Making sense of COVID is something I continually struggle with.  I started writing about it here in January.  I wrote an essay about Munchausen by (government) proxy, which I've just revisited, months later, and I still stand by every word.  As with all things, new information comes every day, and today's most alarming item is one I am compelled to write about.

In California, we have a "mask mandate" that is stringently adhered to in stores or public places.  As a general rule, we're told to wear masks.  People in cars wear them; people walking their dogs wear them.

Children religiously wear them.  Now that restaurants are open, you can see the kids taking the mask down for a bite, then putting them back in place.  They have learned to obey.  I see the kids (finally) playing outside our window, climbing the trees across the street — they're all masked up, as they are for their mandated few hours of weekly "in-person" learning.

Too bad we know with reasonable certainty that masks don't actually help prevent COVID's spread.  As I recall one doc stating, if you're breathing, your mask isn't good enough to stop COVID.  Yeah, not about to stop doing that.  So why wear them?  Why force our children to wear them?

A report I read today alarmed me.  It turns out that masks are far more dangerous than they are helpful.  The ubiquitous blue-gray paper hospital-type mask, for instance, is made from stuff that will kill you if you breathe it.  As bad as asbestos.  I know how bad that is because Great Uncle Jim died of mesothelioma back in the 1960s (he had been an asbestos salesman).

The report explains that the stuff in masks is called graphene: "Graphene is a strong, very thin material that is used in fabrication, but it can be harmful to lungs when inhaled and can cause long-term health problems."  I see these masks on half the people in the street and also discarded on the roadside and sidewalk everywhere, much like cigarette butts used to be.

Then there are the cloth masks — the type I must wear in stores and even in the gym while exercising.  They're also not so good, unless, maybe, you construct your own from pure cotton (and wash them daily after changing them every few hours, of course).  From the same report:

There are also reports of toxic mould, fungi, and bacteria that can pose a significant threat to the immune system by potentially weakening it. Of particular concern to us is the recent report of breathing in synthetic fibers in the face masks. This is of serious concern to us. "Loose particulate was seen on each type of mask. Also, tight and loose fibers were seen on each type of mask. If every foreign particle and every fiber in every facemask is always secure and not detachable by airflow, then there should be no risk of inhalation of such particles and fibers. However, if even a small portion of mask fibers is detachable by inspiratory airflow, or if there is debris in mask manufacture or packaging or handling, then there is the possibility of not only entry of foreign material to the airways, but also entry to deep lung tissue, and potential pathological consequences of foreign bodies in the lungs.

You'd think that with the CDC stats admitting that a grand total of 134 children under the age of 15 have died in the USA from COVID to date, they'd maybe think about this stuff before mandating masks for children and toddlers.  (In the 2019–2020 flu season, 188 children died from the annual flu.)

That's 134 out of around 28,171 kids that age who have died altogether in the past year.  I'm no mathematician, but if you divide 134 by 28,171, that's 0.45%. I'd bet those 134 kids, if the reasons for death were looked at closely, all had other problems besides COVID.

As an experiment, I've posted this mask info online, on Nextdoor, where all the families get their news.  I kept it simple, with a link to the CDC stats, and the name of the stuff, graphene, that's in the paper masks.  I figure it's important enough, the 'hood ought to know.  I'm guessing what will happen, though.  The moderator will take it down, as fast as it's put up.

Perhaps everyone should post it, everywhere.  Maybe it will save a few lives.  I wonder if we have any death or illness stats yet, on respiratory disease in children who are masked.  I'd say, in any event, my Munchausen's diagnosis was spot on.

UPDATES: My post on Nextdoor showed up very briefly and then was censored immediately:

Also, pay attention to what this track coach has to say about running with a mask. 

Image: Mask image by rawpixel.com.

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