Wearing A Mask: Now a Cultist Following

[Pohemi]

I went to China years ago, lots of people wearing masks. Some I knew there said they wore their surgical masks to help with the smog and pollution. Er, it does nothing to protect you from that. It might help you avoid getting sick, sure.

I wondered about that, since it's been a semi-common practice among some citizens there for years already.

I'm guessing it is (the intention, anyway) to minimize the particulate matter that 'smog' carries, since the masks obviously do nothing to prevent breathing fumes and gases. From what I've read, the particulates in the air are what can do a lot of lung damage, especially in areas where factories or other types of industrial buildings are located.

Proper N95 masks should prevent particles larger than 0.75 microns from passing through, though I'm not sure how small some of the particulate pollutants in air can be.

 

[Stokely]

I wondered about that, since it's been a semi-common practice among some citizens there for years already.

I'm guessing it is (the intention, anyway) to minimize the particulate matter that 'smog' carries, since the masks obviously do nothing to prevent breathing fumes and gases. From what I've read, the particulates in the air are what can do a lot of lung damage, especially in areas where factories or other types of industrial buildings are located.

Proper N95 masks should prevent particles larger than 0.75 microns from passing through, though I'm not sure how small some of the particulate pollutants in air can be.

From what I saw, it was almost all surgical masks. Good for droplets (and covid does adhere to droplets) but not a lot else.

The smog in Beijing was BRUTAL. It was like being in a sci-fi movie.

As an aside, boy were they hitting the propaganda hard about how the bird flu--which was big in the news then--"came from America." There were times I felt mighty uncomfortable, for instance being on a train as the only westerner in sight and here comes one of the propaganda vids playing on the screens in every car. Interesting to see the same childish blaming happening coming from our side more than a decade later. People would always rather find a villain than try to fix the problem.

 

[MixMasterTang]

He's not planning a visit to Mexico with a harpoon gun anytime soon, right? Right?
That cousin sounds one step shy.

Its a female actually, which made it sound even crazier to me!

 

[woolfe9998]

From what I saw, it was almost all surgical masks. Good for droplets (and covid does adhere to droplets) but not a lot else.

The smog in Beijing was BRUTAL. It was like being in a sci-fi movie.

As an aside, boy were they hitting the propaganda hard about how the bird flu--which was big in the news then--"came from America." There were times I felt mighty uncomfortable, for instance being on a train as the only westerner in sight and here comes one of the propaganda vids playing on the screens in every car. Interesting to see the same childish blaming happening coming from our side more than a decade later. People would always rather find a villain than try to fix the problem.

It's probably about germs as much as smog, if not more.

Looking over the data on US vaccination rates broken down by ethnicity. Asian-Americans are WAY ahead of every other ethnic group in getting vaccinated. IIRC they're like 82% vaccinated right now. Because they brought with them a culture of heightened worry over infectious diseases which at this moment in time is not a bad thing.

 

[Muse]

I may get someone posting valid studies about how masks don't work? I doubt it, that seems to be counter-factual.

All I want is objective truth. If masks truly did nothing, then I want to know.

I went to China years ago, lots of people wearing masks. Some I knew there said they wore their surgical masks to help with the smog and pollution. Er, it does nothing to protect you from that. It might help you avoid getting sick, sure.

Masks suck if you wear glasses, they really do. I've yet to find any k95s or other more serious ones that don't the ears on my big head, I've got some coming that a fellow big-melon told me about, we'll see. I'll still wear them until they are proven ineffective, which again at this point the science (and evidence in places like Japan) are becoming more clear--they do help. In no way shape or form is someone telling me to wear a mask some assault on my freedom, that is childish.

Case in point, people and companies spending a lot of money and energy "disinfecting" everything, including washing down the groceries. Limiting store hours so they could scrub surfaces-- limiting store hours meant that more people had to crowd in over less time, it was counter-productive. Expanding store hours would have probably meant less spread. And as we grew to learn, very few cases were ever shown to have spread through fomites on surfaces. Basically none in the scheme of things. Granted--we didn't know that at first, and science started showing the way. But it did some damage in my opinion, by wearing people out taking measures that did nothing to help the situation. No blame, again, we just didn't know. If this was in fact really like the Flu, it would have helped a lot.

Masks don't do nothing. If you catch covid-19 while wearing a mask, it's virtually certain that you get a lower viral dose than if you weren't wearing that mask. The viral dose has a lot to do with how sick you get, etc.

All those Asians over the years haven't been wearing those masks in vain. And they do protect against pollution. The N95's I've been wearing during the pandemic are from my purchases during the 2017 wildfires in N. Calif. They do protect against those particles. While some SARS-CoV-2 can penetrate N95's, it's much reduced because it's in droplets that do get trapped in the mask and not brought into your body.

Yes, the fomites scare was taxing, and I speak from experience. It wasn't until I was vaccinated that I fully realized that.

I do wear glasses and I have no fogging issues with my 3M 9210 N95's. Those masks are fabulous. They also have around the head straps, and I REALLY like those. They make the mask harder to put on (and remove, I guess), because you need to use two hands, but the fit is fantastic (if you put it on right!!!) and they are really comfortable! And no pain behind the ears, of course.

 

[Bitek]

If you are in Philly, go to John's Roast Pork at least once. Goddamn.

Find a place that does a good tomato pie too.

And there are no comparisons. Sorry.

NJ has some amazing Italian delis/sandwich shops.

Johns Roast Pork is the best cheesesteak in Philly. Outside of Philly, in Southern NJ there is a small chain called Gaetano's that makes the best cheesesteaks PERIOD.

Also, any cheesesteak from a chain place is trash, and you can't really get a good one north of 195 in NJ...

I have a very important update on a very serious topic.

JOHN'S ROAST PORK WINS BEST CHEESESTEAK COMPETITION
https://6abc.com/amp/johns-roast-pork-best-cheesesteak-philadelphia-food-phily-restaurants/11130411/


Unfortunately, the Eagles are terrible, but still better than the Giants and Washington Team of Football.

 

[Greenman]

I have a very important update on a very serious topic.

JOHN'S ROAST PORK WINS BEST CHEESESTEAK COMPETITION
https://6abc.com/amp/johns-roast-pork-best-cheesesteak-philadelphia-food-phily-restaurants/11130411/


Unfortunately, the Eagles are terrible, but still better than the Giants and Washington Team of Football.

I haven't had a cheese steak in years. I may have to fly to Philly and snag one.

 

[Muse]

I haven't had a cheese steak in years. I may have to fly to Philly and snag one.

I did that (on business). The cheesesteak sandwiches I had were nothing special, was my thinking. But I didn't go to one of the recommended places, just what I encountered.