I don't like to see this problem phrased as "a subset of chud lunatics are waging a war on masks". The war would have been instantly shut down if the American government enforced mandated masks and enforced them. But there has been bipartisan reluctance in doing this even if Democrat politicians performatively wear masks in front of cameras despite catching covid left and right.
It's not a war if masks were dead on arrival. American government dropped the pretence that they cared to curb covid as soon as people started accepting COVID as normal. They really do not care about pestilence. I'm sure that US will become a monkeypox haven soon enough. This is even clearer when you look at the constant barrage of disdain and criticism towards countries that enact measures to prevent people dying from completely preventable causes.