There is a notion out there that those who do not wear a mask do not care about other people. It has become the knee-jerk reaction of pro mask people when they come across a naked face.
It is much like the knee-jerk reaction of “you must be a racist“ when people say things others think they should not. Regardless of whether or not it has anything to do with race.
It used to be that we were supposed to wear a mask to care of ourselves, but many people said they did not want to wear a mask and that they would take their chances.
That is not the reaction pro-mask people wanted to hear.
Along came the new push. Now they say you must wear a mask in order to prevent everyone else from getting sick. If you do not wear a mask then people verbally attack stating that you are a hater or even a murderer.
Never mind the fact that some people legitimately cannot wear a mask for medical and psychological reasons. That does not matter to those pushing masks.
I remember telling my father several years ago when my son was a child that I was putting his needs above mine. I made sure he ate before I did or had clothes before I bought new clothes etc.
He said that was a great notion, however told me that I must put myself as number one in some regards. If I did not take care of myself and make sure that I was healthy and able to work then I would in no way be able to take care of my son.
If I need to take care of my ailing mother for any reason and I am incapacitated because I did not take care of myself, then I am an irresponsible person.
I cannot be paranoid or worry about the eight or nine people standing around me in a store when it is their responsibility to take care of themselves.
Do I care about them? I care about them the way I do about other humans. I do not want them harmed and if they were to collapse in front of me, I would do all that I could to help them.
What I will not do is put my health in jeopardy on the off chance that they possibly could be affected by me. I will do what I can… keep my distance and not breathe in their face.
So if other people want to wear a mask because they believe it will somehow save their lives, that is their choice. Forcing me to do the same will only harm me, and I must stay strong and healthy in order to help those around me.
As a side note , it is my right to not wear a mask just as it is the right of the restaurant I tried to visit last night to decline to serve me. I was not happy, but I was polite to the employee who was polite to me. I told her I could not wear a mask and that I would find another restaurant. We parted on good terms.
The moral of the story is just because we disagree it doesn’t mean we have to be asses to one another.
Unfortunately there are many people being mean to others from both sides of the issue. Some people are throwing things on others not wearing masks, yelling at them or holding sticks to force them to stay six feet away from them. These are the people who are being called “Karen“.
Then there is the guy my hairdresser told me about. He walked into the salon and saw that she and her customer were wearing masks and proceeded to lecture them about how they were drinking the Kool-Aid and ridiculous for wearing masks.
What he did not know until later was that the customer had to wear a mask because she had nose cancer to the point that it had been cut off.
When he found out he said “I guess I shouldn’t have said that”, but still not with much concern.
Why not?
It seems we are becoming numb.
When someone has a legitimate reason to wear a mask and explains it to others, those who are against wearing a mask assume they are making it up.
Just like when someone like myself says they cannot legitimately wear a mask, those who are pro-mask assume they are making it up.
We just don’t believe anyone anymore. At this point we could easily blame it on the politicians, the media, and the entertainment industry. They make things up all the time and then expect us to do exactly as they say.
When we are faced with someone with a legitimate crisis, health issue, or a life turned upside down, we are suspicious. It is unfortunate that we do not trust each other.
The problem is, liars do not always get reprimanded. So when we come across someone who is actually telling the truth that sounds a lot like someone else who told a lie, we don’t tend to believe them.
Basically the liars have ruined it for those of us who are telling the truth.
This post was originally seen on Alexandria (aleksandreia.com).
