What Do Masks Do And What Don't They Do?

 As the misinformation flows about COVID 19 and the various means for dealing with it, certain false stories have been circulating which really need to be clarified.  Here's a big question:

What is the purpose of wearing masks and how effective are the masks at stopping the spread of the disease?

Answer:  The reason to wear a mask when in close proximity to other people is to prevent yourself from spreading the virus to others if you are infected.  The purpose is NOT to prevent you from catching the virus.  In fact, the reason that the doctors originally said masks should not be worn was that the medical community thought that by wearing these masks, people would be more likely to touch their faces and more likely to get the virus.  Once it became clear that there were a large number of people who got infected but who also had no symptoms, the wearing of masks was encouraged because the use of a mask by an asymptomatic person carrying the virus would limit the ability of that sick person to spread droplets of virus-carrying saliva in the air by coughs or sneezes.  

The use of masks is not extremely effective in stopping the spread of the virus.  The results are still better than they would be if no one wore a mask, but the masks do not come close to stopping the spread.

It is important to keep in mind that the masks we are discussing are not the N95 masks worn by healthcare professionals.  Those masks do protect the wearer from getting infected through the mouth or nose.  It is not feasible, however, for everyone to wear that sort of mask. 

The wearing of masks has somehow been elevated to some sort of religious experience by people who claim to be listening to the "science".  They say things, however, that indicate that they don't have a clue about what the actual science has to say about masks.  Here's a good example:  recently Herman Cain passed away after being infected with the virus.  The mask posse rushed onto social media to point out that Cain had gone to a Trump rally in Tulsa Oklahoma an didn't wear a mask there.  About two weeks later, Cain got sick.  The fanatics screamed that Cain caught the virus by failing to wear a mask.  That was completely false.  The point of wearing the mask would be to prevent Cain from infecting others. The mask protects them, not Cain.