Guest Post by Ian Miller
Another completely insane policy from a disastrously bad organization
At this point, I don’t think it’s a secret that the CDC wants permanent masking.
After they disregarded years of pre-pandemic guidance on mask wearing by the general population, the CDC has released increasingly poor studies, supported by the NIH’s disgraceful attempt at science.
In order to defend two years of the unequivocal global failure of masks and mask mandates, they’ve had to resort to desperate justifications for their embrace of pseudoscience.
Recent polling by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee proved how damaging endless COVID policies have become to left leaning politicians:
New: I got a look at DCCC internal polling as Dems roll back restrictions 57% of voters in competitive House districts agree with the statement “Democrats in Congress have taken things too far in their pandemic response” Rises to 66% with swing voters
February 17th 2022
1,004 Retweets3,682 Likes
Unsurprisingly, about two weeks later, the CDC updated their community transmission metrics which dramatically lowered the perceived risk throughout the United States.
Seemingly overnight, in the CDC’s estimation, the vast majority of the United States went from COVID being seen as a dangerous threat where universal masking was an urgent requirement, to an equally vast majority living in a “low to medium” transmission zone.
Even the CDC’s own press release announcing the change specifically mentioned that 90% of the population lived in a low-medium risk area, according to their own inexplicable metrics.
The Science™ changed, apparently!
Except for in one particular area:
On January 29, 2021, CDC issued an Order that required face masks to be worn by all people while on public transportation (which included all passengers and all personnel operating conveyances) traveling into, within, or out of the United States and U.S. territories. The Order also required all people to wear masks while at transportation hubs (e.g., airports, bus or ferry terminals, train and subway stations, seaports, U.S. ports of entry, and other locations where people board public transportation in the United States and U.S. territories), including both indoor and outdoor areas.
Masks are still required on planes, at airports, and on other forms of public transportation, according to the same CDC that just said that 90% of the US population live in a low-medium risk area for COVID.
Here’s how the current community transmission map looks:
A number of states are entirely green — Utah, Colorado, Illinois, New York, Maryland, South Carolina, Washington, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, D.C.
Others have only a few counties in the “medium” risk category — Wyoming, New Mexico, Arizona, California, South Dakota, Nebraska, Iowa, Indiana, Wisconsin, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Florida, North Carolina.
As of March 17th, out of over 3,000 counties in the US, only 60 were currently in “high” transmission zones. And that’s despite the issues with hospital utilization in rural areas (which are so numerous they’ll require an entirely separate post) that render the guidelines essentially useless for many parts of the country.
In any case, those 60 “high” transmission counties make up a grand total of 0.47% of the US population.
Roughly 329,459,235 people are living in counties that are in low-medium risk areas.
Here’s how that disparity looks visually:
And even in the high risk zones, hospitalizations, which we’re told are the most important metric to focus on in the era of mass vaccination, are often remarkably low.
For example, Colquitt County, Georgia has 0.70% of inpatient hospital beds occupied by COVID patients, but is classified as a “high” risk county. Also, two counties in Arkansas, Ashley and Chicot, are “high” risk with 1.70% of inpatient hospital beds occupied by COVID positive patients.
In those counties where 1-2% of hospital beds are being used by those with a positive COVID test, the CDC recommends the below mitigation measures.
The left column describes personal “protections” while the right column are their policy recommendations for local governments.
Yes, you’re reading that correctly; an area with 0.70% of inpatient beds occupied by COVID patients should “implement healthcare surge support as needed” and “maintain improved ventilation in public indoor spaces.”
Oh and, it bears mentioning that several counties in highly vaccinated Maine, such as Washington County where 81% of the population is vaccinated, are also in “high transmission” zones where the CDC recommends distributing and administering vaccines “to achieve high community vaccination coverage.”
Absurd metrics and policy guidance aside, what is the possible justification for maintaining mask mandates for airplanes and transit when 99.53% of the country is in a low to medium transmission zone?
How can the risk possibly get lower than this?
What are they hoping to accomplish?
This is part of the broader issue with regards to COVID policy: the lack of clear cut, accomplishable goals. Mask mandates, vaccine passports, 10pm curfews and capacity limits were based on unproven, inexplicable criteria with the repetitive drumbeat of the vague objective of “slowing the spread.”
Despite the unequivocal failure of government intervention to accomplish whatever “slowing the spread” would mean in the face of an endemic virus, mandates and the threat of mandates have persisted.
There was no logical endpoint to when the measures would have “slowed the spread” enough to be removed, because COVID could never be eliminated. What was initially claimed to be a short term goal of reducing the strain on hospitals became an endless dance of mostly useless interventions that accomplished nothing to lessen the strain on hospitals or reduce infections and instead led to countless lives being needlessly disrupted.
When targets and goals were specifically mentioned by “experts” such as Dr. Anthony Fauci, for example getting 70% of adults at least partially vaccinated to eliminate the risk of future surges, they were proven hopelessly incorrect:
What is the possible justification for something as nebulous and ineffectual as forced masking in such limited circumstances, when even specific goals fail spectacularly?
Well a recent article from Axios explains:
Medical experts advocate for continued masking on public transportation, specifically air travel, to reduce broader community transmission.
- One person wearing a masks (sic) reduces the likelihood of getting COVID-19 by about 50%, Leonard J. Marcus, director of the Aviation Public Health Initiative at Harvard University said, adding that the chance of transmitting also decreases by about 50%.
- “If you put that together – so you’ve got a lot of people on an aeroplane, everybody’s wearing a mask – you’ve done something, in combination with the ventilation system, that really reduces the likelihood of transmission,” Marcus said.
This is why combating *real* misinformation is so important. Allowing activists with credentials to influence public policy is leading to absurd, ludicrous, made up percentages like “one person wearing a masks (sic) reduces the likelihood of getting COVID-19 by about 50%.”
What is that based on? It’s certainly not based on any reality that actually exists in this universe.
But because “medical experts” are advocating for continued masking based on quite literally no evidence, the CDC extended their policy and is already setting the stage for more mandates down the road.
The TSA’s statement also hints at the future of masking policies:
During that time, CDC will work with government agencies to help inform a revised policy framework for when, and under what circumstances, masks should be required in the public transportation corridor,” the TSA said in a statement.
“For when, and under what circumstances, masks should be required in the public transportation corridor.”
This will be endless.
By allowing the CDC to maintain their demonstrably inaccurate claims on mask efficacy, the complicity of the vast majority of the medical profession and the activism and incompetence of public health, the United States is setting the stage for permanent masks on mass transit.
We’ll never see a statement allowing for the irreversible removal of masks, or admitting the absurdity of attempting to prevent the spread of an endemic respiratory virus that everyone on earth will eventually get.
Just continued references to what the “framework” will be for when the CDC enforces their dubious authority to unilaterally mandate masks on travelers in the United States.
Where is the discussion on what exactly the impact of the CDC’s transit mandates has been on community transmission throughout the country?
As Axios referenced, “Medical experts advocate for continued masking on public transportation, specifically air travel, to reduce broader community transmission.”
They specifically articulate that mask mandates for air travel have and will “reduce broader community transmission.”
So did it work?
No.
Obviously masks have been worn on planes for nearly the entirety of the pandemic, but the date of the official CDC order came on January 29, 2021.
The peak of community transmission in the United States was reached on January 4, 2022.
What exactly did masks on planes and trains and “transportation conveyances” or “the premises of transportation hubs” do to “prevent spread of the virus that causes COVID-19?”
It did nothing. Absolutely nothing.
From June 2021 to January 2022, cases in the United States rose 7,050%. I don’t think there’s any conceivable way to realistically defend the effectiveness of this policy.
But maybe it reduced hospitalizations! Maybe all the mask wearing on planes, as a result of the CDC’s intervention, reduced the severity of the disease in the community!
Let’s look at hospitalizations after the mandate came into effect:
Nope. Nothing there either. Hospitalizations broke records well after the CDC’s order was in place.
There has been absolutely no value whatsoever to masking on planes. There’s been no reduction in community transmission due to the CDC’s mandate, despite the misleading claims from “medical experts.”
Their public transportation order has zero benefit and demonstrable harms — “unruly” passenger investigations have been dramatically higher than before the pandemic, according to the FAA:
You may also recall the countless stories of parents being forced off planes due to their young children becoming frustrated or upset and unable to maintain “proper” masking.
There’s simply no justification for continuing to enforce a policy so utterly disconnected from anything remotely approaching value.
We’ve seen no evidence that masks decrease the community spread of COVID or the severity of cases throughout the United States. Other countries have dropped mandates in airports, rightfully accepting the reality that masking exclusively on planes and in airports (as well as in the general public, obviously) is performative theater.
Community transmission in the US is currently so low that the refusal to finally end the mandate raises the question that must be answered: when will it be low enough to remove masks on planes?
After the inevitable next surge hits, will mask mandates be issued once again, despite the unequivocal failure of masking on public transit? It seems a near certainty that the unquestionable reality that they have not made the slightest bit of difference to community transmission will be purposefully ignored.
The CDC’s track record of incompetence, misinformation and dedicated refusal to acknowledge evidence and data contrary to their policy goals do not inspire confidence. What they’re telling us by extending and continuing the mandate is that they intend to make masking a permanent, reoccurring ritual, no matter how useless and harmful it is.
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I we can’t drive there, we won’t go.
Same here, but this really pisses me off. Now, with rising gas prices, before long we’ll all be stuck at home…exactly what they want.
Like I was told, you can always walk or hitch a ride, the Amish do it all the time. All puns intended
Yup I refuse to fly with these “mandates”.
You are correct sir!
So…raise your hand if you continue to opt-in and play their bullshit games.
I didn’t downvote to indicate that I disapprove your comment. I downvoted to indicate I will NOT opt in. I thought it was one of those “poll” comments.
That works too.
I fly and take Amtrak. It has become a bit of a game to see what I can get away with. Two minutes of masking when entering and exiting plane, then nursing a bottle for 2 hours.
I will not disagree that it is wrong to do so against my better judgement, but I also refuse to refrain from travelling wherever I want. Life is too short to be confined to only one continent.
Svarga…I give you points for being brave enough to say that here. BUT…I don’t understand why people go along with this. I simply can’t do it without getting myself into some kind of trouble.
It is VERY bothersome for me to go along with something I adamantly disagree with. Plus, I would feel like the biggest hypocrite with all that I preach to my students and others.
Yes, I agree life is too short to not fully live our lives, but this is exactly how they control us. They hold these carrots over our head and see how high we’ll jump. I guess you can argue that I’m still being controlled since I refuse to travel, something I would like to do.
I do have a friend that travels all the time (and always invites me to go along), and she is very happy. So, maybe I have it all wrong.
We are headed to see our babies in a few days and will put up with the mask because getting a wet kiss from a 20 month old and hearing a 5 y-o say “I have missed you so much” is worth whatever trouble I have to put up with. Out of the 4 hours of airport/airplane time, I anticipate wearing the mask properly less than 15 minutes. the rest of the time it will be off or under nose and/or mouth.
It is their game & their rules and to see the babies, I will play along.
Is driving not an option?
It is an 18 hr drive and my wife struggles to go more than 6 hours in a car. With cost of gas, meals and multiple hotel nights, it would be 3 times as much as flying. I don’t like the mask BS, but it is the best option if we want to see the kids, grands and greats.
Ok. Don’t take this the wrong way, but if we can’t push back when it’s easy then there’s no hope for the future. There really isn’t. We all have things we love that has to be sacrificed in order to not go along to get along.
I actually feel super deflated right now, because I expect more from the people here. But, I’m not one to tell y’all what to do. Everyone has their line, I guess.
T4C went through a brutal sacrifice. She got through it. Yes, she has to make concessions now, but that’s between her & family, not the government…so it’s different.
Anyway, I’m done. Enjoy your trip.
AA, it’s easier to fight back at Walmart, etc, but when the federal government insists on stomping your face with a boot (mask) forever the level of response available is limited.
Many TBPers know my sacrifices to safeguard my health and not take the vax. But I am not going to pass up an opportunity to return to my favorite career at a new employer just cause I have to wear a mask here and there. Compared to the hill I chose ti fight on, it’s a (relative) non issue.
However, I have not and will not voluntarily fly or put myself in locations with mask mandates, just as I avoided the vax mandate.
And when the appropriate response includes rope and lampposts, I’ll be there.
My last flight was return from London to KC Oct2019. This has been the longest no flying interval for me since 1987.
Don’t miss the hassle, especially since 9/11. However, with new field service position, I have a series of training classes, all in Tampa. Really hoping they lift the stupid mandate after April 18.
Otherwise, o know my ornery side will try to shine and I don’t wish to run afoul of FAA and all that bs.
Well, I guess my last flight was Feb 2020. Fortunately, close to retirement so hopefully not business travel.
I went to Hawaii February 2020 for two weeks. Last time I was on an airplane. It was an amazing trip and am so grateful that I went right before the Covid nonsense happened.
I love to travel so it’s just maddening that these idiots are in charge.
I love the destination, but air travel has been horrible since 9-11.
Yes. We love to travel. These illegal mandates are ridiculous. But Alaska is a good place to be. We’ll travel around the state and enjoy Alaska beauty instead, all mask free all the time.
You mean “criminal” organization, that is strictly a pawn of Big Pharma, and has lied, cheated and destroyed data..
This exactly as planned. Rising gas prices, onerous public transportations regs, whether it be or buses, planes and/or trains. Stay home and love your safety. The whole thing is a completely fabricated scam, based on the BS PCR testing. And the majority of the plebs go along, cuz sCieNce!!!
Very logical article here. But therein lies the problem.
Turn off the TV. Stop living this. Stop thinking about this. Go on with your life. Here in Florida, August will mark two years we have lived with no restrictions. We don’t even think about this garbage anymore. If you live somewhere that sucks, move. Or challenge the people that are doing this to you. Whining about it, writing about it, complaining about it, spending your time analyzing the data, it’s all just a waste of your time. They’re wasting your life. And you are letting them. They will not stop until somebody stops them. There is no use in trying to convince somebody that you are right. Nobody cares. Do something about it. Or suffer in silence. Look at what’s going on in Shanghai. It’s April 2022. Wake the fuck up.
Why don’t they just make you wear those little masks that fall out of ceiling, save a lot of trouble? Going to use the restroom would be sort of out, but hey, if the president can wear Depends, why not the passengers. Just charge extra on the ticket, you know disposal and all that crap.
Remember in the beginning of the pandemic the CDC told us that paper and cloth masks don’t work for Covid?
When politicians started buying stock in the mask companies all of a sudden everyone had to have one on all the time. Funny how that happens…Seems to me like they just can’t let go of making a few more quick bucks.
“Slowing the spread” a cynical euphemism for dragging the plandemic out as long as possible while putting the finishing touches for maximum shock value on the next contrived crisis.
TPTB write the scripts for this global Theater of the Absurd while we eat popcorn off the sticky floor.
I have got to comment on this one (and the somewhat related ZH: “What Have We Done To Our Kids?”)…
Been in SoCal since roughly new years. Masking was everywhere. The first place I saw where people were not masking was a Church service I went to around the 1st of Feb. (I was, but only because I had been too lazy to shave, and wanted to cover up that fact.) That was by far the exception and not the rule at that point. Even late in the month, it was generally under 10% of people in stores were unmasked. Early March, I went to an AA meeting. NO ONE was masked. An old guy came in very late who had one on, perhaps he had his reasons. Since that night, I have refused to mask.
This morning a friend took me out for breakfast. All of the waitresses were masked and in uniform. Since I was late to the table and was more focused on the menu than the waitress, I honestly still don’t know which one was “mine.”
Similarly, in late Dec, I spent almost a week in a hospital. By the end of my stay, I was mobile and bored enough to start pacing the hallway. If I needed something, I wouldn’t press the call button, I’d go to the nurses station and wait patiently. Trying to get another cup of coffee wasn’t worth interrupting something else that could have been far more important. Thing is, I frequently had trouble trying to figure out which nurse was the one assigned to me on a given shift. Again, masks, uniforms.
Today it dawned on me what this is all about.
Whatever the reasons–they will continue to invent them–certain people will be required to wear masks in certain situations. Even if only some people have to be masked (and particularly then) the goal is to normalize and force acceptance of the presence of masked people in public. This theater will slowly change and evolve until the end point is reached: the new slave class will be required to wear them when around the elites. It won’t matter if your black, white, transgender, etc. You will be FACELESS. It is unlikely those you end up serving will ever care to learn your name, even if you end up stuck wearing a name tag.
It’s much harder to have empathy/sympathy for those who have no face and no name.
And where does the mentioned ZH article fit in? By doing this to our children, this creates a permanent caste system. Our children will never know the freedom of the possibility of making a name for oneself. If you aren’t born privileged, you never will be.
v
Monstrously ignorant and stupid people or collaborators with the rogue world regime that wants to run the world. Idiots!