According to Reuters, about half of the US population (including me) have received at least one of the three vaccines approved for emergency use. This is a personal choice, and I fully respect those who are concerned about side effects. Moreover, no vaccine is 100% effective. You can still contract Covid-19, and it's still unclear just how long immunity lasts Both the Mayo Clinic and CDC have FAQs concerning the vaccine. It also dispels misinformation being spread by the uninformed. This unfortunately includes misinformation being spewed by NorCo GOP Exec candidate Steve Lynch. Four years ago, he'd be dismissed as someone from the fringe. Now he's poised to be the Republican standard bearer.
He has referred to this vaccine, which is voluntary, as "medical tyranny." He has falsely claimed it alters your DNA. He vilifies Dr. Anthony Fauci, who he calls Fraudi, as "corrupt to the core."
I decline to host comments that continue to spew misinformation.
ReplyDeleteFor the record, I got my vaccination so I'm not anti-vaccine.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I think there has been a great deal of politics played with the virus, and that is being made worse by those who are trying to limit discussion and stifle alternate views about the virus and the approach to stopping it. Some have used the guise of stopping "misinformation" to stop legitimate discussion from taking place. This is counter-productive and should have no place in a free society. We fight misinformation with facts and discussion to win over those who don't agree with us, not by trying to silence them.
Regarding the statements you attribute to Lynch, you are correct that the vaccines don't alter your DNA. However, the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines do use mRNA to "teach" your RNA to fight the virus. While some may hail this as a new "golden age" of vaccines, it's important to note that the vaccines have only been approved for emergency use and there is much that we don't know about how they will work and what side-effects may come from them.
I don't think there's a "medical tyranny" by those who are administering the vaccines, but certainly there is a political tyranny by some who are trying to shame or otherwise intimidate people to get the vaccine. That's wrong. Medical decisions, particularly as they relate to an emergency use vaccine, are the decision of the individual, not the state or anyone else.
Finally, while I don't believe Dr. Fauci is corrupt, he has a very mixed record as far as being right. As we have seen, many of the states that followed his advice are having much poorer results than some of those who didn't. Fauci has repeatedly refused to give concrete numbers to inform when the measures he's been advocating would end. No person is infallible, and I think he has been given an excessive amount of power for an unelected bureaucrat.
That's not to say Fauci isn't well-intended. It's just that he's being allowed (by two administrations now) to make policy and decisions without enough oversight and control. That's never a good thing, whether it's a public health figure or a governor.
what is the mixed record for Fauci? As scientists, of which he is pre-eminent in the field of contagious diseases, learned more about this NOVEL virus, recommendations changed. Specifically what were his bad calls?
DeleteAt a certain point, probably this year, the two or three vaccines we now have will move from the current Emergency Use Authorization status to the same status as the flu, pneumonia, and shingles vaccines. Few businesses (including hospitals) can require COVID vaccines now. But when they are fully authorized, they can be required. What then?
ReplyDeleteIn my immediate area of the Lehigh Valley - the west side of Bethlehem - we are likely nearly at or at functional herd immunity. If I travel two municipal boundaries out of the city (from here through Hanover Township to East Allen Township, for example), when will residents of those areas reach a similar level of immunity?
I don’t have answers to those questions much less recommendations. Selfishly, I want to think that if I or someone I care for needs an ICU bed later this year, it won’t be in use to someone who realized too late that immunization could have prevented all the lines and isolation of a hospital stay.
10:16, you make several valid points. But let me assure you that there has been loads of misinformation, completely irresponsible allegations that confuse, scare and mislead people. I know this bc I get plenty of these comments, which I refuse to publish.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I see no tyranny in encouraging people top get the vaccine. Google "covid vaccine" and "personal choice" and you will see numerous governmental entities concede that the decision is a personal choice. They are recommending it bc it is a personal choice with public consequences.
there will probably not be a government mandate, but you can expect a complicit business mandate. It seems the government has lots of allies to do their bidding. Remember, if you are worried, get the vaccine, If your neighbor doesn't, he is no threat to you, since you have the vaccine. Your neighbor has the right to determine what goes into his body. If he errs, he may suffer the consequences.
ReplyDeleteGreat post 10:16! It's a good example of how to have a free and fair exchange of ideas without being nasty or overly political. I feel the same way about Fauci. I believe he's well intended but has made some mistakes. I believe Fauci and Rachel Levine had too much power as unelected bureaucrats as well. There are 3 branches of government, and whether you approve or disapprove of the way Wolf handled the pandemic, he shouldn't be the only decision maker involved.
ReplyDeleteIf we can just put the politics aside even a little bit we can really learn a lot from this. If it happens again we can implement practices that are evidenced based and make sense. Much of what went on made no sense at all.
Once the vaccines are FDA approved, it will eventually become a soft mandate in that those who choose not to get it will find home schooling their children (forget about most colleges), inability to travel freely, lack of employment opportunities, etc, will become too much of pain in the ass and they'll eventually fold.
ReplyDelete@1:08 - His "bad calls" are actually just one singular fault - it's that he didn't love Trump enough to blindly parrot his talking points, which is a mortal sin among 35% of the American public.
ReplyDelete