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INTERESTING POINT, COVID IS PARTISAN


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Republican leaders are the only ones who really get it.  And die-hard Dems, who are fanatical about masks and social distancing, suddenly rip off their masks and stop social distancing when they think the cameras are off (see last 2nd and 3rd video below).  In this great video, PANDEMIC IS OVER, a very reputable source says the Covid tests are set to detect such a small amount of coronavirus, that the tests are inaccurate, that the tests way overstate positives, and that a postitive test doesn't really mean the person really has it.  It's hard to fathom the depths that these sub-human Deep Staters will go to in order to protect their wealth and power. 

DRAIN THE SWAMP!  LOCK THEM UP!  AND CONFISCATE THEIR WEALTH AND GIVE IT TO THOSE WHO LOST LOVED ONES AND WHOSE LIVES WERE DESTROYED BY THEIR USING COVID, WHICH HAS A MINISCULE DEATH RATE AND POSES NO LEGITIMATE THREAT, TO DESSIMATE THE ENTIRE WORLD!  

 

Joe Biden, Anderson Cooper stop social distancing during commercials:

 

Reporter always harping on the White House for not following Covid protocos, rips off his own mask as soon as he thinks the cameras are off:

 

 

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I mentioned this in my Update today but I didn't get into it... I'm happy to here though!

 

The PCR tests are doing exactly what is stating above - reporting positive results even when the person isn't contagious, possibly never was, may never have been "infected" at all, and a myriad of other things... the point is the "test results" are being manipulated to an absurd level.

 

That's why all we hear about lately are test results, not deaths. The positive test results are skyrocketing, but the situation is not escalating out of control as they are making it sound.

 

This graph should spell it out even for the simplest of 5 year olds. 

 

Screen Shot 2020-11-25 at 8.24.26 AM.png

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How fortuitous for the Dems that the PA Senator who is trying to get the Pennsylvania Legislature to take back control of choosing which candidate the state will give its 20 electoral votes to, comes down with Covid today.  The day he planned to have the Legislature vote on taking back their power to designate who gets PA's electoral votes. 

 

Does anyone else think this is too coincidental?

 

Pennsylvania's Mastriano forced to leave White House meeting after coronavirus diagnosis

 

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2 hours ago, KristiD said:

How fortuitous for the Dems that the PA Senator who is trying to get the Pennsylvania Legislature to take back control of choosing which candidate the state will give its 20 electoral votes to, comes down with Covid today.  The day he planned to have the Legislature vote on taking back their power to designate who gets PA's electoral votes. 

 

Does anyone else think this is too coincidental?

 

Pennsylvania's Mastriano forced to leave White House meeting after coronavirus diagnosis

 

 

If I was him, I would get a HazMat suit and show up for work. 

 

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2 hours ago, KristiD said:

How fortuitous for the Dems that the PA Senator who is trying to get the Pennsylvania Legislature to take back control of choosing which candidate the state will give its 20 electoral votes to, comes down with Covid today.  The day he planned to have the Legislature vote on taking back their power to designate who gets PA's electoral votes. 

 

Does anyone else think this is too coincidental?

 

Pennsylvania's Mastriano forced to leave White House meeting after coronavirus diagnosis

 

 

He should have worn a mask.....Besides, even if the state legislature votes to silence the will of the people, it wouldn't count for this election, as all of the votes are already in and counted....the citizens of Pennsylvania have spoken.

 

GO RV, then BV

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44 minutes ago, Shabibilicious said:

 

He should have worn a mask.....Besides, even if the state legislature votes to silence the will of the people, it wouldn't count for this election, as all of the votes are already in and counted....the citizens of Pennsylvania have spoken.

 

GO RV, then BV

Once again you don't understand the system, or how it works......Pennsylvania will be heard in the SC...

 

On January 6th 2021 the newly seated Congress....(Jan 3) will declare the winner of the election.......nothing is final until then...

 

There are a number of provisions that might play out......including the Courts putting a pause on the election until it is factually determined who won

 

If that goes past Jan 20th

......the Speaker of the House would become the acting President....wouldn't that be special!😮     CL

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3 hours ago, KristiD said:

How fortuitous for the Dems that the PA Senator who is trying to get the Pennsylvania Legislature to take back control of choosing which candidate the state will give its 20 electoral votes to, comes down with Covid today.  The day he planned to have the Legislature vote on taking back their power to designate who gets PA's electoral votes. 

 

Does anyone else think this is too coincidental?

 

Pennsylvania's Mastriano forced to leave White House meeting after coronavirus diagnosis

 

Nope I think it is a person not listening to science. Now the price has to be paid. Hope he makes it through ok!

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5 minutes ago, coorslite21 said:

Once again you don't understand the system, or how it works......Pennsylvania will be heard in the SC...

 

On January 6th 2021 the newly seated Congress....(Jan 3) will declare the winner of the election.......nothing is final until then...

 

There are a number of provisions that might play out......including the Courts putting a pause on the election until it is factually determined who won

 

If that goes past Jan 20th

......the Speaker of the House would become the acting President....wouldn't that be special!😮     CL

 

If the courts put a pause on the election, then the new congress can't be seated, for many of them were elected in the same election that's being claimed as fraudulent by Trump, but not by his lawyers.  Down ballot candidates, elected by the people, also get screwed if that happens.....This is typical of all things Trump, he cares only for himself...not how his action affect anybody else.  Worst President ever (this opinion of mine like many opinions, with time, may prove better than information in link form).

 

GO RV, then BV

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 2020-12-01 07:46
 

Leaked documents revealed that China deliberately obfuscated the numbers of actual infections with the Coronavirus at the beginning of the outbreak in Wuhan Province, before the virus spread to many countries of the world.

 

The British newspaper The Independent stated that China recorded Corona infections that were more than half the number of actual cases, and had reduced the severity of the virus and was unable to quickly diagnose cases in the early stages of the pandemic, according to the documents.

 

A set of revelations in 117 internal documents from the Hubei Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention obtained by CNN show how the Chinese Communist Party hid vital information as the world struggled to contain the rapidly spreading virus.

 

On February 10, China publicly recorded 2,478 new confirmed cases while secretly recorded 5,918 new cases, a difference of 139%.

 

On February 17, China publicly recorded new deaths in Hubei Province, which is believed to have started in its capital, Wuhan, at 93 cases, while it secretly recorded 196 cases, a difference of more than double.

 

However, on March 7, China publicly recorded the total number of deaths in Hubei Province at 2,986 cases, while secretly recorded 3,456 cases.

 

These documents reveal the nature of the Chinese health care system's handling of the pandemic between October 2019 and April 2020.

 

As in March, near the peak of the pandemic, the Chinese authorities needed approximately 23.3 days - more than three weeks - from the onset of symptoms until confirmation of positive cases of the Coronavirus.

 

While a review of screening tools found that they were ineffective in detecting the Corona virus, while a lack of personal protective equipment forced health officials to render the virus inactive before testing.

 

The document also said, according to a CNN report, a retrospective examination of early samples found that most of the samples, which were shown by SARS-negative screening tools, were positive with the new Corona virus.

 

The document also stated: "Private companies that contracted with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention used reagents and simple fluids that impede the work of some of them and show false negative results."

 

The documents also showed an undetected outbreak of influenza since December 2019 in Hubei Province, which was more severe in Yichang and Xianning than in Wuhan. Internal data showed an increase of 2.059% over 2018, which had not been previously announced.

 

Meanwhile, the Chinese Foreign Ministry, the National Health Commission and the Hubei Health Commission did not respond to what these documents revealed when CNN contacted them.

 

"It was clear that they made mistakes - not just those mistakes that happen when you deal with a new virus - but bureaucratic and politically motivated errors in the way they deal with it," said Yanzhong Huang, a senior researcher on global health at the Council on Foreign Relations.

 

He also added that it had repercussions globally. You can never guarantee 100% transparency. It's not just about any intentional concealment, but you're also limited by technology and other issues associated with a new virus.

 

The disclosure of Chinese documents comes in light of the accusations that the West, especially America, made of China of causing the spread of the Corona virus, while the World Health Organization tried to defend Beijing.

 

On Monday, November 30, the Director-General of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, urged countries not to politicize the process of tracking the sources of the emerging corona virus; Because that creates obstacles to knowing the truth.

 

As he said in a daily press release: "We need to know the origin of this virus, because that can help us prevent future outbreaks." He continued: "There is nothing that is being hidden. We want to know the origin of the virus, and that is everything."

 

Also, the American Fox News Network published on April 16, 2020, in an exclusive report to it, that the Corona virus is not a biological weapon used by China, but rather is part of Beijing's plans to demonstrate its efforts in the field of virus detection and fight, and that it is not less powerful, but may surpass the states. The United States, adding that the Corona virus was launched from the Wuhan laboratory during a process to test a virus that involved the mistake of implicating the world and not in its markets, as was common at the beginning of the virus spread.

 

As for the Washington Post, it revealed that diplomatic cables from the US State Department warned Washington in 2018 of concerns about safety procedures in a research laboratory in Wuhan, China, the same laboratory from which Fox News said that the virus was launched.

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Editing date: 01/12/2020 16:03 • 17 times read
http://www.alliraqnews.com/uploads/news/image/medium/story_img_5fc63f06196d4.jpg
[Follow-up-where]
Leaked documents revealed that China deliberately obfuscated the numbers of actual infections with the Corona virus at the beginning of the outbreak in Wuhan Province, before the virus spread to many countries of the world.
The British newspaper The Independent stated that China recorded Corona infections that were more than half the number of actual cases, and had reduced the severity of the virus and was unable to quickly diagnose cases in the early stages of the pandemic, according to the documents.

A set of revelations in 117 internal documents from the Hubei Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention obtained by CNN show how the Chinese Communist Party hid vital information as the world struggled to contain the rapidly spreading virus.

On February 10, China publicly recorded 2,478 new confirmed cases while secretly recorded 5,918 new cases, a difference of 139%.

On February 17, China publicly recorded new deaths in Hubei Province, which is believed to have started in its capital, Wuhan, at 93 cases, while it secretly recorded 196 cases, a difference of more than double.

However, on March 7, China publicly recorded the total number of deaths in Hubei Province at 2,986 cases, while secretly recorded 3,456 cases.

These documents reveal the nature of the Chinese health care system's handling of the pandemic between October 2019 and April 2020.

As in March, near the peak of the pandemic, the Chinese authorities needed approximately 23.3 days - more than three weeks - from the onset of symptoms until Confirm positive cases of Corona virus.

While a review of screening tools found that they were ineffective in detecting the Corona virus, while a lack of personal protective equipment forced health officials to render the virus inactive before testing.

The document also said, according to a CNN report, a retrospective examination of early samples found that most of the samples, which were tested by SARS-negative screening tools, were positive with the new Corona virus.

The document also stated: "Private companies that contracted with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention used reagents and simple fluids that impede the work of some of them and show false negative results."

The documents also showed an undetected outbreak of influenza since December 2019 in Hubei Province, which was more severe in Yichang and Xianning than in Wuhan. Internal data showed an increase of 2.059% over 2018, which had not been previously announced.

Meanwhile, the Chinese Foreign Ministry, the National Health Commission and the Hubei Health Commission did not respond to what these documents revealed when CNN contacted them.

"It was clear that they made mistakes - not just those mistakes that happen when you deal with a new virus - but bureaucratic and politically motivated errors in the way they deal with it," said Yanzhong Huang, a senior researcher on global health at the Council on Foreign Relations.

He also added that it had repercussions globally. You can never guarantee 100% transparency. It's not just about any intentional concealment, but you're also limited by technology and other issues associated with a new virus.

The disclosure of Chinese documents comes in light of the accusations that the West, especially America, made of China of causing the spread of the Corona virus, while the World Health Organization tried to defend Beijing.

On Monday, November 30, the Director-General of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, urged countries not to politicize the process of tracking the sources of the emerging corona virus; Because that creates obstacles to knowing the truth.

As he said in a daily press release: "We need to know the origin of this virus, because that can help us prevent future outbreaks." He continued: "There is nothing that is being hidden. We want to know the origin of the virus, and that is everything."

Also, the American Fox News Network published on April 16, 2020, in an exclusive report to it, that the Corona virus is not a biological weapon used by China, but rather is part of Beijing's plans to prove its efforts in the field of virus detection and fight, and that it is not less powerful, but may surpass the states The United States, adding that the Corona virus was launched from the Wuhan laboratory during a process to test a virus that involved the mistake of implicating the world and not in its markets, as was common at the beginning of the virus spread.

As for the Washington Post, it revealed that diplomatic cables from the US State Department warned Washington in 2018 of concerns about safety procedures in a research laboratory in Wuhan, China, the same laboratory from which Fox News said that the virus was launched.
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I'd like to ask people not to take this thread off topic please.  This is not a thread about Covid per se, and it's especially not about the contested election.  It's a thread about Republican leaders catching the vivrus while the Democrat leaders do NOT.  And that's particularly troublesome given Democrats routinely flaunt the safety protocols much more than Republicans.  

 

Yes, it's true that the virus is much less serious than the media and Fauci claim.  But there are plenty of other threads in the Health section that discuss this.  I would really like this thread to focus on why it is that Republican leaders - and hardly any Democrats - are the ones that get sick from it.  

 

I have considered the possibility that Covid, likely created or at least modified in a lab, contains some kind of nanotech which allows those with the proper knowledge (i.e., the CCP who is no doubt working with the Dems to remove Trump from office) to activate the virus within specific people to make it rapidily replicate itself such that it overwhelms that person's immune system and they contract it.  At this point, Covid is well entrenched in most larger cities, including Washington D.C., so the mojority of people have likely been exposed to it.  Fortunately, for the majority of people, their immune systems are strong enough to keep it at bay.  But I would think that a small number of live Covid cells still live in their bodies, and just like cancer cells (which we all have already within our bodies), there are usually not enough of those live Covid cells to overwhelm our immune systems so we get sick.  But if the CCP doctors can trigger, through nanotech, something in those Covid cells to accelerate their replication, and if there's some way to target specific people when they do so, this would explain why Covid seems to be partisan.

 

I know this is a stretch, but I'd previously noticed that Covid cases and deaths increase at the least opportune times for Trump.  I'm not a fan of coincidence so I'd already wondered if it was deliberate.  So when Lin Wood recently tweeted:

Have you noticed that no Democratic leader has suffered Covid-19 but Republicans leaders have had more than their fair share? Or is it just me? Or is Covid-19 partisan?

It inspired me to start this thread.  Apparently I'm not the only one who notices how Covid targets Repulicans and not Democrats.  So if anyone one else has something interesting to share about this, please do.  Thank you. 

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2 minutes ago, KristiD said:

I'd like to ask people not to take this thread off topic please.  This is not a thread about Covid per se, and it's especially not about the contested election.  It's a thread about Republican leaders catching the vivrus while the Democrat leaders do NOT.  And that's particularly troublesome given Democrats routinely flaunt the safety protocols much more than Republicans.  

 

Yes, it's true that the virus is much less serious than the media and Fauci claim.  But there are plenty of other threads in the Health section that discuss this.  I would really like this thread to focus on why it is that Republican leaders - and hardly any Democrats - are the ones that get sick from it.  

 

I have considered the possibility that Covid, likely created or at least modified in a lab, contains some kind of nanotech which allows those with the proper knowledge (i.e., the CCP who is no doubt working with the Dems to remove Trump from office) to activate the virus within specific people to make it rapidily replicate itself such that it overwhelms that person's immune system and they contract it.  At this point, Covid is well entrenched in most larger cities, including Washington D.C., so the mojority of people have likely been exposed to it.  Fortunately, for the majority of people, their immune systems are strong enough to keep it at bay.  But I would think that a small number of live Covid cells still live in their bodies, and just like cancer cells (which we all have already within our bodies), there are usually not enough of those live Covid cells to overwhelm our immune systems so we get sick.  But if the CCP doctors can trigger, through nanotech, something in those Covid cells to accelerate their replication, and if there's some way to target specific people when they do so, this would explain why Covid seems to be partisan.

 

I know this is a stretch, but I'd previously noticed that Covid cases and deaths increase at the least opportune times for Trump.  I'm not a fan of coincidence so I'd already wondered if it was deliberate.  So when Lin Wood recently tweeted:

Have you noticed that no Democratic leader has suffered Covid-19 but Republicans leaders have had more than their fair share? Or is it just me? Or is Covid-19 partisan?

It inspired me to start this thread.  Apparently I'm not the only one who notices how Covid targets Repulicans and not Democrats.  So if anyone one else has something interesting to share about this, please do.  Thank you. 

 

And still, mask wearing should probably be factored in.  I mean, really, is it being suggested a virus has been created that knows the political leanings of any particular politician?

 

GO RV, then BV

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4 hours ago, KristiD said:

I'd like to ask people not to take this thread off topic please.  This is not a thread about Covid per se, and it's especially not about the contested election.  It's a thread about Republican leaders catching the vivrus while the Democrat leaders do NOT.  And that's particularly troublesome given Democrats routinely flaunt the safety protocols much more than Republicans.  

 

Yes, it's true that the virus is much less serious than the media and Fauci claim.  But there are plenty of other threads in the Health section that discuss this.  I would really like this thread to focus on why it is that Republican leaders - and hardly any Democrats - are the ones that get sick from it.  

 

I have considered the possibility that Covid, likely created or at least modified in a lab, contains some kind of nanotech which allows those with the proper knowledge (i.e., the CCP who is no doubt working with the Dems to remove Trump from office) to activate the virus within specific people to make it rapidily replicate itself such that it overwhelms that person's immune system and they contract it.  At this point, Covid is well entrenched in most larger cities, including Washington D.C., so the mojority of people have likely been exposed to it.  Fortunately, for the majority of people, their immune systems are strong enough to keep it at bay.  But I would think that a small number of live Covid cells still live in their bodies, and just like cancer cells (which we all have already within our bodies), there are usually not enough of those live Covid cells to overwhelm our immune systems so we get sick.  But if the CCP doctors can trigger, through nanotech, something in those Covid cells to accelerate their replication, and if there's some way to target specific people when they do so, this would explain why Covid seems to be partisan.

 

I know this is a stretch, but I'd previously noticed that Covid cases and deaths increase at the least opportune times for Trump.  I'm not a fan of coincidence so I'd already wondered if it was deliberate.  So when Lin Wood recently tweeted:

Have you noticed that no Democratic leader has suffered Covid-19 but Republicans leaders have had more than their fair share? Or is it just me? Or is Covid-19 partisan?

It inspired me to start this thread.  Apparently I'm not the only one who notices how Covid targets Repulicans and not Democrats.  So if anyone one else has something interesting to share about this, please do.  Thank you. 


I think is just this simple. Democrats follow the science. Social distancing, Masks and the like. Republicans no so much. Big rallies, Big Rose garden gathering. No social distancing. No masks. Don’t think it’s anymore than that.

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12 minutes ago, caddieman said:

I think is just this simple. Democrats follow the science. Social distancing, Masks and the like. Republicans no so much. Big rallies, Big Rose garden gathering. No social distancing. No masks. Don’t think it’s anymore than that.

 


Like when all the Dems celebrated the Biden called victory. Or like when Dems rioted, looted, and burned the cities.  
 

In Houston TX, our spike in COVID this past summer was a direct result of the “peaceful marches”  

 

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8 minutes ago, Pitcher said:

 


Like when all the Dems celebrated the Biden called victory. Or like when Dems rioted, looted, and burned the cities.  
 

In Houston TX, our spike in COVID this past summer was a direct result of the “peaceful marches”  

 

 

So then there's your proof that gathering in large numbers without masks and not social distancing does in fact lead to Covid spikes, just as caddieman said.

 

GO RV, then BV

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2 minutes ago, Pitcher said:

 


Like when all the Dems celebrated the Biden called victory. Or like when Dems rioted, looted, and burned the cities.  
 

In Houston TX, our spike in COVID this past summer was a direct result of the “peaceful marches”  

 


I was kind of talking about Republican and Democrat leaders like KristiD was.

 

But your absolutely correct there was a spike because of all those people not social distancing. I have a bad feeling we are going to have another spike because of all the holiday gatherings. It’s sad.
When the vaccine comes out I will be first in line when my Doctor tells me I can get one

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49 minutes ago, Shabibilicious said:

So then there's your proof that gathering in large numbers without masks and not social distancing does in fact lead to Covid spikes, just as caddieman said.


I was merely pointing out that it’s not just Reps who who don’t follow the Science.  There have been plenty of Dem gatherings where no one was wearing masks.  I have never said I wasn’t for social distancing or wearing masks, but you knew that. You just want to twist words and argue argue argue EVERYTHING!!! 

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Just now, Pitcher said:


I was merely pointing out that it’s not just Reps who who don’t follow the Science.  There have been plenty of Dem gatherings where no one was wearing masks.  I have never said I wasn’t for social distancing or wearing masks, but you knew that. You just want to twist words and argue argue argue EVERYTHING!!! 

 

Not at all....we have found common ground here, as we three believe masks, social distancing and avoiding large gatherings does indeed help to slow the spread of covid.  :twothumbs:

 

GO RV, then BV

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Masks 'DON'T stop you getting Covid': Top experts criticise 'troubling lack of evidence' to justify wearing them after major Danish study concluded they don't protect the wearerExperts from Oxford University hailed Danish study as most robust evidence yet Copenhagen researchers found no statistical evidence masks block infection Only three randomised studies have looked at masks, all found they don't work
By CONNOR BOYD ASSISTANT HEALTH EDITOR FOR MAILONLINE

PUBLISHED: 11:29 EST, 19 November 2020 | UPDATED: 14:12 EST, 19 November 2020

 
Top scientists have warned there is a 'troubling lack of evidence' that face masks prevent Covid-19 infection, after a major study in Denmark found they don't protect people who wear them. 

Governments around the world — including the UK — have made it mandatory to wear a face covering in indoor public spaces, despite a dearth of rigorous trials into their effectiveness.

The rationale has been that masks must be better than nothing because they block at least some virus being exhaled or inhaled by the wearer.

But a randomised study published by scientists at Copenhagen University, thought to be the best of its kind so far, found no statistical evidence that they offer any protection whatsoever. 

Reacting to the finding in a column in The Spectator today, Oxford University's Professor Carl Heneghan and Dr Tom Jefferson said there had been 'a troubling lack of robust evidence on face masks and Covid-19'.

There have only been three 'real life' studies comparing mask-wearers to non-mask-wearers — one in Guinea-Bissau, one in India and the new Denmark study. All have shown masks to have no benefit in preventing the disease.

But the experts added: 'Now we have properly rigorous scientific research we can rely on, the evidence shows wearing masks in the community does not significantly reduce the rates of infection.'  


Oxford University's Professor Carl Heneghan (left) and Dr Tom Jefferson (right) said there had been 'a troubling lack of robust evidence on face masks and Covid-19' 

A new study from Denmark found that, after one month, 1.8% of a group wearing masks had been infected with the virus and 2.1% in the unmasked group had tested positive for COVID-19. Pictured: People wait to be tested for coronavirus in the Arena Nord in Frederikshavn, in Northern Jutland, Denmark, November 2020    +3
A new study from Denmark found that, after one month, 1.8% of a group wearing masks had been infected with the virus and 2.1% in the unmasked group had tested positive for COVID-19. Pictured: People wait to be tested for coronavirus in the Arena Nord in Frederikshavn, in Northern Jutland, Denmark, November 2020

The Copenhagen experts recruited 6,000 volunteers in the spring — before masks were mandatory there — and split the them into two groups, with half wearing masks in public and half not. 

After a month, the mask-wearing volunteers were tested for current and previous Covid-19 infection and compared with the control group who didn't wear them.  


Results showed that, after one month, 1.8 per cent of the people wearing masks had been infected with the virus.

THE TRUTH ABOUT FACE MASKS: WHAT STUDIES HAVE SHOWN 
Research on how well various types of masks and face coverings varies but governments have leaned towards a 'something must be better than nothing' attitude.

A University of Oxford study published on March 30 concluded that surgical masks are just as effective at preventing respiratory infections as N95 masks for doctors, nurses and other health care workers. 

While it didn't look at Covid-19, the study found the thinner, cheaper masks do work in flu outbreaks. 

The difference between surgical or face masks and N95 masks lies in the size of particles that can - and more importantly, can't - get though the materials. 

N95 respirators are made of thick, tightly woven and molded material that fits tightly over the face and can stop 95 percent of all airborne particles, while surgical masks are thinner, fit more loosely, and more porous. 

This makes surgical masks much more comfortable to breathe and work in, but less effective at stopping small particles from entering your mouth and nose. 

Droplets of saliva and mucous from coughs and sneezes are very small, and viral particles themselves are particularly tiny - in fact, they're about 20-times smaller than bacteria. 

For this reason, a JAMA study published this month still contended that people without symptoms should not wear surgical masks, because there is not proof the gear will protect them from infection - although they may keep people who are coughing and sneezing from infecting others. 

But the Oxford analysis of past studies- which has not yet been peer reviewed - found that surgical masks were worth wearing and didn't provide statistically less protection than N95 for health care workers around flu patients. 

However, any face mask is only as good as other health and hygiene practices. Experts universally agree that there's simply no replacement for thorough, frequent hand-washing for preventing disease transmission. 

Some think the masks may also help to 'train' people not to touch their faces, while others argue that the unfamiliar garment will just make people do it more, actually raising infection risks. 

So what about cloth coverings? 

Although good quality evidence is lacking, some data suggest that cloth masks may be only marginally (15 per cent) less effective than surgical masks in blocking emission of particles, said Babak Javid, principal investigator at Cambridge University Hospitals wrote in the BMJ on April 9.

He pointed to a study led by Public Health England in 2013 which found wearing some kind of material over the face was fivefold more effective than not wearing masks for preventing a flu pandemic.

The study suggested that a homemade mask 'should only be considered as a last resort to prevent droplet transmission from infected individuals, but it would be better than no protection'.


By comparison, 2.1 per cent of the people in the unmasked group had tested positive for Covid-19. The difference between the two groups was not found to be statistically significant. 

'The study does not confirm the expected halving of the risk of infection for people wearing face masks,' the authors wrote in a press release. 

'The results could indicate a more moderate degree of protection of 15 to 20 [percent], however, the study could not rule out that face masks do not provide any protection.' 

The team, from Copenhagen University Hospital, said the findings should not be used to argue against their widespread use, however, because masks may prevent people infecting others.

The results from the Danish study - called Danmask-19 - mirror the findings of studies into influenza. 

Nine other trials looking at the efficacy of masks on influenza have found that masks make little or no difference in whether people catch the virus. 

Professor Heneghan and Dr Jefferson added: 'The low number of studies into the effect different interventions have on the spread of Covid-19 – a subject of global importance – suggests there is a total lack of interest from governments in pursuing evidence-based medicine.'

They said the only trials which have shown masks to be effective in stopping airborne diseases have been 'observation studies' which are considered a much less accurate form of research.

In these studies, scientists compare people who normally wear masks with people who say they don't, rather than attempting to create a randomised control group. 

The experts said these types of studies are flawed because 'in the heat of a pandemic, not very many people will recall if and when they used masks and at what distance they kept from others'. 

It comes just days after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention revised its guidelines, saying masks protect the wearer just as much as those around them.

The study, which was published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, was carried out in April and May when Danish authorities did not recommend wearing face coverings.

During this period, only about two percent of Denmark's population had contracted the coronavirus, lower than several other European countries such as Spain and Italy.  

Previous studies have concluded similar findings, saying masks provide only limited protection for the person wearing it, but can dramatically reduce the risk to others if the wearer is infected, even when showing no symptoms.     

Preventing the spread to others is known as source control.

But some experts disagree and say they are weaknesses to the study such as the authors not independently verifying mask use or that users wore them correctly. 

'There is absolutely no doubt that masks work as source control,' Dr Thomas Frieden, former director of the CDC, who wrote in an editorial.

'The question this study was designed to answer is: Do they work as personal protection? An N95 mask is better than a surgical mask. A surgical mask is better than most cloth masks. A cloth mask is better than nothing.'

Last week, the CDC updated its guidelines saying  masks protect wearers from contracting COVID-19, not just those around them. 

Health officials said cloth masks block droplets from being exhaled by the wearer and also provide 'filtration for personal protection' by preventing droplets from reaching others.   

The team from the new study says the findings 'should not be used to conclude that a recommendation for everyone to wear masks in the community would not be effective in reducing SARS-CoV-2 infections, because the trial did not test the role of masks in source control of SARS-CoV-2 infection.'

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17 hours ago, caddieman said:

When the vaccine comes out I will be first in line when my Doctor tells me I can get one

Good for you, I just watched the experts say that being in doubt is the safest place to be until more resultant data is gathered. Maybe be first in line right behind your Doctor? Do you feel lucky?

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