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It's virtue signaling. You do not really need a mask if you are out for a walk and are maintaining social distancing. It has been proven time and time again th
by iaHN 6y ago
It's virtue signaling.
You do not really need a mask if you are out for a walk and are maintaining social distancing. It has been proven time and time again that the main culprit is people crowding indoors without masks.
If you are downvoting, please provide evidence that wearing a mask outside while maintaining social distancing has any substantial effect.
- nemothekid 6y agoCall it whatever you want, but if I see someone who can't be bothered to wear a mask, I'm not going to just "take their word" that they have been maintaining social distancing. If they aren't doing the bare minimum, that I can see with my own eyes, I have no reason to believe they are also social distancing.
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- rayiner 6y agoThen it is literally "virtue signaling" but in this context it's entirely appropriate to require people to virtue signal. It's also an interesting illustration of why things like virtue signaling are a sociological phenomenon to begin with. They're hard-wired into us, for good reasons.
- SpicyLemonZest 6y agoI mean, yeah, wearing a mask whenever you're outside sends a signal that you're virtuously helping to control the pandemic. That seems like a pretty good thing to me! I'd argue it's actually pretty critical; strong signals that everyone else is with you make it a lot easier to observe painful but necessary restrictions.
- jawarner 6y ago> It's virtue signaling. You don't need to shame people who have an overabundance of precaution.
- detaro 6y agoWhy are you assuming that the GP comment talks about people they see outside & distancing? And no, wearing a mask outside is not automatically "virtue signaling".
- iaHN 6y agoFocusing on masks alone while ignoring the complete CDC advice is virtue signaling.
- camgunz 6y agoI'm not downvoting, but you're limiting what OP is saying. They never limited themselves to "out for a walk and... social distancing". I wear a mask outside while walking and social distancing and I'm not virtue signaling. I simply personally find it harder to futz w/ a mask when coming up on people or going inside a building. Please be a little less reflexive when it comes to this stuff. I'm sure people are "virtue signaling" by wearing masks. But coincidentally they're also limiting the spread of COVID-19. Let's focus on the latter here.
- iaHN 6y agoI am responding to the complete CDC advice. The comment before that is the virtue signaling I am talking about. They focus on mask wearing only without also advocating for social distancing.
- camgunz 6y agoThey're lamenting people wearing masks improperly, not giving advice or advocating for anything. It really seems like you're just reflexively jumping on this stuff. Mask wearing is good! Even if you're not social distancing it's better than not wearing a mask and not social distancing. It's also worth saying there's nothing wrong with "virtue signaling". It's indistinguishable from... actually having the virtue.
- jeffbee 6y agoHardly any sidewalk in America is wide enough for two adults to pass at a distance of 2m.
- iaHN 6y agoI frequently see people walking off of the sidewalk for a few seconds to maintain social distancing. They don't seem to have any issue doing this, as there is usually enough space between sidewalk and car lanes to not have to walk into traffic. edit - If you need to take a walk through downtown Los Angeles or somewhere where it is physically impossible to social distance, then yes wear a mask.
- jeffbee 6y agoYeah? You think pedestrians should step right out around a line of parked cars into traffic on Flower St. in downtown Los Angeles?
- proactivesvcs 6y agoThe sidewalks here in the UK are often so narrow your can only just fit two abreast. We seem to have quietly understood the need for one to step into the road to pass, these days. I am not sure I can even recall someone walking past me in close proximity.
- mistrial9 6y agohi - US Citizen in College Town with low covid19 and high compliance here.. One liners, either from Public Health Advocates, trendy social media people, or well-meaning neighbors who exercise control statements as a method of interacting with others, are not going to "fix" the problems of covid19 today. As an avid bicyclist I do not wear a mask on long distance solo bike rides, and I get harsh or worried looks from seniors. However, I understand the details and am not exposing myself or others. A major challenge in public health messaging is the intractable problem of lack of context and lack of intellectual effort by all parties. Mix in serious consequences and you have a recipe for conflict quickly. So "virtue signalling" is a one liner, my post is a one liner (almost) and, public health officials face millions of inconvenienced, ill or panic'd people with their "one liner" Please wash hands, be mindful of others, take it seriously and no, I do not wear a mask on my long distance solo bike rides.
- benjohnson 6y agoIf a virus can’t spread from people who are riding on a bike, then my proposed solution is tiny circus bikes for everybody!
- djeiasbsbo 6y agoMaybe true but tell me, is it really that bothersome to just wear the mask, even outside? What bothers me more is not having clear rules/instructions. So I just resort to wearing the mask everywhere, doesn't hurt me or bother me and shouldn't be controversial.
- throwaway_4253 6y agoI think it's inconvenient in a number of cases - if you have an injury on your face that the mask irritates, if you're trying to eat or drink while walking, or if you're wearing glasses which fog up. The glasses thing is actually a pretty critical issue. I've seen people wearing masks and glasses by themselves in cars while driving with the windows closed. In that scenario fogging glasses makes wearing the mask more dangerous to people around you than not wearing the mask... Of course, none of this is to say that in all these cases, even outdoors, that you shouldn't wear the mask if you can't social distance or need to go indoors. You totally should! But giving people the stink eye when they're 30 ft away from everyone else and outside and mask-less seems a bit much. It doesn't seem like there's any justification for that outside of shaming non-conformity. Other commenters here are saying things like - if there's a .0001% chance this pre ents harm to you or others, then it's your duty to not do it. I'm a teetotaler; I wonder if these folks drink alcohol.
- ghaff 6y agoThis is one of the few things I draw a line at. I absolutely wear a mask indoors in stores etc. And I'll pull up a mask/neck gaiter outdoors if I'm approaching other people, even if I'll be somewhat distanced from them, especially if they are wearing masks. But, no, I don't if I'm on deserted forest trails or if I'm 50 feet away from anyone else. I've rarely eaten at an outdoor restaurant since March, I haven't eaten indoors at all, and have been generally minimizing trips to stores so I'm conservative. But I'm not going to do something just to send a signal that I'm a "good" person.
- quesera 6y agoIt's not virtue signalling, it's awareness signalling. Wear the damn mask, and wear it properly. This tells the world that you get it, that you take it seriously, and that you're probably doing all the other trivial but necessary things also. Yes, it's slightly inconvenient. But generally no more so for you than for everyone else. So get over it. Also, use your turn signal, even if there are no other cars within 100 meters of you. Also, don't leave your shopping cart in the middle of the grocery aisle while deciding which product to select, even if no one else is presently trying to get past you. Do all the simple things that signal "it makes more sense to be courteous and clear, than to demonstrate disregard for others (whether purposeful or oblivious, because they are often hard to tell apart)".
- iaHN 6y agoYou should direct your outrage towards people crowding in bars, constantly taking vacations, and attending large indoor church services.
- quesera 6y agoAbsolutely. That is the height of stupidity, and if we had any real leadership here, the messaging would be clear. But if those people are going to be stupid in private, then I still want them to do all the CDC-recommended stuff in the places where we cross paths. If we could isolate those folks in their bars and churches and let them burn themselves out, I'd be OK with that. But they are in the grocery store the next day, wearing a mask around their chin because they care equally little in public as they do in private. So, if you are not one of those people, signal it by wearing the mask properly. ("you" in all of the foregoing is directed generally, not personally!)
- just-juan-post 6y ago> Also, use your turn signal, even if there are no other cars within 100 meters of you. You might be slightly unhinged my dude.
- ghaff 6y ago
- JediWing 6y agoVirtue signaling? Honestly? People should just shut up and wear a mask. (And social distance. And wash their hands. And refrain from touching their face. And, and, and) If there's even a 0.000001% chance that you could prevent the spread of a rampantly spreading disease that has hospitals in many regions at or above capacity, by putting a damn piece of cloth over your face, then just do it. It's not burdensome. I think about past generations in the US that had to sacrifice mightily in the great depression or WWII, and then I look at today and how many people are whining over petty nonsense like this, and I shudder at what the country has become.
- jfengel 6y ago"Virtue signaling" is the all-purpose response to anything they don't wish to do solely because you wish them to do it. They don't have to engage with whether or not it's a good idea. They don't have to engage with whether you're being serious or not. It's just a two-word dismissal: if you care about it, it must be wrong, and no further thought is necessary. For me, it has a convenient counter response: nobody using the term "virtue signaling" has anything useful to say, on any topic. It's "vice signaling", their call-out to their buddies that they, too, don't like anything you say solely because you say it. They're not listening to me, except for the purpose of rejecting it reflexively, so there's no point in talking to them.
- iaHN 6y agoIt follows that nobody who uses the term "vice signaling" has anything useful to say.
- dorkwood 6y agoI see a lot of talk about "virtue signalling" when it comes to mask wearing. The implication is that those who wear a mask outside do so to broadcast their left-leaning world view to others, and those who don't wear a mask outside are taking a neutral stance and not broadcasting anything at all. But I think the reality is that non-mask wearers are also wanting to send a signal: something like "I'm not a sheep. I think for myself. You can't tell me what to do". Is there a name for this kind of signalling?