After reading the editorial in the April 28 edition of The Era from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, titled “Conflicting messages on masks,” I had to comment on this subject.
As we all are slowly progressing through this global pandemic, no one of this generation has had an experience like this before.
In 1918, it was the year of the Spanish flu. That year is in fact the year I lost a grandfather I never knew. I do know, from hearing stories from my family members, this loss changed the future of the family forever.
The family lost, financially. The family members were split up and my grandmother ended up living with her married children’s families. She was constantly moved from one house to another for all of her remaining years. I don’t think she ever recovered emotionally.
Sickness, from the devastating 1918 flu epidemic to today’s COVID-19, is not a hoax. Wearing masks has become a global necessity from year to year if you watch global news reports from overseas.
Business mogul Bill Gates spoke of his fears of a pandemic in his TED Talk in 2015. He felt that we were at a greater risk for global respiratory disease than a global nuclear war.
So here we are.
The simple truth is wearing a face mask is not a political issue, “to wear or not to wear.”
Wearing a mask is, in fact, a medical issue.
If you love your spouse, your kids, your parents and others, protect them. Wear a mask.
Carol Orris, Bradford
