The role of young people re Covid 19

I haven't seen anyone yet without a face covering. I would be as worried as you if I did. It is not only rude, but dangerous.
Perhaps tell the police about the shop. I think that would be my response.

I haven’t noticed that anyone in my part of the world, East Anglia, is flouting the rules.
Thank goodness because I’m sure I would feel compelled to comment and that might not be a wise move.
As someone on another thread commented we need to practice our Paddington stare!

Everyone in my part of the world is wearing a mask in shops, young and old.

Saw a gathering of young folk (age 14-16?) in a local park near use, as I’m walking the dog. No masks.

Surely you don't need masks outside!

That’s interesting. Around me it’s the retirement set who are refusing to wear masks/purposefully wearing them wrong/refusing to social distance.

I can only guess that they’d have done the same if they were teenagers today

Where I live, people have been very compliant and very considerate.
Today’s episode was an indication to me of a growing disregard by the young, or maybe an immature embarrassment about their previous compliance in the face of a national disregard by the young?

Everyone seems to wear a mask round here.

Furret there’s no requirement for masks when you’re outdoors.

No-one has to wear masks in shops in Wales (although some do). I believe there is a fine of £100 for breaking the rule in England.
The jury is out.

I suppose I’m more interested in the attitudes of the teens/twenties and what influences/causes their lack of compliance with Covid rules in general ..... as demonstrated by the increasing rates of infection nationally and in certain geographic areas ........ my tale was just intended as a small example of either embarrassed non-compliance or, at its more extreme, defiance.

I wonder how many people have actually been fined £100 Aforementioned not wearing a mask. Shops apparently abdicate any responsibility, so whose responsibility is it?

AviaParva

I suppose I’m more interested in the attitudes of the teens/twenties and what influences/causes their lack of compliance with Covid rules in general ..... as demonstrated by the increasing rates of infection nationally and in certain geographic areas ........ my tale was just intended as a small example of either embarrassed non-compliance or, at its more extreme, defiance.

I’m curious about the same only one older generations

We went to Brean on somerset last week and it was heaving with people and to our amazement only 5 were wearing masks.
We live in staffordshire and also few wear masks.

We live in Wales and wear masks when shopping. Surprisingly, as it is not mandatory here, a lot of people do.
Overheard by a neighbour in a cafe last week. A group of teenagers were sitting nearby and talking loudly about a party.
One lad said “ I don’t care about all those oldies. If they die there will be more room on this earth “.

I think all evidence suggests from figures released, that older people in the main take it fairly seriously and are more prepared to follow recommended guidelines. There are still a proportion of young people who want to attend mass gatherings and illegal raves and regard restrictions as impingements on their freedom. I can't say I blame shops not wanting to take non mask wearers on unless they have some strong security guard on hand to manhandle such flouters out of the shop. However, Sainsburys do put out loud speak messages intermittently to remind those in store that some customers may have a medical condition that will preclude them from wearing a mask.

I think the cabin crew on some Tui flights have damaged the reputation of that company given their lackadaisical attitude in allowing some passengers to remove their mask and wander about the cabin. This is not what prospective customers want to hear.

I am surprised by the comments from people from other parts of the country, here in London lots of people are not wearing masks. In the supermarkets, on buses, and it is not just the younger ones. A lot of people have their masks on, but wear them around their chin! What is that about? However I don't like the blame game that has arisen since the pandemic started, we always seem to be blaming some one. We should watch our distance, wash our hands, wear our masks and just try and protect ourselves.

I think that young people have been in blissful ignorance all along and many have gone their own merry way even through lockdown mainly because the big headlines throughout have all been about the elderly and those with health problems and the emphasis and advice given has always been that it is unlikely that young people will either catch it or suffer from it.
Now the testing is more widespread and scientists are now admitting that not only can young people can catch it, but there are and have been people walking around with the virus and little or no symptoms, spreading it willy nilly !
Those young people's response just goes to show the sad attitude that some youngsters have to older people in general.

To be quite honest the efficacy of masks in preventing the transmission of the virus has not been proven. I'm 54, I wear a mask but hardly go in shops now and shop mostly online. I feel sorry for young people. Their job prospects have been ruined ...they were locked up for 3 months, their education has been severely disrupted and to be quite honest it's depressing. Good luck to the young people who are just trying to live their lives normally ...you are only young for a relatively short amount of time, but you are old for decades. These young people will be paying for this lockdown and the economy tanking for decades and they probably won't get a pension (if at all) until their early 70s. I do get a bit fed up with older people continually moaning about younger people and their behaviour.

I travelled up the M1 on Sunday and stopped at Watford Gap service station and only about half of the people inside were wearing masks. (Excluding those people sitting eating). As people were probably from different parts of the country it’s an easy way for Covid to spread widely and quickly

I drove through an area of Derby yesterday. Lots of small shops you could easily see into. Maybe saw 3 masks over 100+ people, all ages.

The streets were packed. Not even the person having their hair done/the man doing it, wore a mask.

My own town is maybe 50/50... again, not all young people.

I do so agree, Taliya. This pandemic will impact on the under-40s for years to come and I have every sympathy with them resenting the emphasis on the old. I accept that I have to take responsibility for my own health, and that means living a very restricted life for the foreseeable future in order that the young get a chance at life. What with the impact on their education, job prospects and chances to own a home of their own, they have been dealt a rotten hand and I don’t want to make it any worse.

I was in my car outside a very large Tesco’s and as you said AviaParva, it was the shoppers in their late teens early twenties who were knowingly flouting the store’s rules and entering without face masks on.

I wish we would all stop grouping people by age. I understand targeted campaigns, but this insistence on stereotyping ‘boomers’, ‘millennials’ and so on is divisive and simplistic.

Yes, older people are more at risk of dying if they get Covid, but otherwise we are all human and able to infect one another.

Some old people are fit, and some younger ones aren’t. We all have different lifestyles, not always dependent on age.

Turning groups against one another has caused enough division over the past decade. Let’s stop playing that game and refuse to be pigeonholed?

It isn't just the young who won't wear masks. My part of South London is poor. I went to pay for petrol indoors and I was the only person wearing a mask. The other five people were maskless and all aged 30 - 50. Many people in the High Street where I live don't wear masks and, again, very mixed ages. I've been mocked by older people for wearing a mask and had someone cough near me deliberately. I think it is a sign of very poor education, selfishness and and sheer bloody mindedness. However, I have friends in East Anglia and in rural areas in the South of England who say nearly everyone wears a mask when out shopping. Time to move!