Gozit

I'm happy that I don't have to worry about wearing a mask when I enter a restaurant and am going to take it off , put it on a dirty table then put it back on after. That never made sense to me. But unless I can expect the area to be reasonably uncrowded i'm keeping my mask on for now if i'm not going somewhere that involves eating or drinking.

bats

Teehee. Similarly the cinema and theatre.

Partially discharged

I came down with Covid last week and I'm 99% sure I got it either playing indoor footie or at the post game pub outing. This was pre no mask requirements in the pub. For the footie league it is mandatory to be double vacc'd but that didn't seem to stop it. Just felt like a mild cold to me but I did sleep more.

Paul_Shepherd

Novel idea, not sure if it will catch on though.

Paul_Shepherd

Same here, mild cold, and felt tired, that was it.

I think I caught it through a ski trip, there were 33 of us on the coach, I think 2 people wore a mask...but everyone was vaccinated.. or it could have been at the bar after the the skiing... it was still supposed to be 50% capacity in Quebec at that time, but I think it was the busiest bar I had been in since before the pandemic! Cracking atmosphere though!

BristolUK

But this does of course, include shops. Small ones where older, vulnerable people will shop. That's fairly essential I think. The shopper can't control who goes in and out in whatever numbers but you could have a mask wearing policy.

Forget essential, for some places; it's obviously not practical for a pub and a restaurant where you're consuming things via the mouth. dbd has given a good answer for the concert.
But tons of people feel safer if others are masked up. It's proven to help. See, I don't see how you can make a mental well being argument that says you can go to a concert but that others can't. Wear masks and you enable others to go too.
That's been asked and answered so many times before why are you still saying it? Benefits and risk apply to crossing roads, driving cars.

Since when did a little mask equate to being wrapped in cotton wool? Is having to wear a seatbelt when you drive wrapping yourself in cotton wool or is it a sensible precaution, once similarly opposed.

Maybe if allowing people to exhale potential covid droplets and vapours unhindered is desirable, we should bring back smoking in public places to allow smokers the same right to poison people too. After all, if the non smokers don't like the idea of breathing other people's exhaled smoke they can always decide to avoid the pub, concerts and so on.

dbd33

A fine idea!

Almost Canadian

If you were in charge, when would people not have to wear masks?

ArthurBrit

There are still people who believe that the seatbelt and smoking laws are too oppressive. There are also people that are worried that if we continue going down the route of taxing/banning everything that could be bad for society (and not the individual), could lead to the closing of McDonalds or the pub, or the over taxing of such products.

For me the main difference between the masking and smoking argument is, breathing without a mask is 100% natural, whereas smoking isn't. You are actively asking every person to spend their money on "essential" health and safety equipment...So you could argue that it should be supplied by the organization asking you to mask up. Again I'm not saying any of this to be purposely argumentative but this is a new and different issue to earlier issues.

In terms of the whole 'it's been proven to be effective'. It has, it has been proven in a sterile environment on people who are wearing medical masks who are very good at not fiddling or touching their masks.

From real world data Scotland and England have 2 opposing policies regarding masks and currently Scotland's data (which is the masked society) has the worse numbers. I think someone said it earlier but masks seem to give people a certain comfort, this comfort ends up causing people to enter personal space which is more dangerous than standing further away without a mask on.

There are too many variables with the general population to suggest that mask use is effective, in a perfect world it would be, but people would have to use them correctly.

BristolUK

When distancing was not a problem for most or all of the time.

Perhaps small working environments with 100% vaccination rates (and especially for you, recent acquired immunity ) involving only a small group of staff.

BristolUK

Well let's hope you're not part of the 40% of those who had covid and recovered but have some form of long covid even though they only had mild symptoms.

Danny B

Good God man, please don't apply for the PM's job, we don't want you in charge

BristolUK

I don't think I'd want it. Half the nation always against you. If I wanted to be disliked that much I could have stayed in the DWP

Pulaski

I think you mean two-thirds, including the third of voters who never bother to vote.

Almost Canadian

I would suggest that most do not have a problem with distancing now.

Why the distinction between 100% vaccination and, let's say, over 90% vaccination? Why not 20% vaccination as I know that you accept that the vaccinated can still acquire, and spread, the virus?

Do you believe that, where the vaccinated and unvaccinated are allowed to mix, sporting events, concerts, etc., masking should be required for ever?