My circles (slatestarcodex etc.) were worrying in January 2020, stockpiling etc. an advocating for masks when the government was still saying they weren't neces

My circles (slatestarcodex etc.) were worrying in January 2020, stockpiling etc. an advocating for masks when the government was still saying they weren't necessary. I remember the heroic effort in the Czech republic to hand make millions of masks while the US government said one shouldn't bother. By the summer, data showed they weren't helping. Sweden etc. did fine. But the lines had been drawn. For whatever reason, political identities randomly chose different pandemic policies. In some countries, people of the same overall politics would be for what Americans of the same movement were against. Back in the US in 2021, wearing a mask was offensive to many. And then not wearing one offended many others. Absolutely crazy. Discussing data etc. meant nothing. It was quasi religious. The chorus in unison: "I believe in science." Any additional inquiry however is heresy. And then you get classified with "the crazies". Horrible! In Mexico, many religiously wear masks. Not wearing them is "gringo". Also hand sanitizer rules. Again, data etc. is irrelevant. Really, this is a human issue. The overall structures of belief, our institutions etc. conspire against innovation/progress in all forms. Thus Plank's oft repeated quip: "Science advances one funeral at a time."