America, we have a problem. The COVID is spreading, largely through a highly contagious variant called Delta, but only 48.3% of the population is vaccinated. More than 600,000 Americans have died. In five states—Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi, Wyoming, and Louisisna—less than 36% are vaccinated.
Despite the resurgence of this deadly disease, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine signed legislation barring schools and universities from excluding unvaccinated students. The results are predictable: more hospitalizations, more deaths.
GOP legislators say they prefer to wait until the vaccines have received full approval from the Centers for Disease Control. The three in wide use-Moderna, Pzifer, and J&J-were approved on an emergency basis by the CDC and have been highly effective.
The CDC should move swiftly to give full approval to the vaccines and remove this excuse from the vaccine deniers.
At the recent Conservative Political Action Conference, conservatives ridiculed the vaccines.
From the Washington Post:
“Clearly they were hoping — the government was hoping — that they could sort of sucker 90 percent of the population into getting vaccinated,” activist Alex Berenson told the crowd Saturday, seeming to inflate Biden’s target. “And it isn’t happening.”
The crowd clapped and cheered at that failure. What began as “vaccine hesitancy” has morphed into outright vaccine hostility, as conservatives increasingly attack the White House’s coronavirus message, mischaracterize its vaccination campaign and, more and more, vow to skip the shots altogether.
The notion that the vaccine drive is pointless or harmful — or perhaps even a government plot — is increasingly an article of faith among supporters of former president Donald Trump, on a par with assertions that the last election was stolen and the assault on the U.S. Capitol was overblown.
Appearing at CPAC, lawmakers like Reps. Madison Cawthorn (R-N.C.) and Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) took aim at Biden’s push for “door-to-door” vaccine outreach, framing efforts to boost inoculations as a creeping menace from big government.
I can’t help but remember the national panic over polio in the early 1950s. As an adolescent, I was warned not to to the movies because the headrest on the chair might have polio germs. Children across the nation were terrified of spending their life in an iron lung or being permanently paralyzed (like President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who was crippled after contracting polio in 1921 at the age of 39) or dying. The biggest year for polio was 1952, when 58,000 were infected with the disease and about 3,000 died.
When Dr. Jonas Salk announced in 1953 that he had developed a polio vaccine, people clamored to be vaccinated. There were no anti-vaxxers. Everyone wanted protection from this deadly disease.
Yet here we are in 2021, after 34,000,000 cases of COVID and 608,000 deaths, and GOP states are passing laws to protect people’s right not to be vaccinated!
Has the country gone mad?
The Globe had a story in the last week or the week before about some public and private Universities requiring proof of vaccine and small percent of parents at some schools are upset but so far the colleges are holding strong. Harvard, BU, Northeaster, BC, Emerson, Brown….. and all of the UMass schools are also requiring full proof of vaccination.
Charlie Baker is encouraging vaccinations in the his state and not fighting these requirements.
“Has the country gone mad?”
Short answer: Yes.
Seconded
Ohio is home to one of the U.S. House’ s most vile politicians, Jim Jordan.
Correction: “Ohio is home to one of the U.S. House’ s most vile humans, Jim Jordan.”
Aren’t these know-nothing knuckleheads aware that their lord and master, Trump, was vaccinated? The GQP has truly embraced stupidity, arrogance and unhinged conspiracy theories based on a strong foundation of anti-science venom.
“strong foundation” should have been in quotation marks or I should have used “sic” as well. Ideas based on stupidity and ignorance are by definition based on a weak/flawed foundation of quicksand or thin air. In other words, they are baseless.
the irony drips: Trump is vaccinated, the pro-Trump legislators are vaccinated, the newscasters on Fox are vaccinated, likely most of the far right talking heads are vaccinated….
Trump is vaccinated”
Trump is vaccinated
Against essential truth
But truth is overrated
Impeachment is the proof
This is a list of all the Universities so far, that are requiring vaccinations. I am sure some are waiting for CDC approval.
https://universitybusiness.com/state-by-state-look-at-colleges-requiring-vaccines/
Different universities are using the word “require” in different ways. Some are only requiring students to present proof of vaccination to live in the dorms while others are requiring proof of vaccination to attend in person classes. In any case the vaccination cards are easily counterfeited.
The fact that some find a way to work around the system is never an excuse for lack of enforceable policy. Many corporations pay no taxes. Society’s answer is not to eliminate taxes. The argument is a purposeful distraction.
Linda,
Because of the large number of fake vaccination cards, universities that “require” proof of vaccination should assume that a percentage of their students are, in fact, not vaccinated and plan accordingly. This is not very different from assuming that a percentage of their underage students will, in fact, drink alcohol.
There is also an argument to be made that schools which do not require vaccination might be able to get unvaccinated people to identify themselves, allowing the school to segregate these folks away from the vaccinated to a degree, and certainly making contact tracing better.
Well, the Gates Vaccine (AstraZeneca) includes a microchip that broadcasts a radio signal , so at least it’s easy to identify the folks who have been vaccinated with that.
All you need to do is tune to the right frequency on the radio dial, where you will hear Bill talking about the wonders of monop…er, “markets”
And you thought I was kidding?
https://news.mit.edu/2019/storing-vaccine-history-skin-1218
I believe that the inventors of the mRNA vaccines (Pfizer and Moderns) were remiss in not including a marker that would have readily identified the vaccinated.
It would have been very easy to include a snippet of mRNA that would have instructed the cells to produce luciferase, a bioluminescent protein. That way, the vaccinated would have glowed like fireflies in the dark.
It would also have helped reduce global warming, since it would mean less electricity for lighting was required.
The vaccinated would have been their own light source, like those angler fish that you find down in the deep dark depths of the ocean.
Just imagine how convenient that would be for reading in bed
BTW, I readily admit the possibility of counterfeiting one of those glowing dangly things coming out of your forehead , but at least it would be more difficult than counterfeiting a vaccine card.
In a democracy, Ohioans would elect Nina Turner to the U.S. House.
Intercept reported that Stacy Schusterman, heir and chair of Samson Energy, a fossil fuel company in Tulsa prefers candidate, Shontel Brown. Stacy directed $660,000 to supporting Brown and attacking Nina Turner. The Board of the Black Caucus PAC has 2 members who worked as lobbyists for fossil fuel so, guess which candidate they support?
Has the country gone mad?
An easy answer. About half of the country is insane and most of them vote Republican, and a majority of those voters are Traitor Trump’s mindless MAGA minions.
When this pandemic is finally behind us, imagine how many GOP voters and/or mindless MAGA minions will be dead or suffering from the long-term effects of the virus.
COVID-19 (coronavirus): Long-term effects
“COVID-19 symptoms can sometimes persist for months. The virus can damage the lungs, heart and brain, which increases the risk of long-term health problems.”
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/coronavirus/in-depth/coronavirus-long-term-effects/art-20490351
The survivors that end up with long-term COVID will need good medical care if they even have medical care.
I wonder how many voters the GOP is going to lose before the elections in 2022 and 2024. Just thinking. Since so many elections end up with razor-thin margins, this could be a game-changer across the country.
I would be very careful and check the racial demographics to see who is getting infected . Trump viewed this as a Blue State virus at first. Do these state GOPs view this as a Blue county virus seeing the impact greater in minority areas. . The misinformation is not limited to Republican voters. Missouri is a Red State but what is the infection rate in St Louis.
For the most accurate information of what is happening in the Show Me State, M. Holloway’s FB page and blog are the place to go. Read his narratives over time. He has been spot on with damn near everything. . . and if he makes a mistake in the data he corrects it.
https://www.facebook.com/search/top?q=matthew%20holloway
Severe negative effects of having contracted Covid-19 can be permanent.
Some prominent epidemiologist doctor on CSPAN am call-in program was interviewed a while back, giving medical facts/ recommendations about vaccines et al. He noted that he himself caught it (while doing rounds in a hospital pre-vaccines). He clearly didn’t want to scare people too much, but when interviewer pressed him, he said he still had lasting effects months later, one of which was that he’d lost most of his hearing & was wearing two hearing aids…
There is no vaccination against stupidity.
But even if there were , the Republicans would not take it.
Amen, SomeDAM poet.
Darwinian Theory is at work.
Glad I no longer live in o-SIGH-O.
According to the government program Vaccine Adverse Events Recording System (VAERS) as of July 9, 2021: nearly 11,000 deaths in the USA from the Covid “vaccines” and approaching 500,000 total adverse reactions including myocarditis, blood clots, miscarriages, paralysis, anaphylaxis, etc. A 2009 Harvard study estimated that the VAERS system underreports and only catches between one and ten percent of actual adverse reactions.
Stop believing the propaganda from mainstream news which is bought by Big Pharma. Vaccines are poison and are a way to reduce the population. Drug companies are making billions of dollars on these injections funded by our tax dollars. Please do your homework.
This is complete nonsense. COVID is now a disease of the unvaccinated. Good luck.
Janet,
Why would big Pharma want to reduce the number of people who are a market for their products? Big business likes abundant cheap labor
and big customer markets.
The political right wing (Republicans) who promote the interests of corporations oppose birth control. Yes, a segment of big Pharma makes revenue from bc pills but, financial benefits are greater from selling their other products to more people, For example, more births, more drugs associated with the wellness of mothers and babies.
Is this a genetic defect or an acquired trait . You have no clue about the VAERS system. These are deaths and adverse events that have been reported to the CDC , they can be reported by anyone whether they have a medical background or not . The are not deaths that have been attributed to the vaccine after scientific evaluation . But let us assume that all 11,000 deaths were caused by the vaccine. That would mean that less than .007%of the 161million people who have been vaccinated died because of the vaccine . While at the same time using a similar unproven metric the CDC reports that there have been 900,000 +excess deaths and 600,000 official deaths attributed to Covid . The 900,000 did not die in car accidents and did not die in skying accidents. .
How does 900,000 compare to 11,000. To help you walk upright that would be 81 times the amount . Now please return back to your cave.
According to CDC
Healthcare providers are required to report to VAERS the following adverse events after COVID-19 vaccination [under Emergency Use Authorization (EUA)], and other adverse events if later revised by CDC:
Vaccine administration errors, whether or not associated with an adverse event (AE)
Serious AEs regardless of causality. Serious AEs per FDA are defined as:
Death;
A life-threatening AE;
Inpatient hospitalization or prolongation of existing hospitalization;
A persistent or significant incapacity or substantial disruption of the ability to conduct normal life functions;
A congenital anomaly/birth defect;
An important medical event that based on appropriate medical judgement may jeopardize the individual and may require medical or surgical intervention to prevent one of the outcomes listed above.
Cases of Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome
Cases of COVID-19 that result in hospitalization or death
Healthcare providers are encouraged to report to VAERS any additional clinically significant AEs following vaccination, even if they are not sure if vaccination caused the event.
// End CDC wuote
It does not matter if the event was caused by the vaccine or not. So even if someone died from a lightning strike walking out the door after being vaccinated, the CDC requires that the health care provider report that adverse event.
The purpose of reporting all adverse events is to allow medical experts to sift through the possibilities and determine which ones might have been related to the vaccine. In other words , it’s a safety mechanism.
Then again, if the person was killed by a lightning strike walking out the door after a vaccination, I suppose one could make a good argument that they were effectively killed by the vaccine, since if they had not been there to be vaccinated, they would still be alive.
So maybe that was not the best example.
SomeDAM Poet
Or was it the act of walking out the door that killed them.
True enough
One also might make a very convincing argument that their birth was the cause of their death.
“Death Certificate”
His birth was cause of death
It’s clear as clear can be
He overdosed on meth
But birth was really key
So what are the motives?
Increase infections and the resultant economic losses and then blame Biden .
Ohio Governor broadcasts to world:
I am an idiot, and I have no freaking clue how much damage I have just done.
Magnificent post, Diane! Powerfully written! Thank you.
Hey Republicans: A lot of y’all are going to catch this disease and suffer tremendously or die if you don’t do a 180 really soon. Just saying.
In almost every state minorities trail whites in Vaccinations some by a few percentage points in other states by significant amounts . Republican law makers may be more vile than we think, yet more calculating. Who do you think will bear the brunt of a new surge?
https://www.kff.org/coronavirus-covid-19/issue-brief/latest-data-on-covid-19-vaccinations-race-ethnicity/
That is so creepy & yet I wonder if it is not part of their calculations. Many pols’ campaigns have been guided by cold-hard-stats-addicted bean-counters for so long they probably barely notice the underlying inhumanity. Besides, who’s paying for their campaigns? Not constituents.
!!!!!!!!!
Joel, are you suggesting Republicans are discouraging people from getting the vaccine as part of a plan to reduce the population of minorities?
Black people are reportedly not ignoring the Tuskegee experiments.
Given the evident racism in the past and present, some American white people contrive systems to prey on vulnerable demographic groups. We shouldn’t ignore that.
Some people of color prey on others but, the record indicates those actions are acts of individuals against individuals.
FLERP!
Am I suggesting that the party of Proud Boys, Oath keepers and Q would do that . YUP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
FLERP!
Who Moi: why would I think that all these right wing politicians and media personalities, who should be water boarded till they agree to allowing states to reveal their vaccine status would be so vile.
Perhaps you can come up with a non nefarious explanation for their actions. They had no problem with a 1/2 dozen other vaccines being required before admittance . Whether it be killing more minorities , causing Biden’s vaccine drive to not achieve herd immunity or tanking the economy for political purpose , I can not think of a non nefarious reason . I’ll wait for you to inform me. .
And seriously the Metropolitan Republican Club is not exactly in rural Mississippi. Inviting McInnes’s is all you have to know about how vile even NYC Republican officials have become. Actually it dates back to Goldwater. Don’t take my word ask Stewart Stevens .
https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/07/trumps-war-on-blue-states-is-worse-than-previously-thought.html
I think your Covid race-genocide conspiracy theory is about as bonkers as Q, Joel.
Linda
A little straight talk is in order from the leadership in the Black community. The type of talk that I as a white progressive can not do. Not PC . In fact if Biden and the Democrats wanted to see the Trumpanzees go for vaccinations; rather than cajoling them, he would do better thanking them for dropping dead and making it easier for them to get re-elected.
However out here on Beautiful Scenic long Island. The 2 Republican CDs have far higher Vaccination rates than Brooklyn or the Bronx. So I would suspect that it is not just the Right Wing Politicians and Media who are afraid to admit they got the CHIP.
FLERP!
Well Q is a very real phenomenon. So I must be on to something about the party of Q , Proud Boys , sedition, climate denial and now anti vaccination.
By the way since our last discussion: in the month of June shootings and murders dropped 36% in NYC vs 2020. In the week ending July 4th shootings and murders dropped by 53% vs 2020 in NYC. In the the week ending July 11th 47% % vs 2020 . In fact I believe the drop has been seen in 7 of 8 weeks since the city removed Covid restrictions and people went back to work.
Don’t expect to see that information in the tabloids. Like a retraction of a story with a false accusation, look for that in the classified section.
Yup! They have been forewarned over and over again. Plus, infections are on the rise…again.
One minor correction: it is the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), not the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) that approves vaccines.
The FDA approves vaccines, but the CDC approves of vaccines.
Diane– my family moved from a small city to a nearby rural village in 1954 (when I was 5). There were lots of creeks to wade and tube-float in, and those summers were so hot. I still remember being verboten to do that in our first years there. I had a cousin who was crippled from polio, so I remember the fear. Even after we were all vaccinated in ’55-’56, it was another couple of years before I was able to comfortably join in the fun.
Your stats are amazing: the numbers were so small, compared to covid! I wonder if there would have been a difference in the ’50’s, had the illness mainly affected older folks as opposed to kids. Hard to know. There was much more trust in government, and in science, in those days.
The only possible answer to “Has the country gone mad?” is “If you mean legions of Republicans, Trumpists, Proud Boys, Tea Partiers, Fox Newsies, and millions of the uninformed, yes.” Did the cynical Mitch McConnell get the vaccine? I bet the answer to that is also “Yes.”
The Mad have gone Country
The mad have gone country
It’s easy to see
With Garth and with Dolly
At Grand Opery
Musta been nappen.
When vast numbers of people are sickened and die because of the actions of these Repugnican governors, they will respond as they already have, taking Orwel’s 1984 a an instruction book, and make sure that the instances of disease, deaths, hospitalizations become un-events. What are you talking about? Didn’t mappen.
cx: Orwell, ofc.
My Lord! What a lot of errors!
When vast numbers of people are sickened and die because of the actions of these Repugnican governors, those governors will respond as they already have, by taking Orwell’s 1984 as an instruction book, and making sure that the instances of disease, deaths, hospitalizations become un-events.
What are you talking about? Didn’t happen. Un-good, un-news.
What are you talking about?
Didn’t mappen.