Virtue signaling

[brenthutch 444]

From the NYT

“To many liberals, taking Covid seriously — more seriously, at times, than the scientific evidence justified — became an expression of identity and solidarity. As one progressive activist tweeted last year, “The inconvenience of having to wear a mask is more than worth it to have people not think I’m a conservative.”

I made this call more than a year ago.  The mask was no more than a festoon of false moral superiority.

[DougH 270]

18 minutes ago, brenthutch said:

The mask was no more than a festoon of false moral superiority.

In many situations not wearing a mask was no more than a festoon of false scientific aptitude, and selfishness masquerading as commitment to personal freedoms. Depending on the context it was a scarlet letter for being huge piece of shit.

Edited August 31, 2022 by DougH

[billeisele 130]

Facts on the efficacy of masks were provided by experts and the manufacturers. That info was posted here with plenty of pushback. On this issue expert evidence wasn't sufficient for some.

One sad thing is those that were particularly vulnerable were scared based on false and constantly repeated information. I still see these "old people" driving cars, alone, with the windows rolled up, wearing a mask.

No one said that masks didn't provide some protection. Just that the way they were used wasn't effective and would not prevent the passage of infectious material. Yet the government continued to promote that guidance.

[brenthutch 444]

20 minutes ago, DougH said:

In many situations not wearing a mask was no more than a festoon of false scientific aptitude, and selfishness masquerading as commitment to personal freedoms. Depending on the context it was a scarlet letter for being huge piece of shit.

A festoon is an adornment attached at two points, not wearing a mask hardly qualifies.

Edited August 31, 2022 by brenthutch

[wmw999 2,565]

11 minutes ago, billeisele said:

Facts on the efficacy of masks were provided by experts and the manufacturers. That info was posted here with plenty of pushback. On this issue expert evidence wasn't sufficient for some.

One sad thing is those that were particularly vulnerable were scared based on false and constantly repeated information. I still see these "old people" driving cars, alone, with the windows rolled up, wearing a mask.

No one said that masks didn't provide some protection. Just that the way they were used wasn't effective and would not prevent the passage of infectious material. Yet the government continued to promote that guidance.

At the ends, there were (and still are) die-hards who use masks as weapons or as virtue signaling. At the height of the pandemic, masks were better than nothing. They were absolutely not completely effective at blocking the corona virus (news flash: no one said they were), they were just better than spewing material into the open air. A 40% improvement in the number of virus particles is still better than nothing.

On the other hand, yeah, people who are alone in their car wearing masks are doing it for reasons that are personal, and not scientific (well, unless they also suffer from severe allergies, are immune-compromised, etc). I suppose it'd be easier to figure out who's dumb if people with allergies or immune issues had to wear T-shirts, but what's the point. Some one else's issues have no impact whatsoever on one's own condition.

If you don't want to wear a mask now, then don't. There are few places where they're mandatory (maybe in hospitals?). There are still 500 people a day dying of Covid in the US; that's not an insignificant number. And if someone doesn't want others to think they're an asshole or idiot for not wearing a mask, then limit your activities to where those people don't hang out. Your rights don't, in fact, trump everyone else's in public spaces.

Wendy P.

[JoeWeber 2,891]

2 hours ago, wmw999 said:

At the ends, there were (and still are) die-hards who use masks as weapons or as virtue signaling. At the height of the pandemic, masks were better than nothing. They were absolutely not completely effective at blocking the corona virus (news flash: no one said they were), they were just better than spewing material into the open air. A 40% improvement in the number of virus particles is still better than nothing.

On the other hand, yeah, people who are alone in their car wearing masks are doing it for reasons that are personal, and not scientific (well, unless they also suffer from severe allergies, are immune-compromised, etc). I suppose it'd be easier to figure out who's dumb if people with allergies or immune issues had to wear T-shirts, but what's the point. Some one else's issues have no impact whatsoever on one's own condition.

If you don't want to wear a mask now, then don't. There are few places where they're mandatory (maybe in hospitals?). There are still 500 people a day dying of Covid in the US; that's not an insignificant number. And if someone doesn't want others to think they're an asshole or idiot for not wearing a mask, then limit your activities to where those people don't hang out. Your rights don't, in fact, trump everyone else's in public spaces.

Wendy P.

They worked for a couple of years to keep me and many others from catching colds, the flu, and for all I know covid, too. 5 Pfizers into it and I finally caught Covid after foregoing masks except where required. Light case, so maybe the vaccine did it's less than perfect job, too. You won't see me on a commercial flight without an N95 but it'll be one with a vent, you know, just to say fuck you back.

[SkyDekker 1,465]

3 hours ago, billeisele said:

I still see these "old people" driving cars, alone, with the windows rolled up, wearing a mask.

I used to see tons of people wearing masks before COVID-19 was a thing.

[olofscience 492]

3 hours ago, wmw999 said:

(news flash: no one said they were)

Hey, don't go ruining brent's straw men now, how else can he feel good about himself?

 

As for masks in cars, has "forgetting" been considered at all? There have been a few times when I put on a mask to enter a crowded area, then when I get out I'm too deep in my thoughts and forget to take it off immediately.

No harm done, although it probably makes "those people" feel better about themselves, right?

[brenthutch 444]

From the same article 

“A growing number of very liberal Americans have decided that it’s time to treat Covid as an unpleasant but manageable part of life, much as many other Americans — as well as people in other countries — decided months ago.”

 

[wmw999 2,565]

Oddly enough, months /= years

Wendy P. 

[lippy 918]

5 hours ago, brenthutch said:

From the NYT

“To many liberals, taking Covid seriously — more seriously, at times, than the scientific evidence justified — became an expression of identity and solidarity. As one progressive activist tweeted last year, “The inconvenience of having to wear a mask is more than worth it to have people not think I’m a conservative.”

I made this call more than a year ago.  The mask was no more than a festoon of false moral superiority.

As far as signals of character go, still less effective than a "Let's Go Brandon" T-shirt.

On another note, is your solution to people telling you that your articles don't say what you think they say to just not post the articles? ...."They can't correct me on its contents if they can't read it, it's GENIUS!"  

[SkyDekker 1,465]

1 hour ago, olofscience said:

As for masks in cars, has "forgetting" been considered at all?

Or just convenience? When masks were mandatory in stores it was a lot easier to keep a mask on while driving short distances from store to store.

[kallend 2,125]

Herman Cain, poster boy for declining to wear a mask.

[jakee 1,581]

7 hours ago, brenthutch said:

From the NYT

“To many liberals, taking Covid seriously — more seriously, at times, than the scientific evidence justified — became an expression of identity and solidarity. As one progressive activist tweeted last year, “The inconvenience of having to wear a mask is more than worth it to have people not think I’m a conservative.”

I made this call more than a year ago.  The mask was no more than a festoon of false moral superiority.

That is not what your source says.

[jakee 1,581]

3 hours ago, brenthutch said:

From the same article 

“A growing number of very liberal Americans have decided that it’s time to treat Covid as an unpleasant but manageable part of life, much as many other Americans — as well as people in other countries — decided months ago.”

Do you have a point?

[ryoder 1,590]

3 hours ago, SkyDekker said:

Or just convenience? When masks were mandatory in stores it was a lot easier to keep a mask on while driving short distances from store to store.

Exactly. The supermarket is 1.5 miles away from me. After arriving there w/o my mask a couple times, I started making a point of putting it on before starting the car. I don't give a damn what anyone else thought.

[wolfriverjoe 1,523]

2 hours ago, ryoder said:

Exactly. The supermarket is 1.5 miles away from me. After arriving there w/o my mask a couple times, I started making a point of putting it on before starting the car. I don't give a damn what anyone else thought.

I know people who wear a mask in the car specifically to piss off Trumpettes and the antivax/antimask/covid's a hoax crowd.

[brenthutch 444]

12 hours ago, wolfriverjoe said:

I know people who wear a mask in the car specifically to piss off Trumpettes and the antivax/antimask/covid's a hoax crowd.

Keep wearing them, it doesn’t piss me off it amuses me.  Little clowns in little clown cars wearing little clown costumes.

[wmw999 2,565]

1 minute ago, brenthutch said:

Keep wearing them, it doesn’t piss me off it amuses me.  Little clowns in little clown cars wearing little clown costumes.

I guess it takes a big man in a big manly car to know, huh

Wendy P.

[billvon 3,090]

On 9/1/2022 at 5:48 AM, brenthutch said:

Keep wearing them, it doesn’t piss me off it amuses me.  Little clowns in little clown cars wearing little clown costumes.

Do you virtue signal with your big truck?

Had a guy at work who got a Ford F350 with duallys.  Talked about it incessantly, and once he got it in it took up two parking spaces.  I often checked out the bed - no bed protector and not a scratch on it.

But hey, if Viagra doesn't work . . . 

[brenthutch 444]

7 hours ago, billvon said:

Do you virtue signal with your big truck?

Had a guy at work who got a Ford F350 with duallys.  Talked about it incessantly, and once he got it in it took up two parking spaces.  I often checked out the bed - no bed protector and not a scratch on it.

But hey, if Viagra doesn't work . . . 

I drive a Honda Accord, my wife drives the big Mercedes SUV.  My utility trailer gives it pickup truck capabilities when needed. (Try that with your Tesla S)

[wmw999 2,565]

4 hours ago, brenthutch said:

I drive a Honda Accord, my wife drives the big Mercedes SUV.  My utility trailer gives it pickup truck capabilities when needed. (Try that with your Tesla S)

He doesn't need to. Home Depot rents trucks. You don't even have to use them for Home Depot stuff. I've done it a few times.

Wendy P.

[lippy 918]

17 minutes ago, wmw999 said:

He doesn't need to. Home Depot rents trucks. You don't even have to use them for Home Depot stuff. I've done it a few times.

Wendy P.

Yeah $25 to rent a truck to haul anything too big for my Mini Cooper beats the fuck out of paying for 15MPG and truck tires every other year.  

[billvon 3,090]

5 hours ago, brenthutch said:

I drive a Honda Accord, my wife drives the big Mercedes SUV.  My utility trailer gives it pickup truck capabilities when needed. (Try that with your Tesla S)

I tow U-Haul-It trailers with my Prius Prime when I need to.  But then again, I don't need to virtue signal.

[brenthutch 444]

4 hours ago, lippy said:

Yeah $25 to rent a truck to haul anything too big for my Mini Cooper beats the fuck out of paying for 15MPG and truck tires every other year.  

If you can afford it, it is no big deal. Just paid $974 for my wife’s schedule B, State inspection and tire rotation.  Small price for a paid off 2020 GLS that we will drive for another year+ before the next scheduled maintenance.