First post of my GA career for those noticing my handshake status. Question: I see peer reviewed and published evidence that masks do NOT work, but has anyone seen the same saying that they do work? I want to be able to say to my boss that there is no such evidence--I have not found any. You?
Edit: Thanks to everyone for comments and links. Looks like this topic has been discussed in the past (like so many items on this site). I appreciate the input and your patience. Being new, this was good to see.
Thanks for the VERY thorough reply. You've set the bar high! What you've explained is sort of the basis for my questions, I think. The peer reviewed article that was on the Gateway Pundit (https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2021/04/stanford-study-results-facemasks-ineffective-block-transmission-covid-19-actually-can-cause-health-deterioration-premature-death/ ) is what I consider evidence, whereas the other stuff that you so eloquently summarized is common sense. It is true that water vapor can be trapped by my mask... but that does not mean that the virus itself remained trapped--which is tied into the point you were making. Anyway, good stuff. Thanks. I will be incorporating this into my argument. Here is the actual Standford U study on the NCBI direct link: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7680614/
It's important to note that the "study" you are quoting is actually an hypothesis and not a study at all. Don't get me wrong, it is very well done and provides a ton of links to studies to support the claims made, but it is not a scientific study, but a well laid out argument.
The study I linked to is the only large scientific study that I have found that shows that cloth masks (or any masks really) do not block the transmission of viruses. That is an actual scientific study. The one you are using (which you absolutely should be using) is an argument.
The distinction is very important when presenting a case, though many laypersons may not recognize the importance.
Excellent clarification. Thanks.