COVID-19: Arnold Schwarzenegger Lambasts Anti-Maskers

During an interview with CNN's Bianna Golodryga on Wednesday, the "Terminator" star and former governor of California addressed Americans who are still "in denial" about the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“There is a virus here. It kills people and the only way we prevent it is: get vaccinated, wear masks, do social distancing, washing your hands all the time, and not just to think about, ‘Well my freedom is being kind of disturbed here.’ No, screw your freedom," Schwarzenegger said.

“You have the freedom to wear no mask — but you know something? You’re a schmuck for not wearing a mask. Because you are supposed to protect your fellow Americans around you.”

The objection to face masks was then contrasted to traffic restrictions, with Schwarzenegger claiming that neither are infringements on our rights.

“We put the traffic light at the intersection so someone doesn’t kill someone else by accident,” Schwarzenegger said. “You cannot say, ‘No one is going tell me that I’m going to stop here at this traffic light here, I’m going to go right through it.’ Yeah, then you kill someone else and then it is your doing.”

He believes that freedom comes with responsibility: "obligations and responsibilities. You cannot just say, 'I have the right to do XYZ' when you affect other people. That is when it gets serious."

"This is the same thing with the virus. You cannot go and not put the mask on because when you breathe, you can infect someone else. And you can infect someone that then gets sick and may die."

He urged those who "don't believe in masks" or "say we don't have to conduct social distance" to listen to specialists and follow their health recommendations, which include handwashing, social distancing when necessary, and vaccinations.

“There’s no one that knows more about a bicep than I do because I studied this issue for 50 years and the same is also with the virus. The people out there, the experts, they study this year after year.”

Wearing masks to prevent the spread of COVID-19 should not be a "political problem," according to Schwarzenegger. "Anyone who makes it a political issue is an absolute imbecile who can't read," he continued.