Letter: Pres.Trump’s Re-open America

Dear Editor, 
 
I am glad that we are beginning to open more businesses and recreation.

But safety is actually quite simple: let us each follow President Trump’s White House Guidelines for individuals when in public and at work, with special emphasis on wearing face masks and keeping a minimum of 6 feet apart. (www.whitehouse.gov/openingamerica). 
 
These may not guarantee protection from Covid 19 infection. But they will lessen your exposure, your children’s exposure, your parents and grandparents exposure, and decrease the amount of virus you might be exposed to so that even if you do get sick, it may be a milder case (the “viral load” rule).
 
Not wearing a mask is like having a designated pee area in a swimming pool - it doesn’t stay in one spot.
 
Wearing a mask does not fully protect from infection, but wearing a mask will help protect you and others as opposed to not wearing a mask. Two people wearing masks increases protection for both even more. Coupling that with standing at least 6 feet apart gives even more protection from spreading or catching the virus. 
 
Not wearing a face mask in public is not a political or social statement about freedom or resistance. It is a statement that says “I don’t care if I spread the virus to the people around me, my friends, my family, my neighbors.” It says “I don’t care if I make other people sick or die. I don’t care if our local hospital, doctors and nurses get over capacity and over whelmed, and unable to properly care for me or my family.”

Wearing a mask and keeping six feet apart says, “I may not agree with all the Stay-at-Home regulations or the Executive Orders, but I do care about keeping myself, my family and my community safe and healthy.”
 There is no completely correct solution to keeping the virus from spreading and infections from surging. But EACH of us (yes, everyone) can do at least this very simple thing that comes directly from President Trump’s White House Guidelines to help keep us all healthy, and our community re-opening in the safest way we are able.

Let us nod to each other all masked up in our stores, at work and in public to show support for our efforts in keeping our families safe and healthy.

Let us hear from our representatives to support these efforts, and to follow it themselves. Let us hear them encourage civil disagreement while masked up and six feet apart as opposed to unmasked rebellion.   

In gratitude for the sacrifices our community members have made,
Sally Wagoner