Be nice to people wearing masks out in public

I’m in my car outside our neighbourhood grocery store, wondering if I should strap on “the mask.”

What the hell, on it goes. I walk in, and note that amongst the 10-12 patrons and the 7-8 staff members, there are only three others looking as silly as me ñ two staff members and one fellow in his 70s.

I go about my shopping, but I’m embarrassed. It’s not so much the vanity thing. I’m no Brad Pitt, more like Voldemort on a bad day. Who knows, perhaps the mask is an improvement.

But I can’t help sensing that people think I’m a cowardly wimp, easily swayed by the left-wing media, afraid of a virus when the odds of infection are about as likely as the Leafs winning the Stanley Cup.

I watched a video earlier this week with a local reporter interviewing folks about their mask usage. Only two admitted to wearing masks when it was warranted —like in grocery stores. Of the five bare-faced citizens, four indicated that they saw no reason to mask up because they were not concerned about contracting the virus. The clip ended with the reporter asking, “So what are you doing to protect yourself?”

I am not wearing a mask to protect myself.

I understand the science that suggests that my cloth mask is not going to protect me. I am wearing the mask because I don’t want to infect others. I recognize that I probably don’t have the virus. And that even if I did, the mask may not eliminate the risk of transmission. But it could help. And donning my face diaper seems a small price to pay for any reduction in the probability of contributing to the spread of the virus. Of spreading it to you.

When I get on a crowded elevator, I don’t engage in silent-but-deadly flatulation, even though it is my constitutional right to do so, and it would bring me some physical comfort. Likewise, I don’t recline my seatback to its full prone position as soon as my plane reaches cruising altitude.

I’m no saint — my efforts to be considerate often fall woefully short. But there is something to be said for common courtesy and making the effort.

I will never shame those who choose not to wear masks. I understand that facial coverings are hazardous for many folks who are afflicted by things like asthma, allergies and autism. And the vanity stakes are higher for those who don’t look like a Harry Potter villain.

But it would be heartening if the next time we see someone in a mask we think “thank you” instead of “jackass.” They are doing it for us.