So, while most of the rest of the country and world are taking various steps to open up, my county just came down harder than ever with a new order on masks that goes into effect on June 7. Now we have to wear masks outdoors at all times unless we are 30+ feet from someone not in our "bubble". Before I'm pretty sure it was only 6 feet and there were exemptions for exercising. So now if you are, say, on a bike ride or jogging, you must have a mask on at basically all times (we are an urban county and I'm exaggerating a little, but you'll be closer than 30 ft to someone else more often than farther). I'm mystified by this, given our metrics show we have solid PPE, testing capability, etc and are in the top category for hospital capacity. And, more importantly, to my understanding that there is still little to no evidence that this spreads effectively outdoors? Or am I wrong about that now? I've certainly heard hypotheses about it aerozolizing and spreading, but not heard that actual infections have been traced to being 29 feet from someone outdoors, for instance.
Also, part of the order says the 30 ft is to accommodate for the time it takes someone to put a mask on so that they successfully have it on by the time they may be within 6 actual feet of each other, which even I, a far-left activist if there is one, find a little too nanny-state-ish for my tastes. Tips and advice are fine, but you don't need to regulate how much time it takes me to put on my mask.
So, I dunno. It's a bit surreal to be living in a place that keeps getting stricter while the entire rest of the world eases up...even while I am worried about how fast those places ease up and the choices they are making (nail salons before beaches and regional parks, really??), I just don't see how this is necessary or good.