Presumably by protecting themselves by wearing a N-95ish mask.
Yes that why I said:
So yes this would have to be done at times when beds are expected to be available.
I hate to say it, but there is an underlying point here. At what point does our obligation to try and protect those who refuse to protect themselves end? At what point is it more important to force those people to be inoculated? At what point do we save more lives who want to be saved by not caring about them? The additional risk they take on is their choice.
The big issue with the argument, however, is that masks are not perfect. You’re not just increasing the risk to the antivaxxed, but to everyone. Sure, it will affect them more, but it will also affect the people who did the right thing.
Furthermore, children under two can’t wear masks. Kids under 5 I believe can’t be vaccinated. Kids under some other age can’t be boosted. These are all people who you could not only infect but who would be likely to spread that infection to others.
If there was a means to increase the risk only for those who choose to accept that risk by refusing vaccinations and masking, I do think you could have a valid argument here, @kanicbird. But that isn’t the case. Even if the hospitals aren’t full, there’s still too much collateral damage.
There is, fortunately, an alternative. We can forcefully inoculate these people a different way. It’s more annoying, less efficient, and allows them to “get away” with their horribleness so far, but it is a much safer way to handle this situation.
I speak, of course, of vaccine mandates. Though, if we could find a way to make the vaccine go airborne like those conspiracy theorists think it can, that would be glorious.
That’s a valid question, but wearing one type of mask instead of another is such a minor inconvenience that I think we can say mask wearing is not the point we say “NO MORE!”
As mentioned above we all have a vested interest in keeping everyone healthy. If that means some people get a “free ride” because they can’t be arsed wearing a mask or getting vaccinated but they get the benefits of some level of herd conscientiousness then that’s something we have to accept.
Of course masking wouldn’t be that point. I’m pretty sure both of us are talking about the fact that they are killing more and more people. The bulk of the deaths in the US are their fault.
It’s not about them getting a “free ride.” I wouldn’t mind so much if it was just them benefiting from others putting in the effort. It’s their depraved indifference to human life that is so troubling. It would be nice if we could at least redirect that, making it where only those who risk the lives of others would be the ones facing the consequences.
But it isn’t. We will have to keep working, knowing that so many of the people we are trying to save thought their personal convenience was worth trying to kill off innocent people—us and our loved ones.
I wish everybody was as selfish as me. I got vaccinated because I don’t want to get sick, and I made sure those I associate with are vaccinated so I don’t get exposed.
I’m wearing an N95 so I don’t get sick. I’m switching my kid to N95s so she doesn’t bring anything home from school that can get me sick. I’m pushing N95s on everybody I associate with to decrease the chance they get me sick.
I support vaccine mandates to lower my chances of catching something, and to lower the odds of yet new variants showing up.
Remember what the 80s taught us? Greed is good. I’m tired of all this altruism stuff.
(Hyperbole, for those who don’t get it, but the point stands, anybody only thinking of themselves will still behave in a way that benefits society. The problem is all these toddler minded contrarians who won’t get vaccinated because somebody told them too (and they’re babies who are afraid of needles).)
Oh, and I can now comment on this from personal experience:
Neither the closest hardware store, nor either of the closest drugstores, have any. The hardware store’s website claims that there are 17 boxes in a variety of other locations, all too far for me to conveniently reach. The staff at the drugstores had no idea where any could be found. No, there definitely aren’t enough for everybody.
Lots of listings on Amazon for N95 and KN95 masks. N95s are available for just over $1 each.*
*if you buy a case of 440. 
Be careful of the listings on Amazon, particularly the KN95. Some of them are completely legitimate, but some are not.
The cheapest place I’ve found for 3M N95 masks is Staples. $19 for a box of 20 for the 8210 and $11 for 20 for the 8200. The 3M Aura, which is claimed to be very comfortable, is out of stock.
Project95 is a great place to get KN95 and other masks. They are non-profit, and only carry products from vetted sources. I have some of the Powecom KN95 they sell, and they’re fine.
The CDC published results of an international study that provided detailed information on how each manufacturer’s respirator performed in terms of filtration efficiency. It’s certainly extra legwork, but I used this list to compare against what Amazon was selling, and picked a KN95 mask that exceeded the 95% standard in tests. You can see from the list that some manufacturers fell far below that standard.