Comment by lemmsjid | Hacker News Reader

Comment by lemmsjid | Hacker News Reader

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Perhaps instead I might be following Covid guidelines for the following reasons: so I don't pass the infection onto those who are indeed vulnerable; so I don't overtax an already overtaxed healthcare system and healthcare workers. Part of the ineffable human spirit, IMHO, is altruism: which in this case can manifest as taking on a set of mild day to day inconveniences in order to help others be happier and safer. I do believe altruism is a (not exclusively) human characteristic, which means that part of 'joie de vive', alongside wine, piano playing, etc., is knowing one is doing something for others.

Honestly, I don't think it's as extreme as "if coronavirus were ten times more fatal" that would lead us to naturally take on mitigations. Instead, it would be if the death rate were evenly spread across age groups. Then, the motivation for avoiding some piano playing would be the immediate cost to self or close friends, rather than the abstract cost to some other group.

All that said I am quite sympathetic to the motivation behind your argument, but I believe you and GP are ignoring some motivations people might have for following or being 'bureaucratic automatons'.

At this point, the most vulnerable have a sophisticated arsenal of tools to prevent themselves from being seriously affected by the virus. Vaccines, antivirals, masks like N95 that work to protect the wearer, etc. In my opinion it is no longer the duty of the non-vulnerable, especially children, to carry the burden of the pandemic because of the extremely negative consequences of these countermeasures.

> so I don't pass the infection onto those who are indeed vulnerable; so I don't overtax an already overtaxed healthcare system and healthcare workers

This seems reasonable and is a common point of view. It does make me curious though. Did you get a yearly flu shot prior to Covid? If not, has Covid changed your mind about this?

A good question. I've done the yearly flu shot for over a decade. But before that I was A) not a flu shot getter, B) a more reckless driver, and C) etc. etc. My sense of the impact of my actions on other peoples safety seems to have grown over the years, from a near complete lack of consciousness in my teens and early twenties to a stronger feeling today. Probably a not unusual path. And people including myself are good at rationalizing their choices, good or bad.

To the subject of the article: If our child's school decided to not require masks (they currently do) I would go ahead with that without undue worry about the children, assuming the school were representing the will of the teachers. I believe overall the teachers should have the strongest say in the matter because they're the highest risk group involved.

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