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China sees India as potential threat and competitor. It is supporting Pakistan against India for the same reason. Membership of NSG means acceptance of a Non Nuclear Weapons State ( NNWS) which has not signed the Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty ( NPT). India is the causus belli of NPT and NSG due to its Peaceful Nuclear Explosion in 1974. (In 1975, seven countries formed what became the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) in response to India having detonated a nuclear explosive device; it contained materials that Canada and the United States asserted had been diverted by India to a non-peaceful use in violation of bilateral nuclear trade agreements.)[1]What is NPT ?The NPT is a landmark international treaty whose objective is to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and weapons technology, to promote cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy and to further the goal of achieving nuclear disarmament and general and complete disarmament. The Treaty represents the only binding commitment in a multilateral treaty to the goal of disarmament by the nuclear-weapon States. [2]The UN Security Council adopted unanimously resolution 1887 on nuclear non-proliferation which among other actions called on states not party to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) to join it.Opened for signature in 1968, the Treaty entered into force in 1970. On 11 May 1995, the Treaty was extended indefinitely. A total of 191 States have joined the Treaty, including the five nuclear-weapon States. [3]To further the goal of non-proliferation and as a confidence-building measure between States parties, the Treaty establishes a safeguards system under the responsibility of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Safeguards are used to verify compliance with the Treaty through inspections conducted by the IAEA. The Treaty promotes cooperation in the field of peaceful nuclear technology and equal access to this technology for all States parties, while safeguards prevent the diversion of fissile material for weapons use.[4]What is India’s Objection?India responded to the resolution by declaring categorically that it will not join the NPT as a non-nuclear weapon state since nuclear weapons constitute an integral part of India’s security. Till date, the NPT recognises only the five permanent members of the UN Security Council (US, Russia, UK, France and China) as nuclear weapon powers and mandates that other countries can be a party to the NPT only as a non-nuclear weapon state.India’s refusal to accede to the Treaty on grounds that it is a biased legal instrument that divided the world into “nuclear haves” and “nuclear have-nots.”[5]Perceived security threats from Pakistan and Pakistan’s ally China, on the one hand, and from the United States, on the other (U.S. inaction in 1965 war and active support for Pakistan in the 1971 war are cases in point) provide a strong security-driven rationale for the 1974 PNE. [6]The demonstration of a nuclear weapons capability in the 1974 explosion guaranteed New Delhi’s ability to effectively hedge in an asymmetric international system, and a regional strategic environment where New Delhi felt largely cornered. [7]The grand bargain of NPT — Article II for Article IV — was certainly going to restrict India’s policy options. Quest for freedom of action in an uncertain regional strategic environment and an asymmetric international system dominated by superpowers and China drove India to not sign the NPT and hedge, and to conduct the 1974 test.[8]Article II: Each non-nuclear-weapon State Party to the Treaty undertakes not to receive the transfer from any transferor whatsoever of nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices or of control over such weapons or explosive devices directly, or indirectly; not to manufacture or otherwise acquire nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices; and not to seek or receive any assistance in the manufacture of nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices.[9]Article IV: Nothing in this Treaty shall be interpreted as affecting the inalienable right of all the Parties to the Treaty to develop research, production and use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes without discrimination and in conformity with Articles I and II of this Treaty. All the Parties to the Treaty undertake to facilitate, and have the right to participate in, the fullest possible exchange of equipment, materials and scientific and technological information for the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. Parties to the Treaty in a position to do so shall also co-operate in contributing alone or together with other States or international organizations to the further development of the applications of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, especially in the territories of non-nuclear-weapon States Party to the Treaty, with due consideration for the needs of the developing areas of the world.[10]Moscow’s extension of “friendship” was helpful for New Delhi to balance Washington and Beijing but the fear of a Brezhnev doctrine for Asia loomed large in the background. In other words, Indian policymakers grappled with how to effectively use Moscow’s support for New Delhi without losing its autonomy and freedom of action. A nuclear explosion that was unforeseen by both the superpowers was an effective means to accomplish this.[11]How did India justify not signing NPT?“First, India’s decision to not join the NPT needs to be understood in the context of decisions taken by countries that chose to sign and ratify the NPT. Today, India is one of the only five countries that either did not sign the NPT or signed but withdrew, thus becoming part of a list that includes Pakistan, Israel, North Korea, and South Sudan. This might make New Delhi seem like an outlier but persuading and/or coercing sovereign states to be part of the NPT was a Herculean effort for U.S. policymakers with no clear guarantee of success. This is because the “grand bargain” of the treaty — enshrined in Articles II and IV — requires countries to give up any present or future plans to build nuclear weapons in return for access to peaceful uses of nuclear energy.”[12]Between 1968 and 1975-76, the fate of the NPT was far from certain: Would the key countries sign the Treaty? Would the signatories actually ratify the Treaty? What could the superpowers do to persuade or possibly coerce countries to accede to the Treaty? The situation was unpredictable. For major powers like Japan and West Germany — the two key countries that both superpowers wanted to accede to the Treaty — this was not easily accomplished. Domestic political coalitions did not come out overwhelmingly in support of the NPT in Tokyo and Bonn. Moreover, with the refusal of France to sign the Treaty, smaller West European countries like Italy and Switzerland exploited the opportunity to cause delays in reaching a final decision on whether to be part of the NPT. India’s decision to not sign the Treaty stood out because the refusal came from a nonaligned developing country dependent on superpowers for economic, technological, and military aid.”[13]“The goal was to ensure that the 1975 NPT Review Conference saved face for the United States and the incipient nonproliferation regime. Without the Indian explosion, it is improbable that a realpolitik-driven Nixon-Kissinger team, which was preoccupied with redrawing the terrain of the Cold War international system through a rapprochement with Beijing and détente with Moscow, would have spent much diplomatic capital on the global ratification of the NPT. The 1974 Indian nuclear explosion, therefore, inadvertently strengthened the NPT and the fledgling nonproliferation regime — the global atomic marketplace needed to be regulated such that “another India” could be prevented at all costs.”[14]Third and finally, in order to understand India’s decision to not sign the NPT in 1968, the 1974 Indian nuclear explosion codenamed the “Smiling Buddha” needs to be foregrounded. The 1974 explosion is one of the most misunderstood and perhaps misrepresented events in India’s nuclear history. New Delhi called it a “peaceful nuclear explosion” (PNE), indicating that it was an experiment to investigate civilian uses of nuclear explosions, for example the construction of harbors or oil exploration — even though PNEs are technically indistinguishable from a nuclear weapon test. More importantly, no crash program was launched to develop delivery vehicles, thereby befuddling security experts in Washington and elsewhere, who were used to expecting a swift linear movement from nuclear testing to further testing to the development of precise or near-precise delivery systems. In the absence of an extensive resource allocation for nuclear weapons delivery systems, security experts and scholars shied away (and still continue to do so) from a security-based explanation to analyze the “Smiling Buddha.”[15]What is Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG)?The Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) is a group of nuclear supplier countries (“NSG Participating Governments”) that seeks to contribute to the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons through the implementation of two sets of guidelines for their nuclear exports and nuclear-related exports.[16]Shortly after entry into force of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) in 1970, multilateral consultations on nuclear export controls to reach common understandings on how to implement Article III.2 of the NPT led to the establishment of two separate mechanisms for dealing with nuclear exports: the Zangger Committee in 1971 and what has become known as the Nuclear Suppliers Group in 1975. The Zangger Committee established the original Trigger List and three conditions of supply: (1) a non-explosive use assurance, (2) an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards requirement, and (3) a re-transfer provision that requires the receiving state to apply the same conditions when re-exporting these items.[17]India’s relationship with NSGThe NSG, known originally as the “London Club,” convened a series of meetings to facilitate a consistent interpretation of the obligations arising from that Article among major suppliers in and outside of the NPT, following the explosion in 1974 of a nuclear device by a non-nuclear-weapon State, an event which demonstrated that nuclear technology transferred for peaceful purposes could be misused.[18]NSG elaborated on the three original conditions of supply with the Part 1 Guidelines and adopted the original Zangger Committee’s Trigger List as an annex to the Guidelines.[19]The first NSG Guidelines were published in 1978 by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as an Information Circular INFCIRC/254 (subsequently amended) to apply to nuclear transfers to non-nuclear weapons states for peaceful purposes to help ensure that such transfers would not be diverted to unsafeguarded nuclear fuel cycle or nuclear explosive activities.[20]NSG Guidelines are sets of conditions of supply that are applied to nuclear transfers for peaceful purposes to help ensure that such transfers will not be diverted to unsafeguarded nuclear fuel cycle or nuclear explosive activities. Although NSG Guidelines are not legally-binding, NSG PGs commit to apply those Guidelines via their national legislation.[21]China’s Objections to India’s entry in NSGIt is a strange situation where a Nation which has tested Nuclear Devices in 1974 and 1998 and has a Nuclear Doctrine since 2003, Nuclear Command Authority and Strategic Forces Command since 2005 with Nuclear Weapons (160 as per estimate of World Nuclear Watchers) and Declared Nuclear Weapons Delivery Vehicles deployed, is treated as NNWS.India has called NPT discriminatory since it favours NWS over NNWS and binds NNWS after signing the NPT to destroy/defuse all Nuclear Weapons, halt all tests, declare all weapons grade stockpiles and put all processing facilities under NSG and IAEA safeguards without any such curbs on the NWS States.This is the catch. China is adversary of India and openly supports another adversary viz. Pakistan against India. Hence China has been opposing India's entry into the 48-member Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) on the ground that India is not a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), though the other P5 members, including the US and Russia backed its case based on New Delhi's non-proliferation record.[22]After India applied for the NSG membership, Pakistan too applied for the same following which China, a close ally of Islamabad, called for a two-step approach which states that NSG members first need to arrive at a set of principles for the admission of non-NPT states into the group and then move forward discussions of specific cases.[23]Role of UN in NSG Membership for India“There is no formal link (between UN and NSG), but the NSG’s activities contribute to the efforts of the United Nations in the field of non-proliferation and export controls. For example, the implementation of the NSG Guidelines and Annexes at the national level contribute to the fulfilment of national obligations under United Nations Security Council Resolution 1540.[24]The NSG is a voluntary, non-legally binding association of major supplier governments. It was not created by a treaty. The NSG Guidelines set forth conditions of supply to establish a baseline of responsible and safe supply behaviour among suppliers in nuclear and nuclear-related transfers. NSG participants commit to implement the guidelines on a national basis.[25]Role of the Superpowers and China in helping or opposing IndiaTwo such potential candidates, India and Pakistan, are adversaries and have strategic relationships with powerful NSG members: India is rapidly developing close ties with the United States and its allies in the Asia-Pacific region; Pakistan has an increasingly firm "all-weather" alliance with China. After the end of the Cold War, first Russia, and then China, tested the credibility of the NSG by exporting nuclear equipment to India and Pakistan, respectively, without either recipient state having full-scope safeguards on their nuclear activities as the guidelines required. [26]In 2005, the United States and India announced they would negotiate a bilateral agreement for peaceful nuclear cooperation—a precondition under U.S. law for the export of U.S. power reactors and fuel—which, to enter into force, would require that the NSG make an exception to the full-scope safeguards requirement for transfers of such items to India. Initially, the U.S. had mulled requesting the NSG to lift this hurdle on India on the basis of specific criteria that India would have to meet. Instead, the U.S., France, and Russia, all of which sought to export nuclear equipment to India, insisted that a unique exception should be made for India without any reference to conditions or criteria.[27]In September 2008, after the U.S. applied diplomatic pressure to a number of states that had raised reservations or objections to making an exception for India, the NSG by consensus granted the exception; as a consequence India today may import NSG-listed items from participating governments.[28]Since 2011, the NSG has considered including India as a member without reaching a necessary consensus agreement. Since 2016, China has departed from its previous expressions of ambiguous reluctance to support India’s membership in the NSG in favor of a position that appears to categorically exclude India. Efforts by NSG members to extend participation to India were also challenged by the possibility that after admitting India, New Delhi would thereafter as a matter of policy thwart consensus in the group to permit Pakistan to join. [29]NSG participants could conclude by 2015 that China's cost and benefit calculation about potential Indian NSG membership appeared to be tilting Beijing against admitting India.[30]A 2016 gambit to secure India's membership, launched by a former NSG chairman, specifically aimed to obtain an agreement by India not to stand in the way of Islamabad’s eventual participation. That same year, the United States and its strategic allies in the NSG increasingly and aggressively pressed other NSG members to admit India but the effort ultimately ran aground because of opposition from China.[31]China’s opposition to Indian membership was founded upon its geostrategic rivalry with India. Whatever the benefits of Indian membership would be to the NSG—led off by including a country with sensitive fuel cycle nuclear activities and nuclear weapons—to China the downsides included consideration that. as one participant explained, "membership in the NSG would be put at the top of India's curriculum vita" to advance New Delhi's quest for a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council, a step that Beijing thus far opposes.[32]China’s calculus on Indian NSG membership may also include India’s designs to become a serious competitor to China as an exporter of nuclear power plant systems and equipment, since India’s reasons for wanting NSG membership include the expectation that participation would facilitate India’s involvement in the global nuclear power industry supply chain.[33]Footnotes[1] A More Geopoliticized Nuclear Suppliers Group[2] Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT)[3] Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT)[4] Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT)[5] India and the NPT After 50 Years[6] India and the NPT After 50 Years[7] India and the NPT After 50 Years[8] India and the NPT After 50 Years[9] NPT Treaty[10] NPT Treaty[11] India and the NPT After 50 Years[12] India and the NPT After 50 Years[13] India and the NPT After 50 Years[14] India and the NPT After 50 Years[15] India and the NPT After 50 Years[16] Nuclear Suppliers Group - NSG FAQ[17] Nuclear Suppliers Group - NSG FAQ[18] Nuclear Suppliers Group - NSG FAQ[19] Nuclear Suppliers Group - NSG FAQ[20] Nuclear Suppliers Group - NSG FAQ[21] Nuclear Suppliers Group - NSG FAQ[22] India must sign NPT to gain entry into NSG: China[23] India must sign NPT to gain entry into NSG: China[24] Nuclear Suppliers Group - NSG FAQ[25] Nuclear Suppliers Group - NSG FAQ[26] A More Geopoliticized Nuclear Suppliers Group[27] A More Geopoliticized Nuclear Suppliers Group[28] A More Geopoliticized Nuclear Suppliers Group[29] A More Geopoliticized Nuclear Suppliers Group[30] A More Geopoliticized Nuclear Suppliers Group[31] A More Geopoliticized Nuclear Suppliers Group[32] A More Geopoliticized Nuclear Suppliers Group[33] A More Geopoliticized Nuclear Suppliers Group

Indian Depository Receipts (IDR)IDR stands for Indian Depository Receipts. As per the definition given in the Companies (Issue of Indian Depository Receipts) Rules, 2004, IDR is an instrument in the form of a Depository Receipt created by the Indian depository in India against the underlying equity shares of the issuing company.An IDR is a way for a foreign company to raise money in India. In an IDR, foreign companies would issue shares,to an Indian Depository, which would in turn issue depository receipts (IDR) to investors in India. The actual shares underlying the IDRs would be held by an Overseas Custodian, which shall authorize the Indian Depository to issue the IDRs. To that extent, IDRs are derivative instruments because they derive their value from the underlying shares.IDR are issued by a domestic depository in India and denominated in Rupees. It represents an ownership interest in a fixed number of underlying equity shares of the Issuing Company. These shares are called Deposited Shares.Standard Chartered Bank created history in the Indian Capital Market by becoming the first foreign company to come up with an IDR issue.Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) took about 18 months of planning before coming out with its Indian depository receipt (IDR) issue and creating history in the Indian capital markets on May 25, 2010.SCB had to work out a number of issues in terms of establishing the regulatory framework around the issue and obtaining the necessary clearances from the Securities and Exchange Board of India and the Reserve Bank of India. The biggest challenge was to explain to investors how IDR works and how to make investors think about it as an investment proposition.In this case, Standard Chartered Bank, Mumbai was the domestic depository, and it has appointed Bank of New York, Mellon as its overseas depository.IDRs has the following features:a) Overseas Custodian: It is a foreign bank having branches in India and requires approval from Finance Ministryfor acting as custodian and Indian depository has to be registered with SEBI.b) Approvals for issue of IDRs: IDR issue will require approval from SEBI and application can be made for this purpose 90 days before the issue opening date.c) Listing: These IDRs would be listed on stock exchanges in India and would be freely transferable.d) Eligibility conditions for overseas companies to issue IDRs:Capital: The overseas company intending to issue IDRs should have paid up capital and free reserve ofatleast $ 100 million.Sales turnover: It should have an average turnover of $ 500 million during the last three years.Profits/dividend: Such company should also have earned profits in the last 5 years and should have declared dividend of at least 10% each year during this period.Debt equity ratio: The pre­issue debt equity ratio of such company should not be more than 2:1.Extent of issue: The issue during a particular year should not exceed 15% of the paid up capital plus free reserves.Redemption: IDRs would not be redeemable into underlying equity shares before one year from date of issue.Denomination: IDRs would be denominated in Indian rupees, irrespective of the denomination of underlying shares.Benefits: In addition to other avenues, IDR is an additional investment opportunity for Indian investors for overseas investment.Minimum issue size: $500 millione) Dividends related to IDR: IDR stands for a particular percentage share of one equity share. The dividend declared by the IDR issuer will be apportioned according to the IDR holdings, and distributed to the IDR holder by the depository.f) Taxation related to IDR: The current tax provisions put IDRs at a distinct disadvantage when compared with other shares listed on Indian stock exchanges. Dividend tax will be assessed at 30% (plus 10% surcharge) on all the dividends from IDRs.Short term capital gains: On Indian stocks, the short term capital gains is charged at 15%, however in the caseof IDRs, the short term capital gains will be charged at 30%.Long term capital gains: On stocks in India, there is no tax on long term capital gain. But in the case of IDRs –investors will need to pay a 20% long term capital gains.The Direct Tax Code which is expected to be implemented next year will change a lot of things and eliminate most of the above referred differences.12 FAQs on IDR:1) Why should a Foreign company issue an IDR?A foreign company which cannot go through the listing process in India but wanting to share the risk and rewards of the issue with Indian shareholders issues an IDR.2) Is it just like buying shares of Standard Chartered Bank in the UK?More or less Yes. However the investor will also run the currency risk because the price of the IDR price will move in tandem with the underlying shares of the issuer’ shares in the country where they are listed.3) What are Indian Depository Receipts (IDRs)?IDRs are like American Depository Receipts or Global Depository Receipts, except that the issuer is a foreign company raising funds from the Indian market. IDRs are rupee­denominated and created by a domestic depository against the underlying equity shares of a foreign company.4) Who can issue IDRs?Any company listed in the country of incorporation can issue IDRs. Besides, the issuer needs to fulfill the other conditions as prescribed above.5) How will the issue of IDR happen?The process is similar to an initial public offering where a draft prospectus is filed with the Securities and Exchange Board of India.Shares underlying IDRs will be deposited with an overseas custodian who will hold shares on behalf of a domestic depository. IDRs will be issued through a public offer in India in the demat form and will be listed on Indianexchanges. Trading and settlement will be similar to those of Indian shares.6) Will Indian investors get equal rights as shareholders?Except attending annual general meetings and voting on resolutions, other rights are available.7) Are there tax issues?IDRs are not subject to securities transaction tax. However, other disadvantages in terms of dividends and capital gains will continue till DTC is implemented.8) What are the benefits for the issuing company?The main benefit is in terms of branding, besides allowing foreign companies to access Indian capital. It is also seen as the platform for creation of acquisition currency and a management talent pool. Issuers have the option to reserve a proportion of the issue for employees.9) Which are all the legislations governing IDRs?Central Government notified the Companies (Issue of Indian Depository Receipts) Rules, 2004 (IDR Rules) pursuant to the section 605 A of the companies Act. SEBI issued guidelines for disclosure with respect to IDRs andnotified the model listing agreement to be entered between exchange and the foreign issuer specifying continuous listing requirements.10) Which intermediaries are involved in issuance of IDRs?a) Overseas Custodian Bank is a banking company which is established in a country outside India and has aplace of business in India and acts as custodian for the equity shares of issuing company against which IDRs areproposed to be issued in the underlying equity shares of the issuer is deposited.b) Domestic Depository who is a custodian of securities registered with the as SEBI and authorised by the issuing company to issue Indian Depository Receipts;c) Merchant Banker registered with SEBI who is responsible for due diligence and through whom the draft prospectus for issuance of he IDR is filed with SEBI by the issuer company.11) Whether IDRs can be converted into underlying equity shares?IDRs can be converted into the underlying equity shares only after the expiry of one year from the date of the issue of the IDR, subject to the compliance of the related provisions of Foreign Exchange Management Act and Regulations issued thereunder by RBI in this regard.12) Who is responsible to distribute the corporate benefits to the IDR holders?On the receipt of dividend or other corporate action on the IDRs, the Domestic Depository shall distribute them to the IDR holders in proportion to their holdings of IDRs.I Hope readers would find this article to be of some value.

There are many Quora questions about wearing masks and the answers to some of them are downright vitriolic. (See How are you handling seeing someone wearing a mask below their nose?)This is my face mask:It’s made of a rather flimsy, stretchy material. I can wash it after every use.But there’s just one problem…I wear glasses, and no matter what I do they fog up when the mask covers my nose. I can’t see where I’m going; I can’t see to fill out forms in the doctor’s office; I can’t see to use my cell phone, and so on. And so the mask ends up below my nose.Additionally, at 67 years of age, I sometimes find myself short of breath, especially in the hot weather. Wearing the mask has me gasping for air until I have a chance to sit quietly in an air conditioned room for a few minutes to catch my breath. Then I can feel comfortable with it.Take your jackboots off, people, and give the rest of us a break. This isn’t a one-size-fits-all policy even if various government agencies have dictated that it be so.Some of us are trying, but it just isn’t working out perfectly.If God meant for us to wear masks, we would be born with them already built in. Mandatory masking is man’s policy, and like all of man’s policies, it has its drawbacks.We have no idea how the long-term consequences of this policy will work out for all age groups and health conditions of the populace.Already, two 14-year-old boys in China have died after wearing face masks in their PE class. Also, a man in Wuhan suffered a collapsed lung after running while wearing a face mask. And then there was the man who crashed his vehicle after wearing a mask for hours and passing out, showing unequivocally that wearing certain masks can indeed restrict oxygen.This mask-wearing policy is a two-way street. I understand the concern of those who are immune-compromised. But those of you who are immune-compromised must also understand the difficulties some of us struggle with, trying to wear masks. You must also understand that 100% compliance is going to be nearly impossible considering other people’s physical and mental health conditions (more about that below).The best way I can protect you from the virus is by not getting it myself. And yet wearing a mask really does nothing in that regard for at least two reasons:I touch my face far more when wearing a mask.The eyes are not protected.I still say the best way to avoid getting the virus is to bulk up the immune system with Vitamins D and C, as well as other nutraceuticals and supplements. Stop being lazy. Do your research, and stop relying on mainstream media for information. All they do is parrot the current propaganda to stir up anxiety and fear.Now for some of the drawbacks to wearing masks. The bolded areas in the following quote are my emphasis.How does wearing a mask violate your rights?By dictating that someone must wear a mask, it is forcing that person to choose an allopathic intervention for the purpose of protecting himself/herself and others. Forcing a person to take an intervention that is potentially harmful for the sake of others is unethical.Forcing individuals to abide by measures that restrict their ability to move freely throughout society without discrimination is unconstitutional. Prohibiting people from entering or participating in society because they don’t wear a mask also violates their constitutional rights.Lastly, for those with deeply held religious beliefs, forced mask-wearing violates their ability to abide by natural law and follow their convictions to walk in faith, not fear.Face Mask FAQs - Stand for Health FreedomHere is another section of the above document that speaks to the reasons why some people can’t wear masks:If I can wear a mask, why can’t you wear a mask?Many people assume that because they are able to wear a mask without issue, everyone should be able to wear a mask without issue. There are numerous reasons why someone might not be able to wear a mask. These include:Anxiety or other psychological issues and disordersAutism or other developmental disordersHearing impairmentsFear of racial profiling, violence or brutality by being a person of color or minority in a maskPTSD from being a victim of a rape, sexual assault or another violent crime in which the perpetrator was wearing a face covering or forced the victim to wear a face coveringRespiratory conditions such as asthma and COPDSensory issues and disordersSkin conditions (staph infections, yeast infections, contact dermatitis, etc.)Moreover, just because someone with one of the above conditions wears a mask does not mean that everyone with that condition can do so. Every human has a different physiological and psychological makeup; what’s true for one person is not true for all.I highly recommend reading Stand for Health Freedom’s entire document even if you don’t live in the U.S. There is a huge backlash against mandatory masking, and for good reason. We are being “softened up” for the next tyrannical dictate that will deprive us of even more of our freedoms. It’s time to engage in civil disobedience again, only this time it’s medical civil disobedience.The rest of this answer is directed to God’s people. Others can feel free to ignore it.I have not been afraid of this virus from Day One. This is why:5 You shall not be afraid of the terror by night,Nor of the arrow that flies by day,6 Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness,Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.7 A thousand may fall at your side,And ten thousand at your right hand;But it shall not come near you.8 Only with your eyes shall you look,And see the reward of the wicked.9 Because you have made the Lord, who is my refuge,Even the Most High, your dwelling place,10 No evil shall befall you,Nor shall any plague come near your dwelling;11 For He shall give His angels charge over you,To keep you in all your ways.12 In their hands they shall bear you up,Lest you dash your foot against a stone.Psalm 91When we turn against each other, biting and tearing at each other over this issue, we are merely fulfilling the desires of our Babylonian overlords. Their goal is destruction, no matter what they might say to the contrary, and they don’t care if we are destroyed physically, or in our minds and spirits.Are we going to let them get away with it? Are we going to allow them to continue whipping up fear, keeping it at fever pitch? Because that’s what starts all the conflict: fear.If not, then it is time to return to a more reasoned, common-sense approach that takes everyone’s concerns into account. This is the love by which the kingdom of God operates—a love that overcomes all bitterness, hate, and strife. This love must flow from all directions to all directions.If I love you, then I’m not going to be afraid of you whether or not you wear a mask because “there is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear … and the one who fears is not perfected in love” (1 John 4:18). And if you are immune-compromised, I will also love you by wearing a mask to the best of my ability when I’m in your presence, or I will stay out of your presence. Fair enough?And how will you love me back? By not demanding of me that I wear a mask everywhere I go just on the off chance that I might bump into you somewhere.But what if I get this virus and die from it? Well, so what? Then it’s my time to go home to be with the Lord, and I’m satisfied with that, too. I’m not trying to be careless; I’m simply putting my confidence in the Lord to direct my steps and give me wisdom and guidance.Whether I live or die, I am the Lord’s, and fear is out of the picture because He, the indwelling Conqueror, has overcome it.