# Why not wear masks forever? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [November 8, 2020, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-wear-masks-forever/925019 "2020-11-08T00:31:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2021, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-wear-masks-forever/925019/102 "2021-05-14T13:11:31Z")
> **[Fully vaccinated? You can ditch the mask, CDC says](https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/cdc-plans-drop-mask-requirements-fully-vaccinated-people-n1267249)** > > "We have all longed for this moment," said the CDC's director, Dr. Rochelle Walensky. It’s about time. Give people a reward for getting vaccinated and you’ll see a whole lot more people do it. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2021, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-wear-masks-forever/925019/103 "2021-05-14T13:23:37Z")
> [@UltraVires](#): > > [Fully vaccinated? You can ditch the mask, CDC says](https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/cdc-plans-drop-mask-requirements-fully-vaccinated-people-n1267249) > > It’s about time. Give people a reward for getting vaccinated and you’ll see a whole lot more people do it. - Lie about it, more likely. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2021, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-wear-masks-forever/925019/104 "2021-05-14T13:40:00Z")
> [@UltraVires](#): > > It’s about time. Give people a reward for getting vaccinated and you’ll see a whole lot more people do it. It seems naive to think that anti-vaxxers who don’t take the pandemic seriously and wear masks only because they have been required to do so will look at this as a reward (for getting the vaccine) rather than a vindication. ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2021, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-wear-masks-forever/925019/105 "2021-05-14T14:04:54Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > It seems naive to think that anti-vaxxers who don’t take the pandemic seriously and wear masks only because they have been required to do so will look at this as a reward (for getting the vaccine) rather than a vindication. Of course. I’m not talking about the hardcore anti-vaxxers. I’m talking about the middle 10 to 20 percent that might view this as an incentive and get us as a society to where we need to be in terms of possible herd immunity. ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2021, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-wear-masks-forever/925019/106 "2021-05-14T16:35:15Z")
WV governor announces that fully vaccinated people plus two weeks are not subject to the state mask mandate. How in the hell that will be enforced is not mentioned. ---
**Author:** ![Bootb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e19b73/32.png) [@Bootb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bootb)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2021, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-wear-masks-forever/925019/107 "2021-05-14T23:48:16Z")
> [@Mijin](#): > > However, I would wish that the West could basically become more culturally like the East on this; where people with cold symptoms will usually mask up. And where anyone can wear a mask if it makes them comfortable, no one is going to make it a political thing or berate someone for “virtue signalling”. Mask-wearing didn’t stick for very long after the Spanish flu; I doubt it will stick this time, either. ---
**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:** [May 15, 2021, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-wear-masks-forever/925019/108 "2021-05-15T00:36:10Z")
> [@UltraVires](#): > > [Fully vaccinated? You can ditch the mask, CDC says](https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/cdc-plans-drop-mask-requirements-fully-vaccinated-people-n1267249) > > It’s about time. Give people a reward for getting vaccinated and you’ll see a whole lot more people do it. Since we don’t have a vaccine passport, and aren’t going to go that route, i see this as simply an awkward way to end the mask mandate for everyone. I can’t imagine that people who have not gotten around to getting vaccinated are going to continue wearing masks in public. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Anconia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@D\_Anconia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Anconia)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2021, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-wear-masks-forever/925019/109 "2021-05-15T01:04:28Z")
Nor did it stick around after the Asian flu pandemic of 1957-58. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2021, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-wear-masks-forever/925019/110 "2021-05-15T02:23:35Z")
Well I sure as hell am not going to let all my handmade calico facemasks that I crafted with loving care just sit unused forever. I’ll be glad not to have to wear them everywhere routinely, but I’m proud of them and won’t object to having occasional opportunities to show them off in the future when prudence recommends it. (However, I’m hoping it won’t become a worldwide life-or-death matter again. I’m not that fond of my masks.) ---
**Author:** ![Mijin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mijin/32/9369_2.png) [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2021, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-wear-masks-forever/925019/111 "2021-05-15T03:14:24Z")
> [@Bootb](#): > > Mask-wearing didn’t stick for very long after the Spanish flu; I doubt it will stick this time, either. Well I was expressing a forlorn hope, since it’s already been politicized and even left-leaning sources have described it as “virtue signaling” in some contexts. Incidentally, and this is off topic, I’m sick of how everything political gets these buzzwords now. Cancel culture, the big lie, snowflakes, social justice warrior etc etc. It shows how low the standard of discourse has dropped in the US. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2021, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-wear-masks-forever/925019/112 "2021-05-15T03:37:50Z")
> [@Mijin](#): > > even left-leaning sources have described it as “virtue signaling” in some contexts. I question that, as “virtue signaling” is a right-wing snarl word created specifically to attack left wingers for making moral arguments. Anyone I see using that word I assume is moderate at best. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Anconia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@D\_Anconia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Anconia)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2021, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-wear-masks-forever/925019/113 "2021-05-15T04:28:41Z")
So left-leaning sources that use the term are really moderates? ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2021, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-wear-masks-forever/925019/114 "2021-05-15T04:51:04Z")
> [@Mijin](#): > > Well I was expressing a forlorn hope, since it’s already been politicized and even left-leaning sources have described it as “virtue signaling” in some contexts. We are social animals. We gaze at a person’s face. Are they smiling, frowning, sticking their lower lip out, etc.? People advocating continued mask wearing simply discount this very ancient feature of human interaction. It is very discomforting, even on a subconscious level, for some people to lose this sort of interaction. ---
**Author:** ![Shalmanese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shalmanese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shalmanese)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2021, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-wear-masks-forever/925019/115 "2021-05-15T06:02:17Z")
> [@UltraVires](#): > > We are social animals. We gaze at a person’s face. Are they smiling, frowning, sticking their lower lip out, etc.? Funny how the people who so ardently believe in this seemingly have no problem with the other everyday accoutrement that routinely hides people’s faces: sunglasses. Like, yes, it’s pretty rude to be wearing sunglasses while talking one on one with someone while indoors but people routinely wear sunglasses in circumstances where there is no glare from the sun because they just want to be left fucking alone and don’t want a bunch of random strangers judging their face. You would think if seeing people’s expressions were so important prior to 2019, there would have been some massive anti-sunglasses movement but most people didn’t seem to give a fuck as it was never a partisan issue. ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2021, 6:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-wear-masks-forever/925019/116 "2021-05-15T06:08:08Z")
I must have missed something in 2019. Did the government mandate that you wear sunglasses indoors then? ---
**Author:** ![Mijin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mijin/32/9369_2.png) [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2021, 8:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-wear-masks-forever/925019/117 "2021-05-15T08:03:39Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > I question that, as “virtue signaling” is a right-wing snarl word created specifically to attack left wingers for making moral arguments. It was on the David pakman show. Is he right wing? Granted, it was words to the effect of “there may be an aspect of virtue signaling for some people wearing masks outdoors” but he still used the term. > [@UltraVires](#): > > People advocating continued mask wearing simply discount this very ancient feature of human interaction. Not at all, it’s just that a) there are more important considerations right now and B) if someone wants to be more comfortable that’s their choice; I don’t need to interpret it as a “fuck you” to me. > [@UltraVires](#): > > Did the government mandate that you wear sunglasses indoors then? The risk of contagion indoors is still high. You know there’s a pandemic right now? ---
**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:** [May 15, 2021, 11:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-wear-masks-forever/925019/118 "2021-05-15T11:35:00Z")
> [@UltraVires](#): > > > [@Mijin](#): > > > > Well I was expressing a forlorn hope, since it’s already been politicized and even left-leaning sources have described it as “virtue signaling” in some contexts. > > We are social animals. We gaze at a person’s face. Are they smiling, frowning, sticking their lower lip out, etc.? People advocating continued mask wearing simply discount this very ancient feature of human interaction. It is very discomforting, even on a subconscious level, for some people to lose this sort of interaction. And yet, here you are, posting on a text-only message board, where we have many fewer social signals than masked people, face to face, have. I find the eyes more expressive than the mouth anyway, and of course we still have tone of voice, posture, and any number of other social clues. And if you are in the US, you and your adult friends have all had a chance to be vaccinated, and can safely take off your masks when you are together. (Or can do so in a couple of weeks.) Do you really care all that much about the facial expression of the clerk at the supermarket? So long as he’s pleasant and does the job, I’m happy with his service. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2021, 11:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-wear-masks-forever/925019/119 "2021-05-15T11:56:07Z")
> [@UltraVires](#): > > We are social animals. We gaze at a person’s face. Are they smiling, frowning, sticking their lower lip out, etc.? People advocating continued mask wearing simply discount this very ancient feature of human interaction. And yet pre-pandemic I’d walk a local trail wearing headphones, sunglasses, and avoiding eye contact. Another plus for masks. ---
**Author:** ![DemonTree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/demontree/32/8646_2.png) [@DemonTree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DemonTree)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2021, 12:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-wear-masks-forever/925019/120 "2021-05-15T12:11:23Z")
> [@UltraVires](#): > > We are social animals. We gaze at a person’s face. Are they smiling, frowning, sticking their lower lip out, etc.? People advocating continued mask wearing simply discount this very ancient feature of human interaction. It is very discomforting, even on a subconscious level, for some people to lose this sort of interaction. Heh, bunch of introverts replying saying seeing people’s faces isn’t important anyway. Not to _them_, maybe. I’m looking forward to being able to ditch the masks once enough people are vaccinated. So uncomfortable and annoying. ---
**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:** [May 15, 2021, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-wear-masks-forever/925019/121 "2021-05-15T12:56:14Z")
Maybe, in the not too distant future, it will be socially acceptable for extroverts to remove their masks, and for introverts to leave theirs on. 😃 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-wear-masks-forever/925019.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-wear-masks-forever/925019.md?page=7)