The refusal of old fools to acknowledge effects of interventions that prevent transmission of pathogens, is not new. The "Tegnells" of the time in Vienna mocked the notion of washing hands to prevent infections, much like masks have been dismissed and mocked in Sweden.

Both masks and hand washing, is not medicine, it's mechanical interventions that disrupt the transmission of pathogens.

They both seem to work, but both in Vienna in the 1800s, and in Sweden 2020, these measures to prevent transmission of pathogens gets ridiculed and dismissed.

It appears like in both cases, the personal prestige of people that do not have the flexibility of mind and humility to acknowledge they had been wrong, is given more priority than the actual health of people that be protected from infection.

Hand washing worked, masks work.

In Sweden people that have promoted the use of masks, have been ridiculed. Many that use them as well.

In Vienna there was a doctor. Dr Ignaz Semmelweis, that realized the high rate of mortality among women giving birth at his hospital, was due to doctors not washing hands.

When Dr Semmelweis tried to promote the washing of hands among the established medical community at the hospital, he was mocked and bullied for it by those who wanted to defend the status quo and their own prestige.

They just refused to do it and acknowledge it's effect.

The abuse of Dr Semmelweis that tried to promoted hand washing went so far that Dr Semmelweis, who continued to suggest that doctors should wash their hand was sent to an asylum. There he was beaten by the guards and later died from a gangrenous wound he got from the beating.

While I'm not aware of any physical violence, those in Sweden who have tried to speak out on masks and the problems with Sweden's strategy for managing the pandemic, have been ridiculed and bullied by the establishment in Swedish public health and their kool-aid zipping acolytes.

Just like in Vienna in the 1800s, those in power of peoples health have been wrong. Both on their failed strategy and on masks. Both in Vienna and Sweden, people have died, just because of fools refusing to acknowledge the transmission control interventions being suggested.

We either do everything we can to prevent people getting infected and dying from SARS-CoV-2, or we don't.

If we want to do everything we can to save lives, it's not a unreasonable for our public health agency to acknowledge masks as a disease control measure and recommend it.

Currently it appears like the prestige of some old fools with fancy titles responsible for the total failure that Sweden's pandemic response has been, prioritize their own ego and fear of losing prestige ahead of doing what's best for saving lives.

They need to admit they have been wrong, apologize, and start recommending and mandating masks where masks can be assumed to be beneficial. Like, today.

Otherwise they should just get the fuck out of their job, Sweden don't have room for ego in the efforts to stop this virus.

In Sweden 2020 there is no single Dr. Ignaz Semmelweis to send to an asylum and have beat up, we are many that recognize the ignorance of our public health officials, and we are fucking tired of this shit.

Let's honor the memory of Dr Semmelweis.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ignaz_Semmelweis