You can find respected experts, studies, and charts on both sides of the debate about the usefulness of masks. A study  conducted by the University of Louisville concluded “We did not observe association between mask mandates or use and reduced COVID-19 spread in US states.” (Note, they said “are NOT”.) Authors of a recent study concluded: “Our results suggest that the recommendation to wear a surgical mask when outside the home among others did not reduce, at conventional levels of statistical significance, the incidence of COVID19 infection in mask wearers in a setting where social distancing and other public health measures were in effect…” I discussed earlier thoughts both pro and con in a blog,”  To Mask or Not to Mask, That is the Question.A new concern is the cancer-causing chemicals in some masks.

Bottom line, maybe wear a good one (see below) properly in crowded indoor situations…but not alone in your car or when isolated outdoors, certainly not for example when jogging. Oops, University of Florida Lab Finds Dangerous Pathogens on CHILDREN’S Face Masks

Good masks (This Duke University study ranks the effectiveness of various types) worn correctly over the nose and mouth do offer at least some benefit. Make sure they are tight around the sides. Beards are a problem. I think the dangers of oxygen depletion may have been exaggerated a little bit. A listener told me of a person who did not want to wear a mask for fear people might think that she was a democrat.(Yikes) That seems a particularly stupid reason to avoid a mask. Speaking of dumb, wearing a mask plus a plastic face shield to protect the eyes is fine. Wearing a plastic face shield to avoid someone spitting at you is okay, but not if it is instead of a mask to protect from airborne contamination. That is pointless.