Mr Miller may have been in the right but refusing to wear masks etc frightens people to no good purpose that I can see. It will not endear people to a lockdown sceptic cause. One cannot expect frightened people to act rationally. I passed someone in the street who shrank away from me as though I were Dracula risen from the grave. If she had held up a crucifix I would not have been surprised. I was sorry for her rather than contemptuous.

I have taken different stances on masks. First of all, I did not wear them. Then, as you, I thought I might cause people anxiety, so I wore one. I wrote on the front, "For display purposes only." Then I questioned my approach. How did I know that people might become anxious? Indeed, maybe I was just maintaining a level of anxiety that was already present.

My initial response to the extreme anti-covid measures was that they were disproportionate and would cause stress and anxiety. As a practising Buddhist, I try to cultivate the wish that all beings be at ease, content and free from suffering. My actions must be in accordance with that. I keep my actions under constant review, In some situations, where there is evidence that my actions cause anxiety, I am more than happy to discuss things - and even wear a mask. But, in the general case, I don't wear one.

Mr Miller may have been in the right but refusing to wear masks etc frightens people to no good purpose ... .

I have had this argument with reluctant mask-wearers who say they do so to "respect" other people and not frighten them.

But, the appearance of a masked person should be more frightful than an unmasked. The masked person gives the message of threat: "there is danger about, be afraid."

The unmasked says: "there is nothing to fear".

But in these times of twisted propaganda, the mask says "I am protecting you" while the unmasked says "I don't care if I kill you".

The twisted propaganda messages are incorrect. Masks do not protect (unless you are really ill and coughing and sputtering all over the place) and the unmasked is a sign of health and confidence and will not kill you.

Going along with twisted propaganda, endorsing the "misinformation" about masks (to throw that word back at the Covidians), is not helpful. Tolerating something that is wrong, even temporarily for convenience, will just make it last longer and get worse.

Agree Teebs,
People scuttling past wearing masks in the open air sure frighten me. The automatic reaction is " what danger is it they can see but I can't?"

About any protection against coughing or spluttering BMJ Ability of fabric face mask materials to filter ultrafine particles at coughing velocity shows the best masks trap only 50% and the black things that people like let 80-90% through.

I wrote this a long time ago but here it is again. In a deserted car park next to woods at the car charger some big bloke came out of nowhere with a bloody scary mask on with blood and fangs. It scared the life out of me. The guy didnt even smile which made it worse. Thank god another bloke was also there who also jumped..
The other side of a masked person story...
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