One of the most confounding things about our regrettable, year-long polarizing debate over wearing face masks during the pandemic is that so many people seemed to miss this basic fact: Such masks aren’t meant to protect the wearer, but to protect those with whom the wearer comes in contact.

We understand that ever since the first COVID-19 cases surfaced a year ago, people have yearned to keep their lives as normal and unfettered as possible. But anti-maskers who argue that they’re striking a blow for liberty are sadly misguided: Their refusal to don masks has worked mostly to undermine our liberty by prolonging this pandemic and making it more lethal.

That’s why we all need to bear in mind that the coronavirus vaccines now being distributed — and

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