A reader of the blog posted the following comment, which I find to be sane and wise:
There is so much hypocrisy and ignorance in this politicization of mask wearing and vaccination. When everyone’s health and well-being is on the line, there can be no personal choice to forego what keeps everyone safer.
Why is it these people insist they can mandate what a woman does with her body or who can and cannot marry, but not that we all wear masks to keep everyone safer?
If one can’t wear a mask out in public for a health reason (which, for the life of me, I can’t think of), perhaps one shouldn’t be out. If you’re a professional athlete competing closely against others, you should be required to be vaccinated. If you are a spectator in the stands, you should be vaccinated. If you’re a teacher, a bus driver, a nurse or doctor or receptionist, etc., etc., you should be vaccinated.
I wear a mask for the same reason I drive on the correct side of the freeway. I wear a mask for the same reason I drive on the road instead of on the sidewalk. I wear a mask because it helps protect my young grandson who has a heart condition and lives in my home. I wear a mask because it is the right and intelligent thing to do.
No one has the right to put the lives of others at risk by not masking up or being vaccinated.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Sane…indeed!
When you are making policy for the safety of students, you can get input from parents, but you must decide on the safety for ALL. You can’t let parents make the decisions for the whole school because they will always just decide for their own children and you will never reach decision!
and as in so many school cases, the loudest parent voices tend to be heard and appeased, even when their demands are unhelpful
It’s called “heard immunity”
Hear, hear.
The safety of the greater good should always be a priority over the rights of one individual, especially in public health. As I have said before, parents do not always know what is best for children. If that were true, there would be no CPS cases.
” parents do not always know what is best for children”
True dat
Persuading them that YOU know what’s best, seems to
betrayed by the complicity of testing.
Follow “WHAT” leader???
It’s no accident that the current wave of new infections and deaths are almost entirely among the unvaccinated.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/some-americans-no-longer-believe-in-the-common-good/ar-AANAYZ9?li=BBnb7Kz
I think this says it all.
Ever since Reagan there has been an attack on the common good. The radicalization of the right has led some people to believe that public federal laws have no authority. The Koch network and right wing media have been sowing seeds of doubt in public institutions. We have also watched many years of right wing political obstruction fueled by the activism of the Christian right and libertarians in both federal and state governments.https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/school-covid-mask-rules-have-sparked-parent-teacher-violence-we-ncna1277415
Libertarians try to put a happy face on greed, selfishness and acquisitiveness on steroids. They spit on the commons or the common good, it’s only about me, me, me, me and more me.
Wonderful article about the good days of America. It’s how I was raised and taught to act and how I now teach my kids to act.
Democracy is about WE
Competition (free market/librertarian ideals) is about ME
Many have lost sight of Democracy in the constant attempt to “out do the Jones’ and the deep dive into technology and “social” media. I fear we may be doomed and have already gone too far over the edge into chaos.
Who benefits the most from this politicization of vaccines and masks that have already contributed to the deaths of more than a half-million Americans.?
A. libertarians
B. Putin
C. both
Lame Brain Traitor Trump is not profiting. Every time another MAGA dies because they refuse to be vaccinated and/or wear a mask, Trump loses another fool that might have sent him a donation to support his lavish lifestyle and keep his criminal family empire funded.
It’s not only cynical, pandering Trump mini-me govt actors encouraging this minority band of anti-public-good troublemakers. The media gives them an outsize megaphone– that’s why they’re a “loud” minority! Note that both the Atlantic article at msn posted by KY teacher and the NBC article posted by retired teacher above cite the exact same 4 or 5 incidents. Every article quotes on the one hand poll results showing a majority of responsible citizens, then in the same paragraph trumpets out a handful of examples of a ‘nationwide’ disruption which ‘cannot be ignored.’ I say, demand national vaccine and masking mandates. Then turn off the TV, close the newspapers, and ignore these birdbrains.
Too many school districts in the South are not enforcing any common sense protocols. The result is widespread infections. School nurses are sounding the alarm because red states simply want to ignore the pandemic. Parents in some districts are up in arms as well they should be.https://www.aol.com/lifestyle/impossible-lack-covid-safeguards-overwhelm-083011791.html
Retired teacher, the linked article you provided is so disturbing. This and many other articles we’ve read tell the same story: schools doing in-person teaching in the 2020-2021 school year were providing mitigation strategies—at minimum masking, with many doing hybrid to allow distancing in person. Post-vaccination availability, too many children are being asked to return to in-person instruction with neither universal masking nor distancing. Some are even being denied the option of remote instruction.
These schools are in a time warp. Re-opening plans were made during massive vaccinations and a swift decline in covid cases, while everyone looked forward to ‘school as usual’ come September. Meanwhile, vaccination % leveled off & never reached desired levels, while a new and far more transmissible variant came to town– which affects kids to a greater degree than before.
This failure is probably partly about slow-moving bureaucracy, especially in K12’s with August openings. The delta threat rapidly became real between mid-June and late July. But the obvious response would have been to delay opening by at least a couple of weeks to put last year’s mitigation back in place. Instead we’ve put everyone in danger by plowing ahead regardless, while tussling with wrong-headed state policy and the “loud minority” blocking efforts to make adjustments. The inevitable is happening already: whole districts shutting down as delta spreads through the school population.
I have heard many analogies regarding the mask debate, but I think @DFWJodyDean summed it up best: “America: Where schools ban peanut butter to protect the 3% of students with allergies, but can’t require masks that protect 100% of them for COVID.”
Maybe the antivaxxers and antimaskers believe that the masks and vaccines contain peanut butter to which their children are allergic.
Makes perfect sense.
I have noticed a hint of a peanut smell on my mask, come to think of it.
And the fact that it was made by the Jiffy company should have told me something.
Jiffy Facts
Here they are, the jiffy facts:
’bout Jiffy vax and Jiffy mask
Jimmy Carter made them both
Lead to foaming at the mouth
Foaming at the mouth is usually an indication of drug overdose, seizure, rabies and/or antisocialism (which includes both antivax and antimask behavior)
I wear a mask and I advocate for such. It’s a layer of protection that I believe is helpful, but it is not a 100% safeguard. I still mask up and want everyone around me to do the same. Places and people that don’t require it, I avoid. Nevertheless, I appeal to the so-called intelligent people to do your research on the efficacy and safety of masks, there is a lot of validity from those who oppose. There are reputable sources out there that speak to it. However, my comment here is to the insensitivity of the blogger’s comment: “If one can’t wear a mask out in public for a health reason (which, for the life of me, I can’t think of), perhaps one shouldn’t be out.” Really?! So, blogger are you suggesting that if a person has a health issue and breathing through a mask is a problem that they should be relegated to stay in? I can’t believe you can’t think of why someone might not be able to wear a mask…Of course, we don’t know who has health problems and who does not, but if you’re vaccinated and masked, what’s the problem? Shame on your insensitivity. SMH
“are you suggesting that if a person has a health issue and breathing through a mask is a problem that they should be relegated to stay in?”
I was curious about this and there was a quote from a doctor that said:
“if your respiratory status is truly that tenuous that you’re not able to breathe through a cloth face covering, you should stay home and not expose yourself to any risk. “If you are truly that fragile, a COVID-19 infection could be a death sentence,”
There may be a few other instances but they are quite rare. In fact, so rare that I haven’t seen any references to what would prevent someone from wearing a mask. (They generally aren’t required for the youngest toddlers.)
An N95 respirator may be difficult for many people to wear. They function by preventing flow other than through the filter. If worn properly( and that is a problem) they form a seal around the mouth and nose. Thus they are worn in ICU settings. In addition to other PPE .
A surgical mask prevents projection of droplets and aerosols. Thus it protects others by keeping those particles from spreading as far in a room. Thus it is a group effort . Your mask protects me . My mask protects you.
The surgical mask can be worn by anyone air flow is not obstructed. The seal on the face is not tight.
Perhaps special needs children like some on the spectrum might have a problem .
Enough excuses from these people .
Joel,
Yes, I agree. The requirement to wear a mask is not a requirement to wear an N95 respirator, which is why I was wondering disease “Gail” was thinking of that would mean a person couldn’t wear any mask, but “Gail” did not reply.
Oops! “Insensitivity”
The Supreme Court clear back in 1905 ruled that vaccines can be mandated due to public safety issues, even if it “infringes” on rights.
Jacobson vs. Massachusetts: https://www.oyez.org/cases/1900-1940/197us11
We need to be shouting the case from the rooftops. That’s nearly 120 years of precedent.
Precedent doesn’t matter with the Conservative majority.
Only president.
Supreme Hatters
The matter of a precedent
Is not a pressing matter
The madder is a president
The happier the Hatter
And Ex-President 45 was BOOed at a rally in Alabama a few days ago when he told his followers that they should get vaccinated. Trump created a Frankenstein that he is now unable to control. He should feel grateful that he has SS to follow him around in his gated compound. His followers have become totally unhinged and unmanageable.
They were already unhinged.
And I thought Trump’s followers were the (Nazi) SS.
SS….Secret Service
I know.
I just couldn’t resist
Either way, Trump is protected by the SS.
Although I agree with you about SCOTUS . The rejection of the Indiana U case, affirms the 1905 ruling.
All the anti-maskers, anti-vaxxers, and anti-public schoolers I know share one thing in common. Facebook, Google/YouTube, and Twitter will rot your brain.
Along with all the junk that rots your rain, YouTube also has lots of excellent stuff.
That’s where I go when I want to learn how to do something I have never done before. Lots of excellent videos on construction, for example. I tiled a shower a while back after watching YouTube and it only leaked a little . Just kidding– It leaked a lot.
But, the glory of YouTube is that it also has videos on how to fix stuff that other videos on YouTube have taught you how to do wrong.
I have learned to watch the latter first.
The fixit videos first.
Twitter and Fakebook, on the other hand are worse than useless and will fit your brain, as is proven daily by all the people who post there.
we need to also look hard at far right media outlets that are not social media: Fox “news” (especially certain newscaster shows) along with other cable shows calling themselves “news” ….and so many a.m. radio station formats filled with an overwhelming amount of mis-direction and misinformation
Rot. Your. Brain.
Well I think your fear shouldn’t force me to wear a mask. The resurch is very clear masked vaccinated folks are passing this man made virus, and in face creating variant strains, yes the science is in unless u have a n95 mask u will pass the virus and u will get the virus, let’s try this, if u need a mask YOU! wear one, do not force other to.
The MA BESE just voted in favor of masks for schools in the state by a vote of 9-1. The nay vote came from Paymon Rouhanifard, whose day job is CEO of Walton-funded Propel America. His comments are captured in this thread:
Paymon worked for Joel Klein in NYC. Then at the of 30-32, he became superintendent of Camden, NJ.
Also, Newark, Chief Strategy Officer
Broadie, 2015-16 #Wunderkind
Time Magazine, April, 2021:
https://time.com/5954077/reopen-schools-blue-states/