Reread that last sentence for a moment and let it sink in. Indeed, more masks = MORE DEATHS. (And more cases too, even if that was not statistically significant.)
This finding dovetails with the hypothesized Foegen Effect that was apparently observed in a recent German study that compared case fatality rates in various Kansas counties with different mask rules. That is, face masks were hypothesized to backfire in terms of death rates by further concentrating and incubating the virus compared with no mask, as a result of repeatedly rebreathing the virus deeper into the lungs. And the Kansas data bear that out, much like the new European data. Only in the European data, there was no benefit in terms of reduced cases, while the Kansas data showed a modest reduction in cases, albeit with more deaths. Thus, even the supposedly reduced cases in Kansas may have simply been an artifact of bias or residual or unmeasured confounding. Either way, masks made it deadlier on balance, and perhaps even increased the likelihood of long-term sequelae in the survivors as well.
OOPS! Maybe the powers that be should have thought of that before even recommending, let alone mandating, these worse than useless devices on the masses. And maybe they should not have so casually tossed the wisdom of the ages out the window like so much garbage in their zeal to slake their overwhelming urge to panic.
And that's to say nothing of all the collateral harms of prolonged mask wearing as well, especially for kids (but really for all ages). Those pushing mask mandates, and especially those who continued to do so despite mounting evidence against such illiberal and counterproductive measures, have a LOT to answer for (and a LOT of blood on their hands too).
The environment is also harmed as well by these ubiquitous "paper" (actually polypropylene plastic) masks. Right now, there are more of these discarded non-biodegradable, single-use items in the oceans than there are jellyfish! There is certainly nothing even remotely "green" about that at all.
If the True Spirit of America Party were to make a list of all of the biggest regrets we have ever had since our founding in 2009, our early and fairly brief advocacy of masks and mask mandates (albeit as an alternative to lockdowns) in the spring and early summer of 2020 would probably come in at #1, displacing our former foolish advocacy of fiscal austerity (and Austrian economics in general) prior to 2014 for the top spot on the list. Done from a place of ignorance, we really should have listened to the past century worth of research that cast major doubt on (if not thoroughly debunked) the use of masks to stop airborne respiratory viruses of any kind. The mosquito and chain-link fence analogy applies here.
The experts knew already that masks didn't work in 1918, and thus they were abandoned just a few months later in early 1919. So why in the world did it take so much longer to realize that this time?
And to think that the mask mandates would only last a few weeks was naive at best. The most important lesson of the past two years was that you cannot meet tyranny or insanity in the middle. Give them an inch, and they take a mile every time. Also, another lesson is that what appears to work in the lab, or at a small scale, does NOT necessarily work in the real world, especially on a large scale. History has been made, all right. Just not in a good way.
UPDATE: A new editorial online at Yahoo! on May 6, 2022 now admits that there is no evidence that masks work. For a mainstream editorial to say this shows that the Overton window has shifted dramatically in the past several months, in a very good way.
And yet another study confirms that masks lead to (re)breathing excessive and dangerous levels of CO2 (carbon dioxide) by the wearer. Worse, the effect was larger in children than in adults. In other news, study finds that water is wet and the sun rises in the east.
And for the love of all that is good, STOP MASKING TODDLERS YESTERDAY! It's no wonder there has been a mysterious increase in disease in that group recently. NYC Mayor Eric Adams, I'm looking at YOU!
And once again, the ever-insightful Ian Miller thoroughly debunks, debones, slices, dices, and juliennes the pro-mask arguments, and lays waste to their utterly scorched remains for good. And check out the latest new study from Josh Stevenson about masks for kids as well, likely the very best one yet. Spoiler alert: masks STILL don't work.