08 Sep 21
@wildgrass saidWe need to pretend that the death rate from covid is extremely high for people younger than 50?
No!
09 Sep 21
1 edit
@wildgrass saidOkay, so your position on school mask mandates is that they should be limited to areas where "Delta is smoldering at levels that threaten hospital systems"?
In terms of childhood development, in-person schooling is more important than wearing vs. not wearing a mask. In areas where Delta is smoldering at levels that threaten hospital systems, masking does make sense. It does help.
Prevention is worth a pound of cure whether we are talking about COVID disease impacts or days of lost in person learning.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8168618/
(and presumably should be lifted as soon as that's no longer the case?)
Now we're getting closer.
11 Sep 21
@sh76 saidMy position is that minor inconveniences like masks are preferable to cancelling school.
Okay, so your position on school mask mandates is that they should be limited to areas where "Delta is smoldering at levels that threaten hospital systems"?
(and presumably should be lifted as soon as that's no longer the case?)
Now we're getting closer.
12 Sep 21
1 edit
@wildgrass saidI can't imagine anyone disagrees with that position.
My position is that minor inconveniences like masks are preferable to cancelling school.
The dichotomy is forced masks in schools vs. no forced masks in schools, not forced masks in schools vs. closed schools.
12 Sep 21
@sh76 said5 year olds up to 12 year olds can't receive the "safe and effective vaccines". So if they are going to be in close proximity to others at indoor venues during a pandemic having them wearing a mask is a perfectly reasonable precaution.
===You think 5 year olds are wearing masks for political reasons? Or that school boards and superintendants are requiring masks for political reasons?===
Yes. I think public health messaging with political overtones has convinced people that masking 5 years olds is necessary. I don't know what the motivations of the school administrators are, but I think they have been convin ...[text shortened]... ers. So the question is what is a proven good idea. And putting cloth masks on 5 year olds ain't it.
BTW, masks can be washed.
12 Sep 21
"A Florida Department of Health weekly report showed seven children under the age of 16 died from coronavirus complications from the start of the pandemic to July 30 — a 15-month period. Per the Department's latest report from September 3, the number has jumped to 17 deaths since July 30."
"Pediatric hospitalizations also hit a record high last month, with 1,900 children hospitalized for COVID. "
""After declining in early summer, child cases have increased exponentially, with over 750,000 cases added between August 5 and September 2," the AAP said in a report, which makes up a quarter of new weekly COVID cases."
https://www.businessinsider.com/covid-related-childhood-deaths-in-florida-double-in-a-month-2021-9
Yup, sh76, throw those masks in the trash.
13 Sep 21
@sh76 saidThe two are related. I may be wrong, but you seem to have misunderstood the problem here.
I can't imagine anyone disagrees with that position.
The dichotomy is forced masks in schools vs. no forced masks in schools, not forced masks in schools vs. closed schools.
In Florida, the governor banned mask mandates in schools but the schools kept in place quarantine policies for student exposures. As a direct result of the mask ban, more kids were exposed and tens of thousands of students were forced to e-Learn for weeks.
While very few children get seriously ill, it is still a situation that school districts need to take seriously to protect vulnerable and prevent community spread. Without masks as a tool, the number of child exposures increase and there are fewer kids in schools. That's just reality.
I'd rather have masking than e-learning.
13 Sep 21
@sh76 saidFlorida: the super spreader state.
Rt still falling at the rate of about 2 points per day.
A few more weeks and some northern states will pass Florida in new cases per capita.
Florida: come here to catch covid, then go to school.
Florida: ripping off the band aid >14,000 cases a day since July.
13 Sep 21
@wildgrass saidWhen Connecticut, New Jersey and Pennsylvania pass Florida in new cases per capita, are you going to say the same thing about them?
Florida: the super spreader state.
Florida: come here to catch covid, then go to school.
Florida: ripping off the band aid >14,000 cases a day since July.
13 Sep 21
2 edits
@wildgrass saidYou're assuming children masking works to significantly reduce the spread. Dubious.
The two are related. I may be wrong, but you seem to have misunderstood the problem here.
In Florida, the governor banned mask mandates in schools but the schools kept in place quarantine policies for student exposures. As a direct result of the mask ban, more kids were exposed and tens of thousands of students were forced to e-Learn for weeks.
While very few children ...[text shortened]... nd there are fewer kids in schools. That's just reality.
I'd rather have masking than e-learning.
If the issue is a small number having to quarantine for 7-10 days vs. everyone having to mask up, I'd have to weigh the numbers. I don't have a precise ratio, but my gut tells me that all-day masking is something like 1/5 to 1/10 as bad as e-learning. So, if you can show me that 10-20% of students are having to quarantine at any given time as a proximate result of not masking, I'll concede.