I've had rather a bee in my bonnet about Face Masks - having to argue, along with other members, against those who poo-pooed the idea from the start. I also was incredulous that the WHO advised people not to wear them - part of their argument being that they would only be of use if someone coughed or sneezed near you. So what did they think - that such an event was predictable? Did these world-class experts not get a major reason for wearing a face mask (eye protection also) was to be protected in such an event? Did they not also get the fact that asymptomatic cases are spreaders? Now, months after the start of this crisis I read this (I put some parts in bold): "Starting today, everyone who takes the train or inter-city buses in Taiwan must wear a face mask, according to an order from the Ministry of Transportation and Communications. The new requirement comes as the US Centers for Disease Control is reviewing earlier advice, including from the World Health Organization, that people only need to wear a face mask if they are sick or are around sick people. That advice was based on the belief that those who are not sick would not infect others. It’s now known that many virus carriers are asymptomatic, and they may be infecting others via droplets from coughing or sneezing. Experts believe it’s better to add an extra layer of protection even if you do not have any symptoms, because you might be a silent carrier." So the world-leading experts have now caught up with what many ordinary people knew weeks and months ago. Isn't that very worrying!
Here is a link to an article from John Hopkins. It's a pretty lengthy article, it goes into detail of WHY masks are necessary for everyone. They dump on the WHO a little bit. There are some graphics that make it easy to understand the concept. It explains that wearing a mask will not protect you 100%. If your mouth and nose are covered the virus covered in mucus might not get into your nose or mouth. The eyes are still a potential entry point for the virus. Not perfect but than nothing. Common sense is uncommon. There are people wandering around that still think this virus is just a bad flu bug.
I was quoting what the article said but I cough and sneeze at times, as I have noticed my family doing recently (when we are all looking out earnestly for such signs), but it does not mean I have coronavirus. So in that respect people who are asymptomatic carriers of the coronavirus may sneeze and cough for other reasons. However, asymptomatic spreaders are as likely to do so by transfer from mouth (in saliva especially) to surfaces (the word 'surfaces' covers everything).
https://edition.cnn.com/2020/04/01/asia/coronavirus-mask-messaging-intl-hnk/index.html Yes, they're pivoting on this one. Might not be in the article linked above, but now, in the US, they're even leaning towards recommending that people use home made, cloth face coverings. Similar to what most of us are stuck with here. Yes, you were correct from the start. The CDC and WHO will typically be slow to adopt any position - they have too much influence to risk swinging things in the wrong direction. Rightly or wrongly, you're stance might not always have the same consequences. ;-)
In the UK when a tower block caught on fire (Grenfell Towers) the police/fire services told everyone to stay in there and go to higher floors - they did as they were told by the 'experts' and most died. There were no ladders capable of reaching the higher floors! LISTEN very carefully to what 'experts' tell you to do but then do what YOU think makes most sense - it is as if being an expert causes a loss of rational thinking. I am convinced that had governments stockpiled masks (as they should have done, this pandemic having been predicted) and trained people to use them via public service announcements, then the number of people suffering, dying, starving and being financially disadvantaged or ruined would have been a very small percentage of what it is now and will be.
The WHO failed early on to get their own doctors into China to evaluate the situation on the ground first hand; for months the WHO downplayed the significance of the virus and understated the RO; the WHO was slow to declare a pandemic even after weeks had passed of all the pandemic criteria having been met; the WHO disseminated false information about face masks saying there was no need for them and they could even be dangerous and make the situation worse; the WHO utterly failed to emphasize the need for testing and the need and guidelines for quarantine and isolation. The WHO bears a lot of responsibility for making the pandemic situations in many countries much worse than they needed to be if the WHO had lived up to it's mandate instead of putting public health secondary to political and financial considerations.
CURRENT SCIENCE tends to support the pro-maskers. At least here we're not shooting people that disagree with us and most good businesses are "no mask, no entry". https://worldcrunch.com/coronavirus/face-masks-conflicting-science-laws-attitudes-around-the-world
I find wearing a mask a very odd thing to "fight" against. Thank God no one recommended we all buy toilet paper. It does make me wonder how mask inventories would have held up though.
