Comradeship // Freechat

I stopped masking basically the day I was no longer required to. I mask in hospitals/doctor's offices (even though that's no longer required in my area) and when dealing with the elderly (which is rarely). I mask when I visit my elderly mother if I've been feeling sick recently. I don't mask at work, and I don't mask at political events unless they require a mask (the only people who do are Anarchists who mostly only do it because they're paranoid about "opsec", because god forbid someone be able to tie together your name, face, and political beliefs - something that doing yourself, loudly and proudly, I believe is a prerequisite to considering yourself a Communist).

I work in a grocery store. I'm currently sitting in the cafe waiting for my shift to start. Practically nobody is wearing a mask. The only people who do are (1). the Chinese workers in the sushi department and (2). a few transfeminine co-workers who I imagine are not primarily wearing masks for the health benefits but due to face dysphoria. Maybe once a week I see an elderly person masking or a transfeminine customer, but that's about it.

I agree with the other commenters - masking while practically no one around you is is functionally worthless and more of an act of virtue signaling than anything else. Someone elsewhere in the thread brought up the Chinese Long March and the dedication necessary for that. That comparison would be apt if masking was widespread, but masking while no one else is is about as useful as trekking through the Tibetan plateau alone.

Never stopped masking in clinics. In the last few months I am back to masking in crowded environments. Always wear KN-95 or equivalent quality mask. I don't live in a high density or high population area.

Wore a mask to the theatre last night, and within ten minutes the stranger next to me started coughing and continued to do so throughout the film.

As far as I know, I have never gotten covid and I plan to keep it that way.

1. I do whenever I can, in my work I can't, because it's socially so frowned upon here. I try to work alone/remote as much as I can becaude of this and bought and aur purifier for my office, I have high risk loved ones, have longcovid and so does people closest to me. I'd rather mask everywhere, did not miss the smells of other peoples sweat at all.

2. In my country (Finland) masking was negatively framed from day one. Also it was strongly hinted that they don't work, there's nothing we can do and the frail will fall regardless.

There have been no masks used here for most of the time I masked everywhere, the mask wearing only happened for the delta wave, but when the vaccinations began, they disappeared. "Expert" opinion has been very anti-mask and covid has been "just a cold" that only kills old people all along.

This whole thing has been my single biggest eye-opener to the fucked up fascist values I have actually grown up surrounded by. It has also made me understand that covid and covid protection is 100% a working class issue and a matter of class consciousness. It's the workers like me who don't get protected that die from it or get longcovid. Also lots of eugenist brainworms in my country.

This is a country where unironically one popular saying is "there's still room behind the sauna" and this is supposedly a joke about how the undesirables used to be shot behind a sauna in our fash past and gets thrown around whenever someone for example does something dumb. We are the baddies actually and covid made me see this in its entirety, because the society I live in is behaving like monsters without even realizing it.

I mask every day; I will stop masking and taking precautions the moment the pandemic is over. I will not risk disability or death for myself or anybody in my life for the acceptance of those who deny science or for the mild convenience of not putting on a mask

you have to get boosters to be fully covered for variant strains.

Speaking of boosters, friendly reminder that at least in the US, 2024 updated Pfizer and Moderna vaccines have been out for a few weeks. If you haven't already, look into getting your updated booster soon :)

I want to preface what im about to say by saying i do wear a mask, and think everyone should.

I think that the focus on masking was a misdirect similar to how the powerful will push personal responsibility about the climate to combat systemic issues. While yes masking is effective and important it means we are relying on the lowest common denominator of dumbasses to do the right thing. Which never works out well.

I think that a much better solution would be to have buildings like stores where large crowds gather indoors with air filtration systems, and UV overhead sanitation lighting. Especially at entrances and exits. Its been proven such measures make a big difference. You could easily incorporate UV lighting into normal light fixtures and effectively sanitize every surface in a building constantly. Air filtration is already in most buildings AC systems and could be retrofitted to filter for viral bodies. Most people would not even notice these things happening. People should still be encouraged to mask especially when they are sick, but solutions that do not rely on an individual doing the proper thing are much more reliable.

The reason they don't get pushed is that they cost money, and companies and governments do not want to do them. But when Biden was going to campaign events they brought portable air filters to keep the air in the buildings he was in clean so they are clearly aware of these solutions.

Also in this same vein vaccines during the height of covid were made free for those without insurance but i do not think that is the case anymore. Vaccination combined with those other solutions even without proper masking would massively reduce spread, and the fact it hasnt been done is simply a systemic issue.

Every time I want to forget COVID, my partner has another bi-weekly breathing crisis that's been going on since her infection in 2022. My best friend has been out of work since she last got Covid in 2020.

People that give me shit about masking are the grossest boomer reactionaries that I know, and I revel that I piss those knobheads off. Granted my situation is maybe easier than most, I'm white, tall, old, and have professional credentials. I think it's probably harder to fuck with me than a lot of other people.

I cannot effect change by being the only person to wear a mask among millions in my community who do not. At that point it becomes a style choice.

I now wear a mask at the slightest symptoms in myself. I have gotten five or six vaccines and been infected three times.

I also have a chronic jaw issue that makes extended masking very painful for me.

I find the vitriol against not wearing a mask in this thread tiresome. Being hateful and enraged at 99% of people is not functional.