We need a vaccine against stupidity

Eloquent as always, Alan Kohler does not mince words:

"The reality is: If you’re not vaccinated, you’ll probably gain immunity

by getting COVID … if you survive."

But surviving CoViD is only one problem ... the other is Long CoViD.

It's been said many times: The world will be divided in two, those who are vaccinated and those who will get sick with CoViD. All over the world, it is predominantly the unvaccinated who go to hospital, to the ICU and who die.

We need a vaccine against confusion and stupidity

The New Daily

Kohler wrote in June that “the government should explain ...

"To those who decide not to be vaccinated:

that’s also a decision to stay home and not see anyone."

... which is more or less true at the moment, but governments are not explaining it as clearly as that and are not putting a time limit on this."

We need to talk about mandatory vaccination

The New Daily

At the very least it should be required for healthcare workers, and perhaps for anyone mingling in crowds – going to the football, concerts or the theatre, pubs, cafes and restaurants and, of course, travelling.

And how long will it be until more countries adapt the Singapore way of dealing with CoViD vaccination recalcitrants?

Singapore to bill unvaccinated COVID-19 patients

ABC News

In explaining its decision, the MOH said unvaccinated people disproportionately contribute to the strain on Singapore's health care system because they represent the majority of patients who need intensive care for COVID-19.

From December 8, all COVID-19 patients in Singapore who are eligible for vaccination but choose not to do so will need to cover their own medical expenses.

Singapore is one of the world's most inoculated countries with more than 85 per cent of the population having received two doses of a coronavirus vaccine, with 18 per cent given booster shots.

Do vaccines reduce your risk of long COVID?

ABC NEWS

Getting vaccinated against COVID-19 substantially reduces your risk of severe disease and diminishes your chances of catching the virus altogether.

So far, it appears a relatively small number of fully vaccinated people develop long COVID symptoms - but it's too early to say exactly how common such cases are. Professor Matthews says although COVID-19 vaccines don't eliminate your risk entirely, they reduce your chances of getting long COVID.

That's primarily because COVID-19 vaccines help to prevent you contracting the disease in the first place. But research also suggests being fully vaccinated decreases your risk of long COVID, even if a breakthrough infection occurs.

‘Dog whistle to extremists’:

Coalition senators back One Nation anti-vaccine bill

The New Daily

Five Coalition senators crossed the floor to vote against the government and back a One Nation plan to outlaw “discrimination” against unvaccinated Australians. The Senate decisively rejected Pauline Hanson’s proposal in a final vote, following a passionate speech from Jacqui Lambie, who warned those opting against COVID vaccination that “choices have consequences”.

“It’s not discrimination. It’s called being a goddamn bloody adult.”

For the full speech, see below.

Senator Lambie said. “If you want to work as a cab driver, you need a driver’s licence. People without licences aren’t being discriminated against,” she said.

“One Nation is not a fighter against discrimination. One Nation seeks to profit from it. It’s just a fundraising exercise for them, that’s all this is.”

In a speech introducing her bill, Senator Hanson referred to vaccination as “experimentation” and said she would “fight to the death” against vaccine mandates. She also supported using Ivermectin, an anti-parasitic drug that Australian medical experts have warned does not have any proven uses against COVID.

‘Dangerous’:

Coalition senator slammed for ‘anti-vax’ content

funded by taxpayers

The New Daily

Coalition senator Gerard Rennick is being accused of undermining the nation’s vaccine rollout with “anti-vax content”, after setting up a taxpayer-funded website to publish unverified reports of alleged vaccine adverse events and claim a government “cover up” of side effects.

But Senator Rennick has been condemned by the federal Opposition and by Australian Medical Association vice president Dr Chris Moy, who called it ...

"About as anti-scientific as you can get."

After receiving stories on Facebook, Senator Rennick copies and republishes the claims – complete with photos – several times a day on social media.

In its latest report on vaccine adverse effects, the Therapeutic Goods Administration said it received 2.1 reports of adverse effects per 1000 doses, with the most frequently reported complaints including headaches and arm soreness.

The TGA stresses “the protective benefits of vaccination continue to far outweigh the potential risks”.

Protests from the disempowered are powered

by conspiracies

SMH

Over the weekend, tens of thousands of people gathered in Melbourne to protest vaccine mandates and the Victorian government’s proposed pandemic bill. While the latest protests were relatively peaceful, they have followed a week of similar gatherings whose language and symbolism were at times violent.

The protesters are a mix of groups, but the movement is riddled with far-right and alt-right extremists who, with their growing reach through social media and in the context of developments in the United States and Europe, pose one of the more significant challenges to Australian democracy in recent memory.

But there is no doubt that, at the heart of the protests - their ideological roots, so to speak - are extremism and conspiracy theories. An analysis of their online activity and forums, as well as the imagery and language of the protests themselves, offers plenty of evidence of this.

Central to it is a deep distrust of science and a strong belief in conspiracies ...

... including the notion of “big pharma” driving public policy, and a new world order of evil “liberal elites” who abuse children and rule over global affairs.

QAnon is probably the best-known group associated with that thinking. There is also an embedded spiritual framing, patriotism and most alarmingly, anti-semitism that intersects with these far-right narratives.

Oh, and one more thing, talking about "telling it how it is"! If you have any doubts as to where you stand as an anti vaccer, check out JL's speech, a rare example of full-throated anger in the red leather senate. (The Rationalist)

"If you choose to do something that puts other people's lives at risk, you will be held accountable ... having the freedom to choose is not the same as avoiding the consequences of that choice ...

This mirrors one of my favourite witticisms (Ayn Rand):

"You can avoid reality ...

but you can't avoid the consequences of avoiding reality."

... you have a right to choose but you don't have the right to put vulnerable people's lives at risk ... [business owners] should not be forced to pay for someone's else's choice not to get the vaccine; here's the thing:

"Being held accountable for your own actions is not discrimination -

it's being a goddamn bloody adult!"

Anti-Vaccers often say the reporting by the media is scare-mongering.

Yeah, right ...

For the record:

History of Vaccines: Since WWII many viral diseases had vaccines invented for their prevention, like Polio, Measels, Influenza, Chickenpocks, Mumps, Wooping Cough, Cholera, Typhoid, Diphtheria, Tuberculosis, Smallpox, Yellow Fever, Meningococcal, Hepatitis A, Pertussis etc …

Our World in Data: Reasonable estimates of lives saved due to vaccinations are in the range of around 5 million lives per year, which implies that between 1980 and 2018 around 150 to 200 million lives have been saved.

The Conversation: Millions are rejecting one of humanity’s best weapons for saving lives: Vaccine

Vaccination has been the most successful medical procedure ever introduced. It has saved more lives than any other intervention. “The risk of serious adverse reactions has remained extraordinarily low for all modern vaccines;” again: ... COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective, “under the most intense safety monitoring in United States history,”

CNN: Covid-19 vaccines saved nearly 280,000 lives in the US

Google search: "How many Deaths from CoViD?" As of June 2021 there have been about 207m cases of CoViD 19, and approx. 4.35m deaths; it is reasonable to suggest that millions of deaths have been prevented by the CoViD vaccines administered.