I thought politics were divisive…but that ain’t nothing compared to the self-righteous, “I’m right, you’re wrong” attitudes that are coming out of this pandemic. Sheesh!

News flash to all the Judgey McJudgerson’s out there – even during a global pandemic, you are still supposed to be LOVE.

Tensions are already high due to the massive lockdowns, kids being out of school, adults being out of work, etc. Do we really need to add to that tension by virtue signaling and talking shit about other people? “Wear two masks if you care about ending this pandemic. Stay away from your family if you love them.”

Is that really necessary? Do you know each individual person’s story? That person you see at the grocery store maskless – do you automatically judge them assuming they are some covid-denying conspiracy theorist who is trying to kill everyone? Or do you wonder if maybe there’s a good reason they don’t have a mask on? Maybe that young person is autistic. Maybe that woman is a sexual assault survivor. Maybe that man has asthma. There are many, many reasons why a person may not have their face covered. Let it be their business, not yours. Let’s release this “sick until proven healthy” attitude our society has adopted. If you’re that concerned about toxins being passed from one person to the next, maybe it’s best you just stay home. It won’t be someone’s uncovered face that causes someone to get sick in a world where Walmart’s are still open and flights are still packed like sardines.

We are doing so much on a “better safe than sorry” sort of philosophy rather than sound science, data, and common sense. So many have become so afraid of dying (or killing others) that they have stopped living. At what point does the fear become irrational? (Did you know that anytime you’ve received any sort of vaccine, you were an “asymptomatic” carrier (virus shedding)?)

I find it interesting that those who are being most vocal on virtue signaling and telling us all to wear masks and stay home are typically those who are pretty awful people in real life. I have known narcissists and abusers on social media telling me to stay away from my family if I really love them. Some are even boasting about their isolation, saying things like, “I love you so much I’m going to stay away from you.” People I know who never travel to visit their family at the holidays anyway are now boasting about “staying home and staying safe.” “Sorry to not be traveling this year, but it’s just not safe.” Dude…you never travel home anyway! You’re probably just happy to have an excuse this year that doesn’t make you look bad.

What I’m getting at is that the virtue signaling is getting to be a little much. If you choose to wear 3 masks, never leave your home, refuse to see friends or family, have everything delivered, etc., that’s great! I support your choice. However, you may not use that choice to make yourself feel like a better person than me – the person who chooses to travel to see her family for the holidays, the person who chooses to spend time with her “pod” people maskless, the person who will go to a restaurant. I am also that woman I was talking about earlier – the sexual assault survivor. I have some PTSD from the trauma of someone trying to suffocate and kill me, so having my mouth and nose covered for long amounts of time causes me anxiety. The two grocery trips I make a month are quick – it only takes about a half an hour of mask-wearing for the panic to begin to rise. I’m actually looking into how to be granted an exemption under my ADA rights in case the mask mandate is still in place when I go back to work. Put me in a tiny space with a human I don’t know with my face covered? No, thanks.

Stop making assumptions about people without knowing their story. Stop. It’s not a good look.

A pandemic is not an excuse to project your own fears and issues onto someone else. I repeat: A PANDEMIC IS NOT AN EXCUSE TO PROJECT YOUR OWN FEARS AND ISSUES ONTO SOMEONE ELSE.

A pandemic is not an excuse to lose all compassion and empathy for your fellow human. There are a hell of a lot scarier things out there than a virus with a 98% recovery rate for most people. Yes, there can be long-term effects from it, but there are also long-term effects from things like poverty, trauma, child neglect and abuse, losing someone to suicide or an overdose, childhood isolation, etc. These effects ripple through the bigger picture of our society. (Even the WHO is against lockdowns.)

I definitely will not allow people with questionable moral character who I wouldn’t go to for advice on a good day make me feel bad about the person I am and the things I am choosing. Being overly cautious due to being consumed by fear does not make you a better person than me. Take care of yourself and trust that others can take care of themselves, too. If you find yourself consumed by fear, I would recommend shutting off the media and having some quiet time to yourself. I would also recommend researching germ vs terrain theory, the inefficient PCR tests they are using to drive our numbers, and data coming out of Wuhan showing that asymptomatic transmission is rare – these bits of information are what has helped me release some fear while remaining cautious and sensible. This pandemic is not the end of our world. We will get through this. In fact, we already have. <3