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I was disheartened to learn of Sheriff Rob Snaza’s flippant dismissal of Gov. Jay Inslee’s order requiring face masks on Tuesday, June 23. Heeding the advice of public health experts and scientists does not make you a sheep; rather, it makes you wise.
I graduated from W.F. West in 2015 and am now a Masters-PhD graduate student at The University of Texas at Austin in the civil, environmental and architectural engineering department. I have taken graduate-level coursework in aerosol physics (aerosols being the microscopic particles that many recent studies have shown are a major method of COVID-19 transmission) and do important research on indoor air quality and environmental health. It is quite literally my profession to learn as much as I can about air quality, and with that, airborne disease transmission.
Having taken coursework and spent countless hours doing research on air quality, I respect the words and advice of experts (such as professors, scientists, epidemiologists and yes, Dr. Anthony Fauci) who know much more than I do on the subject. It is a sign of humility and wisdom, when in a situation where others know more than you, to defer to their expertise.
I acknowledge that over the past few months there has been shifting information from traditionally trustworthy sources such as the WHO, our president, public health officials and governors. Conclusions from scientific knowledge, by definition, will morph and transform as new discoveries and data come about. This is especially true when something brand-new becomes suddenly relevant, as is the case of the novel coronavirus. Eventually, the scientific community settles into an answer when the evidence overwhelmingly supports an explanation.
After a few months of the scientific method running its course, experts overwhelmingly state that face masks limit the spread of COVID-19 by blocking small droplets from entering the air, where other people can breathe them in and become infected. The effectiveness of face masks has been made clear, and as cases increase again in Washington (as well as in Texas, where I now live) officials are using that knowledge to save lives.
We are fortunate as a society to have people who have spent decades learning and making discoveries to save lives during a crisis. Please, listen to them. Refrain from labeling public safety a partisan issue or dismissing the immense health consequences of COVID-19 because the governor’s political views differ from yours. Instead, protect the community around you. Wear a facemask.
Trustworthy experts say that by wearing face masks, we will return to normal more quickly and with less loss of life. That is something we can all agree will be a good thing!
Daniel Blomdahl
Austin, Texas, formerly of Chehalis
