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please put the politics aside and wear one if you need to interact with locals in these small vulnerable communities of the Eastern Sierra
The masks ARE the politics.
I just got back from a glorious 6 day trip to Yosemite with my family that included Half Dome, Tuolumne Meadows and Taft Point. The people we encountered along those trails were amazing, kind, smart people. The best part of our vacation was the fact that nobody wore masks up there. Nobody talked about mask politics either, because these smart, healthy mature folks have common sense and know that breathing in your own CO2 during a strenuous hike in the sunshine and fresh air is dangerous to their health. I spoke to a few of them and we all agreed that a slightly worse case of the common flu with over a 99% survival rate (according to the CDC) is just not worth harming our systems with masks. We can read the numbers, .03% death rate from infection is a normal flu. There are many experts out there who say the mask doesn’t protect you at all and actually harms your body by wearing it but TV media won’t let them speak. Shouldn’t we listen to them as well? We just get one side..Fauci on TV as the only expert (and he is on video saying masks don’t work as well). So it gave me hope seeing all of these fine people who do their own research instead of relying on the Mainstream Network News to spoon feed them their information (Network News is NOT required to be factual or tell truth by law, BTW) gathering together without fear of this silly and inaccurate social distancing recommendation to reaffirm our common humanity and faith in one another.

So remember when you’re up in the beautiful mountains to put politics aside and ditch the mask, health experts will agree. If you’re worried, stay home or wear a mask while hiking and suffer, it’s your choice as an American.
Enjoy the trails, and remember to look each other in the eye and smile!