On Wednesday, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez stood outside a Dunkin’ Donuts in Queens handing out N95 masks, an action that does not seem that out of place considering the pandemic, except that she was handing them out for people heading to protests, rather than just trying to provide them to citizens worried about the coronavirus.* “Teargas is a chemical banned in war and has no business being used by enforcement in the United States ,” she captioned a photo.
Here in America, we have spent the past couple months learning quite a bit about masks, the different types, and how much they can keep you safe. As a health reporter, I have done a lot of research already on N95 masks, and my take on Ocasio-Cortez’s advice is that it might be nominally correct:are larger than a fraction of a micron, the particle size that N95s are capable of filtering.
As a species we are exquisitely suited to thrive in an environment of threat where resources are scarce, but not always ready to reap the benefits of harmony, peace, and plenty. Our perceptual apparatus is structured to alert us to real and imagined dangers everywhere.
It will kill the corona virus. So it's ok.
More than the direct effect, tear will cause coughing and spraying of droplets, which will promote spreading of COVID. Use of tear gas against peaceful protestors must end.
Its a chemical agent, it needs to be outlawed for crowd control, the exception ti the treaties was a mistake.