Conversing with a friend recently about his experience in a somewhat trendy northeast community. He generally goes without a facemask (admittedly something of a political statement) and received a number of less than friendly glances, and a few comments, from masked folks in shops and on the street.
It occurred to me that, while I've seen and heard much in recent months regarding masks, from both "sides", I've seen and heard close to nothing regarding the quality of masks. Evidence is solid that an n-95 mask offers a good deal more protection than a surgical mask, which in turn is much superior to simple cloth. Recall that cloth masks were suggested, early on, as a bit "better than nothing", but that scarce surgical masks, to say nothing of unavailable n-95 masks, were best reserved for healthcare providers.
Considering protection from Covid, vaccination seems the best one can do, followed by air circulation, followed by distancing, with masks a dead last (or maybe a bit better than the traditional clove of garlic suspended from one's neck). And a cloth mask is worth a good deal less than a surgical or n-95 mask.
We stockpiled surgical masks, and a few kn-95 masks, back during the Ebola crisis, and well as hazmat suits, gloves and lots of disinfectant - because we provide janitorial service to a lot of medical facilities - so we've been in good shape. One wonders why America still has availability issues with n-95 masks; in quantity, and in normal times, they are quite inexpensive. (Check out a recent Atlantic article on the issue.)
One might almost suspect that masks have become valuable mostly as a partisan signaling device.