You can't just say "masks work". Work for what purpose and to what degree? To avoid specifics is to avoid the problem we currently face, which is that we simply do not have a robust body of research around the efficacy of the different types of face coverings in different situations.
No, you aren't being specific. What is the efficacy of a cloth face covering in a retail setting in terms of lowering transmission rates? You don't know, because the research isn't there to tell you with any sort of accuracy. "It just works" isn't solid ground for macro level policy, and sure isn't a proper basis for a lot of the sweeping declarations we are seeing in society right now.
If you look at the dispersal videos or how far what you exhale travels when you're covering your nose and mouth you'll clearly see how much it helps. Sure, more studying is always a plus, but how we inhale and exhale particles and how masks work have been known for hundreds of years. It's basic stuff I learned in school. I actually was wearing masks before the chink flu for allergies, have worn them to protect from paint fumes and was planning on getting a gas mask for dust storms (to protect against valley fever, which is a smaller particle, that is before they went from $100 to $300 due to their effectiveness in stopping the chink flu).
Edit: Sure, I don't know the exact % of how much simple cloth masks protect others or yourself, but logic dictates it's more than not wearing anything at all.
You have no real idea how much the muffling of your exhaled breath translates into helping to stop the spread of this disease, and that's the point I am trying to get across. Logic dictates that people reusing dirty masks day after day will result in bacterial infections to some degree. Without the research being done, are you sure simply based on common sense that you can speak to if mandating the wearing of masks is worth it? Could you make that call based on "common sense" and would I be right in simply trusting your "common sense" macro level policy?
You can't just say "masks work". Work for what purpose and to what degree? To avoid specifics is to avoid the problem we currently face, which is that we simply do not have a robust body of research around the efficacy of the different types of face coverings in different situations.
To be specific, cloth coverings stop the particles you exhale to disperse as far and filter out a little bit of the larger particles.
Those blue strap on doctor's masks stop some larger particles and some bacteria along with a little bit of the larger virus particles.
Allergy masks stop the larger allergen particles.
Respirators and N95 rated masks stop chemicals, gasses, pesticides and the smaller virii particles.
Full face gas masks stop 99.9% of airborne particles, gasses, chemicals, etc ...
So yeah, masks do "just work". They are designed for a reason. If they didn't do anything at all they wouldn't exist. Sort of like walls.
No, you aren't being specific. What is the efficacy of a cloth face covering in a retail setting in terms of lowering transmission rates? You don't know, because the research isn't there to tell you with any sort of accuracy. "It just works" isn't solid ground for macro level policy, and sure isn't a proper basis for a lot of the sweeping declarations we are seeing in society right now.
If you look at the dispersal videos or how far what you exhale travels when you're covering your nose and mouth you'll clearly see how much it helps. Sure, more studying is always a plus, but how we inhale and exhale particles and how masks work have been known for hundreds of years. It's basic stuff I learned in school. I actually was wearing masks before the chink flu for allergies, have worn them to protect from paint fumes and was planning on getting a gas mask for dust storms (to protect against valley fever, which is a smaller particle, that is before they went from $100 to $300 due to their effectiveness in stopping the chink flu).
Edit: Sure, I don't know the exact % of how much simple cloth masks protect others or yourself, but logic dictates it's more than not wearing anything at all.
You have no real idea how much the muffling of your exhaled breath translates into helping to stop the spread of this disease, and that's the point I am trying to get across. Logic dictates that people reusing dirty masks day after day will result in bacterial infections to some degree. Without the research being done, are you sure simply based on common sense that you can speak to if mandating the wearing of masks is worth it? Could you make that call based on "common sense" and would I be right in simply trusting your "common sense" macro level policy?