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To The Editor:

After reading the Senator Frank Ruff Jr. article in The Farmville Herald dated June 3, 2020, I feel compelled to comment on his assertions outlined in the paragraph entitled, “Masks.”

Senator Ruff seems to have entirely misunderstood the purpose of wearing a face mask, and is spreading misinformation designed to discourage the wearing of facial coverings, and to stoke rage against scientists and elected officials who are trying to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

The purpose of wearing a face mask in public is not to protect the wearer from inhaling the virus. Rather, it is to protect another person from being exposed to spit droplets containing the virus that you may expel when talking or coughing.

In other words, a face mask will primarily keep your germs to yourself. It is not meant to keep the virus from entering your body, though it may certainly help. If everybody wore a face covering when in public, then we could slow or stop the spread of the coronavirus that floats in the air, and be on our way to ending the scourge of COVID-19 sooner. Let’s all follow the CDC guidelines of staying home as much as possible, wearing facial coverings in public spaces, social distancing and hand washing, and become a part of the solution, rather than simply adding to the problem.

Unless everyone’s on board, we won’t defeat this virus.

Carol Fauci

Farmville