Will you continue to wear a mask in public after Jan 27th?
Poll: Will you continue to wear a mask in public after Jan 27th?
Total Members Polled: 684
Discussion
dandarez said:
Yep, half the population here seem still petrified with fear.
I don't think that many are petrified of a virus anymore. I think it's more likely many don't know the current laws and guidance, and they are worried about what might happen if they do something wrong.Or, they want to be seen to be doing "the right thing".
Or, lots of other people are doing something and they want to fit in.
Or, they see a sign saying "wear a mask if you can", and translate that as a rule.
My flight back from Italy was great. No mask, wasn't mentioned by anyone. As some of the flight crew weren't wearing them I wasn't worried it would be an issue!
It's interesting though that it wasn't really mentioned in any announcements. On our outward journey we were offered a mask on boarding, and reminded a few times how it was a requirement in the country we were visiting. On the return journey, apart from during the safety briefing ("if you are wearing a face mask, please remove it before putting on the oxygen mask"), there was no mention of wearing, or not wearing masks.
I'm not seeing anywhere near half the population wearing masks any more, let alone 'petrified with fear'. It's more like 1% of people wearing masks than 50% wherever I've been, generally even less than that.
In fairness to Sainsbury's if they also think that it's anywhere near 50% that actually want to wear masks, it could actually be a good business decision to offer them a 'safe' place to do so, where other like-minded people are more likely to shop and put them at 'risk'. I just don't think it's anything like the case, and is now likely to put more people off shopping there overall.
On a work call this morning - most people either still WFH, or working from sites as I have been - mask edicts had still been in place in the various offices, and it was enforced rigorously. No exemptions, and the hyper vigilant only too willing to chide colleagues if a face covering was not in evidence. Not enforced on sites, hence why I chose to locate myself there. Anyway, it appears that the office mandates have been lifted in the last few days, and basically everyone has abandoned the pantomime - however one guy went in for the first time in a while, and was horrified to discover that everyone was sans face masks. He appeared to be having a slight meltdown / panic attack on the call, which was unpleasant to hear, and was very much under the impression that it's far from over. The media conditioning has certainly been effective for some.
madbadger said:
Brave Fart said:
Countdown said:
AFAICS the only people being made to feel uncomfortable in public are those who are choosing to wear masks, by those who appear to be on some self-imposed crusade to stop others from wearing masks.
Speaking personally, all I ever objected to was the mandatory (by which I mean legislation) imposition of face coverings. Some places are still pretending that masks are required (the NHS, I'm looking at you) but even that is being dialled down.Of course there's still a few folk wearing their masks in, say, Tesco. But I have not witnessed one instance of those people being 'made to feel uncomfortable', so you're seeing something different to what I'm seeing.
If other people want to wear them then that is up to them but being told to follow the pantomime when it has been given up virtually everywhere else is daft.
CrutyRammers said:
madbadger said:
Brave Fart said:
Countdown said:
AFAICS the only people being made to feel uncomfortable in public are those who are choosing to wear masks, by those who appear to be on some self-imposed crusade to stop others from wearing masks.
Speaking personally, all I ever objected to was the mandatory (by which I mean legislation) imposition of face coverings. Some places are still pretending that masks are required (the NHS, I'm looking at you) but even that is being dialled down.Of course there's still a few folk wearing their masks in, say, Tesco. But I have not witnessed one instance of those people being 'made to feel uncomfortable', so you're seeing something different to what I'm seeing.
If other people want to wear them then that is up to them but being told to follow the pantomime when it has been given up virtually everywhere else is daft.
They are total a
holes in the NHS.garyhun said:
I had to visit my local GP practice last week. I walked into an empty waiting room only to be told by the receptionist to put on a mask. I told her that I don’t wear them anymore and she told me it was mandatory in health settings. I told her if she could show me the legislation I would put one on. Lots of muttering, me telling her that I’d happily leave if they didn’t want to serve me, until she finally relented.
They are total aholes in the NHS.
Was mask wearing ever a “legal” requirement?They are total a
holes in the NHS.As I understand it you could have done ^^^ at any point in the last two years.
Countdown said:
garyhun said:
I had to visit my local GP practice last week. I walked into an empty waiting room only to be told by the receptionist to put on a mask. I told her that I don’t wear them anymore and she told me it was mandatory in health settings. I told her if she could show me the legislation I would put one on. Lots of muttering, me telling her that I’d happily leave if they didn’t want to serve me, until she finally relented.
They are total aholes in the NHS.
Was mask wearing ever a “legal” requirement?They are total a
holes in the NHS.As I understand it you could have done ^^^ at any point in the last two years.
t that irks.dandarez said:
I see comments above that it's only elderly wearing masks now. Bloody hell, you want to come here (Oxfordshire of all places, seats of 'learning' etc), it's still impossible to go out without seeing good numbers still wearing them. ALL age groups too. I went into Sainsbury's early last Fri morning, still they have the signs up and the sanitisers outside. I saw a young girl late teens walking the street with one on. You still see people driving alone with them on.
As I was leaving Sainsbury's (I'm in my 70s by the way) someone calls out: 'Dan!' I looked to see a mask wearing person. F me, it was a mate. I'd not seen him for ages. Hidden away, frightened to death. Jeezus, wtf is up with people.
He immediately asks why I was not wearing a mask, was I exempt? Exempt? No. Bloody hell, it's over I said.
'No, no, no' he replied. It's still a risk. Then he immediately pointed to the signs (see my snap below, one lady masked up - 40ish at most? - I've blanked her for obvious reasons - she's doing the whole trolley bit with sanitiser then her hands). And she wasn't alone doing it.
So part of the blame here lies with supermarkets like Sainsbury's still having these signs and sanitisers. Inside, about a third of shoppers and what I could see almost half the workforce is still wearing them, the manager (pretty sure he is?) rushing around without one.
Yep, half the population here seem still petrified with fear.
Life is for living.
Life is about risk. Risk is everywhere. Every minute, every hour, every week, every day.
Bit like last year when lockdowns were eased and an old guy went out for the first time in about 18 months. He'd forgotten every rule of life, including risk. The poor sod parked at the top on a slope, his 2.5 ton vehicle began to roll back and he rushed to the rear to try to stop it. In vain. Crushed and died at the scene.
What a post. More power to you sir. As I was leaving Sainsbury's (I'm in my 70s by the way) someone calls out: 'Dan!' I looked to see a mask wearing person. F me, it was a mate. I'd not seen him for ages. Hidden away, frightened to death. Jeezus, wtf is up with people.
He immediately asks why I was not wearing a mask, was I exempt? Exempt? No. Bloody hell, it's over I said.
'No, no, no' he replied. It's still a risk. Then he immediately pointed to the signs (see my snap below, one lady masked up - 40ish at most? - I've blanked her for obvious reasons - she's doing the whole trolley bit with sanitiser then her hands). And she wasn't alone doing it.
So part of the blame here lies with supermarkets like Sainsbury's still having these signs and sanitisers. Inside, about a third of shoppers and what I could see almost half the workforce is still wearing them, the manager (pretty sure he is?) rushing around without one.
Yep, half the population here seem still petrified with fear.
Life is for living.
Life is about risk. Risk is everywhere. Every minute, every hour, every week, every day.
Bit like last year when lockdowns were eased and an old guy went out for the first time in about 18 months. He'd forgotten every rule of life, including risk. The poor sod parked at the top on a slope, his 2.5 ton vehicle began to roll back and he rushed to the rear to try to stop it. In vain. Crushed and died at the scene.
garyhun said:
I had to visit my local GP practice last week. I walked into an empty waiting room only to be told by the receptionist to put on a mask. I told her that I don’t wear them anymore and she told me it was mandatory in health settings. I told her if she could show me the legislation I would put one on. Lots of muttering, me telling her that I’d happily leave if they didn’t want to serve me, until she finally relented.
They are total aholes in the NHS.
As I have commented before on this, it doesn’t seem to be medical practitioners (doctors, nurses, etc) that are the problem, it’s the non medical staff (especially GP receptionists) that have grasped this new found power to tell people what they can and can’t do and they are unwilling to let it go.They are total a
holes in the NHS.A relation of mine works in one of those fancy spa hotels as a massage therapist. All the employed staff have to go around masked up all day, including in the staff canteen. However, the therapists are roughly 50:50 employed staff: agency workers. The agency workers don't need to mask up & apparently none of them do. Makes no sense....
devnull said:
My ASDA still has a “is this visit absolutely necessary” sign on the window as you enter.
Yes it is, I want some crisps yous.
Hang on, are there people who visit ASDA just for fun rather than out of necessity? Yes it is, I want some crisps you
s. 'What shall we do today dear, a walk by the river, lunch in a nice pub, a drive in the country, a stroll up and down the aisles of ASDA?'
jameswills said:
As I have commented before on this, it doesn’t seem to be medical practitioners (doctors, nurses, etc) that are the problem, it’s the non medical staff (especially GP receptionists) that have grasped this new found power to tell people what they can and can’t do and they are unwilling to let it go.
I suspect you are absolutely right. It's the 'won't somebody think of the children?' lot who are so vocal on Facebook and the like, they love a good crusade and the opportunity to Tell Someone Off. Ari said:
devnull said:
My ASDA still has a “is this visit absolutely necessary” sign on the window as you enter.
Yes it is, I want some crisps yous.
Hang on, are there people who visit ASDA just for fun rather than out of necessity? Yes it is, I want some crisps you
s. 'What shall we do today dear, a walk by the river, lunch in a nice pub, a drive in the country, a stroll up and down the aisles of ASDA?'
This approach from Asda is really odd though - offering a service and then actively discouraging people from using it.
Sainsbury's approach mentioned earlier ih the thread is strange enough, basically gambling on an assumption that unnecessarily continuing with the mask 'rules' will encourage more people to shop there than not.
kingston12 said:
Sainsbury's approach mentioned earlier ih the thread is strange enough, basically gambling on an assumption that unnecessarily continuing with the mask 'rules' will encourage more people to shop there than not.
Are they doing that in your area? Here they've put up a few 'wear a mask if you can' signs to mollify the timid and that's about it. The perspex screens are still up at the tills though. Very few people bothering with the pantomime any more, apart from (some of) the elderly and the 'Karens'.
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