[waterglassFull]

I was in Portugal last week and was surprised by how safe it felt.

Everyone still wears masks indoors and in built up areas, sanitiser was available everywhere, people checked our vaccination status when sitting indoors.

They're not major points but it definitely felt like people went out of their way to be conscious of others and the virus which is different to how I feel people in the UK treat the virus now (eg mask usage on the tube is virtually non existent).

Most of this is largely anecdotal on my part but I feel countries that continue to do a little now will get long term benefits (eg mandatory mask use in public transport)

[mdp2021]

> how safe it felt

Some feel safe when they see that people are attentive - and only when people are attentive. Masks, sanitizers and checks are a formal practice that can easily be overlaid on radically dumb individuals and masses (for example, through conformity). That the acts are there, but not the presence, is still in the family of "superstition" (the ideas that survive their forgotten grounds and reasons).

Only minutes ago "a friend of mine" was forced to partial exposure because somebody in the street wanted to have a conversation, but while smoking, so mask on the chin: that means not having understood one meagre shard. This is not root-wise the behaviour of those who remove the mask when they want to speak and put it back when they have finished, which is more of a sign of deficiency of quantitative intelligence: it is instead a sign of defective presence to general contexts and specific situations - of shallow assimilation, together with radical inattentiveness. Very many people here show that.

Other words could be spent for those who assume that vaccination equals immunity (hence behave irresponsibly).

One will feel safe when the population will pass the basics of understanding their own behaviour.

And it is not just about epidemics.

[thebruce87m]

FYI, not all the countries in the UK have the same mask behaviour - the mask usage in Scotland is still pretty high.

[Proven]

> I was in Portugal last week and was surprised by how safe it felt.

That may be because you didn't know how many of those around you got their 2nd shot before last spring, and that masks don't significantly help. But it's important how you "feel", I get that.

"Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine antibodies gone by 7 months for many" - https://news.trust.org/item/20211001194329-xkwip

You may sometime want to consider the cost of government policies that has to be borne by other, unwilling participants in those schemes.

[smorgusofborg]

It may be that they feel safe because they are about as safe as before COVID existed. When I have examined the data of countries compared to their vaccination rate the substantially lower death rate has been very clear. Israel's quick Pfizer roll out had additional break through cases, but continued spread primarily cost non-vaccinated lives. For the rest of us we have a different flu season now.

[7952]

A hallmark of facism is the deliberate suppression of nuance. Every single thing is distorted to align with a particular narrative of fear. Fear of Jews, communists, or secret cabals of lefties using masks to destroy freedom.

There is more nuance to masks. They cover your face! They make it easier to avoid surveillance. Maybe the purpose is to prevent snot and phlegm from becoming air born. Because they are a terribe mechanism of control.

People can make personal choices to comply without it being driven by fear. But your attitude is driven by fear.

[pvaldes]

Nope, Portugal has always been like that. Being humble and caring for other is ingrained in their culture. Portuguese have also a privileged connection with Brazil and are well aware of the dangers of acting stupid.

Fascism, brains turning into cheese and people acting like a flock of sheep is the definition of Qanon. Couldn't be more alien to Portuguese society.

The interesting question is why other countries don't understand the idea.

[bellyfullofbac]

Ah yeah, the Gestapo Covid police, do they also go around and quietly make people disappear? Sure there are arrests for gross violations of the new rules, but even if you're a denier that the virus exists, imagine it does, and ask yourself if the laws make sense?

Yeah I know a lot of the anti-authoritarians think this is just the start, the global elite is herding the dumb sheep right? For what end? It seems like the existing capitalism was already fucking the working class very efficiently enough, with said working class willingly participating...

[waterglassFull]

This comment made me laugh. Kudos.

[zpeti]

Not only that, but everyone has now had a chance to get the vaccine. If you catch COVID now and end up with complications you are either a very small edge case (which is bad but there are edge cases in using motorways, sports, and other diseases), or you’ve chosen to not be vaccinated.

To force entire societies into compliance with all sorts of insane rules, because some people haven’t vaccinated is insane. Because that’s what this is.

Even if you think you are making your society safe by following all your redirections, you are basically accepting authoritarianism because of anti vaxxers and edge cases. Is it worth it?