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The CDC now recommends everyone start wearing masks indoors again. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)
Good Saturday morning, everyone,
We spent some time this week at NJ.com talking about trauma, its triggers, and its effects. Aided by a skilled journalist and facilitator from the DART Center for Journalism & Trauma, we examined how the impact of sustained stress -- and the ways we each devise to cope with it internally -- manifest in our outward behaviors.
Me? When a sudden crisis hits, I'm a "take care of business" type. I tend to snap into intense focus and remain that way until things settle down. Afterward, I can have a difficult time switching off the hyper-vigilance and usually end up melting down over something inconsequential.
The older I get, the more OK I am with this just being how the particular machine of my brain operates. I'm getting better, though not perfect, at recognizing my stress triggers and the signs I'm getting too far inside my own head.
So when I started to feel dread, and an odd resentment, and just a feeling of "I don't want to do this again" about going back to mask wearing, it wasn't surprising. Going by the tone of many of your emails and comments on last week's Letter, I'm not the only person triggered by a return to masking -- something now "strongly recommended" even for vaccinated people.
Last week was me calling out healthy folks who -- lacking any disability or other urgent medical reason -- have simply chosen not to get the vaccine.
But it was the one quick line that said "it's probably time to start wearing a mask again" that really set some of you off. Of the hundreds of responses, via email and social media, a lot of you said you'd gladly received the shot and think others should, too -- but putting the mask back on was just too much to ask.
I get it: The masks are the most basic, tangible symbol of all that's changed, all we've lost, and what we've all been through together these past 18 months. There's been conflicting messaging, flip-flopping advice, and a lot of disinformation all trying to take up space in our brains.
But I also remember when seat belt use was voluntary, until a law had to force accountability on those who can't be bothered to take simple steps to protect themselves and others. And I don't remember my mother ever chasing me with a bottle of sunscreen in the '70s, but I do remember the nastygram sent home from summer camp the day I forgot to put sunscreen in the boy's backpack.
It's not about anyone being stupid, or ignorant, or evil. Maybe some are lazy, some just don't like being told what to do, and others decided it was against their political beliefs. I'd love it if we could just rely on folks who can get the vaccine to choose to do so because it might keep someone from getting sick. We can't.
For now, deciding not to get a COVID vaccine is still a personal choice. But it's the wrong one.
Also this week, plans for a debate, driven to wait, where the beach needles come from, a story with an Olympic-sized heart, and 'tis the season: TALK TIME: Gov. Murphy and his Republican challenger Jack Ciattarelli, will square off in a debate, and they'll have plenty to talk about. It happens at NJ PAC on Sept. 28, and of course we'll stream it live on NJ.com. What questions would you ask? MOTOR WOES: New drivers and other folks who need motor vehicle services are finding appointments few and far between. The MVC blames a flood of new license applications from undocumented immigrants, on top of pandemic-related woes. STUCK IN THE SAND: It's not the rain, it's the sewers, Michael Sol Warren explains in this piece about all the syringes and other hazardous waste washing up on our beaches. It's not a new problem -- some century-old systems are involved -- and it likely won't be solved anytime soon. WHO'S CUTTING ONIONS: Steve Politi knows how to tug on your heart strings, but this story gets the gold. How Sydney McLaughlin's dad, a recent transplant recipient, planned to watch her compete on Friday night. There's a lot of love in that love seat. SEASON'S GREETINGS: There's already Halloween candy and related accoutrements in the stores, so I have no hesitation in telling you that Fright Fest is coming back to Six Flags Great Adventure this year! It took last year off for COVID. It kicks off Sept. 10 at the park in Jackson. Finally, the family of Camden's David Padro, Jr. mourned him this week as an affectionate "goofball" of a guy, a devoted brother who had dreams of being a police officer. Padro, just 22, is dead because a guy from the Philadelphia suburbs brought a gun with him when he went to Pat's Steaks in South Philly for a snack. Without that gun, the fistfight that authorities say broke out between Padro and Paul Burkert, 46, over a parking spot would have stayed just that. The Padros would have their son, and Philadelphia would have one less gun-related death on the books for the year.
P.S.: Don't miss Jack Antonoff talking fame, music and (duh) Jersey with Bobby Olivier.
P.P.S.: Folks who watched "The Good Place" likely caught that reference to Tim Scanlon's book, "What We Owe To Each Other," in this email's subject line. Anyone up for a rewatch?
Amy Z. Quinn Audience Editor
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