Pearls Before Swine by Stephan Pastis for January 07, 2022

Why isn’t the cashier wearing a mask in the 4th frame?

I never would have believed that one day I would walk into a bank wearing a mask and ask for money and no one would have a problem with that.

Is there an exception to the rule that if you don’t have a mouth, you don’t need a mask?

We went into a Costco Wednesday. You have to show your card as you enter, which I expected. I was pleased to also see a young man in Costco uniform, standing beside a display of disposable masks, ready to offer one to anyone who was unmasked. Black masks at that!

Alas, there were quite a few people who weren’t wearing masks:

If you have it on your forehead or under your chin: You’re not wearing a mask!

If you pull it down to talk: You’re not wearing a mask!

If it’s covering your mouth but not your nose: You’re not wearing a mask!

(sigh)

As Pastis points out here, this is a very confusing time for eveyone!

Cooperation is the key to get us through this “virus thing”!

Who was that unmasked man?

’Tis better to have never been born, but who among us has such luck?, maybe one or two in a million!!

That’s my philosophy, Pig.

There’s no place like it.

It will really hit home when we are required to wear masks in the metaverse.

Pig’s attitude has been mine. Quit my job, started working from home, not going into stores if I can help it. Nobody around here cares, and we’ve gotten 4 case records in a row this week alone.

you mean we can? leave home that is. I just figured they were trying to get rid of the old folk like certain tribes do. To hell with them, you know the conservative way aka GOP ( Good Old Plutocrat.)

yup, life was scary even before we had to deal with morons who deny science and selfishly put the rest of us in danger (see examples above)…

True, Pig. Life: never leave home without it. :D

Wearing a mask is now the law.

Dear Pig if we never left home then the masked Karens wouldn’t be able to have snits.

I remember seeing a sign at a bank telling people not to enter the bank, if they were wearing a mask (circa June 2020). Which only makes sense. It seems like the only people wearing masks properly at all the local stop-and-robs are the criminal elements. Not too long ago, our State Legislature made it a crime to wear a mask during the commission of another crime. The last two years have been surreal?

Okay in the first panel the guy wearing a mask is not even holding a weapon, and in the 4th panel the guy behind the counter is not wearing a mask himself

No plexiglass barrier, cash register looks to be 50+ years old.

There should also be a plastic barrier in front of the cashier. Every store I go into has one to protect the cashier from people who refuse to wear a mask, regardless of the guidelines.

Today’s the 20th anniversary of pearls before Swine!

The national panic attack courtesy of mass media.

Tonto confused, Lone Ranger wear mask, what does Tonto do? Tonto open burger joint, menu item: Fork-ed tongue confusion.

LIFE. ALWAYS SCARY. Always has been, nothing new. Enjoy your life the best you can. Don’t waste your time worrying.

BEST TO NEVER LEAVE HOME. Beats any mask you can buy. Eating out is more expensive than your own home cooking. Movies are online now. Open air parks are safer than any indoor entertainment.

I kinda saw this before, but it was in a bank. But, same situation. Guy with a mask is arrested by the guard. After 2020, guy without a mask is arrested.

Sadly, many of the “caught on camera” robberies, burglaries, and “smash and grabs” show thieves wearing surgical masks. A two-edged sword, to be sure!

I don’t….leave home.

To quote a great philosopher SpongeBob… “…use your IMAGINATION…”

Pig and Rat need to wear masks when they go out…

American Express, you can’t stay home without it.

Happy 20.

Pig has got something there…

I went to the bank a few days ago to withdraw some money. I had to provide all the identity cards, and with my mask, glasses, and my cap, I could have been anyone. But I am 4 10 so there’s that.

I carry a mask when I go out. Always be prepared.

It’s getting harder to get my exercise walking outside. It was -4F degrees this morning and even my dog refused to go more than far enough to just pee once. I went on for 2 miles, but I was better dressed for it. I wear a mask for walking, but only because it keeps me warmer. I wear one when going out, too, but don’t need it for walking outside other than to keep from freezing.

I’m with Pig… except no, I’m alone

NO. Get out of the house. Don’t let the SOB win……

Same guy so probably still there to rob him.

Every day, for a selection of strips, I look back 10 years, and for 2, 20 years. Today, I add a third to that collection. Thanks for the fun, Steph.

If a business required masks, I wouldn’t do business with them. NONE where I live do. We know masks bo NOTHING and Covid itself, is not much of a threat. Had it, lived through it… big deal.

Same stuff, different day.

Pig’s solution may be a tad extreme, but it works. I have become nearly a hermit….

‘…what happened to your mouth?!’……..of course, after a few years of mask-wearing, this will be totally normal. Our lower face will no longer be needed, so it will atrophy and vanish eventually. Oh, and we will eat with our noses. Makes sense.

Now cloth masks don’t work to protect OMICRON COVID.

Overheard someone complaining recently about people in Walmart not wearing masks. I was fine with wearing them at first as we were trying to get this under control, but it seems like this is just going to be with us for the long haul and I’m not inclined to wear a mask for the rest of my life (although maybe on planes, where thoughtless, self-centered people travel even when they know they’re sick, and not necessarily with COVID). Get your vaccines (no it’s not gene therapy and no they’re not risky except for a very select few individuals with compromised immune systems), wash your hands, and get on with life.

And turn off the news. Frankly I think the media wants COVID to stick around. They can’t go a day without talking about it.