Seeming overnight the Covid situation has altered dramatically. The new CDC guideline states that people who are vaccinated no longer need to wear masks. The CDC announcement has been proclaimed as "an historic day." Walmart, Costco, Publix and others have dropped their mask policies for those who are vaccinated. Target and Home Depot have not. But in actuality nothing has changed. Most businesses that I have visited had mask policies posted but never enforced them. Several times I made a point of asking a store employee stationed at the entrance near a table with hand sanitizer if the mask policy was being enforced and the answer was always, "No, but we encourage it." In the last 14 months I have encountered just two businesses; one an antique shop and the other a flea market that actually prevented customers without masks from entering.
I can't help but wonder what would have happened if, in March of 2020 all establishments open to the public, from grocery stores to beauty salons to gas stations had positioned security personal at the door and actually prohibited entry of anyone not wearing a mask, and physically escorted from the premises anyone who removed the mask after entry. This action would have forced the "personal freedom" people to wear masks, and in my opinion would have greatly reduced the resultant hospitalizations and deaths that have and still are occurring.
Many posts ago somewhere on this blog I wrote that when a vaccine became available many people would be reluctant or outright refuse to take it, just as happened in the 50s with the polio vaccine. And sure enough, about a third of the population is not rushing to get vaccinated.
How will Walmart, Costco, Publix etc. determine that someone entering the store has been vaccinated? Will they request to see a document? Will they ask everyone entering if they've been vaccinated? The answer is no. Nothing has changed. The CDC announcement is nothing more than one big yawn.
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