A lot of hoarding could be due to people wanting to make money during the breakout. Why go out and get toilet paper if you can buy it from your neighbour?
A lot of hoarding could be due to people wanting to make money during the breakout. Why go out and get toilet paper if you can buy it from your neighbour?
Many people use toilet paper like facial tissues. Some feel it's cleaner than regular facial tissues. Others might want to make paper mache. And maybe some odd person might use them as pillows.
You might complain about people who buy up all the of toilet paper, creating a supply problem for everyone else.
But ironically, those people who stocked up on 100 rolls have no supply issue.
As far as "looking the part" I have a really stretched-out face mask that I use if I am going out on a Saturday and plan to wear it a long time- it's a black one I bought for the protests and not the kind you're supposed to wear for flu anyway.
It is so out of shape that it just lets in pure fresh air but looks like it fits well when I check in the mirror.
And, voila! I am now no longer a threat to my fellow HKers...
On the subject of "looking the part," I had a look at a sample of one of the more stylish, washable, masks on display in a store the other day. It was the style pictured below. It's quite common to see in HK.
It seemed to be made entirely of a thin layer of a stretchy, open celled foam. The size of the holes in the foam would have rendered it totally ineffective against anything whatsoever, it was basically the same as breathing open air, and it wouldn't be effective at catching anything that someone sneezed out (though I guess it would shorten the range of a sneeze).
Overall, it would be better that these things not be used at all, especially by sick people.
Last edited by jgl; 10-02-2020 at 11:31 AM. Reason: typos
Mine looks like that but is a thin, disposable version that is supposedly designed for pollen (large particles compared to bacteria and virus). It was bought to look cool at the protests/hide identity although doesn't work that well for hiding identity if you are caucasian, can still tell it's me...