London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Sep 12, 2025

What the Pandemic Has Done to Casual Friendships

What the Pandemic Has Done to Casual Friendships

There’s a reason you miss people you didn’t even know that well. Plus: Is it okay to ask someone to pull up their mask?

Americans are just trying to get by. The country now sits in vaccine purgatory, a new phase of the pandemic that, unfortunately, retains many of the painful parts of the last.

*  Fears that vaccinated people will abuse their freedom are misplaced. “Everyone’s focus needs to be on getting the highest-risk people vaccinated as quickly as possible, not on faulting vaccinated people for a few unmasked hugs,” the epidemiologist Julia Marcus writes.

*  There’s a reason you miss people you didn’t even know that well. No water-cooler chats. No small talk with your local barista. The pandemic “evaporated entire categories of friendship,” Amanda Mull writes.

*  Anthony Fauci gets candid about his time under President Trump. “The thing that got me through it was, I did not let that bother me,” America’s chief scientist told our White House correspondent Peter Nicholas.

*  Having a tough day? Spend time with this photo gallery of some canine first responders: the dogs trained to sniff out COVID-19.

One question, answered: An anonymous reader from Georgia asks if it’s wrong to tell an employee at the local pharmacy to pull up their mask.

I’m a 65-year-old art teacher who has non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and rheumatoid arthritis. … Not wanting to be considered a “Karen,” I’ve kept my concerns to myself. How should I say something?

James Hamblin responds in his latest “Ask Dr. Hamblin” column:

Unlike asking to speak to someone’s manager because he forgot to hold the pickles, there’s a moral case for speaking up. …

Ideally, if you have a rapport with this person, there’s a way to explain your position to her. You’re a high-risk individual and you’d really appreciate it if she could pull her mask up. Statements of genuine concern followed by a request for help are generally more effective than anything that feels like scolding.

Read the rest. Every Wednesday, James takes questions from readers about health-related curiosities, concerns, and obsessions. Have one? Email James at paging.dr.hamblin@theatlantic.com.

Tonight’s Atlantic-approved isolation activity:


Immerse yourself in the cinematic world of the year’s first big single: Olivia Rodrigo’s “Drivers License.” The song implies a world of characters—and inspires listeners to role-play as them, our critic Spencer Kornhaber writes.

Today’s break from the news:


Genetic genealogy has cracked cases that have been cold for decades. But, as an Atlantic analysis found, this new tool has been used disproportionately for cases in which both the victims and the suspects are white.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Suspect Arrested: Utah Man in Custody for Charlie Kirk’s Fatal Shooting
In a politically motivated trial: Bolsonaro Sentenced to 27 Years for Plotting Coup After 2022 Defeat
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
ChatGPT CEO signals policy to alert authorities over suicidal youth after teen’s death
The British legal mafia hit back: Banksy mural of judge beating protester is scrubbed from London court
Surpassing Musk: Larry Ellison becomes the richest man in the world
Embarrassment for Starmer: He fired the ambassador photographed on Epstein’s 'pedophile island'
Manhunt after 'skilled sniper' shot Charlie Kirk. Footage: Suspect running on rooftop during panic
Effective Protest Results: Nepal’s Prime Minister Resigns as Youth-Led Unrest Shakes the Nation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
King Charles and Prince Harry Share First In-Person Moment in 19 Months
Starmer Establishes Economic ‘Budget Board’ to Centralise Policy and Rebuild Business Trust
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
Poland Shoots Down Russian Drones in Airspace Violation During Ukraine Attack
Brazilian police say ex-President Bolsonaro had planned to flee to Argentina seeking asylum
Trinidad Leader Applauds U.S. Naval Strike and Advocates Forceful Action Against Traffickers
Kim Jong Un Oversees Final Test of New High-Thrust Solid-Fuel Rocket Engine
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Macron Appoints Sébastien Lecornu as Prime Minister Amid Budget Crisis and Political Turmoil
Supreme Court temporarily allows Trump to pause billions in foreign aid
Charlie Sheen says his father, Martin Sheen, turned him in to the police: 'The greatest betrayal possible'
Vatican hosts first Catholic LGBTQ pilgrimage
Apple Unveils iPhone 17 Series, iPhone Air, Apple Watch 11 and More at 'Awe Dropping' Event
Pig Heads Left Outside Multiple Paris Mosques in Outrage-Inducing Acts
Nvidia’s ‘Wow’ Factor Is Fading. The AI chip giant used to beat Wall Street expectations for earnings by a substantial margin. That trajectory is coming down to earth.
France joins Eurozone’s ‘periphery’ as turmoil deepens, say investors
On the Anniversary of Queen Elizabeth’s Death: Prince Harry Returns to Britain
France Faces New Political Crisis, again, as Prime Minister Bayrou Pushed Out
Murdoch Family Finalises $3.3 Billion Succession Pact, Ensuring Eldest Son’s Leadership
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Court Staff Cover Up Banksy Image of Judge Beating a Protester
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Nayib Bukele Points Out Belgian Hypocrisy as Brussels Considers Sending Army into the Streets
Elon Musk Poised to Become First Trillionaire Under Ambitious Tesla Pay Plan
France, at an Impasse, Heads Toward Another Government Collapse
Burning the Minister’s House Helped Protesters to Win Justice: Prabowo Fires Finance Minister in Wake of Indonesia Protests
Brazil Braces for Fallout from Bolsonaro Trial by corrupted judge
The Country That Got Too Rich? Public Spending Dominates Norway Election
Nearly 40 Years Later: Nike Changes the Legendary Slogan Just Do It
Generations Born After 1939 Unlikely to Reach Age One Hundred, New Study Finds
End to a four-year manhunt in New Zealand: the father who abducted his children to the forests was killed, the three siblings were found
Germany Suspends Debt Rules, Funnels €500 Billion Toward Military and Proxy War Strategy
EU Prepares for War
BMW Eyes Growth in China with New All‑Electric Neue Klasse Lineup
Trump Threatens Retaliatory Tariffs After EU Imposes €2.95 Billion Fine on Google
Tesla Board Proposes Unprecedented One-Trillion-Dollar Performance Package for Elon Musk
US Justice Department Launches Criminal Mortgage-Fraud Probe into Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook
Escalating Drug Trafficking and Violence in Latin America: A Growing Crisis
×