Coronavirus in Massachusetts (for rent, layoffs, buy)

[skeddy]

I suspect many will wear masks forever after this. You never know when the next virus will come along. If you keep your masks on, you'll be safe.

[GeoffD]

Originally Posted by lrfox

I've been to a handful of games at the limited capacity and it's been pretty comfortable (loving no bathroom lines or anyone in the seats next to me), however I'm not chomping at the bit to go back at 100%.

But we're also at a point where the vaccine is now available to anyone who wants it. The problem before with the whole "I'm not afraid and I have the FREEDOM to choose what risk I take!" attitude is that with a contagious virus, the risk taker's behavior impacts others. Now that grandma is vaccinated, grandson and his friends can go blast each other with particles like it's 2019 again and the risk to grandma is still quite low. Personally, I wish we would have waited until about late June/early July at least so that the people who have just received their first dose (or will soon) can be fully vaccinated by the time things return to normal. It's probably too soon for 100% capacity at Fenway (and especially at TD Garden), but it's also time to start transitioning things back in earnest.

I don’t get it. Springfield, New Bedford, and Lawrence have infection rates like Sturgis and really low vaccination rates. Without vaccine passports, those places are likely to have huge spikes that will ripple through the state. I’m fine with opening up everything with vaccine passports. This is like DUI law where you want to stop people from being a menace to society.

[mdovell]

I mean I'm happy about all of this but at the same point maybe it's just me but it feels odd to have a party mentality when India is still suffering bad. I'm not going down some liberal political thing but the rest of the world still needs to be helped to get these borders open again. Tariffs looks like they will gradually be removed and that should help the economy a bit. I wonder though if some might argue that we'd roll back economic things like the UI benefits, eviction postponement etc

[mdovell]

Originally Posted by GeoffD

I don’t get it. Springfield, New Bedford, and Lawrence have infection rates like Sturgis and really low vaccination rates. Without vaccine passports, those places are likely to have huge spikes that will ripple through the state. I’m fine with opening up everything with vaccine passports. This is like DUI law where you want to stop people from being a menace to society.

Really low?

The median is 45%
https://boston.cbslocal.com/town-by-...d-vaccination/
Boston is 42%, Worcester is 34% Amherst is 26%?!?

There's simply more people there so it's going to take longer. I don't know if you can have vaccine passports directly within a state. I'm fine opening things up although I think another month to six weeks would have been better. Schools are complicated. I've already heard of some issues with kids with hoodies and masks and security doesn't know who is who.

[yesmaybe]

Originally Posted by skeddy

I suspect many will wear masks forever after this. You never know when the next virus will come along. If you keep your masks on, you'll be safe.

I think that will be the case for awhile for a lot of people. But I do think the fear will subside eventually.

[AtkinsonDan]

Originally Posted by skeddy

I suspect many will wear masks forever after this. You never know when the next virus will come along. If you keep your masks on, you'll be safe.

Originally Posted by yesmaybe

I think that will be the case for awhile for a lot of people. But I do think the fear will subside eventually.

I could definitely see ^^^ that happening for some people. Personally I'd rather ditch the masks and continue some degree of social distancing. I'd rather be comfortable and reduce my contact with strangers and acquaintances than continue to be uncomfortable in order to have contact with strangers and acquaintances.

[porterhouse]

Originally Posted by AtkinsonDan

Personally I'd rather ditch the masks and continue some degree of social distancing. I'd rather be comfortable and reduce my contact with strangers and acquaintances than continue to be uncomfortable in order to have contact with strangers and acquaintances.

If you're fully vaccinated, why does it have to be one or the other?

[AtkinsonDan]

Originally Posted by porterhouse

If you're fully vaccinated, why does it have to be one or the other?

Once I receive my second shot in early June I suppose I could do neither but the social distancing has no personal negatives for me, so why not continue it where feasible. It kept me from catching not only COVID but any other contagious virus as well.

[thebruiser500]

Originally Posted by GeoffD

I don’t get it. Springfield, New Bedford, and Lawrence have infection rates like Sturgis and really low vaccination rates. Without vaccine passports, those places are likely to have huge spikes that will ripple through the state. I’m fine with opening up everything with vaccine passports. This is like DUI law where you want to stop people from being a menace to society.

vaccine passports? this is a fascist crypto-nazi policy. not even people in massachusetts will accept your evil idea.

[id77]

Originally Posted by lrfox

I've been to a handful of games at the limited capacity and it's been pretty comfortable (loving no bathroom lines or anyone in the seats next to me), however I'm not chomping at the bit to go back at 100%.

But we're also at a point where the vaccine is now available to anyone who wants it. The problem before with the whole "I'm not afraid and I have the FREEDOM to choose what risk I take!" attitude is that with a contagious virus, the risk taker's behavior impacts others. Now that grandma is vaccinated, grandson and his friends can go blast each other with particles like it's 2019 again and the risk to grandma is still quite low. Personally, I wish we would have waited until about late June/early July at least so that the people who have just received their first dose (or will soon) can be fully vaccinated by the time things return to normal. It's probably too soon for 100% capacity at Fenway (and especially at TD Garden), but it's also time to start transitioning things back in earnest.

I'm going to miss the 12.5/25% capacity days at Fenway. It's not just the comfort of having elbow room, but also not having to deal with noisy/obnoxious neighbors or having the critical mass of idiots around to start up crap like "yankees suck" chants during games against teams not from New York.

There's also the issue that kids 0-12 are almost certainly not going to be vaccinated by then, but will be in close quarters with the aforementioned freedom dudebros, but I guess the answer is I stop taking my kid with me to games for a few months.