Jeff Stahler for April 28, 2021

If you’re (all) vaccinated and you’re keeping distant and you’re outside and you’re keeping your conversations short, then you can safely unmask, they now say. In fact I’d already come to that conclusion based on the low level of transmission in open spaces. I live suburban, so I have been walking and hiking with a mask in my jacket pocket “just in case” since last summer. Now that I’m vaccinated, I’m even allowing hugs with other vaccinated folks from outside my pod. It’s very nice…

I’ve given up on conversations in my rural area, as so many continue to plant T/P flags on their mailboxes, lawn signs in front, and billboards by highways. I continue to be the minority wearing a mask anyway. Some have started “Burma shave” signage with “NO masks! NO Vaxx! NO Freedom!” I went home and made two signs to plant after those saying “NO brain!” and “YES Death!”. I noted that overnight my signs were run over by someone with Monster truck tires. But I’m used to my lawn signs being run over long before the election.

Question: Until the last year very young children took their social cues from the expressions on the faces of their parents, siblings, and others. Since the introduction of masks, most of their input is dependent of the eyes and the tone of voice. Wonder how they are adjusting to that?

And if they make a successful transition to that mode, how will they be affected when masks are no longer needed? Successive reverses can be hard to accommodate, even for children, that most adaptable species.

What might be the reaction when children who are born in a time when masks are almost the first and only things they see close up for months, suddenly see faces full on?

Make sure you harass anyone you see wearing a mask outside and if their children are wearing masks, call child protective services and report the parents for child endangerment. WWJD according to Tucker Carlson.

Also, there is a private school in Florida where you can send your children. None of the teachers are vaccinated and they’ll get fired if they do get the shot.

Yes, this is the 21st century folks, not the 13th.

The lack of common sense in any century has adverse effects on humans.

If wearing a simple mask is such an intrusion on personal liberty, I’ve decided that 4-Way Stop signs are also such a curtailment of my individual rights. I’ll just sound my car horn before barreling through – you can watch out for me! That’s reasonable, isn’t it? /s

There is a caveat – it is considered safer if you are in the company of people who have all already been vaccinated. In a crowd of strangers you have no way to know…

I seem to recall that some well-known person was encouraging anti-maskers to politely ask people to remove their masks, since there was so little danger from COVID now. I would love for this to have been fake news, but they way things are now, I wouldn’t doubt that some people actually think that. Can you imagine someone asking you to take off your mask? I don’t care what anyone says or thinks, I’m keeping my mask on in public until I feel safe enough to remove it.

The real CDC, not the Trump compromised CDC.

Mostly for vaccinated folks and in less populated areas. But specifics don’t matter to some people and I expect unvaccinated deniers to lie about being vaccinated anyways. No one is going to ask to see a vaccine passport.

Most states never had a mask mandate for outside public spaces.

True, this is the 21st century, but old Joe is in the 30’s with FDR!

When we finally get out of mask wearing. I plan to ask as many radio stations as possible to play Manhattan Transfer’s “Smile Again”.