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True, but there was many other reasons to think masks would work. Its demonstrated efficacy in other coronaviruses and the cultural evolution of dense Asian cou

True, but there was many other reasons to think masks would work. Its demonstrated efficacy in other coronaviruses and the cultural evolution of dense Asian countries to use masks as a way to combat virus transmission. The WHO and CDC behaved liked total idiots, setting the burden of proof way too high for what should've been a pragmatic, common sense decision made with some uncertainty. Not atypical of bureaucrats to miss such a layup.

in_cahoots 5y ago
I don’t think they were total idiots, at least not from the angle you’re pointing out. The CDC knew masks were effective, but they wanted to make sure masks were reserved for healthcare workers. Remember at the time nurses were given a single mask to use for multiple days, and many hospitals had drives to collect donated masks. The CDC lied to prevent the general public from making the situation worse. Was it worth the long-term loss of credibility? It’s easy to say no, but we’ll never know the counterfactual. For all we know some other issue would have become as politicized as masks were. To me, this was a glaring reminder that public health deals with more than cold hard science. It’s about ensuring public health first and foremost, given the realities on the ground. See harm reduction as another example. Again, I’m not sure they made the right call here. But it wasn’t due to ignorance.
- fighterpilot 5y ago
  It's hard to attribute the same charity to the WHO. They were dragged kicking and screaming to mask recommendation and this happened many, many months into the pandemic, well after any concerns of mask shortages were alleviated. I see your point about the CDC. But they should've recommended home made masks. Other countries did that. They messed up big time. It's impossible to know the counterfactual with perfect confidence, but we can make a sound judgement given what we know.

in_cahoots 5y ago

I don’t think they were total idiots, at least not from the angle you’re pointing out. The CDC knew masks were effective, but they wanted to make sure masks were reserved for healthcare workers. Remember at the time nurses were given a single mask to use for multiple days, and many hospitals had drives to collect donated masks. The CDC lied to prevent the general public from making the situation worse. Was it worth the long-term loss of credibility? It’s easy to say no, but we’ll never know the counterfactual. For all we know some other issue would have become as politicized as masks were. To me, this was a glaring reminder that public health deals with more than cold hard science. It’s about ensuring public health first and foremost, given the realities on the ground. See harm reduction as another example. Again, I’m not sure they made the right call here. But it wasn’t due to ignorance.

fighterpilot 5y ago
It's hard to attribute the same charity to the WHO. They were dragged kicking and screaming to mask recommendation and this happened many, many months into the pandemic, well after any concerns of mask shortages were alleviated. I see your point about the CDC. But they should've recommended home made masks. Other countries did that. They messed up big time. It's impossible to know the counterfactual with perfect confidence, but we can make a sound judgement given what we know.