Covidiot of the Week, Mark Bonokoski
I was reading the paper yesterday. The entire paper was dedicated to covid 1984 pornography. There was one full page article dedicated to a husband and wife who both had covid. They have both fully recovered but they were concerned that people were downplaying the virus. The Newspaper thought that it was vitally important that we hear their story. To might utter astonishment I found out that being sick is no fun. For several days they felt horrible and had lingering effects for weeks after. I am glad the paper took the time to point this out. Up until now I always thought of getting ill as a pleasant experience. I am sure glad the Sun cleared up that misconception for me.
I would love to tell you that this was the least intelligent story in the paper, but I would be lying if I did. The award for the least intelligent story of the week must go to Mark Bonokoski. You can read his editorial here.
The intent of his editorial is to chastise people who question the effectiveness of the covid 1984 restrictions. Mr. Bonokoski takes aim at people who do not agree with the mask mandates. There are people that point out masks restrict oxygen intake which can cause problems. These people have raised the ire of Mr. Bonokoski. Mr. Bonokoski believes that masks do not cause problems and to bolster his argument he enlists the help of Dr. Iris Gorfinkel.
Dr Gorfinkel puts forward these 2 arguments to “debunk” the idea that masks inhibit oxygen intake.
“These are loose-fitting masks. The air in front of them, and the air within the mask, is no different in terms of oxygen or carbon dioxide levels. Doctors wear masks that are much heavier, N95s, and I’m included in that group. When I’m seeing patients, I’ve worn them for hours on end with absolutely no change.”
So her argument is that loose fitting non N95 masks allow air in from the sides and N95 masks don’t restrict oxygen because she wears one and has not had problems. I really think someone needs to check and make sure this woman has a medical degree.
If a mask allows air in (and therefor out) from the side, then she is correct it does not impair breathing much. It also means it is doing nothing, it is not protecting the wearer or anyone around them. The thing that makes a loose-fitting mask harmless is that it is useless.
Dr. Gorfinkel does acknowledge that better quality masks are more restrictive. Her evidence that they are not harmful is that she wears one and she has not had a problem. If someone survives being bitten by a snake is that proof that snake venom is not harmful? Somehow Dr. Gorfinkel got through medical school without understanding how masks work or the difference between anecdotal evidence and scientific proof. I pity her patients.
Mark Bonokoski is a mask wearing covidiot with a national soap box to preach from. He asked a doctor to help him prove that mask wearing is harmless. She gave him a couple of soundbites that he believes prove masks work. He is too stupid to understand that proving something is harmless is not the same as proving something is helpful. The best available science says that masks make no difference.
I will admit while there is reason to believe prolonged mask wearing could cause problems, I have found only anecdotal evidence to substantiate that. At this point the evidence is that masks do not harm or help. Mandating that the entire population wear something that has no potential benefit is no different than mandating that we all wear burkas. Masks are demonstration of fealty; are you starting to get the point?