CHRIS THURMAN: Can we trump the great unmasked with Covid aesthetics?
Perhaps the best way to win people over to good public health practices is to resort to narcissism
Some of the more curious forms of human behaviour on display around the world over the last few months have been linked to the so-called “debate” about the wearing of masks. In SA, as in Covid-19 epicentres such as the US and the UK, we have our anti-mask lobbyists. Here, as there, they nail their individualist colours to the mast — simultaneously betraying an uglier ideological position, one that is closer to the ethnonationalist, elite-serving, right-wing populism of British Tories and US Republicans today than it is to a putative tradition of liberalism or libertarianism.
A generous view of non-mask wearers is that they confuse the intention of wearing a mask to protect oneself (the full efficacy of which may be contested) with that of wearing a mask to protect others from oneself. But this isn’t just stupidity; it is also the death drive writ large as a political world view. A sarcastic quip from a Facebook friend of mine is apposite: “I hadn’t previously realised that ‘I...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.