On April 27, 2003, the Sydney Morning Herald in Australia ran a story during the SARS scare, warning the public that the surgical masks they were buying to protect themselves against the SARS flu virus were essentially useless — and they threatened heavy fines against anyone making claims that the masks offered any significant protection:
[Quote from 2003 Sydney Morning Herald]
Retailers who cash in on community fears about SARS by exaggerating the health benefits of surgical masks could face fines of up to $110,000.
NSW Fair Trading Minister Reba Meagher yesterday warned that distributors and traders could be prosecuted if it was suggested the masks offered unrealistic levels of protection from the disease.
“Penalties can range from fines of up to $22,000 for an individual or $110,000 for a corporation,” she said.
Health authorities have warned that surgical masks may not be an effective protection against the virus.
“Those masks are only effective so long as they are dry,” said Professor Yvonne Cossart of the Department of Infectious Diseases at the University of Sydney.
“As soon as they become saturated with the moisture in your breath they stop doing their job and pass on the droplets.”
(And viruses are much, much smaller than water droplets. Masks are not meant to filter viruses. -ed)
Professor Cossart said that could take as little as 15 or 20 minutes, after which the mask would need to be changed. But those warnings haven’t stopped people snapping up the masks, with retailers reporting they are having trouble keeping up with demand.
John Bell from the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia, who owns a pharmacy in Woollahra, Sydney, said mask supplies were running low.
“At the moment we don’t have any because we haven’t been able to get any in the last few days,” Mr. Bell said. “In the early stages it was unbelievable; we’d get people coming in all the time.”
Mr Bell agreed with Professor Cossart’s assessment regarding the effectiveness of the masks.
“I think they’re of marginal benefit,” he said. “In a way they give some comfort to people who think they’re doing as much as they can do to prevent the infection.”
“We were told you need 16 layers on your mask for it to offer protection.”
Apparently, the major social media outlets are banning this story — but they needn’ t worry — this reality check won’t deter committed mask believers in the least.
The government knows these masks don’t protect anyone from anything — but they were never meant to.
But they do make it easy for the government to keep track of who is — and who is not — obeying.
They protect the government from the people — by keeping the public in a state of fear and subjection — and turning the public against each other rather than against their real oppressors.
And people proudly wear the masks as a virtuous sign that they are willing to sacrifice for the benefit of others –I’m doing it for you.
In reality, wearing a mask is proof of only one thing — that the person wearing it watches television and believes what they are seeing and hearing.
People who wear these masks have been bound and shackled without anyone even laying a hand on them.
The government want us to remain timid and weak while they plan our demise.
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