Perhaps the BEST B1G Forum anywhere, here at College Football Fan Site, CFB51!!!

I'm left of you, which is obvious, and only on issues we've discussed here.  There's an entire ocean of issues you don't know my views on (and have no interest in, I'm guessing).  Considering me a blind radical is easier, I get it.

This is from the New England Journal of Medicine. I consider it credible.
https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp2006372

This one is a review of existing studies.
https://www.rcreader.com/commentary/masks-dont-work-covid-a-review-of-science-relevant-to-covide-19-social-policy

This seems to be the bottom line of the article in the NEJM:

What is clear, however, is that universal masking alone is not a panacea. A mask will not protect providers caring for a patient with active Covid-19 if it’s not accompanied by meticulous hand hygiene, eye protection, gloves, and a gown. A mask alone will not prevent health care workers with early Covid-19 from contaminating their hands and spreading the virus to patients and colleagues. Focusing on universal masking alone may, paradoxically, lead to more transmission of Covid-19 if it diverts attention from implementing more fundamental infection-control measures.

That is not at all the same thing as saying that wearing a mask when you go out in public is a waste of time.

In the second one, all of those studies are about the flu.

The hand washing was emphasized early because of some studies that purported to detect live virus on surfaces for a long time.  That was later clarified to mean some RNA fragments persisted, not live virus.  I have not seen a quality study on viral persistence on surfaces in contagious form.  RNA alone isn't going to give you the illness.

I still wash my hands when returning from outside anywhere, it's good practice for general reasons.  I THINK the transmission is mostly aerosolized droplets of moisture that someone encounters.  Obviously, if those droplets fall on a surface indoors, they will be contagious for some period of time, probably hours, I don't think days.

This could be wrong, so don't make book on it.  Just wear a mask.  We could lick this thing if everyone distanced and/or wore a mask.

I don't personally view that as either hard to do or some kind of weird government plot to take our guns and lock up Jews, or whatever the latest Facebook thing is.

Well, this is really screwed up.

https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2020/07/17/our-residents-are-afraid-hundreds-gather-at-osceola-parties-to-spread-covid-19-sheriff-says/

Why??

Well, this is really screwed up.

https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2020/07/17/our-residents-are-afraid-hundreds-gather-at-osceola-parties-to-spread-covid-19-sheriff-says/

Why??

At best, they just don't care whom they pass it on to.
At worst, they are malevolent.

I never heard the story that "children don't spread it".  Huh.

Why would anyone suspect that to be true?

Well, this is really screwed up.

https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2020/07/17/our-residents-are-afraid-hundreds-gather-at-osceola-parties-to-spread-covid-19-sheriff-says/

Why??

I'd assume the people are out there because they're being irresponsible. I assume the sheriff is talking about "Covid parties" because he is, to a degree, being irresponsible. I'd assume people are being drunken morons. The story of people trying to get sick is one that gets a lot of attention when people in positions of authority talk about it, but as a good skeptic, I'm leery of believing it's the thing some people paint it as.

It leads to two interesting outcomes. 1. There's a weird balance of concern where you write of people as "unsavory" and "gang members" but also show a level of concern about their health. 2. If it was true, it would seem the messaging the disease isn't really that bad got through. 

Anyway, it's also fascinating how so many places have so many problems with out of towners. Perhaps that speaks to of out owners generally being bad, or it just speaks to something about tribalism and responsibility.