Bad Choices Entitle Vaxxers to Consequences, Not Victimhood
It’s now time to ask, “What duties do I owe to my neighbors, my community and my country?”
Amy Reichert, the queen bee of the local proCovid/ReOpen movement, has contributed an article to SDRostra, a conservative blog, complaining about discrimination.
She’s upset because Union-Tribune columnist Michael Smolens wrote an article entitled, “People who won’t get COVID-19 vaccine shouldn’t complain about restrictions.”
Reichert doesn’t get it that deliberately unvaccinated people are a danger to the community. She mocks Smolens for telling the truth. (Yes, I know she read something that said otherwise on Facebook.)
Granted, no vaccine is 100% effective, but study after study after study shows infected vaccinated individuals are half as likely to pass on the disease compared to unvaccinated persons.
What part of people who get sick are spreaders does she not get? What part of vaccinated people who do get breakthrough cases are less likely to end up in an ICU is confusing her?
So, after dismissing the article with a laugh until you cry emoji, Reichart goes on to play the whataboutism game, namely “what about the kids under 12?” And “what about people who’ve already had covid?” And “what about if a booster shot is needed?”
What about if she gets her head on straight and quits muddying the waters? Go spend a day in an ICU ward in Louisiana and get back to me.
https://twitter.com/Drnicolecb/status/1423250947212447744?s=20
By inference with the headline to her screed --”Show Us Your Papers-- she’s playing the “you people are like Nazi’s” card. It’s a little more subtle than claiming the unvaccinated are about to be marked with yellow stars, but not much.
The rhetoric used in the Union-Tribune is a true danger to society right now. When groups of people are branded dangerous, what does society do with them? People who have already had Covid, those who just want to wait until the vaccines are FDA approved, or others who have legitimate concerns should not be discriminated against, segregated, and dehumanized. Smolens and the extremist politicians he parrots want to deny people the right to earn a living, get an education, or eat based on vaccination status. This will create a national caste system that will destroy the soul of the nation.
We are going into a time of dark extremism driven by irrational fear and it is being driven for political power and money.
Reichert and her ilk throw around words like “discrimination” and “segregation.” They made a choice. And now there are consequences for making that choice. Comparing themselves to people who are oppressed by virtue of their birth or origin is offensive and the ultimate expression of the “me” vs “we” syndrome that I would argue is ruining the country.
Here’s university professor Lawrence Gostin, who works in the field of health care and human rights, writing in Scientific American:
People cite bodily integrity, personal liberty and freedom as the most common justifications for refusing vaccines. But these arguments don’t hold water. It’s true that everyone has the right to refuse a medical intervention for their own good. But vaccines not only protect the person vaccinated but also that person’s family, neighbors, and classmates or co-workers. No one has the right to go into a crowded classroom or workplace unmasked and unvaccinated. Vaccine mandates do not unethically discriminate. Discrimination is wrong when it is based on irrational reasons or animus, such as discrimination based on race, gender or disability. But vaccine mandates are simply a tool, and they apply equally to everyone. They don’t impute blame or seek to shame the unvaccinated. They are intended only to keep the entire population safe.
Finally, requiring proof of vaccination does not violate a person’s privacy. Individuals are free to decline to give information about whether they received a shot, but if they do decline, they must expect reasonable consequences to ensure everyone’s health. Additionally, federal health information privacy rules apply principally to health care providers and not to businesses or schools. There is also a public health exception to privacy rules.
Requiring people to get a vaccine is part of the fabric of American history going back to the Revolutionary War. General George Washington compelled troops to get a smallpox variolation, saying it was necessary to safeguard soldiers and to win the war. And not only is mandating vaccination lawful, but it is also an ethical responsibility. For far too long, Americans have asked the question, “What entitlements do I have as a rights-bearing citizen?” It’s now time to ask, “What duties do I owe to my neighbors, my community and my country?” Getting a COVID-19 vaccine as the nation and the world are undergoing a historic health crisis is badly needed for the common good and mutual solidarity.
https://twitter.com/oureric/status/1423308229107494915?s=20
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Lead image by Andrew Mercer via Wikimedia Commons