toc-man 2 points 2y ago
Two words: COVID stress. Not everyone is dealing with it, but more people’s lives suck then ever rn—and it’s always the people who are having the hardest time with life that tend to lash out at workers (mind you, i’m not talking about the person in the article you linked. that’s a whole other level).
Also (and this is just a theory) but the masks obstruct facial features like smiles and make it harder for people to empathize with each other. I’m not anti-mask or anything like that, but that seems like it could be a factor. Could be wrong though.