S. are still debating whether donning a face mask can help slow the spread of the deadly respiratory virus — and if it’s worth the simple act of placing a small piece of material securely across one’s mouth and nose to prevent viral particles from going airborne and possibly infecting others with a disease that could easily kill them.
Science has proven it is. Medical experts the world over have supported that science. There is clearly evidence to demonstrate that wearing a mask is the responsible thing for all to do, every day, to protect those around us — family, friend or stranger.
Yet still, there are those among us who don’t believe it, who seem to think the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) — nonpolitical medical organizations — are lying when they say wearing masks saves lives — and are politically motivated in their messaging rather than being based in fact.
Now, after taking in the message from all sides of the media, you may believe those “anti-maskers” live in places far removed, perhaps in Wyoming, where that state’s Republican governor, Mark Gordon, resisted mandating masks until he himself became infected with COVID-19 at the end of November. Or perhaps you think those naysayers live in Kansas City, Mo., where the CDC tracked trends of counties with and without a mask mandate.
According to the CDC study: “Wearing face masks in public spaces reduces the spread of SARS-CoV-2.”
Science doesn’t lie.
But no, the anti-maskers in question do not live in the far reaches of the U.S., they live right next door in the Harlem Valley of New York. Last week, Millerton News Editor Whitney Joseph spoke to people who reside and do business locally in Millerton and its surrounds who fall on both sides of the mask debate; you can find that article on our front page last week, Dec. 10. Please, take the time to read it.
So, you may be trying to keep yourself and your loved ones safe, cocooned securely in your home as much as possible, only going out for necessities, wearing a mask and keeping socially distanced, yet there are others, perhaps your friends and neighbors, who are not following our governor’s safety guidelines, our health department’s guidelines or the CDC’s guidelines. They believe they know better. We’re not saying they’re acting out of ill-will or spite, that they’re intentionally trying to make others sick or to kill anyone. Of course not. But the fact is that is exactly what their actions could lead to — intentional or not.
And then there are those who do act belligerently when they are asked to put on a mask — as they are required to do in the states of New York and Connecticut when in a public place — by people who are justly concerned about catching the virus. To those acting out, please just stop the hostility. We are in the midst of a deadly global pandemic, and it is affecting all those around you just as it’s affecting you. Some have had the disease and some have loved ones who died from it. Think about that.
Is it really so hard to wear a mask in public to try to make the spread of COVID-19 even a little less? Isn’t that mild inconvenience worth it if it saves someone, you or another, from becoming ill? Responding by coughing on a person, yelling at a person, cursing at a person, intimidating a person, threatening a person, physically assaulting a person — such behavior is unacceptable, even criminal.
The bottom line here is that the issue of wearing a face mask — a simple step that can save lives — should not have been politicized. But it was. Today, as we face this ever-growing pandemic, which is a grave danger despite the hope of vaccine distribution, putting on a face mask should be as routine as putting on a jacket before heading out for a cold day. It’s a protective measure, not just for yourself, but for others as well. It’s long past time for all of America to willingly mask up.
Shop locally this year
Please take note of the Last Minute Shopping special banner in this week’s newspaper. It’s a reminder that shopping locally is more important this year than ever to support area merchants. Use the last days before the holidays to shop right in your own town or one close by. You won’t have to wait for a possibly late delivery, and you will enjoy seeing the lights and festivity all around us.
Mask up, wash and sanitize your hands and socially distance, but please, find a way to shop locally. It will make all the difference to area businesses going into the new year.
