#NoMaskPicnic trending on Twitter in Japan?

At the time writing this post the hashtag #ノーマスクピクニック was trending on Twitter here in Japan. 

It seems to be stemming from a website entitled 全国同時ノーマスクピクニックデー - something like “Nationwide collective no-mask picnic day” (my own crude translation) - which appears to be encouraging people to head out and take picnics sans face mask on some pre-arranged dates in early May. 

“An event to enjoy a no-mask picnic all over the country. Anyone, young or old, can participate!” website of 全国同時ノーマスクピクニックデー

Having not read all of the tweets sharing the tag, I can only hope that it’s trending for the right reasons, insofar as perhaps it isn’t such a good idea on the very day that Osaka looks set to ask the central government to declare another COVID-19 state of emergency. 

I’ll hold my hands up and admit that, in the early stages of the novel coronavirus outbreak here in Japan, I was somewhat skeptical about the efficacy of face masks but I masked-up when asked and these days wear one as a default setting whenever I leave the apartment. I can’t claim to be well-versed in the science but the sense of a plucky, let's-all-do-our-bit spirit seems to offer reason enough to convince that masks continue to be a good idea at this time. Collective, no-mask picnics held across Japan … not such a good idea. 

This isn’t about getting preachy though. I don’t want to jump down the throats of people struggling to get onboard with virus prevention measures. It isn’t easy and I think people are going to have their lapses and missteps. And you won’t see me crossing the street to avoid someone who is not wearing a face mask. Nor would I sneer at people having a picnic, I’m just not sure that any kind of nationwide no-mask bash is a great idea.

Maybe I’m way off the mark and have misunderstood the #ノーマスクピクニック meaning and the intentions behind it. Maybe there aren’t even any sentient human beings behind the hashtag and what it really is is some bot unleashed by a pariah state attempting to bring a large economy to its knees by encouraging its citizens to have unprotected picnics.

Maybe picnics in the outdoors without masks should rank fairly low on our list of concerns right now. The authorities in Japan remain fixed on holding the rescheduled Summer Games and how is that going to be any more safe than a picnic? (Although I fancy the term “no mask” won’t be found anywhere in the Olympic promotional literature.)

I am sure though that I’d feel very ashamed to have to report to a Biblically tired medical professional a “hashtag no-mask picnic” event among the list of potential close contacts I’d had after coming down with the virus. 

Either way, here’s something that has been going on in Japan today that it's better to be aware of.

***The image in this post is one I took a few years ago and, to the best of my knowledge, has nothing to do with the trending hashtag