It’s been a painful six years for the Covid cautious because we’ve had to come to terms with just how selfish and ableist some people are.
Many folks believe that brief stay at home orders and mask mandates were the worst thing to ever happen to them.
The rise of online vibrant events in early Covid offered a lot of hope for disabled/chronically ill people who have access issues attending IRL events (including going into a flare later). Anti-Zoom reactive sentiment pushed a lot of people into being more isolated again.
Things we want people to know. 6 years after the start* of the COVID-19 pandemic. *The day the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic. This was not the date of the first case.
It’s not just a cold. We wish it were just a cold. We would not keep talking about it if so. Since 2020, doctors, scientists, and millions of people who have had COVID-19 have learned that it can cause permanent damage to multiple organ systems within your body, leave you disabled and unable to do the things you love, and significantly harm your quality of life. A cold cannot disable or kill you the way COVID-19 can.
We know a lot more about prevention than we did back then. We all remember when we thought maybe we’d be ok as long as we were 6 feet away from sick people; that masks worked one way but not the other; and more. But just like with all new viruses and scientific study, we learned more as there was more time to study and observe, and we now know that wearing masks and keeping cleaner air are key to protecting ourselves and others. Now that we know better, we can (and should) better protect ourselves and others.
We understand the frustration about vaccines, but they are still extremely important. We all remember when vaccines were first made available, and it would’ve been great if that was the end of the pandemic. It wasn’t. And a lot of people have gotten frustrated and have given up on vaccination. It’s true, the virus that causes COVID-19 changes (which is why, like the annual flu shot, we need to get updated COVID-19 vaccines each year), and the vaccines we have now will not eliminate COVID-19 on their own. But they are still very effective at preventing serious illness and death, so even though they are not the one quick solution to the pandemic we all wish they were, they are still extremely important, and we should all stay up to date.
This week marked the anniversary of the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. We’ve summarized our thoughts a bit below, but tl;dr: Unfortunately, COVID-19 is still with us, & although we may be tired of hearing about it, it’s extremely important to continue to take steps to protect ourselves & others.
We are all very tired of it (or at least I am), but pretending it’s gone is not going to help anyone stay healthy. Lots of us are tired of hearing about it (and honestly, we’re tired of talking about it), but we keep talking about it because we know how devastating it can be, we’ve met people whose lives are forever changed for the worse because of getting COVID-19, and lots of people who are now living with Long COVID say they wish they had known how bad it could be. So we’ll probably keep talking about it, because we want you to be healthy and happy, and even if you are tired of it (that’s fair), we hope you take some steps to protect yourself and others so you can all live long, healthy lives.
In other words, we’re know you’re tired of hearing about COVID-19. We’re tired of hearing about it too. But ignoring it does not help it to go away, so please continue to take protect your health.
When I ask people to mask it’s not out of a virtuous superiority or even an ethical code. It is because I am in the depths of this hellhole, and I am *screaming* at you not to come down here, and definitely not to shove anyone else in.
Can’t believe nobody wanted to read the articles nobody bothered to write
A woman in a mask Headline: Why Do Some People Still Wear Masks In 2026 And On A Completely Unrelated Note Why Is Everyone In The Office Sick Right Now Apart From The Guy In The Mask? Story from Jerk Wingley and Terramin Defishunsee Photo from Adobe
Why Do Some People Still Wear Masks In 2026 And On A Completely Unrelated Note Why Is Everyone In The Office Sick Right Now Apart From The Guy In The Mask?
"Roughly 1 in 87 Americans—or 1.2% of the population—is actively infectious on any given day." Those numbers mean that there are more Americans walking around w/ active Covid infections than there are transgender Americans. And only one group is dangerous.
Bigotry makes you fear the wrong things.
Re supposed end of the Target boycott: it’s 100% bullshit. See statement below from an *actual* leader of the initial DEI boycott.
Even if true (to repeat, it’s not!), it’s not up to any small group. Target has fixed nothing + compounded its DEI sins with ICE complicity. People are done with it!
"You just wanted to steal, so you stole. You wanted to take things without permission, so you did. It’s wrong. It’s so enragingly wrong."
This is so, so good. Like a cleansing fire.
Graphic with a rainbow banner at the top reading ‘TODAY IS ELECTION DAY!’ in large blue text. Below, it says ‘Polls are open from 7am until 7pm. You must be in line by 7pm to vote.’ Additional text reads: ‘Find your precinct location, sample ballot, and more at mvp.sos.ga.gov.’ An illustration of a ballot being inserted into a ballot box appears on the left. Georgia Equality logo with a rainbow-striped Georgia state outline is at the bottom right.
TODAY is Election Day for residents of HD 94, HD 130, and SD 53!
Georgia Equality has proudly endorsed Audrey Lux, LaFawn Pinkney-Mealing, and Jack Zibluk for these races. Learn more at: georgiaequalitypac.org/2026-special...
Find your voting info at mvp.sos.ga.gov
The first comic slide of “reasons to wear a mask 2026” depicts a person wearing a white mask who says “Hell yea!” Around them are bright pastel colors and cute but ominous looking SARS-CoV-2 viruses. Text reading “a lil manifesto about taking care of yourself and others- with over 50 citations! By Gillian Levine.”
This comic slide from “why you should wear a mask 2026” by Gillian Levine extends playful the Long COVID fest concept and depicts a hand holding a sheet from a music festival with facts about Long COVID facts and prevention, stating that everyone is vulnerable and that there is no cure, among other facts.
This comic slide from “why you should wear a mask 2026” by Gillian Levine shows ways to prevent COVID-19 and Long COVID, focusing on the importance of masking.
This comic slide from “why you should wear a mask 2026” by Gillian Levine playfully gives reasons of why to wear a mask using a Monopoly board. Each square represents a different reason to mask, from protecting yourself and others to protecting yourself from other airborne virus. Dice and game board pieces are scattered around.
Artist Gillian Levine recently wrote and illustrated a comic sharing reasons to continue masking in 2026. She kindly gave us permission to republish it.
😷 Read the full comic at The Sick Times: bit.ly/4rVqQdp
A digital drawing of author Maia Kobabe, a white nonbinary person with short brown hair wearing a patterned blue shirt, who scowls while holding up a copy of eir book GENDER QUEER: A MEMOIR. Maia is saying: H.R. 7661 is a national book banning bill which seeks to remove any book that "involves gender dysphoria or transgenderism" from all public schools in the US. This would ban my books, and any other book with trans themes, from public schools. PLEASE call your House Reps and say: NO ON H.R. 7661!
H.R. 7661 is a national book banning bill which seeks to remove any book that "involves gender dysphoria or transgenderism" from all public schools in the US. This would ban all my books, & any other book with trans themes, from public schools. PLEASE call your House Reps & say: NO ON H.R. 7661!
Chat, is it bad when one tech dude having a modicum of a conscience is the only thing hindering the plans of the worst people in the world to use hallucinatory robots to automate crimes against humanity?
Governments, public health and medical authorities know much of this is caused by COVID & other infections, that a lot of this is Long Covid, which they choose to do nothing about and cover up.
They know it. They're lying about not knowing why. They're doing what the tobacco industry did.
Eu mesma depois de covid longa estou próxima a me tornar PCD. Esse abo queria voltar a fazer evento, mas a médica me recomendou q não 😭😭😭
Instagram story from @blezzingdada - “Children inherit the conditions adults set out and normalize. If we accept preventable exposure as ordinary, we teach them harm is the price of belonging: If we choose care, we teach them interdependence is strength. Disability justice is not about fear of illness: it is about refusing to treat preventable harm as inevitable.” I added at the bottom: “WHEW! I've been looking for these words. Yes.”
I just saw a great post on Instagram about this, with a focus on children. As it is now we are teaching children and everyone else that “harm is the price of belonging” and whew! We could do so much better, but it would require some shifts & listening to ppl that I guess ppl don’t like to listen to.
Disabled people & those who cannot afford to get Covid deserve to be able to see art in public and make art in public.
The constant condescension about ai is another aspect of it that makes me hate it more. The assumption is you can only be against it because you don't understand it like I do. No man. I don't like voluntarily making every human enterprise dependent on a tech run by a tiny group of financial maniacs
Sorry to get radical but I don’t think it’s my job or yours to embrace, accept, understand - and certainly not to use - the thing being sold to us as AI. I don’t like any part of it, so I won’t. I’m missing out? Good, that’s what I want. You’re worried about me missing out? That’s fuckin weird, man.
This is horrific. As the covid pandemic rages on and damages people’s immune systems en masse, we desperately need more vaccines and therapeutics for disease not less. Gutting.
Jennifer @JenYetAgain@beige.party in 2017 a popular twitter game was to type a partial phrase then see what your phone auto-completes it with. this proved so popular that it is now the only business model in the US. Feb 9, 2026 at 4:35:18PM Boosted by 968: Favourited by 1324:
mom they’re roasting the US economy on mastodon again
You can't... repeal... a scientific finding. At that point it's just called lying about it.
Multiple friends have caught COVID recently, including some of my more cautious pals. There are a lot of winter germs in crowded places right now, fam. Personally, I never feel that shopping or riding transit unmasked is worth potentially getting sick. You can always renew this practice.
I love how FLUFFY Boopsie is 😂
The reality is America is a huge multicultural multilingual country, not a white ethnostate, and venomous white supremacist MAGA crybabies lose it whenever that reality becomes unignorable. We should always seek to increase, not decrease, their discomfort. www.the-reframe.com/hating-the-g...
That is beautiful work!! And what a great color!
Graphic from The Sick Times sharing the latest COVID-19 trends for February 3, 2026. The graphic presents trends for three metrics: WastewaterSCAN category for SARS-CoV-2, which is "high" (represented with an orange color) and reports a slight decrease (represented with a diagonal down arrow); CDC wastewater viral activity level for SARS-Cov-2, which is "moderate*" (orange) and reports a slight decrease; and CDC COVID-19 test positivity, which is moderate (darker yellow) and stable (side to side arrow). Text below these metrics reads: "*CDC wastewater viral activity levels are calculated based on measurements in the last two years only. They do not account for the lower spread that could be possible with more widespread precautions." The middle text reads, “COVID-19 levels are going up in parts of the South, West, and possibly the Midwest, while continuing to decline elsewhere. Trends suggest we may be in for a second round of this winter’s COVID-19 wave after the initial peak in early January. Flu levels increased this week, too, likely due to more influenza B spread. — Betsy Ladyzhets.”
Trends suggest we may be in for a second round of this winter’s COVID-19 wave after the initial peak in early January. Flu levels increased this week, too, likely due to more influenza B spread. Read this week's full COVID-19 trends report: bit.ly/4tgFVqY
Hi!! Loved reading about your Long COVID advocacy!
Happy birthday!! I adored Widdershins in college and then sometime after graduation lost track of my favorite webcomics and have been rediscovering them lately. Can’t WAIT to read all the Widdershins I’ve missed!! 🤩
