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Wtf, masks absolutely work. Who is pushing this stuff and for what nefarious reasons? Do they think all children should get exposed early to the virus and then

Wtf, masks absolutely work. Who is pushing this stuff and for what nefarious reasons? Do they think all children should get exposed early to the virus and then we'll develop heard immunity in decades to come? We have the vaccine for that.

skrbjc 5y ago
It's not saying to not vaccinate kids, it's saying the evidence says masks are ineffective at preventing the spread of covid in schools, which means it's meaningless to wear them, and that there is a negative cognitive effect on kids with wearing masks, so we should weigh that. Feel free to post a link that confirms "Wtf, masks absolutely work" in the context of kids in schools and the Omicron variant.
xondono 5y ago
> Wtf, masks absolutely work. I’m not that sure. A lot of experts agree that there’s not much quality data to reach that conclusion. Most “definitive proof” comes from mechanical studies (they measure how far your saliva is reaching with and with out mask), but that’s not the only important factor. Masks are not designed for full day use, and by wearing them everyone is constantly touching their face, mouth and nose. This sounds to me like a way worse infection vector. Viruses like covid can survive for a long time on surfaces. It’s hard to separate the effects of masks from that of hand sanitizer, vaccinations, or other measures taken.
- veemjeem 5y ago
  Nurses working in the ICU during the beginning of the pandemic would use the same mask for an entire week without losing efficacy. If the masks didn't work, we would have seen a huge number of them infected in the NYC hospitals but that didn't happen. Most viruses don't survive very long on surfaces.
  - dusing 5y ago
    ICU nurses wear N95 masks that are fitted and tested (a bad tasting/smelling aerosol is used). It is completely sealed around the face. This is how my SIL did COVID ICU for 1.5 years every week without contracting it. Not the same as the one size fits all n95 people loosely place on their faces.
  - xondono 5y ago
    Nurses in ICU are constantly sanitizing their hands, use gloves and are trained about the dangers of constantly touching your face. > Most viruses don't survive very long on surfaces. Virus can last for days on glass, metals and other non porous surfaces.
twic 5y ago
> masks absolutely work The handful of large, high-quality studies show that cloth masks have no significant effect on transmission, and FFP2/N95 masks have at best a small effect. The article talks about specific reasons to think that even FFP2/N95 masks might be substantially less effective in schools.
jimmyjazz14 5y ago
The person "pushing" this is apparently Margery Smelkinson who according to bio on the Atlantic is an infectious-disease scientist whose research has focused on influenza and SARS-CoV-2, further research indicates that she is a staff scientist at The National Institutes of Health. So you know, just another one of those run of the mill nut jobs out there. Although she did at least manage to string together a few paragraphs laying out her case and citing sources as compared to you single sentence rebuttable.
spookthesunset 5y ago
If we have a vaccines, why do we need masks? Do vaccines not work or something?
desmosxxx 5y ago
Context matters. In this case it is in the context of spending multiple hours in close proximity with a virus as contagious as Omicron.

skrbjc 5y ago

It's not saying to not vaccinate kids, it's saying the evidence says masks are ineffective at preventing the spread of covid in schools, which means it's meaningless to wear them, and that there is a negative cognitive effect on kids with wearing masks, so we should weigh that. Feel free to post a link that confirms "Wtf, masks absolutely work" in the context of kids in schools and the Omicron variant.

xondono 5y ago

> Wtf, masks absolutely work. I’m not that sure. A lot of experts agree that there’s not much quality data to reach that conclusion. Most “definitive proof” comes from mechanical studies (they measure how far your saliva is reaching with and with out mask), but that’s not the only important factor. Masks are not designed for full day use, and by wearing them everyone is constantly touching their face, mouth and nose. This sounds to me like a way worse infection vector. Viruses like covid can survive for a long time on surfaces. It’s hard to separate the effects of masks from that of hand sanitizer, vaccinations, or other measures taken.

veemjeem 5y ago
Nurses working in the ICU during the beginning of the pandemic would use the same mask for an entire week without losing efficacy. If the masks didn't work, we would have seen a huge number of them infected in the NYC hospitals but that didn't happen. Most viruses don't survive very long on surfaces.
- dusing 5y ago
  ICU nurses wear N95 masks that are fitted and tested (a bad tasting/smelling aerosol is used). It is completely sealed around the face. This is how my SIL did COVID ICU for 1.5 years every week without contracting it. Not the same as the one size fits all n95 people loosely place on their faces.
- xondono 5y ago
  Nurses in ICU are constantly sanitizing their hands, use gloves and are trained about the dangers of constantly touching your face. > Most viruses don't survive very long on surfaces. Virus can last for days on glass, metals and other non porous surfaces.

twic 5y ago

> masks absolutely work The handful of large, high-quality studies show that cloth masks have no significant effect on transmission, and FFP2/N95 masks have at best a small effect. The article talks about specific reasons to think that even FFP2/N95 masks might be substantially less effective in schools.

jimmyjazz14 5y ago

The person "pushing" this is apparently Margery Smelkinson who according to bio on the Atlantic is an infectious-disease scientist whose research has focused on influenza and SARS-CoV-2, further research indicates that she is a staff scientist at The National Institutes of Health. So you know, just another one of those run of the mill nut jobs out there. Although she did at least manage to string together a few paragraphs laying out her case and citing sources as compared to you single sentence rebuttable.

spookthesunset 5y ago

If we have a vaccines, why do we need masks? Do vaccines not work or something?

desmosxxx 5y ago

Context matters. In this case it is in the context of spending multiple hours in close proximity with a virus as contagious as Omicron.