I am going to mask because I want to get fewer colds & other flawed ideas

A new form of arrogance

Respiratory viruses exist because being human means being close. All the best moments in life involve require sharing air with other people. Respiratory viruses evolved because of who we are. We are social animals. We have to be close, and that is niche they seize.

Recently, I have seen a new movement. Some pine for a new world— a new normal where respiratory viruses are avoided. They think if we mask constantly, hyper ventilate our buildings (and ourselves), cancel meetings at the drop of a hat, test constantly, we might get fewer cold and flu like illnesses over the next 20 or 40 years.

This is arrogance.

First, there is our unyielding arrogance that humans can control the natural world. All the n95 masking in the world won’t stop colds and flu forever because viruses are more patient than people. We will all slip up eventually (frankly most of us aren’t doing anything anymore), and all viruses will return. We may even feel worse when we get sick having lost some cross immunity the longer we postpone things.

I am not convinced that the vast majority of this theater does anything to delay spread (there are no good data), but even if it did, that would only mean we are selecting for fitter viruses. Viruses that can spread with less and less breath.

Second, there is the arrogance that avoiding colds and flu is good for us. Of course it is the case that getting sick is unpleasant, but our knowledge of immunology and the body is so primitive we should not conclude that avoiding it is ‘good for us.’ We have no idea if that is true in the long run.

It is natural to be infected repeatedly with respiratory viruses— if we got fewer infections what would that mean for auto-immunity for cancer? We have no clue. We have no idea if we would actually live longer or healthier lives trying to dodge seasonal runny noses and coughs.

Covid19 did infect neurons— just not in the way people think. A tiny fraction of people can't get back to normal. They are suffering from long pandemic. They still entertain magical thinking. It would be tolerable if they didn't continue to try to interfere with the lives of others. But they can't help themselves. It's important to remind them that they may also be deeply incorrect.