Despite the first few months of the vaccine rollout going well in the United States, the CDC still recommends wearing a mask in public. So do many local governments, and plenty of businesses still require it.
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The reason being that the majority of the country still isn’t vaccinated and we simply aren’t out of the woods when it comes to the pandemic. Seeing a new major outbreak when we’re so close to the finish line just isn’t necessary—but it is still very much possible.
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But Tucker Carlson doesn’t care about any of that. The far-right Fox Host railed against masks on his show the other night and even went so far as to tell his audience to harass people they see wearing masks outside into taking them off.
“Masks are purely a sign of political obedience,” he falsely claimed. “We wear them because we have to. The only people who voluntarily wear masks outside are zealots and neurotics.”
People wear masks outside because they’re immunocompromised, because they would rather be safe than sorry, or because they’re on their way to somewhere else and don’t want to keep fiddling with it, among other reasons.
Carlson went on to point the finger at “Biden voters” for secretly “snorting” at people not wearing masks outside, called them aggressors, and insisted that he knows all this because liberals are mentally ill.
“It’s our job to brush them back and restore the society we were born in,” he said, sounding absolutely unhinged. “So the next time you see someone in a mask on the sidewalk or on the bike path, do not hesitate. Ask politely but firmly: ‘Would you please take off your mask? Science shows there is no reason for you to be wearing it. Your mask is making me uncomfortable.’”
He also insisted that having children wear masks should be illegal, and told his viewers to call the police and react the same as if they saw someone beating a child.
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Obviously, someone wearing a mask poses no threat to another person who refuses to wear one. As Carlson himself said, it’s a matter of feeling “uncomfortable.” And considering the same types of people who watch Tucker Carlson have had a long history of harassing anyone who makes them feel uncomfortable while simply living their lives, this sort of nonsense is unsurprising.
And like the other times, some far-right persona leads a crusade against people who make them “uncomfortable,” people are worried Carlson may be prompting his viewers to cross a line into dangerous territory.
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If people want mask regulations gone, all they have to do is get vaccinated. Of course, if the entire country had cooperated and worn masks and stayed home early on in the pandemic, we might have been able to do away with masks a lot sooner.
But people like Tucker Carlson would rather fan the flames for ratings, fame, and money than encourage his viewers to care about other human beings.
*First Published: April 27, 2021, 6:17 am
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