As a nurse, it shouldn’t be this complicated.. you have done a good job with your explanations … the people that you describe are not interested in conversation. Most not all don’t consider what other people think or feel. There has to be a window when you may be open to a different perspective. When i have casually mentioned that someone wearing a mask is a kindness towards others … or the person may have a condition that challenges their immune system???? It just doesn’t register. Thanks again for having the conversation.
I agree we have to pick and choose our moments and our battles. I'm in a stalemate with the non-masking public, but I will definitely always talk back to anyone in authority who thinks it's okay to force their selfish ignorance on the rest of us by banning masks.
Yeah, they do protect your health, and not just from SARS-2 infection. I've used N95s for years for construction projects. They're really not as exotic as the anti-mask crowd makes out.
I believe masks should be the last resort, though. We should be cleaning and supplementing indoor air everywhere. This works to prevent covid-19, influenza, and other airborne diseases.
We managed to clean up our water supply, time to do the same for air. However, it's hard to imagine anything like that happening in the US in our current state of fail.
Very true overall, but clean air is never going to save people from infection if an infected person is very near to them for several minutes. They will get infected before the air cleaning has time to take effect.
I have a dilemma. It looks like the Pfizer mRNA COVID booster I had winter 2023 ‘may’ have contributed to a heart attack and AF in the summer of 2024. 6 weeks after the booster, I still contracted COVID and was quite ill. This also involved heart palpitations, which then disappeared. A year later I had a mild heart attack and ended up with AF. When I related those palpitations to my GP, she took it seriously and sent my details to Pfizer. I have heard no more, but it was a bit like “after the horse had bolted”. I decided to skip ( with my GPs blessing) the autumn 2024 COVID booster, as I was in the middle of treatments for my heart, although I did have a flu vaccine. They then found cancer in one my ureters, so I had surgery in early 2025, which seems to have cleared it. So… masks are now a key part of my life again, and I have a good stash of FFP2 masks, the EU version of N95s. And I get strange looks when wearing one in a world that has forgotten about them, but I don’t care! They are essential!
Whenever someone asks me why I still wear a mask, I say “It helps me to mind my own business.” That usually suffices, but if they persist, I take off the mask and say “Because I tested positive this morning.”
Jessica, thanks for all of your work to inform and warn us all, since as you note, people feel like the crisis is over. But it is not. Thanks for your kindness and diligent research.
FYI I received this message from customer support today: Thank you for taking the time to express your concerns. While Starbucks continually evaluates all policies to ensure they meet the needs of our partners and customers, there has been no change to our guidance around facial coverings in our coffeehouses. Partners may continue to wear masks at their discretion and in accordance with local public health guidance.
To be fair, the first response I got from them sounded very much like AI garbage and matched what most other people got. I got this message when I wrote them a second time with escalated language
Starbucks definitely owes us more than prepackaged AI garbage as a response to this, given the number of mask bans we've seen cropping up around the country.
As a nurse, it shouldn’t be this complicated.. you have done a good job with your explanations … the people that you describe are not interested in conversation. Most not all don’t consider what other people think or feel. There has to be a window when you may be open to a different perspective. When i have casually mentioned that someone wearing a mask is a kindness towards others … or the person may have a condition that challenges their immune system???? It just doesn’t register. Thanks again for having the conversation.
I agree we have to pick and choose our moments and our battles. I'm in a stalemate with the non-masking public, but I will definitely always talk back to anyone in authority who thinks it's okay to force their selfish ignorance on the rest of us by banning masks.
Thank you yet again.
Clear, well researched, persuasive.
Thank you!!
Glad to hear. :)
If you’re looking for good kids masks made in the USA, this is what we buy for our kids:
https://www.armbrustusa.com/collections/kids-masks
Yeah, they do protect your health, and not just from SARS-2 infection. I've used N95s for years for construction projects. They're really not as exotic as the anti-mask crowd makes out.
I believe masks should be the last resort, though. We should be cleaning and supplementing indoor air everywhere. This works to prevent covid-19, influenza, and other airborne diseases.
We managed to clean up our water supply, time to do the same for air. However, it's hard to imagine anything like that happening in the US in our current state of fail.
Very true overall, but clean air is never going to save people from infection if an infected person is very near to them for several minutes. They will get infected before the air cleaning has time to take effect.
Thank you for this piece, and for making it accessible to all readers
I have a dilemma. It looks like the Pfizer mRNA COVID booster I had winter 2023 ‘may’ have contributed to a heart attack and AF in the summer of 2024. 6 weeks after the booster, I still contracted COVID and was quite ill. This also involved heart palpitations, which then disappeared. A year later I had a mild heart attack and ended up with AF. When I related those palpitations to my GP, she took it seriously and sent my details to Pfizer. I have heard no more, but it was a bit like “after the horse had bolted”. I decided to skip ( with my GPs blessing) the autumn 2024 COVID booster, as I was in the middle of treatments for my heart, although I did have a flu vaccine. They then found cancer in one my ureters, so I had surgery in early 2025, which seems to have cleared it. So… masks are now a key part of my life again, and I have a good stash of FFP2 masks, the EU version of N95s. And I get strange looks when wearing one in a world that has forgotten about them, but I don’t care! They are essential!
When did we become so stupid
Whenever someone asks me why I still wear a mask, I say “It helps me to mind my own business.” That usually suffices, but if they persist, I take off the mask and say “Because I tested positive this morning.”
At some point, this “temporary” tool used “until vaccines arrive” became an obsession; like Linus to a blankie. A tool of comfort.
Safe and effective.
Jessica, thanks for all of your work to inform and warn us all, since as you note, people feel like the crisis is over. But it is not. Thanks for your kindness and diligent research.
FYI I received this message from customer support today: Thank you for taking the time to express your concerns. While Starbucks continually evaluates all policies to ensure they meet the needs of our partners and customers, there has been no change to our guidance around facial coverings in our coffeehouses. Partners may continue to wear masks at their discretion and in accordance with local public health guidance.
Strange. I'm seeing confirmations posted by others. I'm getting ready to write them. Maybe they already backed down...
To be fair, the first response I got from them sounded very much like AI garbage and matched what most other people got. I got this message when I wrote them a second time with escalated language
Starbucks definitely owes us more than prepackaged AI garbage as a response to this, given the number of mask bans we've seen cropping up around the country.
"The public didn’t put pressure on their politicians to develop the infrastructure we would need to make masks available for the general population."
Why? Because PEOPLE JUST DON'T TO WEAR MASKS FOREVER, especially N95s that are hard to put on and harder to wear.
Yes, most people are willing to make short-term sacrifices for long-term rewards. They are NOT willing to make indefinite sacrifices for...nothing.