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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think snotty, coughing people should wear masks?

217 replies

RiderofRohan · 14/12/2023 08:39

On the train or other forms of public transport. In waiting rooms etc. People coughing with half-hearted hands held up to their mouths. Blowing their noses with abandon. None of them wearing masks, just shedding their viruses into closed spaces.

Isn't it just common decency, after we went through a global pandemic, to try to protect those around you? It's super normal to wear a mask in parts of Asia if you are unwell to reduce the risk of your germs spreading to your fellow humans.

OP posts:
XenoBitch · 14/12/2023 13:07

Thebestwaytoscareatory · 14/12/2023 13:04

Funny thing I've found about people who cough and sneeze everywhere without care, they get angry, like really angry, if you spit on them.

Apparently it's OK to splutter spittle in my face but completely unacceptable for me to grog on their jeans.

People can't help cough or sneeze. Spitting is a conscious choice.

jemenfous37 · 14/12/2023 13:29

@MiddleagedBeachbum How stupid

jemenfous37 · 14/12/2023 13:31

@RiderofRohan Probably from the DM or 'X'
Stupis answer from that poster!

jemenfous37 · 14/12/2023 13:43

@Angrymum22 You are spouting bolox
Mask wearing is effective
Presumably all those saying they don't give a stuff about masks don't bother vaccinating their kids either

Desecratedcoconut · 14/12/2023 13:59

Presumably all those saying they don't give a stuff about masks don't bother vaccinating their kids either

This is one of the most illuminating things on MN, when people reveal their prejudices by creating a strategy of taking one behaviour or opinion they don't like in other people and then force teaming it with host of other things/ opinions/ behaviours they don't like about other people.

Ah, you don't like dogs so you probably also eat babies for breakfast? Right?

My children are vaccinated and I think the case for wearing masks for infection control outside of a clinical setting is poor.

Benibidibici · 14/12/2023 14:03

Right so you think the many people out there with allergic rhinitis, asthma coughs, coughs due to things like copd, should constantly suffer the additional discomfort of a mask?

I often sneeze due to lights.

Floofydawg · 14/12/2023 14:13

I actually can't believe that it's 2023, two years since the pandemic has been pretty much over and people are still squabbling about masks on Mumsnet. It's hilarious really.

SarahShorty · 14/12/2023 14:16

Floofydawg · 14/12/2023 14:13

I actually can't believe that it's 2023, two years since the pandemic has been pretty much over and people are still squabbling about masks on Mumsnet. It's hilarious really.

Isn't it just? 🤣 We're in peak clown era.

LoobyDop · 14/12/2023 14:16

RiderofRohan · 14/12/2023 08:58

Yes I agree but the vast majority of people are not asthmatic, nor do they have hayfever in December.

Show quote history

I don’t get hayfever in December. I do sneeze constantly because of allergies to dust and pet hair. Do I have your permission to exist, OP?

girlfriend44 · 14/12/2023 14:18

yes, i think there were less colds around when people wore masks.

Floofydawg · 14/12/2023 14:19

Me too @LoobyDop. Allergies are the bane of my life.

PinkSparklyPussyCat · 14/12/2023 14:19

SarahShorty · 14/12/2023 14:16

Isn't it just? 🤣 We're in peak clown era.

Show quote history

It reminds me of being told in 2020 I shouldn't go out in public in case I coughed and scared people!

Floofydawg · 14/12/2023 14:20

girlfriend44 · 14/12/2023 14:18

yes, i think there were less colds around when people wore masks.

That would be because of the fact that people weren't actually going anywhere. Fuck all to do with masks.

Pootle40 · 14/12/2023 14:26

Ambertonix · 14/12/2023 09:46

No, im sorry but never again will i wear a mask. If im ill i will stay home just like we did in the 'good old days' before the world went to sh*t but other than that im living my life with a good supply of tissues in my pocket.

This

SarahShorty · 14/12/2023 14:26

If anybody wants a taste of how crazy some people still are with covid, hop on over to r/ZeroCovidCommunity. I don't know how these people function in life. I don't think they do 😳

VanityDiesHard · 14/12/2023 14:28

Desecratedcoconut · 14/12/2023 10:17

You really get the feeling that some people miss the highly regulated covid rules era and the homogeneous behaviour of a fearful population.

I think a society is easier to live in when the shoulds are kept to a minimum.

So perfectly stated.

VanityDiesHard · 14/12/2023 14:29

thelastrose · 14/12/2023 11:51

You're going to enjoy Nipah/Ebola/Marburg, or whatever other high fatality rate and/or hemorrhagic virus is behind the next global pandemic.

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Haha, I love a good doom monger. You do realise that the transmission rate of ebola is much lower than that of Covid, don't you?

PincNeon · 14/12/2023 14:29

I didn’t mind mask-wearing as a well/symptomless person during the height of the pandemic as it was easy enough for me. No way could I wear one with a cold, though. Stage one is generally nose like a tap time where any mask would be up and down every few seconds to allow nose-blowing. I also find anything touching my face torture when I’m streaming or congested. Stage two is the cough that lasts weeks/months (asthmatic here too) and I’m not wearing a mask for months.

It is reasonable to expect people to cover their mouths when coughing or sneezing, dispose of tissues properly and wash their hands. Otherwise, I do think it’s right the onus is on people who are well to wear masks if they’re keen to avoid colds. Life cannot grind to a halt, and masks are impractical if you actually have cold symptoms.

Original poster
RiderofRohan · 14/12/2023 15:21

LoobyDop · 14/12/2023 14:16

I don’t get hayfever in December. I do sneeze constantly because of allergies to dust and pet hair. Do I have your permission to exist, OP?

Show quote history

Do you need it?

As I mentioned, it's the fact that many, many people are coughing and spluttering these days and nobody is masking. Statistically, the majority will have a winter virus, not asthma or chronic allergies. Meaning they are infective. In my opinion it's just common decency to mask and stop the spread of respiratory droplets in order to protect the elderly, pregnant, immunocompromised, etc.

OP posts:
LoobyDop · 14/12/2023 16:06

RiderofRohan · 14/12/2023 15:21

Do you need it?

As I mentioned, it's the fact that many, many people are coughing and spluttering these days and nobody is masking. Statistically, the majority will have a winter virus, not asthma or chronic allergies. Meaning they are infective. In my opinion it's just common decency to mask and stop the spread of respiratory droplets in order to protect the elderly, pregnant, immunocompromised, etc.

Show quote history

I do not. From your posts, I was unsure whether you were clear on that. Life involves a level of risk. If you are not comfortable with ordinary p, everyday risk, which is what catching a rhinovirus is, you should restrict your activity p. Not demand that others do.

Original poster
RiderofRohan · 14/12/2023 16:40

LoobyDop · 14/12/2023 16:06

I do not. From your posts, I was unsure whether you were clear on that. Life involves a level of risk. If you are not comfortable with ordinary p, everyday risk, which is what catching a rhinovirus is, you should restrict your activity p. Not demand that others do.

Show quote history

But that's it. It's not about me. I'm not elderly or immunosuppressed, so my risk of becoming seriously unwell with a viral illness is low. It's about looking outside yourself, thinking about those who may actually become very sick if they catch your germs and acting accordingly.

OP posts:
Floofydawg · 14/12/2023 16:50

OP my husband is immuno surpressed and couldn't give two shits whether people wear masks so I suggest you stop worrying about people you don't even know and stop with the high and mightiness.

Original poster
RiderofRohan · 14/12/2023 16:57

Floofydawg · 14/12/2023 16:50

OP my husband is immuno surpressed and couldn't give two shits whether people wear masks so I suggest you stop worrying about people you don't even know and stop with the high and mightiness.

So what? Your husband isn't the only immunosuppressed person in the world. If you can't give two shits about mask-wearing that's your issue. I have a lot of immunosuppressed patients and elderly relatives I do give two shits about.

OP posts:
Floofydawg · 14/12/2023 16:58

👍

Everanewbie · 14/12/2023 17:03

OP: AIBU?
75%-90% Responding posters Yes
OP: No! You're all wrong! me and the minority are right and the rest of you are a load of granny killing bastards who don't care!

Why ask the question?