I can be skeptical when finding out new information, and I always double check the resources to determine the accuracy of a news story. Writers tend to check the facts, even when creating fiction. As an editor I am very comfortable checking the facts in everything I read. Maybe being from the Show Me state also makes me more of a skeptic and less gullible.
When people began to doubt the news about covid-19, I began wading into the constant flow of news washing up in my newsfeed. I checked with people far away and with experts I trusted. Seemed to me, we had cause to be concerned. Not panicked, no. But careful.
The possibility of infection has been proven a real world danger. No one is making it all up just to scare us or turn us into communists. People have died. I know them. I know people who have tested positive. In the early days, I had all the symptoms but we had no available testing back then; and my doctor would not allow me to come to the office. My symptoms lessened and eventually I was well again. I have no sense of taste and smell, and the ringing in my ears never stops.
My skepticism about the virus has changed focus. Now, I am skeptical about how anyone can refuse to believe we're in a full-blow pandemic. The skeptic in me wants to know why someone refuses to wear a mask. At first I thought, well, they've all got a death wish. I think this about smokers, too. I mean, seriously, the science says it is very UNhealthy; yet smokers continue. No value for life. That's fine, I guess, personal decisions allowed.
Masks on the other hand protect other people. Do the unmasked persons have a death wish for others? Probably not. So, why, then, do they want to take a chance of inhaling droplets of covid-19?
Fortunately, in my search for the answer I ran across a psychological basis for this decision: Denial and/or Rationalism.
"With so much information available about the severity of the coronavirus and the need to follow guidelines, some people still refuse to accept reality.
https://www.cnn.com/2020/08/16/health/pandemic-covid-19-denial-mental-health-wellness/index.html
Megan Marples digs into the science--the psychology--to enter the mind of the UNmasked. Yeah, scary place to be, I agree. After reading her article, which I recommend, I don't understand the reasons--because there aren't real reasons, but I can see how fear and control shape someone's decision making. Their actions, unfortunately, endanger not just themselves but others, young and especially the old.
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