It seems like they’re everywhere on social media: Covid bullies who want to shame you into masking up and getting the jab. They also see you as know-nothing Republicans who deserve derision.

And they hate you.

They’ll even go so far as to call your children murderers if they show up at school without a mask. Yes, really. Check out this school board member from Norman, Oklahoma. Oklahoma, for heaven’s sake. Where the wind comes sweepin’ down the (supposedly) free plain:

She’s not someone who wants to consider other views. Her fear — or her loathing of those with whom she disagrees, or maybe both — has convinced her that children without masks might kill you.

The latest victim of the Covid bullies is Sen. Rand Paul. YouTube just suspended Sen. Paul for one week because he posted a video that disagreed with mask effectiveness. It’s also his second rodeo at the YouTube Covid heresy roundup. But if Rand is a good boy and only parrots the government narrative for 90 days after his return, his second strike will be erased. But if there’s a third strike — then YouTube will permanently ban him.

So what did Sen. Paul say in the offensive video? This:

“Most of the masks you get over the counter don’t work. They don’t prevent infection. . . . Trying to shape human behavior isn’t the same as following the actual science, which tells us that cloth masks don’t work.”

But Rand Paul being, well, Rand Paul, he took the YouTube suspension as a “badge of honor,” and linked to another site that played the video. So take that, YouTube.

Never mind that Barack Obama and Rashida Tlaib just flagrantly violated the Covid rules by dancing maskless at parties. They’re part of the “sophisticated, vaccinated crowd,” as New York Times reporter Annie Karni gloated.

And you’re not.

Meantime, they’ll ridicule you if you disagree with their beliefs on masks or vaccines. They will suffer no divergence from the narrative, for St. Anthony Fauci hath spoken, and the Church of the Centers for Disease Control have developed holy writs that you must follow.

It is rather like a religion, isn’t it? And, as religious zealots do, they will burn you on social media if you challenge the doctrine.

Like these comments left by Covid bullies at Facebook:

“It took ‘click it or ticket’ to get people to wear a seatbelt. I wonder if ‘mask it or casket’ might work.”

Then there’s this one, which is even more venomous:

“It’s a face mask, not a Star of David or pink triangle, you whiny, privileged dolt. You’re not being shoved into a cattle car and taken to camp. You’re going to Walmart for twinkies and Diet Coke. Grow up.”

Did you catch that? Not only did the commenter call a mask skeptic “privileged” (read: white person), they also assume that the opposition are Neanderthals who shop at Walmart for plebeian fare such as Twinkies and Diet Coke.

I also saw this cartoon at Facebook. I’m not sure if the victim here symbolizes those who oppose mask-wearing or getting the Covid vaccine, but the meaning is clear. If you claim your American rights to oppose the Covid narrative, you’re a stupid ignoramus. You’re probably a Republican who really likes Gov. Ron DeSantis, too.

Actually, it’s a textbook example of the straw man fallacy. But the mask/vaccine fans at Facebook think it’s quite clever, so it’s been shared on social media.

But the dirty truth is this: Covid bullies don’t really want to persuade you. They just want to belittle and mock you. Like this TikTok user:

They hate you pic.twitter.com/aAWEz4URtl

— Libs of Tik Tok (@libsoftiktok) August 9, 2021

Now, do you think this malicious woman created this video to convince anyone? No, she just wants to spew her hate. It actually satisfies her craving to bully those whom she considers beneath her. Those who are less “sophisticated,” of course.

Think of Covid bullies as first cousins of the Twitter cancel mob. But unlike the cancellers, they want you around, because if you didn’t exist, whom could they ridicule? How could they feel smarter and superior if they didn’t have Covid skeptics to kick around?

And all this stuff does is to cause pushback from those whom they disparage. Do you think that the TikTok woman caused a single skeptic to think, You know, she called me a fuck, so I guess I will have to get the vaccine after all. What a convincing argument!

I’ll take Things That Never Happened for $500, Alex.

But Covid bullies are not as clever as they think they are. Rather, they’re small-minded people who use social media to pile on those whom they see as inferior. They get the clicks and the yucks from like-minded zealots, and in turn that feeds their little egos. And they love the attention.

What sad, pathetic lives they must lead.

Featured image: H. Michael Karshis/flickr/cropped/CC BY 2.0.