Boomer parents

Meanwhile Japanese people, for all their faults, put a fucking mask on when they get a cold because that's seen as a decent thing to do.
- Yes, but they're still expected to come into work even when they're ready to fall over.
  
  Sounds like America then
- If it weren't for the work culture, I would love to live in Japan.
  
  And the racism
  
  My boyfriend is in nursing school, and they have some sort of program where you can move there and get a house for cheap, if not free. I'm sure they're not great houses and would need some work done, but still a great deal. We considered it for a hot minute...
  But then I started thinking about that stuff, and did some more research into what it's like to move there. Some really awesome aspects to it, but I think we are gonna pass.
- That is the decent thing to do. Well the most decent thing is to isolate yourself when you're sick.
  
  Or you know
- I just stay home when I'm sick ¯⁠\⁠_⁠(⁠ツ⁠)⁠_⁠/⁠¯
- Haven't they been seeing a rise in anti mask/vaxxers since covid misinformation during initial lockdowns?
  
  I don't know. But I do know masking up when sick was a thing even before covid.
- yeah. it's a cultural norm. I don't want that norm. I want actually thinking as the norm, not tying a rag on your face for cultural reasons.
  
  Imagine believing consideration for people around you is not "actually thinking"

It's still surprising to me that so few after 4 years of this still do not understand the airborne nature of respiratory illnesses especially Rona with all that has gone on.
Then again I might be expecting too much from people...

"Yes, if Fox News says Biden opposes people jumping off of bridges."
- I seriously wonder how many MAGA morons would suffocate themselves if Biden (or better, Obama) came out as pro-oxygen.
  
  They would just declare that Biden (or Obama) is agreeing that they shouldn't wear masks, because that interferes with their oxygen intake. They will always try to twist whatever Biden says, no matter how sensible it is.
- I think you just solved the problem.

If all my friends jumped off a bridge, there's probably a good reason. I keep pretty intelligent friends. The bridge is probably collapsing or some shit. Wear a fuckin mask tho.
- Pretty much. Always is. Now that I think about it, I probably got that from this lol.
- The FOMO would be too much. I'd jump
  
  If all my friends jumped off a bridge I’d assume there is good reason AND hell now that they’ve jumped I don’t need to ignore that intrusive thought that’s been telling me to jump.
  I’m with you my dude, let’s do a flip.
- "So what, now I'm just supposed to do anything that Rosa does? What if she... jumped off a cliff?"
  "If Rosa were to have jumped off a cliff, she would have done her due diligence regarding the height of the cliff, the depth of the water, the angle of entry... so, yes, if you see Rosa jump off a cliff, by all means, jump off a cliff."
  "You jump off a cliff."
  "Gladly. Provided Rosa did first."
- Obligatory XKCD: https://xkcd.com/1170/
- Is it better to have bridge collapse on top of you?
  
  Probably. At least you're a bit clear. It's a shit situation regardless lmao

Huh? "maskless again"? Are there places that still have mask mandates?
- A mask mandate was recently reinstated for New York City's public hospitals due to an increase in flu/COVID/RSV infections.
  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently warned that respiratory illnesses are on the rise across the country. Just before Christmas, national COVID-19 hospitalizations jumped 17% in one week.
  "I think that's a major reason why we're seeing this rise in not only cases, but also hospitalizations. Because we've just had Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's, so a lot of people are gathering from all over the country," Roy told NY1.
  
  Pretty ridiculous that they're not permanent in hospitals
- Some places have been encouraging but not mandating indoor masks due to the usual uptick in winter for COVID and flu

This actually came up recently. Was playing Battlefield and saw all my teammates jump off the bridge we were on, so I just jumped off with them.
As I parachuted down I saw the helicopter crashing where we’d just been standing. It made me laugh realizing I’d just lived out that little saying.

- I got banned from Lemmy.world for saying that the main purpose of the masks were to protect others from you instead of protecting you from others.
  It's like everyone forgot that masks were part of the "stop the spread" campaign.
  
  Partially correct -- cloth masks protect others, but an N95 actually protects the wearer.
  
  Yup. A n95 with a proper fit is really the only mask that is going to actively protect you. Every other mask acts to mitigate spread from you.
  
  They ban for something like this? That makes me sad.
  
  And someone got angry with me when I said that only masks was a half measure and if you're thinking you might be around contagious people, you should also wear a face shield to protect against accidental spits or other moister getting in your eyes.

We lived in a small town with the bridge being one of the best spots to jump off of into the lake. So after the first time our parents used that saying we pointed that out and they never did it again hahaha.
- Yeah, I lived in Florida for a bit. We had a spot everyone just called the jumping bridge. Because it was a bridge that people would jump from. It was a cool hangout spot.

I haven't seen anyone wear a mask where I live for a very long time

Yes I would jump of the bridge because if I have friends, and I mean true friends, why wouldn't I want to jump off that bridge?
- "All my friends jumped off leaving me with nothing to live for, so why not?"

Yeah man, take a deep breath, real deep.

It's 2024. Covid is no longer that much worse than the flu. Unless you have some condition, you don't need to mask anymore. Covid is still a thing, yes, and masks still help, but it's not going away, we're better prepared for it, and it's evolving to be more infectious and less lethal.
It's really hard to find data by year, but the second graph on this page is close enough: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/vsrr/covid_weekly/index.htm

So yeah, wear a mask if you want, but don't shame others for refusing to do so.
- Covid is no longer that much worse than the flu.
  People bandy about that it's no worse than flu as though that's like saying it's no worse than a bad cold. Flu still kills thousands each year and will knock you on your arse for a fortnight.
  evolving to be more infectious and less lethal
  It was already around 3 times more infectious than the flu. If it's getting more infectious and is still just not that much worse than the flu we're in for a rough time.
  
  And let's not forget about playing long-covid roulette every time you get infected!
- Masks help preventing spread, they help a little to stop you from catching it but it's more about spread prevention, refusing to wear one because YOU'LL be okay is selfish.
  I won't shame you for it, but I am making you aware that you're being selfish.
  
  also helps to slow mutations. more spread means more generations of mutable virus.
  
  Well I assumed that wearing a mask and/or staying home if you actually have covid is a given, but I guess with some people's jobs that's not exactly the case.
- Covid is not entirely over, though. People can still die from it if unvaccinated
  
  Yeah, and the death rate is still higher than the flu, but it's not nearly as bad as it was in the first two years.
  Covid is not over, but the pandemic is.
  
  People die from obesity but we don't talk about that.
  We can't prevent everyone from dying, and wanting to force everyone to wear a mask is not the answer. We've lived out whole lives not wearing them, and I'm not going to start now

Can't we just all be happy that those mandates are over?
Are you seriously feeling nostalgic about THAT?
- As someone with autoimmune disorders it will never be over for me until covid is gone. Lost a friend with muscular dystrophy to it in 2022. There are still millions of vulnerable people out there fighting this thing to the literal death. When you take precautions the life you save may not be your own.

- "Reasonably" is doing a lot of work here. The same exact reasons for masking and distancing apply now just as before. Infections and hospitalizations and deaths are still commonplace. Each variant makes the vaccines less and less effective, and each shared breath you draw in public could spell the end for some idiot fox-news-watching boomer who somehow still hasn't bit it from covid.
  If there was any point to masking before, then there's still one now. Over 1 million people are dead and they're still dying while we give up on masks for convenience.
- As someone who has had all the shots and boosters but still suffering from long covid a year later, please wear a mask if you feel ill. It's not just hospitalizations that matter. A ton of people are not well enough to return to their lives years later. I'm fortunate that I have basically a light version of it, but some people cannot even walk to the mailbox anymore, and no one knows if or when they will get better.

- Effective at what though? I thought the main point of wearing a mask was that you were less likely to spread your sickness to others, especially if you weren't symptomatic yet.
  
  Is it so effective that you need to be concerned if other people are wearing a mask? Also, that would be quite a different concern than this submission is hinting at.
- The main point to wearing a mask is so you don't cough and spit over everything and everyone. They are meant to mitigate the spread of the virus. It was never going to stop it.
  
  Please. Stop trying to take away my God-given right to sneeze, cough, and spit all over everyone. And don't get me started on those glass "sneeze guards" at the buffet!
- great! I guess surgeons and doctors can stop wearing them all together now thank fucking goodness for these studies please share them.

I understand how it works perfectly well. I simply don't give a shit anymore. Society forces is standards on me and I my quality of life is decided by how much richer people like me. I cannot stand living like this. If I get COVID again and die, good. If it spreads to the asshats who determine my mode of life, even better.
- Unless you're also rich, the people who catch it from you won't be the ones who control your life. Plus, the lizard people who do control you are immune anyway, everyone knows this.

TIL some still use face masks
Edit: people have trouble understanding that the world is a big place. I haven't seen a person wear a mask, where I live, for over a year now
- Hey, get this: did you know people wore face masks before COVID? That's right! Little known fact.
  In fact, many people in Asian countries used to be seen wearing masks in enclosed spaces like subways when they are sick, purely out of consideration for the health of others. Wow!
  The more you know...
  
  Oh yeah sure! I knew. But we didn't get memes about them and it wasn't in what sounds like a western family on that post
- Some people have never stopped masking where I am. I've asked my partner to mask up when going any place indoors where sick people can't avoid (pharmacy, groceries, etc). We don't mask at a bar, but we do mask at a concert. The difference is that a concert happens once and tickets spoil. A bar is available every night, and sick people are more likely to stay home.
  
  Unless you're immumodeficent or something, I can't imagine living like this in 2023.
- It's mainly if you have contact with vulnerable people. COVID and flu both get upticks in the winter months, and hit the elderly and immunocompromised pretty hard.
  
  That's fair but not really relevant to the meme above then
- I'm not militant about it but I keep 2 masks in my car and use em if I remember. I've only had covid mildly once and never have caught the flu in my life, but learning I could be an asymptotic carrier I decided no point in not wearing it when I remember.
- I still use them if I am the one who is sick to prevent spreading, or if I'm going to be going on a trip soon to prevent me being sick and ruining the vacation, or if I'm around vulnerable people. The vacation one might sound silly, but I had a very close call this year where a family trip that couldn't be canceled and had to be planned a year in advance was almost ruined by everyone getting sick a few days before. We lucked out and it was very mild, but it could have been something nasty that made us cancel the trip. So now I wear a mask when going out in public a couple weeks before a trip.
  
  I'm absolutely masking before any vacations. I'm going on a trip I've wanted to do for decades this fall, and no way am I risking missing it. The last "vacation" I was supposed to have (in 2019) got ruined by some asshole coughing up a lung on the plane and I spent a week in Aruba miserable in bed, which was a great use of my limited time off and money. Not doing that again if I can help it.
- I can't afford to miss work 🤷‍♀️
  
  I thought the mask was mainly for other people? I remember it being hotly debated but last I remember seeing anything I think that was what was said
- The homie just TILed and got downvoted for it
  
  Feels like reddit right now ngl
- The responses to this are hilarious.