it was only about three weeks ago (after years, obviously) that i realised that THIS and this alone, is the reason the chinese virtually all wear masks and have for some time. period. it signals my [mask-wearer's] compliance and IS, indeed, protective: it protects me from my fellow humans (whether fellow victims of a command society, or the commanders themselves), NOT from either pathogens or particulates. i truly had not fully "gotten" this until now ...