Masking Motives
Now we have “mask etiquette” and “mask shaming.”
Of course we do.
The reason is what I call “wowsing,” which means there are people who implacably believe they are on a higher moral plain in all things (“wowsers”). I remember giddily one woman condemning a position I held because she found out I smoked cigars and consequently “was making a series of poor life choices.” Another asked how i could publish my newsletter, Balancing Act, when it came out at 2 am eastern time, which wasn’t exactly “balance” in her opinion. She was completely uninterested in the fact that it was automatically distributed at that our by a listserv, and in the fact that even if I chose to do so at 2 am then that was my life balance choice, not hers.
We should adhere to general health rules, and we should try to make other people feel safe, and even comfortable. But we also need to cut others some slack. I was in an aquarium once where flash pictures were not allowed. As I raised my camera, with the flash turned off, a man with his family raised his voice to admonish me, “No flashes, can’t you see the sign?!” I told him the flash was turned off, and asked if he’d like to critique my outfit, as well. He assumed that I was incapable of following the rules because I was somehow less diligent or caring than he.
I’d advise we cut everyone some slack and admit we all make errors. After all, you can’t tell what people are calling you under that mask.
