# How many people are you willing to kill so you don't have to wear a mask? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [June 27, 2020, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-people-are-you-willing-to-kill-so-you-dont-have-to-wear-a-mask/913310 "2020-06-27T01:06:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2020, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-people-are-you-willing-to-kill-so-you-dont-have-to-wear-a-mask/913310/41 "2020-06-28T00:35:15Z")
> [@pool](#): > > Why don’t you wear a spacesuit or an N-95 mask 24/7? If you don’t then your full of shit. There is risk for any act you partake in, at any given time. Only if you are 100% free of sin can you cast stones. Nobody doesn’t risk the lives of somebody when they go outside. Nothing is risk free- so dont do anything to reduce the risk? Are you listening to those right wing pundits or something? What flavor is the kool-aid? ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2020, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-people-are-you-willing-to-kill-so-you-dont-have-to-wear-a-mask/913310/42 "2020-06-28T00:38:01Z")
> [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](#): > > We have had epidemics before. We have not had masks during those epidemics. > > … Umm, yes, during the Spanish flu they wore masks. ---
**Author:** ![PlaceboTarget](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/placebotarget/32/1073_2.png) [@PlaceboTarget](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PlaceboTarget)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2020, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-people-are-you-willing-to-kill-so-you-dont-have-to-wear-a-mask/913310/43 "2020-06-28T02:14:31Z")
> [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](#): > > We have had epidemics before. We have not had masks during those epidemics. This seems to be false. People all over the world did wear masks during epidemics before, including the US. ([source](https://edition.cnn.com/2020/04/03/americas/flu-america-1918-masks-intl-hnk/index.html)) ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2020, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-people-are-you-willing-to-kill-so-you-dont-have-to-wear-a-mask/913310/44 "2020-06-28T02:18:33Z")
This virus is exceptionally contagious. AND people can pass it on for as long as two weeks before they show symptoms. With regular flu, after a couple of days, you feel like crap and stay home. Not so with COVID. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2020, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-people-are-you-willing-to-kill-so-you-dont-have-to-wear-a-mask/913310/45 "2020-06-28T03:27:10Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > > [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](#): > > > > But we were trying to flatten the curve. Well, it’s flattened. What is the point now? > > Not sure where you live that the curve has been flattened. It’s rising precipitously many places. The northeast? There are 11 states where cases are not rising, not staying steady, but falling. My state, New Hampshire, is one of them: we’ve only had 4 days of triple digit numbers of new cases since our first case in March, with a high of 161 once. I still willingly wear a mask, though. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2020, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-people-are-you-willing-to-kill-so-you-dont-have-to-wear-a-mask/913310/46 "2020-06-28T13:11:31Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > The northeast? There are 11 states where cases are not rising, not staying steady, but falling. My state, New Hampshire, is one of them: we’ve only had 4 days of triple digit numbers of new cases since our first case in March, with a high of 161 once. I still willingly wear a mask, though– Not what I read this morning: [https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB163CuO?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare](https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB163CuO?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare) ---
**Author:** ![obfusciatrist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/4af34b/32.png) [@obfusciatrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obfusciatrist)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2020, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-people-are-you-willing-to-kill-so-you-dont-have-to-wear-a-mask/913310/47 "2020-06-28T16:41:13Z")
I didn’t forget the sarcasm tag. If a small number of murders could eliminate the need for wearing masks (i.e., there’s no highly fatal communicable disease that would be spread by not wearing them) then it probably should be done. But yes, if it came to me to do it, it would be entirely reasonable for me to take my share of the burden and be one of them. What I did forget, actually not so much forget as don’t know, is how I ended up in a Great Debates thread. Something weird about the new format because I never come into this forum intentionally. Somehow, I guess I went from looking at new threads for a different forum to looking at new threads for the whole site. I will try to avoid that error again. ---
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2020, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-people-are-you-willing-to-kill-so-you-dont-have-to-wear-a-mask/913310/48 "2020-06-28T20:57:41Z")
There is zero possibility that I have COVID-19. I wear a mask, but that’s just because it’s easier than getting into arguments with stupid people, like the OP, who thinks that everyone must wear a mask to have societal safety. On the other hand, there _are_ people who have greater-than-zero possibilities of having COVID-19, and some of them probably think they have zero possibility, so might be reckless unless we apply this societal pressure to all. That’s the problem with stupid people; they ruin things for the rest of us. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2020, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-people-are-you-willing-to-kill-so-you-dont-have-to-wear-a-mask/913310/49 "2020-06-28T21:00:01Z")
If you have ever been in a situation where anyone would want you to wear a mask, you have more than a zero possibility of having Covid. What reason do you believe that you could not possibly have it? There were some people that got off an Artic exploration vessel that had been “stuck” in the ice for months. They had a pretty much nonexistent chance of having it. But not anymore, once they ran into people in the general community, they were exposed to the possibility of having it. ---
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2020, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-people-are-you-willing-to-kill-so-you-dont-have-to-wear-a-mask/913310/50 "2020-06-28T21:08:36Z")
COVID requires close contact with people who have the virus, or with contaminated surfaces and poor hygiene, such as touching droplets and then licking your fingers. I avoid all of that; unless there is something that they’re not telling us, it’s impossible for me to have COVID. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2020, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-people-are-you-willing-to-kill-so-you-dont-have-to-wear-a-mask/913310/51 "2020-06-28T21:18:54Z")
It sounds like you are doing due diligence, and there is a fairly low chance of you having Covid. However, unless you have been holed up in your home, not eating any food that has come from outside of it, not using any products purchased since March, and making sure that you have never been in the same enclosed location as an infected person, then your chance is greater than zero. It travels, and the 6’ rule is a good guideline, but it’s not an impenetrable barrier. If you were at the store, and someone the next aisle over sneezed, then it is possible for you to have gotten the virus into your eyes or other exposed openings. It is unlikely, but it is certainly not impossible or zero chance. ---
**Author:** ![Steven\_Maven](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steven_maven/32/3272_2.png) [@Steven\_Maven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steven_Maven)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2020, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-people-are-you-willing-to-kill-so-you-dont-have-to-wear-a-mask/913310/52 "2020-06-28T21:21:32Z")
The curve is NOT flattening. This week there have been huge spikes in new cases in areas attempting to open up. Duh! The USA is about 5% of the world population but we have about 25% of cases & deaths worldwide. What does that tell you? As for Trump, “How many deaths will it take ‘til he knows that too many people have died?” (Thanks, Bobby.) ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2020, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-people-are-you-willing-to-kill-so-you-dont-have-to-wear-a-mask/913310/53 "2020-06-28T21:23:36Z")
> [@Steven\_Maven](#): > > The USA is about 5% of the world population but we have about 25% of cases & deaths worldwide. What does that tell you? We gotta be #1 in something, or else what is the point of American exceptionalism? ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2020, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-people-are-you-willing-to-kill-so-you-dont-have-to-wear-a-mask/913310/54 "2020-06-28T22:56:16Z")
Are people unaware that COVID-19 spreads through mere breathing, like measles? Coughs, sneezes, singing, yelling … none of that is required. ---
**Author:** ![Nars\_Glinley](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nars_glinley/32/8177_2.png) [@Nars\_Glinley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nars_Glinley)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2020, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-people-are-you-willing-to-kill-so-you-dont-have-to-wear-a-mask/913310/55 "2020-06-28T23:32:47Z")
> [@pool](#): > > Why don’t you wear a spacesuit or an N-95 mask 24/7? Just FYI, if I had a spacesuit, I would wear it everywhere I went. ---
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2020, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-people-are-you-willing-to-kill-so-you-dont-have-to-wear-a-mask/913310/56 "2020-06-28T23:59:17Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > We gotta be #1 in something, or else what is the point of American exceptionalism? We must like that 5%/25% ratio. It’s the same for the US prison population. We have 5% of the world’s population but 25% of the world’s prisoners. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2020, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-people-are-you-willing-to-kill-so-you-dont-have-to-wear-a-mask/913310/57 "2020-06-29T00:00:29Z")
> [@filmore](#): > > We must like that 5%/25% ratio. It’s the same for the US prison population. We have 5% of the world’s population but 25% of the world’s prisoners– WINNING! ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2020, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-people-are-you-willing-to-kill-so-you-dont-have-to-wear-a-mask/913310/58 "2020-06-29T02:57:52Z")
[quote=“Hilarity\_N.Suze, post:32, topic:913310, full:true”] Two, I don’t personally know anyone who’s had it, although I don’t know very many people so that’s nothing. But also, only one person I know knows someone who’s had it… [/quote]Do you know me? My uncle and aunt died of covid. My friend David lost both his parents to covid. I know several other people on-line who currently have it. (Most are young and not all that sick, and I hope and expect they will recover.) My brother and his partner weren’t tested, because tests were scarce when they were sick, but they live next to the New Rochelle hot spot and were very sick with covid-like symptoms in March. Another friend was desperately looking for convalescent plasma donors for her cousin. It fees very real to me. > [@ThelmaLou](#): > > > [@elfkin477](#): > > > > The northeast? There are 11 states where cases are not rising, not staying steady, but falling. My state, New Hampshire, is one of them: we’ve only had 4 days of triple digit numbers of new cases since our first case in March, with a high of 161 once. I still willingly wear a mask, though– > > Not what I read this morning: > [https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB163CuO?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare](https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB163CuO?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare) That quote confuses me. It says only two states are reporting a decline, but it also says they are rising in 36 states. What’s with the other 12? > **[An interactive visualization of COVID-19 | 91-DIVOC](https://91-divoc.com/pages/covid-visualization/)** > > An interactive, data-forward visualization of COVID-19 data by Prof. Wade at The University of Illinois. Updated daily. says that cases are decreasing on a weekly rolling average basis in MA, NH, NY, ME, and VT (as well as CT and RI). ---
**Author:** ![Dark\_Sponge](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dark_sponge/32/121_2.png) [@Dark\_Sponge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dark_Sponge)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2020, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-people-are-you-willing-to-kill-so-you-dont-have-to-wear-a-mask/913310/59 "2020-06-29T15:31:32Z")
Zero. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2020, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-people-are-you-willing-to-kill-so-you-dont-have-to-wear-a-mask/913310/60 "2020-06-29T15:36:53Z")
> [@Dark\_Sponge](#): > > Zero- It doesn’t cost extra to post a complete sentence. 🤨 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-people-are-you-willing-to-kill-so-you-dont-have-to-wear-a-mask/913310.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-people-are-you-willing-to-kill-so-you-dont-have-to-wear-a-mask/913310.md?page=4)