Two Fields

Once upon a time there were two fields and two farmers. One field was fertile, and the farmer who lived there worked diligently to plant crops, care for them, and harvest. His harvests were so abundant that he made more than he and his family needed. The second field was sandy and dry. Harvests tended to be small, and many years there wasn't enough to feed the farmer and his family. Their generous neighbors shared some of their excess, and the poor farmer's family didn't starve. 

Then along came a central planner one year. He noted how unfair it was that one farmer had better harvests than the other farmer. To solve this problem, he decided that the farmer with the good field must share half of his planting seeds with the other farmer.

So both farmers set to planting. And they tended their fields. They watered. They watched. When the time came, they reaped. Where before there had been a bounty, there food still grew. It wasn't as much. The first farmer's family would be a little hungry that year. On the other field, hardly any food was harvested. This farmer had grown a tiny bit more than before, but still not anywhere close to enough to feed his family. And the previously prosperous farm had none to share. The second farmer gave all the food he could to his children. He and his wife died that winter. 

Central planners all over are inviting us to repeat this story. 

To God be all glory. 

Mask Decisions: Stacking, Not Choosing Between, Facts

When I am allowed to make personal judgments about how I behave in this pandemic, I am not just considering one or two facts. In the case of wearing masks when out shopping, here is how I would reason it, if the government weren't superimposing their will:

A. Transmission is extremely rare in circumstances without prolonged close exposure, and

B. Transmission by people without current symptoms is a small portion of total transmissions, and

C. Even among symptomatic people, most infected don't pass the virus to anyone else: super-spreaders do way more than their fair share, and

D. Cloth masks only filter some droplets and fewer aerosols, and

E. Masks are mostly recommended as source control, which is only relevant if I am currently infected and contagious, and

F. I know I have not had prolonged exposure to the most contagious type of infection, and

G. I know that I am not experiencing any symptoms whatsoever, and

H. I know that I am getting lots of Vitamins C and D, which are shown to be immune-supporting and virus-inhibiting (so the chances that I am capable of spreading the virus should I be exposed are even smaller), and

I. Finally, the statistical likelihood that in the extremely remote chance that I have it multiplied by the extremely remote chance I give it to anyone else, that such a person would experience any long-term detrimental effect is very small - probably as small as with Influenza and many other viruses which have never previously induced me to do everything in my power to reduce any possibility of spreading.

I am obeying the requests of business owners and private individuals, and even of governments, for the most part, regarding masks. But that does not make me very carefully take off my mask and not touch it again until I am washing it, or to conscientiously sanitize my hands every time I touch my mask. I don't believe those things are relevant in a significant way under my circumstances, so I am only complying with what other people demand. It is not personal conviction in the slightest.

However, if circumstances were different and the facts about the virus were the same, 

I could build a different set of facts for different circumstances, too. 

A. Transmission is more likely in circumstances with prolonged close exposure, and

B. Transmission by people with current symptoms is a higher proportion of total transmissions than asymptomatic carriers, and

C. Cloth masks filter some droplets, if not aerosols, and

D. Exposure to higher concentrations of virus makes infection more likely, and

E. Masks are mostly recommended as source control, which is relevant if I am likely to be currently infected and contagious, and

F. I know whether I have had prolonged exposure to the most contagious type of infection, and

G. I can tell whether I am experiencing any symptoms whatsoever, and

H. I know that certain people I could choose to be around have weak immune systems, are in high-risk categories, live in a place where they are likely to spread it to other health-compromised people, or they have insufficient access to good health care, and

I. Even though the risks are probably almost as small as with Influenza and many other viruses, I would have taken precautions to avoid spending extended time around vulnerable people when I was sick, in those other cases, also.

To God be all glory.