Masks aren't a replacement for distancing.

Yes they are. We were advised countless times that masks were to be worn IN CASE YOU COULD NOT maintain social distancing. It's why even the CPO has lightened up and said if you are hanging out in the pilot lounges that you can take the mask off IF you can maintain six feet distancing.

Let me guess. You'll be the first to adopt the two mask standard (after all the NY Times says we ought to so it must be true).

And in any case the real point of my post was to highlight the absurdity of someone worried about social distancing in the same moment he was ordering a carton of cancer sticks.

I don’t really feel that strongly about masks either way, but what’s the difference between a person who thinks something has to be true because it’s in the New York Times and someone who thinks something has to be false because it’s in the New York Times? You find the former ridiculous while embodying the latter. That doesn’t lend to your credibility.

We have different interpretations of "replace" but I think we're agree that distancing is better than masks. And both is even better.

And I got your point about the cigs, the guy is more concerned about short term danger than long term danger.

and I think face shields are a fashion statement now. Look how cool I look with my shield.

Ah yes, make fun of ones not hurting anyone.

The issue with masks is they should have ended the pandemic last spring. Even the flimsiest of masks blocks almost all small droplets both directions, and social distancing takes care of the rest. At an R0 of 1.1 to 1.4, you only need ~30% compliance to eradicate Covid; This is just a simple 5th grade math problem. However, in reality, Masks have no effect on R0, even though they block those infectious particles.

I have no doubt that Covid can transfer via respiratory droplets, but it just is a ridiculously rare occurrence.

I mean, I guess we should take your word for it instead of listening to actual epidemiologists and ID specialists 🤷🏻‍♂️

1. Which clearly proves masking and lockdowns don't work. LA County has some of the strictest requirements and yet they can't control it. Proves that locking down and masking are useless.

2. Vehemently disagree. This became an issue when Queen Gretch in Michigan banned people from gardening or traveling to a cabin all while her husband used his privilege to flout the rules. We've seen it in California, Colorado, New York, and other Dem strongholds where Democratic politicians did exactly whatever they wanted, all while telling us peons we had to follow their rules or else we'd kill grandma. And don't tell me that people should be forgiven or that they make mistakes. These are politicians you (certainly not me) elected to make decisions that should serve the common good. They made bad decisions, and I demand you condemn them.

3. I could kill someone in my car as well. I could kill someone with a grocery cart. So that's a ridiculous stupid dangerous argument. We live in a society, and that carries risk, some of which yes does include getting sick from other individuals. You want to stay at home because of a phantom virus that does very little damage? Fine. But I'm not afraid of this. If you are, frankly, you're a wuss.

I’m confused as to how you think it is spreading.