Like they say, "What doesn't kill you, mutates and tries again".
Well... it's true that organisms will mutate to battle the defenses of other organisms. That's why there is antibiotic resistance in bacteria.
But that's more of what is going on at an individual organism level. The general thing to keep in mind when it comes to the long-term strategy of organisms is that, in order to survive, they must reproduce. Diseases like Marburg and Ebola kill their victims in such large numbers, quickly and in gruesome fashion, so they're less likely to reproduce and spread.
It's the diseases, like HIV, with long asymptomatic contagious periods that are the most worrisome.
But yeah, let's all take off our masks because we're tired of them and expect the virus to leave us alone. I'm sure covid will go into "the endemic phase" just because covidiots want it to do so.
end-sarcasm.
Again, those who are causing the problem are being allowed to control the narrative and set the agenda.
I am still wearing my mask.
I am sad to say that government and public health have done a terrible job of messaging about mitigation efforts.
From the beginning, the messaging should have been tied to something that people can understand- like the burden on hospitals or on sewage testing. Instead, it's been a jumble of constant vigilance. It would be so much simpler to have the local hospital say on local news outlets, "We had 100 people come through the ED yesterday and 20% of them were positive. It's time to cut back on indoor gatherings and everyone should wear a mask when they are indoors around crowds".
On the other side of that, while government mandates for masks have saved hundreds of thousands of people from getting sick, from being hospitalized at exorbitant costs, from having long-hauler symptoms and from possibly dying, the masks were mostly there because we didn't have other options.
Now, we do have options. The vaccines are very effective at keeping hospitalizations and deaths down. The vaccines also reduce the incidence of severe illness and long-hauler syndrome. High-filtration masks like N95s and KN95s, will help reduce infection if you're in a place like a crowded store or a doctor's office waiting room where you cannot socially distance.
Where the government is really making a mistake is making universal mask mandates in places that have low infection rates. They're also making the same mistake by lifting those mandates en masse.
Can a large State like California or NYC lift it's state-wide mandate? Yeah.
Does the State need to say, "Listen to your local authorities- they will tell you whether there's a high risk in your area"? Yeah.
Does the whole of government need to say, "We're not going to mandate masks but if you are in a high risk category or you want to lower your risk of infection, it's okay to wear a mask. If someone hassles you about it, we'll take care of that problem."? Yeah, especially in places like NYC, Boston and San Francisco that rely upon crowded mass-transportation.
In general, there is still too much focus on masks. Vaccines are much more effective. But if you want to also wear a mask, it's not going to hurt, either.
