Masking for the vaccinated as a symbol of "solidarity" is dumb

Even if you are already vaccinated and immune, you should still wear a mask “to contribute to a culture of mask wearing,” Leonhardt said, since after all being constantly masked is only a “modest inconvenience.” The unstated corollary is that vaccinated persons who go unmasked are not only indecent, but deplorable. But why would vaccinated Americans want to parade around with such an ineffective and ambiguous symbol covering their faces? A mask is a terrible symbol if the two messages you want to send are, “Get vaccinated!” and “Don’t have irrational COVID fears!” If you want to “symbolize” such things, get a lapel pin or print up a T-shirt. Masks on the immune symbolize irrational fear of COVID, and indeed they provoke it. Continued masking after vaccination also signals to many people that vaccination itself is ineffective and can’t be trusted. “Contribute to a culture of mask wearing” even after vaccination is a messaging disaster for the cause of mass immunization.