The Debate Over Mandatory Mask Wearing: Analyzing the Merits

Abstract

Institutional affiliation Introduction In the article, Morefield (2020) makes a detailed argument against wearing of masks by asserting that the mandatory wearing of masks is one of the biggest and sad twist of the Covid-19 pandemic. The author outlines eight reasons why people should not wear masks and the reason why he himself does not wear it. The author notes that most of the conservatives in United States are largely opposed to wearing of masks and they view it as an overblown and unnecessary reaction to control of the pandemic. He asserts that forcing people to wear masks is a panic to the control of the pandemic which has little evidence of its effectiveness both practically and theoretically. According to the author, despite how the authorities came up with conclusion of forcing people to wear masks, nobody should condemn an individual to wear as this is morally and ethically wrong. He notes that when the pandemic was going full blown the issue of wearing mask had been rejected and even WHO asserted that it is one of the ways that can propagate the spread of the virus. However, the narrative changed a few months later and people were forced to wear masks as a way of controlling the spread of the virus. He argues that wearing of masks does more harm than good by outline some several reasons. This paper seeks to dissect Morefield arguments against mandatory wearing of mask and indicate that the author makes poor argument using poor rhetoric. One of the arguments that the author makes is that wearing of masks could prove to be dangerous. He asserts that in the long term, wearing of masks could have a negative health impact as it is not good for an individual to breathe on their own breath for a long time. This argument is poor and unfounded because when people wear masks, they are not actually breathing on their own breath but rather they are breathing fresh air. Masks have small holes that allow fresh air to go in and used breath to go out. It is even advantageous because the small holes in the mask help in filtering the breath and effectively remove unwanted particles such as dust and smoke. The second argument that the author makes is that wearing of mask is a form of social control. He asserts that forcing people to wear masks is an approach that is aimed at transforming the freedom of Americans’ freedom and way of life. This is a wrong, conservative and skeptical argument. There is no a political link between wearing of masks and the freedom of Americans. Remember, the issue of Covid-19 is not an American problem only. The whole world is racing to contain the pandemic by looking for valid approaches of combating the spread of the virus. It is not an issue of politics...