MINOT, N.D. — In Fargo, left-wing city commissioner John Strand is talking about implementing a mask mandate.

Democratic-NPL gubernatorial candidate Shelley Lenz, at a campaign event in Grand Forks, said that she would have mandated masks “a long time ago.”

In Minnesota, Gov. Tim Walz says he’s considering a mandate.

I am pro-mask. The price is tiny, and while wearing one is a pain in the rear end, that cost is small too when measured against what widespread mask-wearing could accomplish.

“I think if we could get everybody to wear a mask right now I think in four, six, eight weeks we could bring this epidemic under control,” Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the CDC, said during an interview.

A bold statement. I want to believe it’s true, though in recent weeks the nation’s public health officials have gone from condemning conservative protests against pandemic lockdowns to endorsing crowded protests against police brutality and back again.

It’s enough to give a person whiplash.

Still, the cost is small, and widespread adoption of masks could help a lot.

We should do it.

We should already be doing it.

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