Greetings and Salutations!
Today is April 13th, 2021. The Covid pandemic has been a wildfire raging around the world for over 12 months now. While there are some successes, in that we already have four, very effective vaccines that are finally being rolled out in significant numbers, the crisis is not over by a long shot. Not only are there too many countries in the world that have yet to see their first Covid-19 vaccination shot, but here in America we have a dishearteningly large number of citizens who, for various reasons are refusing to get the vaccination, or, for that matter, take the tiny precautions to keep from getting, or spreading the virus, such as wearing a mask, extra and more complete hand washing, social distancing and the like.
That having been said, I am focusing on one issue here…that is the problem of vaccinations in America. I just dropped into a thread on Facebook, from a local page, where a large percentage of the people were railing against getting One of the vaccines we have available. I wrote the following comment to address their concerns, although I am rather sure that most of them will neither read it, nor believe it if they DO read it. However, if I can open the eyes of even one person, then I shall look upon the commentary as a success. Here, then, follows my argument as to why getting the vaccination jab is vital, and far better than the alternatives:
“I got my second Pfizer jab over two weeks ago. Since I had covid in 2020, my first shot made me sick as a dog for two weeks. The second one I barely noticed. I did have a bit of fatigue, and a couple of smallish headaches in the week following, but that was it.
I STRONGLY recommend to everyone that if you can get the jab…get it. It does not matter if it is the two shot versions, such a Pfizer or Moderna, or the one and done, J&J jab. While there is much publicity when someone has a bad reaction, a lot of press does not mean there is actual danger there. Right now tens of millions of people have been vaccinated, and the number of people who have had serious issues is in the very low thousands. The reality is that you are many times more likely to be injured or killed in a car crash on your way to get the shot than you are to suffer injury from the vaccination itself.
Remember…the news media tends to focus close attention on whatever event will get them the most viewers…ignoring the entire picture. So, it is very easy to believe that the dangers are greater than they really are. Let me give you a specific example. Last Summer there were the VERY VISIBLE protests by BLM over the George Floyd murder. From the news coverage, one would think that all of Minneapolis/St. Paul was being burned to the ground. However, as this link shows, it was a tiny part of the city, and a very small number of buildings actually damaged.
yet, these events caused weapons sales to skyrocket in America, caused many to call for preemptive strikes to deal with a coming race war, and a general feeling of fear and hate that is still with us today.
NOT getting the vaccine is, in my opinion, a very selfish act. Why? Because…with out it, a person remains vulnerable to catching Covid, and distributing it to family and friends. The person who gets it up front might not die from it, or, for that matter, even feel ill…but they could kill or maim friends and family all around them.
Another reason is that Covid mutates, and is becoming better at infecting others. The ONLY time it can mutate like that, though, is when it enters a host and starts reproducing. The host’s immune system might knock out the weaker strains of the virus and allow only the stronger versions to survive. That is why we are now seeing spikes from a new version of Covid, that is better at infecting people, and as such is striking far more folks of a younger age.
Finally, there is the reality that while “only” a few percent of people that get Covid die…a huge percentage (I have seen estimates as high as 70%) of the people who get it and survive are left with permanent organ damage that will impact the length of their lives – shortening their life, increase the probability that they will be hit with other diseases, and, that they will end up needing far more, expensive, hospital care than they would have. And that, folks, is the BEST case. There are reports of significant numbers of folks who continue to suffer symptoms of Covid for months, and perhaps years after having had it – the so-called “Long Haulers”. There are reports of people who have had such damage from Covid that they have been permanently disabled because of the damage done to their bodies and brains.
Are these chances YOU are willing to take? Are these chances you are willing to inflict on your aging parents, grandparents or friends? Are these chances that you are willing to inflict on the members of your family that might be immune compromised? Remember, as of today, over 567,000 Citizens have died of this virus, and we have a long way to go before it is under control. Many of these people also were skeptical that Covid 19 was anything other than a bad flu, or, a hoax. There have been multiple reports of people saying, up to the moment of death, that they did not believe the virus was real.
I got the jab as soon as I possibly could because my answer to the previous questions was a resounding “no“. I hope that all who read this, who are still holding out for a “safer” vaccination, or believe that they are so healthy that they will NEVER get it, will seriously consider what I have said…understand that Covid does not care what you think, want or believe or how strong you think your immune system and healthy your life is. It WILL infect you if given the chance. It is becoming more and more likely every day that EVERY citizen is a target and there is no guard against it. I suggest a better course of action is to face your fears. Do not let them control your actions. Do the SMART thing and get the vaccination, if not for yourself, for the people you care for. The worst of the reactions to the vaccine, as reported so far is still orders of magnitude less difficult than dealing with getting Covid and all the ramifications that means..”