Actually it is a big deal because the only masks that show some efficacy is an N95 with no gaps. This is not what people are wearing, and a proper one is really quite uncomfortable
Sorry to say that universal masking actually gives people a false sense of security and are largely pointless anyway
There’s an absolute glut of studies to back up either pov at this point. Masks may not be 100% perfect or even 50% but they have some value and in the case of a pandemic any measure that provides a benefit for little/no effort is a no brainer imho.
People don’t wash their hands to the same standard as surgeons but there’s a benefit to wider society if the majority make some effort to wash their hands regularly even if not perfectly. Masks are about reducing opportunities to pass on a virus even if they don’t completely eliminate all opportunities.
I appreciate that some people find them uncomfortable and others genuinely distressing or physically impossible but the one thing we all have in common is that we are a vector for infection. We can choose to recognise that or ignore it but it remains a universal truth.
Slight tangent, but I personally feel that the threat of covid has been downgraded somewhat, but not completely, and things are comparable with pandemics we have experience of (flu’s mostly). It may not have been part of our culture previously to wear a mask because of, say, swine flu, but actually it does make sense that if we want to reduce the impact of a respiratory virus we use a barrier method along with more traditional hygiene methods.