Masks are here to stay aren’t they?

[Redbrickwall]

JVT seemed to make that very clear tonight.

I’m gutted if this is true. I only have hearing in 1 ear and rely on lip reading more than I realised. I find masks awful and avoid going anywhere where I have to wear one .

Maybe we have a special gene that spares us?

Or very very hairy nostrils

The vaccine is unlikely to stop transmission/ shedding the virus - its only likely to reduce the likelyhood of severe illness.

We've been told in Germany that being vaccinated will make no imnediate difference to precautions in place to reduce transmission (masks and social distancing).

I like wearing a mask. I haven't had a cold or a sore throat since March. The effect of SD, no handshakes, antibacterial hand gel, washing my hands and masks are the probable reason. I will carry on long after COVID-19 has disappeared.

I dislike wearing a mask, I feel like it stifles interaction and I hate the foggy glasses effect! I find the reusable ones not very breathable but then disposable are not great for the environment. Wearing them in places like arcades over the summer was annoying.
My son had a tooth out in the summer under sedation in hospital, I was there when he was put under and the anaesthetist said to give him a kiss before I left. Pointless with the mask on though!

I actually find wearing a mask quite liberating, its quite nice not being catcalled at or to have men hitting on you (though it did happen once)..

That is 1 reason a lot of women wear them in HK/Japan.

I spent quite a lot of money on a very nice selection of masks...I like them. I haven’t had a cold all year and I don’t have to engage with people if I don’t feel like it. I shall continue to wear them for the foreseeable future.

I think I’d wear one if I had a cold at work. I’d feel bad spreading it to people when I know it could be avoided by wearing a mask.

I suspect there are lots of people who are happy to continue in similar situations but unless there is strength in numbers it may die out if people feel embarrassed/get grief for wearing one.

He did not say that ... I reminded and he said this would be people's choice ! I won't be but I think others will

I’ll not be wearing one after next summer. Fuck that.

No I don't think they are, many people are just wearing for show (I know I am) i think in time ,especially when a vaccine has been well established, compliance will dwindle. Not many places can actually enforce mask wearing ( shops, supermarkets, school runs for example)

@tortoiseshell1985

The best moment will be not listening to his and Whitty doom merchant act

Totally

Can’t wait to see the back of that guy

I think some people will choose to wear them in crowded places in winter... I might do so in future when commuting in winter as I pick up colds all the time.

I suspect they may be kept on for crowded situations for about another year (perhaps until we've got through next winter, maybe earlier if they manage to vaccinate everyone next year) as a sort of 'belt and braces' until we're sure enough people are immune for long enough.

I think it is important to point out that distancing and masks won't just vanish the moment vulnerable people are vaccinated - as I said, they will need to be in place as a back up until we are pretty certain about mass immunity.

@opinionminion

I think once the Department of Health look at seasonal flu figures (death/ Hospital admissions due to flu) and see them plummeting .... masks will be here for 6 months of the year ...

I don't think we will be forced to wear them tbh

Please someone tell me who JVT is. Google is throwing up lots of crap that doesn't make sense!

Anyway I think masks are good in crowded places etc. and should be the norm going forward. No need to get rid of the habit for everyone's sake really, or make them odd or awkward as happened early on in the pandemic. Just my view.

I hope people will be more socially conscious and wear them on public transport or in shops if they have a cold.

I am not looking forward to going back to the days of commuting on busy trains with someone coughing and spluttering away next to me with no attempt to cover their mouth.

Unfortunately the prevailing British attitude seems to be "fuck everyone else, masks are slightly uncomfortable and I can't be arsed".

Hope so, I am really glad they are normalised here now, like they already are in many countries. I find the fuss hard to believe. My brother lives in a country that had an ebola outbreak, people there wouldn't dream of moaning about wearing a mask to pop to the shops. If you think about it, it's good manners during flu season

I've spent some time in Japan and I really appreciate (in my time as a London commuter) the way they are used over there - not to protect the wearer from the germs of others, but if the wearer feels under the weather or has a sniffle, to protect others from THEIR own germs... I think it's hugely civilised - can't tell you how often I'd see Londoners sneeze or cough into their hands and then grab a handrail straight afterwards!

So personally I'm all for us moving towards that kind of civilised usage in future. And I'd wear one myself in that scenario now that they are more normalised.

But there's not much likelihood that they'll be mandatory for longer than they have to be, which is obviously good for those who hate them! :)

@3littlewords
No I don't think they are, many people are just wearing for show (I know I am)

I don't understand what you mean by "wearing for show"?

Fuck masks. I also hate them. My glasses steam up - especially on cold days. I hate that parents can’t meet other parents at the gate the same way - you don’t befriend people the same way. They suck the joy. I shall also be burning with delight.

I hate masks ( although appreciate the need for them at the moment) they restrict our social interactions with the wider public. I find at the moment everyone is walking around mask on, head down, no eye contact, we are scared of engaging with others. That's totally opposite to our human instinct to interact and community, a smile is infectious and uplifting for all of yet they are being hidden away. We've become scared of human interaction outside our immediate circle that isnt normal actions for social human beings, positive social interactions increase our emotional and mental well-being

Have you ever tried to wear a mask with a cold?
Er no way!
Masks in the bin as soon as. No-one will wear them.

[quote TibetanTerrier]@3littlewords
No I don't think they are, many people are just wearing for show (I know I am)

I don't understand what you mean by "wearing for show"?[/quote]
It means going along with it for compliance not because there's a personal want to wear a mask

I’d rather people stayed home whenever possible, if ill. I hope there won’t be a return to ill people in the office when they get sick pay or allowed to work from home. There’s always one who turns up in the office “because I had to”. No you didn’t

I agree. But in the NHS and I'm sure with other employers too, people are scared to go off with a cold. Plus we're scared that we might need sick leave for anything else and that will tip us over into absence procedures while some people seem to be off lots and nothing is ever said

I won't be wearing them once they stop being compulsory as I really struggle with my glasses misting and haven't found a way of stopping it from happening. I have to put in contact lenses every time I want to do more than a quick pop into a shop which is a pain.

Nope. We'll cast masks aside with gay abandon one 'all this' is over.

I certainly will be. As a HCP I wear one all day, every day. I'm soooo over it.

To me the vaccine sort of represents that the storm is passing. Most of us weathered it; bruised, battered, but we came out the other side.

Begone, mask.