Every day brings more data related to this ongoing novel virus. We do need to respect this virus and protect ourselves with reasonable prevention and common sense. A few things to briefly mention:
Number of cases: This does not mean number of sick people. The vast majority are not ill. The numbers have been going up recently but these are cases and not illnesses.
Number of cases in the USA as of this post, 8.19 million with 220,000 deaths which gives a death rate of 0.0268, rounding up is 0.03% of cases resulting in death.
Number of cases in the World 40.2 million with 1.12 million deaths which gives a death rate of 0.0278, rounding up is 0.03% of cases resulting in death.
This is not to minimize the death rate from this virus. Even one death is tragic.
These above numbers are to help us understand the reality of the infection rates and death rates. To understand them is to not fear them but to keep them in context.
We need to wear masks when we are closer than 6 feet from each other, however, if I am passing someone on the street, like ships in the night as it were, a mask is not necessary as the exposure time is minimal.
This is the information on mask wearing: When one is sick, wearing a mask stops the spread to others. For those who do wear masks, who are not sick, we are not protected from a sick person who does not wear a mask. The only protective mask in this scenario is N95 that will protect from such exposures. The masks we wear at Lira's and in the community we have done very well with and thus this does reduce potential for transmission and keeps our numbers in check not because the masks protect those not sick from those that don't wear a mask who are sick, but, because we each wear one and stop droplet exposure which is what reduces infections. Love your fellow man, shows respect to us all and protects all of us in this time of uncertainty.