Fear porn ads on TV and radio are still a thing. States have brought back indoor mask “recommendations” (but not mandates). My parents are still nuts about the entire thing. So much so that my father obsessed over the state’s “death count”, and uses it to slam me for “not caring enough”…
My grandmother has had, like, four booster shots (because fear). My cousins rarely ever go out, and almost never without a mask…
But it’s not just my family. Someone told me today that he is no longer doing his job for the year, and all his colleagues have taken “an extended break until next year”, because “Covid means we are focusing on only essential services, not anything else”. And this is in the healthcare sector…
It’s insane. It’s been nearly three years. Less than 500 people have died, here. And yet, still this continues…
“Hospitalizations!” “Daily infection numbers!” “One more person died!”
I honestly don’t see them giving this up, or masks and boosters going away, probably like ever, here…
Which is just sad, frankly.
I assume other parts of the world have moved on, largely?
Certainly not Asia, notably, or fucking New Zealand of course, but I would hope that other parts of the world have, at the very least…
I live in the outskirts of Atlanta (OTP) and it's pretty much a non-issue here. I went shopping on a Saturday and I would say that 90% to 95% of shoppers and workers are unmasked. Haircut places strangely are still more masked up than anywhere else.
I don't recall seeing signs or self-imposed mask/vax rules on establishments since 3rd quarter of 2021 maybe? But I don't go outside of my regular haunts often and I don't take public transit so I can't say what they're like. I also don't even know what boosters people are on anymore. Radio ads still shilling for vaccines but I don't think it cottons to folks here like it used to.