I'm for people wearing masks.
I will never wear a mask myself, except out of respect for the elderly and the vulnerable, but I'm for you wearing one if you choose. If a business requires me to wear a mask, I will always be respectful, but I will most likely go somewhere else that doesn't require a mask.
If there is a civil order for me to wear a mask in my home or my private business, I will defy the civil order.
In my research, I've determined that masks outside of a hospital environment may actually help spread infections and do not prevent infections.
You see, I agree with the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine.
They are the experts, and they've studied masks.
In their May 2020 online release of a peer-reviewed scientific study on the use of universal masks outside of hospitals, the New England Journal of Medicine comes to a few startling conclusions.
Please read the entire article for yourself, but I will highlight a few:
We know that wearing a mask outside health care facilities offers little, if any, protection from infection.
The chance of catching Covid-19 from a passing interaction in a public space is therefore minimal.
In many cases, the desire for widespread masking is a reflexive reaction to anxiety over the pandemic.
First and foremost, a mask is a core component of the personal protective equipment (PPE) clinicians need when caring for symptomatic patients with respiratory viral infections, in conjunction with gown, gloves, and eye protection.
Masks are not only tools, they are also talismans that may help increase health care workers’ perceived sense of safety, well-being, and trust in their hospitals. Although such reactions may not be strictly logical, we are all subject to fear and anxiety, especially during times of crisis. One might argue that fear and anxiety are better countered with data and education than with a marginally beneficial mask.I respect that you choose to wear a mask. Because I choose to not wear a mask, please refrain from saying of me:
1. You don't know the science behind wearing a mask.
2. You don't care for other people.
3. You are only being political.
On the contrary, I know the science, I do care for people, and I care not what party, President, or platform supports mandatory masks.
I do not agree.
That's liberty.
And I'll fight for your freedom as much as my own.
37 comments:
Hello Wade,
I will never wear a mask myself, except out of respect for the elderly and the vulnerable...
Would you please explain your rationale behind this statement? Thanks!
We understand that some people are citing our Perspective article (published on April 1 at NEJM.org)1 as support for discrediting widespread masking. In truth, the intent of our article was to push for more masking, not less. It is apparent that many people with SARS-CoV-2 infection are asymptomatic or presymptomatic yet highly contagious and that these people account for a substantial fraction of all transmissions.2,3 Universal masking helps to prevent such people from spreading virus-laden secretions, whether they recognize that they are infected or not.4
We did state in the article that “wearing a mask outside health care facilities offers little, if any, protection from infection,” but as the rest of the paragraph makes clear, we intended this statement to apply to passing encounters in public spaces, not sustained interactions within closed environments. A growing body of research shows that the risk of SARS-CoV-2 transmission is strongly correlated with the duration and intensity of contact: the risk of transmission among household members can be as high as 40%, whereas the risk of transmission from less intense and less sustained encounters is below 5%.5-7 This finding is also borne out by recent research associating mask wearing with less transmission of SARS-CoV-2, particularly in closed settings.8 We therefore strongly support the calls of public health agencies for all people to wear masks when circumstances compel them to be within 6 ft of others for sustained periods.
Michael Klompas, M.D., M.P.H.
Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA
Charles A. Morris, M.D., M.P.H.
Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA
Erica S. Shenoy, M.D., Ph.D.
Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA
Since publication of their article, the authors report no further potential conflict of interest.
This letter was published on June 3, 2020, at NEJM.org.
Thank you for the addendum to the letter.
I am an excellent reader with definitive comprehension skills. I appreciate the study.
Victorious,
For the benefit of my health and the community's health! I thought my article explained sufficiently, but I trust your follow-up is further clarification. Not wearing a mask for me is the way to health, life, and responsible citizenship - but I would never ask you to believe as I, only to respect the liberty of us both to do what we believe is best for the world at large.
And for futher reading to provide additional details:
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-020-0843-2#Sec3
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)31142-9/fulltext
And let me add a computational fluid dynamics study:
https://aip.scitation.org/doi/10.1063/5.0015044
Plus all the other computational fluid mechanics papers I have referenced.
Anonymous: So the authors of the paper Wade just cited basically indicated the lack of protection of masks they cited is only applicable for outdoors? Could it be that stores and other indoor locations are mandating their customers wear them because of the sustained interactions within enclosed those environments?
"We therefore strongly support the calls of public health agencies for all people to wear masks when circumstances compel them to be within 6 ft of others for sustained periods."
Never before have US politicians "picked and chosen" which laws they will enforce.
How can the refusal of local politicians to enforce laws against violence and actually refuse to support law enforcement not be seen as failing to fulfill their oath of office?
Yet they create "policies", not legislated law, like wearing masks and even being imprisoned in your own home and enforce it like the Gestapo.
Weird rationale. And so many of our society actually applaud their tactics.
Reminds me of some countries where I formerly lived where the population celebrated military coups of democratically elected governments, I mean, legitimately elected governments! But the elitists of those nations could not legitimately defeat the populist candidates each election.
So when the military overthrew those elected governments and established military regimes with no democracy, those elitists actually cheered and offered up their own liberties with no hesitation!!!
I thought at the time, "Sure am glad we have more sense in America and really value our liberties and democracy!"
Talk about eating crow.
Arguing about masks is a moot point if a virus has never been adequately and positively without a doubt shown to cause illness. Sinking sand isn't a very stable medium to build a multi-trillion dollar structure on, but yet GOV and the medical community has done it!
https://phoreveryoung.wordpress.com/2020/04/23/the-corona-virus-is-just-a-concept-that-only-exists-on-paper/
Ken
In all the controversy and misunderstanding of one another and attempts to make sense of what is happening,
I have found some comfort in returning to the sacrament of reconcilation and to prepare for it, I have found these thoughts were and are always helpful:
"? Do we love as Christ calls us to?
In the Holy Gospel of St. Matthew, Christ gives us Two Commandments:
“He said to him,
‘You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment.
The second is like it:
You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments’” (Mt 22:37-40).
Not sure what love is?
St. Paul describes it for us in his Letter to the Corinthians. Is this how you love God
and others?
“Love is patient, love is kind. It is not jealous, [love] is not pompous, it is not inflated, it is not
rude, it does not seek its own interests, it is not quicktempered, it does not brood over injury, it does not rejoice over wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth.
It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things,
endures all things.
Love never fails” (1 Cor 13:4-8).
sometimes in examining my own heart, it comes to me that I expect from others that which I cannot myself achieve in this life, and for that reason, for that sin of pride, the sacrament of reconciliation serves as a healing and calming chance to seek renewal through the mercy of God. Pride keeps us from trying to understand what is meaningful to others. So laying that burden down helps us to 'listen' and to 'hear' what others are saying.
Our Lord came to reconcile us to God and to one another. God is present in the listening.
This link helped me to understand much.
(It was written by Bernard Brandon Scott
Darbeth Distinguished Professor Emeritus of New Testament at the Phillips Theological Seminary, Tulsa, Oklahoma)
https://www.westarinstitute.org/blog/wearing-masks-a-political-statement/
The pendulum of counsel regarding mask-efficacy has swung back and forth numerous times since the beginning of the pandemic; we can all agree. First it was to protect us from the virus, then it was to protect others from us in case we were contagious. Now it's to protect others in the event we are asymptomatic yet perhaps highly contagious just the same. The arguments are inconsistent, all because the illness is "novel" which means we still "don't know what we don't know."
God has His sovereign hand over this world catastrophe, and for those of us that trust Him through Christ, we can go forward with peace and assurance that He will see us through. The Lord will take us through the pandemic either in health, or through illness back to health, or through illness to glory.
Wade's earlier post about God using the Wuhan Coronavirus to "bring down the tall trees" is thought-provoking because of how God used wasting disease in the past to judge nations that became too puffed up in themselves. Wade, in your post you stated that most of those judgments were followed by national takeovers by foreign powers (ie: Assyrians and the battle at Carchemish). For the U.S., perhaps it won't be a power from outside the U.S., but a takeover from powers within the country as we witness the anarchy, radical thought, violence, historic revisionism and this strange black elevation/white shaming. The upcoming election may usher in a cataclysmic change for our nation.
Something else that has been on my mind is "why" are so many compelled to insist that we stock up on ventilators, and now wear masks to the degree that some are calling on the president to issue a federal mandate that all wear masks? This is the main point of my rambling. The "why" behind all this is simple.
Fear, specifically fear of dying. And in my quieter moments, Hebrews 2:14-15 came to mind.
"Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives."
Our nation is under the control of the evil one, the devil, who has the power of death and is enslaving mankind through fear of death. Jesus came, suffered death, and rendered death powerless in order to set us free from that fear.
Whether you support masks for all or no masks, masks in every venue, masks to protect yourself or masks to protect others from yourself, in my opinion it all centers around the most basic fear of mankind, the fear of one's own death. Praise be to God who has given us freedom from that fear. My prayer is that we can rise above division, extend grace toward those that disagree, and look for opportunities outside of ourselves to share life-giving encouragement.
Some have advocated 'letting nature take its course' during this pandemic, but then when people speak up about this it can sometimes sound inhumane and shocking to many people. For example, these are some thoughts of a city planning commissioner in Antioch CA that caused quite an uproar:
" "the World has been introduced to a new phrase Herd Immunity which is a good one. In my opinion we need to adapt a Herd Mentality. A herd gathers it ranks, it allows the sick, the old, the injured to meet its natural course in nature."
As for homeless people, he added that the virus would "fix what is a significant burden on our society and resources that can be used."
Ken Turnage II compared the spread of COVID-19 to a forest fire that burns off all the “old trees, fallen brush and scrub-shrub sucklings” that drain resources. The nation and planet “would strengthen when this is all settled,” he surmised.
“We would have significant loss of life, we would lose many elderly, that would reduce burdens in our defunct Social Security System, health care cost (once the wave subsided), make jobs available for others and it would also free up housing in which we are in dire need of,” Turnage wrote. “We would lose a large portion of the people with immune and other health complications. I know it would be loved ones as well. But that would once again reduce our impact on medical, jobs, and housing.”
In all fairness, Mr. Turnage was speaking on social media, not in his capacity as city planner,
but although he removed his comments, he refused to back away from the content of his words, which alarmed the city council greatly.
My thought is this:
That as Christian people, we who do not see death as 'the end' may be peaceful concerning the prospect of our own death;
but what IS the proper Christian attitude towards another person who is fearful and worried and frightened of the sickness?
What was it in Mr. Turnage's words that brought so many of his companions on the city council up short in alarm?
Did Mr. Turnage have a CASE for his opinion? Is his reasoning anything that would trouble a Christian person? If so, what? And why?
I ask questions for answers that I cannot know for others. I think all people feel differently and indeed, recently, when my eldest was in a cardiac unit in crisis, the physician said to me: 'you know, he is afflicted and disabled, would you not want to just let him go or do you wish for us to make effort to save him if his heart stops?'
and I responded, 'please help him', 'please do what you can to help him'. And they did. And he lives. And he is back at Eastern Christian Children's Retreat carrying toys over to residents who are stretcher bound, as he has always shown kindness to them in this way.
What is the value of a single human life? I know the answer for myself has something to do with my son's compassion for those less fortunate than himself. I'm glad I know this.
God knows, I don't understand a lot in this world, but the 'kindness' people show speaks to me of Our Lord's way with people, when He was among us. My son is kind. He helps others.
I wanted him to live. That is what I know.
"
I used this link for my comment at 2:19:
https://6abc.com/ken-turnage-ii-antioch-city-official/6147457/
Wade,
This post in a way is how to stay healthy. This week we turned a person down that wanted to give us two gallons of fresh Homogenized milk. I told him it was poison.
https://www.amjmed.com/article/S0002-9343(14)00354-4/pdf
“The Epidemic of the 20th Century: Coronary Heart Disease. Heart disease was an uncommon cause of death in the US at the beginning of the 20th century. By midcentury it had become the commonest cause.”
(Page 3 of the book by Nicholas Sampsidis, M.S., states: “Heart disease was rare in 1900 but fifty years later it was the number one killer.”)
The link goes on to say smoking increased… (yada yada) It didn’t say America had been drinking Homogenized milk for years.
Homogenization is a process were milk under high pressure is pushed through a tiny orifice which decrease the diameter of fat globules. (These globules are so small they can pass into the bloodstream.)
Page 7: Cow’s milk contains a substance called xanthine oxidase (XO). If XO enters the bloodstream, it attacks tissue within artery walls…in trying to ‘heal the damage’ from these attacks, cholesterol and fatty deposits cover the damage; causing the artery walls to thicken which obstructs the flow of blood. (Because cholesterol is found at the ‘seen of the crime’ it gets the blame.)
Dr. Linus Pauling, two-time Nobel Prize Winner, wrote: “I think this low cholesterol business is pretty much nonsense.”
As CHRISTIANE says: while I’m on my rant.
Where does our cholesterol come from?
OUR BODIES MAKE IT
Does that mean the Lord has ‘bad stuff’ to kill us?
Lissa,
Profound comment.
Rex,
No milk for me!
Christiane,
As always, appreciate your spirit, even in disagreement. Wish more were like you.
Lissa Roberson said.."Something else that has been on my mind is "why" are so many compelled to insist that we stock up on ventilators, and now wear masks to the degree that some are calling on the president to issue a federal mandate that all wear masks? This is the main point of my rambling. The "why" behind all this is simple." and "Fear, specifically fear of dying. And in my quieter moments, Hebrews 2:14-15 came to mind."
Hebrews 2:14-15: 'He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil; and might deliver those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives.'"
I may be wrong, but I feel pretty sure that this is what Wade has been addressing throughout these posts related to COVID. The "mask" debate is a frivolous issue in the discussion. The much more important matter, as I "think" Lissa is addressing, is the "why?".
When she and Wade bring this deeper matter to light, and point out aspects of it, like the revolution going on within our society and the war raging in the spiritual realm, "masks" and the way in which we respond is only a symptom as to who is winning the "battle" at this time.
Of course, again as Lissa points out in that Hebrews passage, we KNOW WHO is going to win the "WAR", but right now it seems that an accurate assessment of this society shows that "him who had the power of death, that is, the devil" is far ahead of "the children who share in (his) flesh and blood in today's spiritual battle."
Lissa Roberson:
‘The "why" behind all this is simple. Fear, specifically fear of dying.’
Christiane linked to this article regarding libertarianism.
“Modern libertarianism has reduced freedom to freedom in the economic sphere.”
I agree with you regarding fear of death, but fear of death doesn’t really help explain the wild conspiracy theories and fear of change we are seeing from the right (“this strange black elevation/white shaming”). Perhaps the fear of losing power and money might help explain it? I think the Word has some stuff to say about greed also. To be clear, I don’t necessarily think that is what motivates you or Wade or anyone here in particular, but the right wing has bought into a narrative that protects them from losing power and money.
Thanks
Paul
Wade,
We drink Almond milk.
We watched a couple on TV as they stood on their front porch holding guns to prevent Blacks from entering their million-dollar home. She had a pistol and he had a rifle. Their home was surrounded by a metal fence. Their gate had a sign saying: “No Trespassing”. The Blacks tore their gate down. She had a pistol and he had a rifle.
Guess what! Whites got arrested for waving guns in the air! Trump and others are throwing a fit.
Wade,
Just got a text from a ‘running-buddy’ many years ago. He and his wife are former missionaries. They both have a light case of the Virus. He sent a picture of a man praying: DEAR SWEET BABY JESUS PLEASE MAKE BBQ THE CURE FOR CORONA VIRUS
He said they were eating a lot of BBQ.
Rex,
Hah! :) I second that prayer!
Rex Ray,
As with any disease, proper nutrition and getting enough fluids helps a lot. The more pertinent question is it Texas BBQ, Kansas City BBQ, or Carolina BBQ? Or mix of some or all of the above?
Paul D., thanks for your reply to my comment. I agree that black elevation/white supremacy is in no way connected to the mask controversy. The BLM movement and its subsequent hijacking: rioting, statue demolitions, public apology/collective shame (versus lamenting) over our historical past is another matter entirely. I do believe that movement gathered much momentum thanks to months of being sequestered indoors while being fed a steady media diet of fear and political rhetoric. Call it a catharsis that spiraled out of control.
The Right may well be loathe to surrender power and control, just as the Left is eager to maintain its hold as the mainstream mouthpiece. It takes wisdom to see through the propaganda of both sides so as to arrive at the truth. I doubt any of us have that capacity. Much better to measure each "side" of the issue against Scripture and go from there. There are times that will result in a more Libertarian outlook, because although government is given to us by God due to our inability to follow His leadership, government is not a substitute for God. I won't bow to my government if it causes me to violate principles put forth in His Word..
@ Lissa Roberson
"I do believe that movement gathered much momentum thanks to months of being sequestered indoors.."
your full response is extremely gracious and well worded. Your quote above fails to acknowledge the choking to death of George Floyd which was preceded by countless other acts of violence against minorities. The failure to acknowledge this is symptomatic of the right wing narrative that is most interested in protecting it's power and money above all other concerns, biblical or otherwise.
thanks
Paul
@ Lissa Roberson
my previous response seems a bit terse, so let me add that I'm born and bred Okie, been in Sunday School and church my whole life. I just don't buy the political agenda anymore. I certainly don't want my government or criminals running over me, and I certainly enjoy the right to protect my family and property. I just no longer believe the right wing line - all the conspiracy theories and distractions - that keep good people from following through on how the Bible would really have us treat our neighbor.
thanks
Paul
CM
One thing you lacked on your comment was a smiley face. :)
Paul D
So, you’d protect your family and PROPERTY. Would you use a gun like the couple did in stopping Blacks from invading their home and got arrested for doing so?
https://www.chicagotribune.com/nation-world/ct-nw-st-louis-couple-charged-mark-patricia-mccloskey-20200720-trwnxyn4qvet5dmrgovjawpwce-story.html
Rex Ray,
"Blacks." Seriously?? Racism is so funny. (insert eye roll emoji). I'm praying for you.
Anonymous,
Maybe you should do your “eye roll” on the link and read this:
“St. Louis’ top prosecutor on Monday charged a husband and wife with felony unlawful use of a weapon for displaying guns during a RACIAL injustice protest outside their mansion.”
A video shows a White couple standing on a porch of their million dollar home pointing guns at Blacks and ‘holding’ them back who have torn down their gate that had “No trespassing”.
The White couple were arrested for waving guns in the air.
Rex Ray
My answer to you is sarcastic. Not because I am trying to be mean, I just think it makes my point clearly. It is difficult to answer your question directly because it is based on false premises - not anything conspiracy related or secret, just the basic reported facts. So, here goes.
[with sarcasm]Yes. If I lived in a gated community I would threaten death on every individual that stepped past the subdivision gate. I feel this best represents my human rights and my beliefs in the sanctity of life...oops, I mean property rights.[end sarcasm]
Thanks
Paul
it is my earnest hope that we will not 'experiment' on our beloved little ones to find out what happens in a pandemic when children are sent back to brick and mortar schools with the attitude that 'they will be fine'. . . .
We do not sacrifice children, do we?
well, if the powers that be get there way, we may find out very soon the cost we must pay or rather, the cost the children must pay
why? so that 'the economy will come back to normal before the election' ???
in 100 days?
today I learn that in Florida, every eight minutes, a person dies from covid-19 infection
they canceled the 'Republican Convention' to be held in Jacksonville FL;
but the sending of little ones back to school is being encouraged at the same time
The price is too high to pay for politics when it involves the suffering of innocent children, whether they be the babies of asylum seekers OR our own American children so dear to us, and yet for politics, we have as a nation endured school massacre after massacre so we could keep things as they 'are' . . . do we really want to return to this strange sacrificial 'normal'? I hope not. I'm afraid for the children. Not for their souls, no. They are in God's keeping. But for them, that they will KNOW they are being 'used' some day for what? For what? For making things 'normal' before an election?
God have mercy on all of us together, but especially on the little ones He has entrusted to our care.
Thanks for letting me lament. Sorry is anyone is offended.
We do not sacrifice the children, but we already know that this virus preferentially effects the old and those with co-morbidities.
We already know that children, if they get the virus, are very unlikely to have a severe case. Of 148,000 deaths in the US, 16 have been in children 5-14. Yes, there are some children that have a more severe case, but in general, children are minimally symptomatic or asymptomatic. The systemic inflammatory syndrome (the Kawasaki like illness) is also very rare. This is where Sars CoV2 is NOT like the influenza pandemic in 1918 -- that took out people across the ages. COVID 19 does more harm to older people.
Unintended consequences are not inconsequential. How many children are going to fall behind because they are not receiving education? How many children will be stuck in homes of abuse non-stop because we have taken away the safe haven of education and schools? How many children will become depressed, suicidal because we have ripped away their social life?
Of the teachers that enter my sphere, they WANT to go back. They are concerned about the children that don't return -- because those kids social and potentially educational development may be hurt. These teachers are very concerned about "their kids" and the dangers that we are exposing them to by NOT having them in school. The head of the CDC has stated that he is fine with his grandchildren returning to school. Multiple pediatricians have come out in support of it.
The dangers of having children in school is spread of the the disease to teachers that are older and my have comorbidities and the children's families. Keep in mind, there is no guarantee of a vaccine. If one comes out this year, safety testing steps will have been skipped. Many people believe that the shutdown only flattens the curve to keep the hospitals from being overwhelmed. Likely, the number of people infected/dying will be the same regardless.
Mati
And people laughed at the idea that 5g caused covid-1984. Funny they quickly pulled the article.
"The new study, titled “5G Technology and induction of coronavirus in skin cells,” authored by an international collaboration of scientists from Italy, the U.S. and Russia, suggests that 5G radiation may be absorbed by dermatologic cells that act like antennas,* thereby transferring its effects to other cells, including activating DNA-based biosynthetic processes within the nucleus of the cell, possibly resulting in the de novo synthesis of coronaviruses in biological cells. "
https://www.greenmedinfo.com/blog/5g-radiation-linked-coronavirus-infection-new-study-suggests
And they are installing 5g in the schools and libraries all across the country.
Ken
Ohio State Rep does oxygen testing with students wearing various masks. All fail OSHA's min standard of 19.5% O2 level.
https://www.bitchute.com/video/cG2S8pl378Yk/
More interesting vids found here: https://questioningcovid.com/
"We believe this crisis represents a world-changing opportunity to expose and transform antiquated ideologies that restrict health freedom. Germ theory is a scientifically bankrupt paradigm based in warfare models of pathogenic invasion. This theory has been leveraged as an instrument for geopolitical and social control – largely in the form of a vaccination agenda – to subdue the populace through coerced and forced bodily penetration and associated disability, mortality, and surveillance. As a result, conventional Western medicine functions as a sort of religion based on consensus assumptions and dogmatic medical monotheistic posturing. At its core, this approach is not salugenic or scientific and thus violates its stated ethical parameters around informed consent, beneficence, and an uncompromised evidence base.
We believe that citizens should be free to exercise their natural right to practice medicine as they see fit – in retention both of bodily sovereignty and civil liberties. To that end, we orient ourselves around the foundational premises that the body is inherently wise, that symptoms are meaningful, and that radical healing is eminently possible when we align with the earth and honor our place in the natural world."
Ken
$5,000 reward for anyone proving they have the Covid-1984 diagnosis. No winners yet. Not surprising, eh?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AR2Ju_E1kuQ
Ken
My apologies for the multiple posts, but here is the 5g/covid19 study that NIH pulled in two days of it being posted:
https://www.scribd.com/document/470042130/Fiora-Nell-i
That the covid-19 virus is the cause of illness, especially world-wide, has not been proven apart from fraudulent science which is driven by politics/power/money/control. Many doctors have written about this fact. Yes, people are getting sick and dying, but there is no test that absolutely proves it is from the same source/cause.
https://www.globalresearch.ca/dr-stefan-lanka-2020-article-busts-virus-misconception/5719146
Ken
One of the most helpful comprehensive sights regarding face mask studies:
https://nofacemask.blogspot.com/2020/06/nomaskinfo-archive-index-page.html
Ken
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