Unmasking: A Step Towards a Return to Freedom

“To be, or not to be, that is the question:
Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take Arms against a Sea of troubles,”

William Shakespeare

 Hamlet                      

Shakespeare could have just as well have been talking about the abuses of the political class as they have over used the China virus pandemic to impose restrictions on our freedoms to the point of absurdity. In such instance Shakespeare may have well written:

To mask, or not to mask, that is the question:
Whether it is nobler in the mind to suffer
The slurs and rebukes of woke elitists and talking heads,
Or to take common sense against a Sea of Fearmongers.

On Friday, May 14, the CDC changed its facemask guidance for those who have been fully inoculated with one of the three approved China virus vaccines – you are now free to return to life. Well not so fast. Despite the headlines in the mainstream media, blue states engulfed in woke politics are proving that changes in mask wearing will be hard to come by. And, more importantly, it serves as a reminder that power once taken by government is not easily returned to the people

But first, let’s reiterate that there was no more science in the “unmasking” decision by the CDC than there was in imposing the masking requirements nearly a year ago. And when I say that there was “no more science” I mean there was none in either case. It was and is all about theatre. The China virus is so small that even the tightest weave of cloth is so grandly porous that it will allow the virus to pass through. That is the underlying rationale for Anthony Fauci’s admonition about wearing two or three masks – it had nothing to do with whether the masks could stop the virus, rather it had to do with the assumption that multiple masks might reduce the “straight line” passage of the airborne virus. And that is an assumption without scientific underpinnings. And that has been emphasized by the fact that clear plastic face shields, chin-rested sneeze guards, fish net stocking material, and glitter woven material all pass for “facemasks.” As well as those who wear the masks below their mouths or noses. What a joke!

The change in guidance comes about three months late and follows a week’s worth of statements by the CDC leadership re-affirming the need for facemasks and in one case a confession by Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the recently appointed head of the CDC, that she was afraid that changing the guidelines would lead to a surge of new infections.

So much for “science.” Nothing changed from the beginning of the week to the end when the CDC changed its guidance. Well, except for the fact that President Joe Biden had a terrible week with seemingly everything he touched turning from gold to rust – thus the newest “wag the dog” trick by a politician to distract from his failings. To put an emphasis on the new guidance Mr. Biden and Vice-president Karmal Harris did a walk through outside of the White House sans facemasks – no questions were permitted for fear that Mr. Biden might make up an unscripted remark and Ms. Harris might be forced to take a position that is even mildly controversial.

But let’s get back to the point – that power once taken by government is not easily returned to the people. Take Oregon, for instance. The ink was hardly dry on the CDC’s newest “guidance” than Gov. Kate Brown (D-OR) announced that Oregon would follow the guidance. (If one were the suspicious type – like me – that might conclude that the White House might have leaked the announcement to Democrat governors along with the appropriate “talking points.”) But Ms. Brown put a peculiar twist on her rationale as noted in a May 13 report by Oregon Public Broadcast:

“Oregonians now have a choice on how to protect themselves and others from COVID-19. Either get vaccinated or continue wearing a mask and following physical distancing requirements.”

It wasn’t support for the decision of the CDC or for the freedoms restored to Oregonians, rather it was an announcement of a new hammer to force compliance with her demand that over seventy percent of Oregonians be fully inoculated. And at the same time she was making the announcement her administration was considering a plan to require “vaccine passports” in order to take advantage of being free of the masks. That is pretty laughable given that Ms. Brown’s administration cannot deliver a title and registration for a car in less than seventeen weeks (actually nine months in my case), stimulus checks were delayed for months and landlords are still waiting for the promised rent relief checks. The idea that Ms. Brown’s administration could institute a brand new program with “vaccine passports” any time soon is absurd.

Likewise, MSNBC’s queen of smugness, Rachel Maddow. According to the Daily Caller, Ms. Maddow is quoted thusly:

“MSNBC host Rachel Maddow said on her show Thursday that she needed to ‘rewire’ her brain so that she didn’t see people not wearing a mask as a ’threat.’

“’I feel like I’m going to have to rewire myself so that when I see somebody out in the world who’s not wearing a mask, I don’t instantly think, ‘You are a threat,’ the MSNBC host said. ‘Or you are selfish or you are a COVID denier and you definitely haven’t been vaccinated.’”

Apparently Ms. Maddow viewed facemasks at a sign of wokeness or at least brow beaten conformity. She judged you by whether you were wearing a mask -–even in the great outdoors. Gratefully, I would have failed Ms. Maddow’s virtue signaling test. I assume that Ms. Maddow will continue to wear her facemask for which we will all be grateful – smugness makes an ugly face. In the meantime she will just have to find another “dog whistle” by which she judges people.

By the end of the day, Ms. Brown had suspended the withdrawal of the mask mandate for those fully vaccinated. And now Oregonians will have to wait for “further guidance” from the CDC – guidance that is, by and large, just a whim and caprice by lifetime bureaucrats. Remember men and women in white coats with stethoscopes do not mean that they have actually engaged in any “science” while running their mouths.

Let me help with the further guidance. Ignore it. If you have been vaccinated take off that stupid mask. If you haven’t been vaccinated see your local pharmacy at once. Make sure you seek the mRNA vaccines (Pfizer and Moderna) since they are the most effective. And along the way let your children (and my grandchildren) play in the fresh air without those masks – it might stop more instances in which children collapse during sporting events because they cannot get enough oxygen through those stupid masks.

In other words, be an adult – know the risks and make your own decision. It is the first step to taking back the other rights you have been denied by politicians during the China virus pandemic.