[MyBrainIsBroken]

Here is a British response to terra's question.

People are defecating outside the Queen's vacation home
https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/balmoral-outdoor-toilet-scli-gbr-intl/index.html

[xyzcf]

https://www.huffingtonpost.ca/entry/psychology-why-people-refuse-wear-face-masks_l_5efb723cc5b6ca970915bc53

I found this helpful to understand why some people are so adamant that they will not wear a mask, even though study after study has shown that wearing a mask decreases the spread of the virus and gives the person wearing a mask some protection from catching COVID

https://www.huffingtonpost.ca/entry/face-masks-economy-goldman-sachs_ca_5efdf7c3c5b6acab284cc1c7

[marvin4242]

Thank you very interesting indeed. But it also shows what is a major weakness in the human psyche. We are a complex mix of many processes that have evolved over time and been layered. So although we are capable of incredible insight, knowledge, connectedness and complex thoughts we can also fall into very base and destructive modes of existence (think aggression, war, and tribalism).

So when feeling unsafe (whether Covid or MLC) we can try to connect to our emotions and intellect, use reason and understanding and allow our feelings to guide us (higher functions, empathy, reason), or we can sink into narcissism, hatred and anger (fight/flight). Sadly a lot of people, specially in the US, seem to be choosing hatred and tribalism and anger in many things daily. It is simply astounding to see it when it applies to a pandemic.

As someone who was born a Christian but is an atheist I am always amazed how much of Christian philosophy is rooted in the empathy, caring, community, and what I would say are the “better angels” of human psyche. It really is very jarring to see people who claim to hold the faith act so self centered at the same time, specially when it comes to wearing masks in order to protect the most vulnerable in our society.

[Ready2Transform]

(think aggression, war, and tribalism).

And MLC. 

Sadly a lot of people, specially in the US, seem to be choosing hatred and tribalism and anger in many things daily. It is simply astounding to see it when it applies to a pandemic.

It is strange how this aggression is seemingly limited to the US. It's as though our collective hippocampus is not functioning, as none of this leads to a need for survival. Making me dip back into Freud and the ego. Are we that imbalanced in our attachment to our fragile identities? Not blaming politics for it as there are a lot of people making choices from some other place that clearly existed long before the two party system fractured as much as it has. Asking honestly out of curiosity - nature or nurture? Is it mob mentality or such a lack of physical health that our brain chemistries are no long benefiting us?

[Treasur]

Here we seem to be seeing patches of idk, a kind of resentful passive-aggressive social disengagement? More drinking, domestic violence has increased, people flocking to beaches and then leaving huge piles of rubbish....I even heard this morning that people in a neighbouring village near a beach had experienced people defecating and urinating on the beach and in someone's front garden righg in front of the outraged householder . A kind of massive FU. The kind of behaviour that you hear about in the worst of Brits Abroad in Benidorm stories....a loutishness I guess. This behaviour is not widespread or common, but it feels as if there is a kind of brewing resentment and some erosion in usual social norms that is a kind of angry sense of entitlement perhaps or a reaction to feeling powerless maybe? Not sure....the English as a general rule are not big on explicit revolutions lol....but pretty good at a kind of disengaged resentment 

Perhaps what a pandemic crisis does is highlight the existing fractures in a society without the distractions that we use to avoid seeing them?

[OffRoad]

But is this really limited to the US? All countries don't wear or require masks, might this have been an issue in those countries if they had gotten the same "wear a mask/masks don't really help" half requirements that then changed to "shame on you if you don't wear one?" Hard to tell.

I hate wearing a mask with a passion, though I wear one out of consideration for others. I can't get the mask that works best for me ( my old 3m n95 particulate mask that I used when working with dust or paint-its formed so as not to touch my face anywhere except the edges). People say it's not that big of a deal to wear one, but for me with what is available (and I have tried a lot), my face sweats, my skin breaks out, my eyes water, I feel like I can't breath after about an hour.  If I had to wear one all day in school or at work, I could not do it with the masks available. As a result, I rarely go out. In being considerate of the rest of the world, I have no choice but to be inconsiderate of myself. It's a pretty lousy way to live, but I thank my lucky stars that I work in an industry where I can work from home.

What I want to know is why after all this time is there still a dearth of things like the disposable 3m masks for the general public (much less still one for medical personnel)? I'd even take the non N95 ones and double up.

[Mitzpah]

Interesting... as many of you may have seen, Brazil is in a big mess now because we are following other countries' lead in reopening while the disease is still spreading.

So, the congress tried to pass a law that makes the use of facial coverings in public spaces mandatory - our president decided to veto the law, saying that it enroaches on individual and domestic rights, which of course , makes no sense as it is very clear that the law mentions public spaces. The head of the house will now try to knock the president's veto down.

Meanwhile, here in Rio, the mayor told the press that schools were ok to open as children are immune!

They allowed bars and restaurants to reopen yesterday... it was a complete disaster. In this bohemian city, you can't get people to go home at 11 pm, neither can you stop them from milling about on the pavements outside the bars, beer in hand, enthusiastically greeting their long lost mates, no masks on, no social distancing... this is in a city that has lost over 10,000 to the pandemic...

I continue to wear masks in public, surrounded by sanitizer, self isolating, social distancing and I begin to wonder, who is mad

[Nerissa]

Freud’s idea of The Death Instinct’ in action!

[Ready2Transform]

I feel a slight bit better that it's not just the US that seems to have this divide in public safety. Except I wish it was none of us! Was out today with my dad and people had the masks around their necks, I guess ready to pull them up if they got busted not wearing one. The fact that it's still more about a mandate than about their own (and others') safety is really heartbreaking.

[xyzcf]

I like my 2 ply 100% cotton mask that I made. I prefer having it tied around the back of my head and neck to elastics around my ears.

I truly believe that if 2 people both are wearing a "mask" and social distancing that it does make a huge difference in communicability.

I don't need to wear it a great deal..just when I am in stores which I only go to if absolutely necessary. I have a large deck and I will have a friend over for coffee of a glass or wine outside...probably about 8 feet a part and I am not worried in those conditions.

You cannot completely eliminate the risk but from several things I have read, a double ply face mask that fits snugly on your face will protect you. That just makes sense to me.

Grocery shopping today, there were several people not wearing a mask..in spite of everything that is being said now.

I don't think that having been told initially that masks were not necessary should mean that we cannot look at the science now which shows that they are important..that we cannot change out behavior when more information is available, especially since wearing a mask is not harmful.

I smoked 2 packages of cigarettes a day, as a nurse, on the units I worked...and as the years went by, more information was out saying that smoking was bad for you...eventually I quit smoking....

I started isolating March 11. I am losing friends how important I think these measures are...so many people disagree with what I see as common sense.