I like taking selfies w/ friends. Most selfies taken over the last few months show us wearing masks. The interesting thing is that we don’t always have the masks on when we first decide to take the pic. We put the masks on FOR the pic, to show that we are mask wearers /1

What is the purpose of the mask, then, in these scenarios? It’s not to keep us safe — because we don’t wear it the whole time. It’s to provide a signal. Masks *mean* something. /2

Sure, masks might do several things (including limit the transmission of illnesses). But one of the things they undeniably do at this point is to announce our tribes: are we folks who take COVID seriously, unlike, say, Trump; or are we trash ppl w a red hat in the closet? /3

Wearing a mask means something, just as not wearing a mask means something. These meanings have been fixed for a long time. COVID is tragic and I’m sad we’ve lost so many ppl. But there’s no way to pretend that COVID discourse is apolitical. It’s never been. /4

Btw this thread was prompted by watching ppl discuss whether it is important to wear a mask on an empty street (ie when no one is around). What a fascinating question! Not because it has its eye on science, but on signaling. /5