COVID-19 Megathread 6: Return of the Omicron

[Calthrina950]

Happy fourth of July.  Freedom over Faucism!

Faucism? The extent to which Fauci has been vilified by the right over the past year is astounding to me. Many people didn't even know who he was before the pandemic began.

[Calthrina950]

Is it just around them they make you mask? You don't have to wear it in your room I hope.

No, not in my room. But my stepmother reiterated to me what my father wants me to do this morning, and it's just compounding other issues I'm already facing. If he had gotten his vaccine by now, this probably wouldn't be an issue. And I still find it ironic, given that early in the pandemic, I was the one who was panicked, and he told me that I was overreacting and needed to calm down. Moreover, as I've said before, he is a two-time Trump voter, so that makes his views on this even more strange.

Adding to this today, I was out in the kitchen earlier, and my father came from the hallway. I wasn't wearing my mask, and he demanded to know where it was. I had to hastily put it on before he came into the kitchen. It's especially frustrating to have something like that happen on a day like this.

[Calthrina950]

Is it just around them they make you mask? You don't have to wear it in your room I hope.

No, not in my room. But my stepmother reiterated to me what my father wants me to do this morning, and it's just compounding other issues I'm already facing. If he had gotten his vaccine by now, this probably wouldn't be an issue. And I still find it ironic, given that early in the pandemic, I was the one who was panicked, and he told me that I was overreacting and needed to calm down. Moreover, as I've said before, he is a two-time Trump voter, so that makes his views on this even more strange.

Adding to this today, I was out in the kitchen earlier, and my father came from the hallway. I wasn't wearing my mask, and he demanded to know where it was. I had to hastily put it on before he came into the kitchen. It's especially frustrating to have something like that happen on a day like this.

Your dad sounds super paranoid. People who love together shouldn't be wearing masks around each other unless someone is sick maybe.

What else can I say or do at this point? I feel as if I've complained about it multiple times already on here since last month, and there's nothing I can do to change his mind, or that of my stepmother. Like I've said before, he's still unvaccinated, and I don't know why I should have to suffer, especially since I and my stepmother are both fully vaccinated.

[Calthrina950]

Yeah probably nothing you can do unfortunately.

What's even more is that I've been told by my stepmother that my father feels I'm selfish because I've been resistant to wearing a mask at home, and saying that I can't go ahead in life if I'm stubborn and don't care about others. I wasn't happy to hear about that. So I have to add this to my general anxieties about my future college plans and my job.

[Calthrina950]

Also, the amount of “Democrats” on here who are upset that Covid isn’t 100% magically solved and that the vaccines aren’t as effective as originally thought are only upset for political reasons. I guarantee you, had this been a Trump second term, they would be singing a different tune. Truly disgusting, and I honestly am increasingly annoyed with a majority of red avatars.

This is news to me.

Some Dem posters are echoing anti vaxxer sentiments?

There are some left-leaning posters on here who have become truly alarmist and who seem to have doubts about the efficacy of the vaccine, and that we should reimpose mask mandates, capacity restrictions, and all of the rest.

[Calthrina950]

I don't want to go back to lockdown either, but there are intermediate measures we can take. Mitigation is not a bad thing. I still fail to see how masks are some apparent massive violation of rights to some people. They are one of the most effective measures we have against this virus (and viruses and other pathogens in general) after vaccines.

The key here is “after vaccines”.  If masks are still less effective (and less convenient) than vaccines, we should not be implementing a mask mandate before we implement a vaccine mandate.

And ironically enough, one of the major reasons why the CDC modified its mask-wearing recommendations-and why states have dropped their mask mandates-is because of the belief that removing them would incentivize more people to get vaccinated, so that they would not have to wear masks again. Reimposing mask mandates would not be the best move at this point, and I'm not sure if we could get the high rates of adherence that we had previously.

[Calthrina950]

https://twitter.com/RonFilipkowski/status/1413595082238873607

There's no bottom with these people.  There really isn't.

This unqualified fratboy is a disgrace to the United States Congress. I continue to regret having defended him at one point.

[Calthrina950]

As far as I'm concerned, there is no point in lockdowns. The only people who are truly at risk for COVID are the unvaccinated, and if you still refuse to get the vaccine at this point, I don't care what happens to you, unless you have a legitimate medical reason for not doing so. If the antivaxxers want to play with fire, let them get burned. We should not place restrictions on the vaccinated because the minority refuses the vaccine. It's an issue of personal responsibility at this point.

This times a thousand. I'm a congressional staffer, and Nancy's refusal to reopen the Capitol is really pissing me off. If Marjorie or Boebert gets sick, it's entirely on them at this point.

Do you mind me asking which congressman you work for?

[Calthrina950]

As far as I'm concerned, there is no point in lockdowns. The only people who are truly at risk for COVID are the unvaccinated, and if you still refuse to get the vaccine at this point, I don't care what happens to you, unless you have a legitimate medical reason for not doing so. If the antivaxxers want to play with fire, let them get burned. We should not place restrictions on the vaccinated because the minority refuses the vaccine. It's an issue of personal responsibility at this point.

This times a thousand. I'm a congressional staffer, and Nancy's refusal to reopen the Capitol is really pissing me off. If Marjorie or Boebert gets sick, it's entirely on them at this point.

Do you mind me asking which congressman you work for?

TBH, I'd rather not share. I do work for a Republican, but not a very Trumpy one.

That's fine. I suspected that you wouldn't be comfortable, but it doesn't hurt to ask. How would you say the atmosphere is at the Capitol between Democrats and Republicans right now?

[Calthrina950]

https://ktla.com/news/local-news/l-a-county-again-requirinhttps://ktla.com/news/local-news/l-a-county-again-requiring-masks-indoors-starting-saturday/g-masks-indoors-starting-saturday/

LA county to bring back mask mandates.

I'm not happy to hear about this, but thank God I don't live in California or Los Angeles County. Hopefully, this does not spread to other jurisdictions.

[Calthrina950]

I think the vaccines work, but we were clearly sold a bill of goods when they said the release of vaccines would bring us back to normal.

The vaccines have been out for 7 months, yet places like California, Hawaii, and some other countries keep doubling down on restrictions. Things appear to be just fine in my small city, but other places aren't so lucky.

They said vaccines would mean the end of restrictions. They flat-out lied to us. They didn't make an honest mistake. They intentionally lied. When I say "they", I mean the media and government officials.

You are missing the target.

The vaccines are extremely effective and would bring us back to normal only if a high enough percentage of the population was vaccinated.  That hasn't happened, and we all know why.  The blame for the pandemic dragging on in the U.S. lies entirely on those who refuse to get the vaccine and those who push lies to discourage it.  Not on the government, which has done everything it can to encourage people to get the vaccine.

I think you're totally right. Suddenly a lot of people on the left that have been vaccinated are acting like Republicans. They're all "Me! Me! Me!" and "It's all about ME!". So much for "we're all in this together". This all goes back to the disastrous decision by the CDC to stop recommending masks for the vaccinated back in May. I'm almost certain that at least 80-90% of the people that are still wearing masks are vaccinated. All that did was give cover to those that aren't vaccinated to remove their masks since very few entities are asking for proof of vaccination. A fourth wave this summer will be look relatively suppressed due to vaccines, but it's also summer. If we were in fall or winter months, it'd be especially ugly.

I think the bolded part is correct. I have anecdotal proof of this at my job. Out of two hundred some employees there, only about a dozen are still wearing masks. And almost all of that dozen are fully vaccinated, but don't feel comfortable with discarding the masks. One coworker actually told me that she knows for a fact that many of the other employees there are unvaccinated and are lying about their status, and she's continuing to wear one because she doesn't trust them.

[Calthrina950]

Are you sure this thread won't be shut down and moved back into the previous one? The moderators seem to be determined to keep that thread open, with the title that it's had for almost a year now. I don't understand why, but that's how it is.

[Calthrina950]

If this is only impacting the unvaccinated, why is there a need for reintroducing restrictions?  The argument is that unvaccinated people are still spreading the illness to people who are wearing protection and vaccinated, but that doesn't really make sense. The surges seem to be in primarily urban (Democrat) areas, see the new mask mandate in Los Angeles County as an example.

I also don't understand why doctors are suggesting children be forced to wear masks for the 2021-22 school year.  I thought all the vulnerable people have already been vaccinated?  Only 336 children have died of COVID-19 since the pandemic began.  Seems like a massive overreaction, again.

I'm proud to say I do not believe the fake news media, and haven't really bought into this "pandemic" from the start.  People like Ron DeSantis and Greg Abbott are going to have huge bursts in popularity when Democrat run areas continue to be run into the ground by useless and unnecessary restrictions.  The vax rate is never going over 60% in America, so I guess you'll either be living in this sh**tty "new normal" or giving up and living your life at some point.  Will the left still be wearing masks in 2022? What about 2024 or 2028? It's hilarious but really sad.

I don't think the kids should be required to wear masks in schools anymore. But you don't need to put pandemic in scare quotes. It absolutely is a pandemic by any reasonable standard of what that entails.

And I agree this is probably going to get merged into Part 6. If not, oh well.

And I'm pretty certain that the partial vaccination rate is over 60%, although we fell short of Biden's July 4 goal to have 70% of the adult population partially vaccinated. I'm not sure what the exact number is now, though.

[Calthrina950]

I also came across this article, which talks about the debate over whether or not to reintroduce mask mandates. It seems like many health experts, including the Surgeon-General, believe that the decision of Los Angeles County to reimpose a mask mandate is "appropriate", and that they wouldn't be surprised if other jurisdictions followed suit. They once again emphasized the importance of wearing masks to protect others and retard the virus' spread. But there also seems to be an acknowledgement among some experts that reimposing such mandates would be a step backwards and would be frustrating to much of the public.

[Calthrina950]

https://twitter.com/atrupar/status/1418333946639695882?s=20

 WOW

I actually saw this segment when it aired, and I mentioned it the other day on here. I don't feel sorry for those people who have that kind of sentiment.

[Calthrina950]

I went to the Barnes and Noble around Independence Day and suddenly realized I was the only one (besides staff) still wearing a mask. I felt foolish.

Today I went there again and almost everyone is wearing a mask. The tide has turned again.

I'm seeing the same trend in stores here.  It's increased from perhaps 20% masked at the low point to about 50% lately.

It's still a minority where I work, but the numbers of masked customers at my job have gone up in recent weeks. I would say ~20% or so of people are wearing them now.

[Calthrina950]

They're still zero cost! Why oppose a zero cost mitigation measure that works? We mandate people put clothes on outdoors, and clothes cost money. We mandate people put on seat belts in cars, and those cost money and are uncomfortable. It's still irrational to oppose mask mandates and it is incredibly disappointing that many Democrats have fully embraced the Trumpist position on this issue. Seems even Trump haters have fallen victim to Trumpist brainwashing.

You do realize when we're talking about the cost effectiveness of masks that we aren't just talking about the literal price of them, right? They aren't comfortable to wear for extended periods of time, especially in summer heat with how muggy the air gets, and not being able to fully read people's facial expressions makes regular day to day interactions with people stiff and awkward.

After over a year of having no other option, of course people are going to be excited about having the possibility of taking them off. This is why many of us, and not just "Trumpists," are telling you why extending mask mandates would be an awful idea- the idea of not wearing a mask is a vaccine incentive to many people. That's why so many people waited for mask mandates to be lifted to get their vaccines in the first place. Most places have no real way of enforcing mask mandates so if you enacted one nowadays, the only people who would be wearing them are people like you who are vaccinated but paranoid out of their minds from doomscrolling on social media and not the unvaccinated people who would actually benefit from wearing one.

This is the reality even now. I suspect that the vast majority of those still wearing masks at this point are people who are fully vaccinated, but who are paranoid and don't feel comfortable with not wearing them. Most of those who are unvaccinated, and have no intentions of getting the vaccine, are not wearing masks anymore. Thus, a renewed mask mandate would be impractical.

[Calthrina950]

They're still zero cost! Why oppose a zero cost mitigation measure that works? We mandate people put clothes on outdoors, and clothes cost money. We mandate people put on seat belts in cars, and those cost money and are uncomfortable. It's still irrational to oppose mask mandates and it is incredibly disappointing that many Democrats have fully embraced the Trumpist position on this issue. Seems even Trump haters have fallen victim to Trumpist brainwashing.

You do realize when we're talking about the cost effectiveness of masks that we aren't just talking about the literal price of them, right? They aren't comfortable to wear for extended periods of time, especially in summer heat with how muggy the air gets, and not being able to fully read people's facial expressions makes regular day to day interactions with people stiff and awkward.

After over a year of having no other option, of course people are going to be excited about having the possibility of taking them off. This is why many of us, and not just "Trumpists," are telling you why extending mask mandates would be an awful idea- the idea of not wearing a mask is a vaccine incentive to many people. That's why so many people waited for mask mandates to be lifted to get their vaccines in the first place. Most places have no real way of enforcing mask mandates so if you enacted one nowadays, the only people who would be wearing them are people like you who are vaccinated but paranoid out of their minds from doomscrolling on social media and not the unvaccinated people who would actually benefit from wearing one.

This is the reality even now. I suspect that the vast majority of those still wearing masks at this point are people who are fully vaccinated, but who are paranoid and don't feel comfortable with not wearing them. Most of those who are unvaccinated, and have no intentions of getting the vaccine, are not wearing masks anymore. Thus, a renewed mask mandate would be impractical.

You say a mask mandate would be impractical to enforce, which is a reasonable argument, but then claim that a vaccine mandate is the way? Suppose today one is stopped at the door of a store by an employee with a surgical mask in hand and told that one must wear a mask to enter. What happens? Most will grumble, put on the mask, and go about their business, some will get angry, yell loudly, and leave, and a few would get their guns and shoot the employee. Now imagine the same situation with the employee asking for proof of vaccination? Just about everyone will be angry and have to leave since the vaccine card was not designed for portability and few carry it with them everywhere, many will yell loudly, and more than a nominal number will get their guns and fire. If new mask mandates are impractical then vaccine mandates would be just about impossible.

You have a strong desire to surrender to the anti vaxxers and not push back at all. And carrying an oversized card is far, far less intrusive than wearing a mask everywhere.

I've been carrying my CDC vaccination card in my wallet for months now, and I don't even give a second thought to it.

[Calthrina950]

They're still zero cost! Why oppose a zero cost mitigation measure that works? We mandate people put clothes on outdoors, and clothes cost money. We mandate people put on seat belts in cars, and those cost money and are uncomfortable. It's still irrational to oppose mask mandates and it is incredibly disappointing that many Democrats have fully embraced the Trumpist position on this issue. Seems even Trump haters have fallen victim to Trumpist brainwashing.

You do realize when we're talking about the cost effectiveness of masks that we aren't just talking about the literal price of them, right? They aren't comfortable to wear for extended periods of time, especially in summer heat with how muggy the air gets, and not being able to fully read people's facial expressions makes regular day to day interactions with people stiff and awkward.

After over a year of having no other option, of course people are going to be excited about having the possibility of taking them off. This is why many of us, and not just "Trumpists," are telling you why extending mask mandates would be an awful idea- the idea of not wearing a mask is a vaccine incentive to many people. That's why so many people waited for mask mandates to be lifted to get their vaccines in the first place. Most places have no real way of enforcing mask mandates so if you enacted one nowadays, the only people who would be wearing them are people like you who are vaccinated but paranoid out of their minds from doomscrolling on social media and not the unvaccinated people who would actually benefit from wearing one.

This is the reality even now. I suspect that the vast majority of those still wearing masks at this point are people who are fully vaccinated, but who are paranoid and don't feel comfortable with not wearing them. Most of those who are unvaccinated, and have no intentions of getting the vaccine, are not wearing masks anymore. Thus, a renewed mask mandate would be impractical.

You say a mask mandate would be impractical to enforce, which is a reasonable argument, but then claim that a vaccine mandate is the way? Suppose today one is stopped at the door of a store by an employee with a surgical mask in hand and told that one must wear a mask to enter. What happens? Most will grumble, put on the mask, and go about their business, some will get angry, yell loudly, and leave, and a few would get their guns and shoot the employee. Now imagine the same situation with the employee asking for proof of vaccination? Just about everyone will be angry and have to leave since the vaccine card was not designed for portability and few carry it with them everywhere, many will yell loudly, and more than a nominal number will get their guns and fire. If new mask mandates are impractical then vaccine mandates would be just about impossible.

I think you underestimate the number of people who wouldn't be happy about a mask mandate now. As has been pointed out on here, many people got the vaccine precisely because they were promised that mask mandates would end if they did. They would not be happy to have to wear them again after having done what they should have done and being told what they were told.

[Calthrina950]

I hope that a mask mandate does not return to my workplace or to Colorado. I would be sorely disappointed if I had to wear one again, as I've been fully vaccinated for over two months now.

[Calthrina950]

This is basically the teacher punishing the entire class for the behavior of a few bad apples.

The CDC is also undermining its credibility through this move. Now, we're going to see the anti-vaxxers say that they are "vindicated" by this, and the alarmists will be "vindicated" also. Both groups will claim that the vaccine is ineffective. I will be very angry if my workplace decides to reimpose its mask requirement, and if mask mandates return to Colorado. This is the kind of thing I could see having a detrimental effect politically in next year's midterms.

[Calthrina950]

This is basically the teacher punishing the entire class for the behavior of a few bad apples.

The CDC is also undermining its credibility through this move. Now, we're going to see the anti-vaxxers say that they are "vindicated" by this, and the alarmists will be "vindicated" also. Both groups will claim that the vaccine is ineffective. I will be very angry if my workplace decides to reimpose its mask requirement, and if mask mandates return to Colorado. This is the kind of thing I could see having a detrimental effect politically in next year's midterms.

What these past few weeks have taught me is that the anti vax movement is still alive and well on the left. They just hide their vaccine skepticism by being super pro mask.

This is basically the teacher punishing the entire class for the behavior of a few bad apples.

The CDC is also undermining its credibility through this move. Now, we're going to see the anti-vaxxers say that they are "vindicated" by this, and the alarmists will be "vindicated" also. Both groups will claim that the vaccine is ineffective. I will be very angry if my workplace decides to reimpose its mask requirement, and if mask mandates return to Colorado. This is the kind of thing I could see having a detrimental effect politically in next year's midterms.

It seems with Trump, the CDC guidance ceased to operate based on science, Biden has continued this. Unless this administration is willing to a-mandate vaccines, or b-enforce mask mandates for the unvaccinated, all of this is nothing but 'look like we're doing something with the lowest possible effort' and is no different than cops busting people for an ounce of pot while letting larger drug rings go unpunished.

At this point, I'm afraid that we're still going to be in "COVID mode" this time next year, with the endless conversations about cases, variants, and all of the rest. It's clear to me that normalcy isn't going to return for several more months yet.

[Calthrina950]

https://twitter.com/kylieatwood/status/1420127149235834887

Perhaps this might finally push my father to get vaccinated. He works for an Army Education Center at the federal courthouse up in Denver, and still hasn't gotten the vaccine.

[Calthrina950]

Redundant precautions prevent calamities.

There was no redundancy at Chernobyl.

Excellent post. People should pay more attention to this.

Unfortunately, human beings systematically underestimate the risk of large scale disaster from low probability events.

This is one of the major flaws in how human beings naturally think, and has been repeated many times throughout history.

Ideally we could learn from history, but if there is one lesson we can learn from history, it is that human beings do not learn from history.

Are you saying that reimposing mask mandates is a good idea?

[Calthrina950]

I’ll stop wearing a mask when we have this thing under control. I really don’t understand what is so offensive to some of the blue avatars on here about wearing a mask when you go out. You’re protecting yourself by doing so, and isn’t that the only thing righties care about (themselves)?

I will preempt this with the fact that I am speaking only for the vaccinated.

Most people, regardless of party at this point, are opposed to mask mandates. Constantly wearing a mask is uncomfortable, especially when it starts getting warm and humid. I have terrible anxiety which leads me to wear one if I'm out, purely to remove the endless, irrational, intrusive 'what if' from my conscious (plus the air quality has been downright awful here lately so I've also been wearing them when stepping outside)--but it still worsens eczema that I have around my nose.

A large percentage of people who received vaccinations did so in order to bring some normalcy to their life. I maintain that suddenly mandating masks for the vaccinated again for the vaccinated--especially as the unvaccinated will continue to ignore them--will do nothing but result in reduced vaccination rates and further spread of COVID, far beyond what we're already seeing.

The overwhelming majority of people are not going to do something when told it will allow them to avoid doing something they don't enjoy, only to be told they must do it anyway.

I fully agree with everything here. As I've said elsewhere, I have no intentions of resuming mask-wearing unless if I'm compelled to by my job.