Déjà Voodoo: Masks Are Back

The state of California’s new mask mandate for indoor spaces goes into effect Wednesday. The guidance was announced by state health authorities on Monday and requires masks to be worn in all indoor public settings — regardless of an individual’s vaccine status — for the next four weeks.

Anyone want to bet that four weeks from now we will be allowed to remove them? This has been going on for almost two years.

The words chosen by our government authorities are starting to irk me almost as much as covering my fully vaccinated and boostered face does.

Consider that this is called a ‘mandate’, while in the very next sentence we learn that ‘guidance’ was announced by health officials. This ‘guidance’ REQUIRES masks. The word ‘guidance’ means suggestions or advice. ‘Requirements’ and ‘mandates’ are not suggestions.

There’s more…from Dr. Fauci, who utters a lot of words without saying anything.

And so, the message remains clear: If you are unvaccinated get vaccinated and, particularly in the arena of omicron, if you are fully vaccinated, get your booster shot,” he stated. 

If a person needs a booster shot, then how can that person be considered ‘fully vaccinated’? Just sayin’…

So on the first day of Mask Mandate Redux I went to Costco. There was an employee at the door handing out masks to anyone who didn’t have one. This person was probably also charged with reminding patrons of the Guidance Mandate. That is a job for a very tactful individual.

Most people inside, including me, were masked up, but the majority of us were wearing rather loose fitting and almost comfortable (on a cold day at least) cloth masks instead of the paper ones, and there was nary a medical N95 in sight. I tried this cloth mask trick at the SF Airport last August, and no one bothered me until I tried to board the AF Flight to Paris. The nice gate agent made me switch to a paper version.

At Costco about 20% or the people had their mouths covered, but their noses were free to transmit and ingest the pesky virus that no doubt was everywhere floating around looking for a home. And of course there were a few scofflaws with bare faces. Can you be considered a scofflaw if you ignore guidance? Inquiring minds…

It is hard enough to find items in Costco without foggy glasses. I accidentally discovered a new way to deal with that problem. If you inhale through your nose and exhale through your mouth your glasses will stay clear! How come the CDC or the CA Health Department didn’t offer me that hint? They seem to have ‘guidance’ for everything else.