The Time For Excuses Have Passed

Now you're just being a dick

Thanks to the ridiculously talented Clay Bennett

When the COVID-19 vaccines first came out, there were legitimate concerns about the speed with which they were approved for use. Of course, the Emergency Use Authorizations came with extraordinary speed…but these are extraordinary times, eh? In case any of y’all missed it, we’re in the midst of a global pandemic, and something like 800,000 of our fellow Americans have thus far succumbed to an enemy we can’t see. The death toll is even worse outside our borders. More than five million have died worldwide.

This is serious stuff.

Now, though, we have a pretty solid track record to work with and to understand that the three approved vaccines are remarkably safe. The vaccines have been out for close to a year, and many folks have had two doses. Some, myself included, have had three. I’m here to tell you that the Pfizer vaccine is safe and effective.

Why, then, do some STILL refuse to get vaccinated? Why are there those among us who look at the vaccines as if they will alter their DNA? Or magnetize them? Or install an RFID tag with which the federal government can track them?

If you’re looking for absolute, 100% safety you’re not going to find it. Nothing in life is 100% safe, and yet vaccine deniers are refusing to be inoculated because they “know” the vaccines aren’t 100% safe. (Do they refuse to drive to work, even though the act of driving a car isn’t 100% safe?)

No, after almost a year and no major safety concerns, I think we can safely say that the three vaccines currently available in the U.S. have exceeded all hopes and expectations in terms of safety and efficacy. When you consider how quickly the vaccines were brought to market, it’s a remarkable testimony to scientific ingenuity and creativity.

I think it’s safe to say that the time for caution and hesitancy is behind us. If we want to find our way out of this pandemic, we need to be far more aggressive about vaccinating our population. That means forcing people to get vaccinated- if that proves necessary.

This isn’t about “freedom,” “liberty,” or “bodily autonomy.” It’s about survival, plain and simple. Vaccinate more people…and more people live. It’s a pretty simple equation, really. Yet there are those who insist on thinking primarily of themselves and their own selfish interests. They ask not what they can do for their country, but rather what their country can do for them.

Life doesn’t work that way.

There comes a time when society must insist that it’s not and can’t be about the individual. It has to be about the collective in order for the individuals within to survive. This is one of those times, which means that it’s time to insist that those who still refuse to get vaccinated be required to do so or face serious consequences.

After three Pfizer shots, I can confirm that my DNA remains unaltered, my blood doesn’t carry an RFID chip (though I do have a cell phone w/ GPS capability), and I’m not magnetized. My message is simple: “I survived; you will, too.”

Vaccine mandates are now far more than a good idea- they work and they’re needed. They should become a necessity of public life. We should be requiring proof of vaccination for those who wish to partake in any aspect of public life. If you want to work, shop, go to restaurants, sporting and entertainment venues- or, let’s just make it easy, leave your house, you need to be vaccinated.

Period. End of story. No exceptions, save for those rare extreme cases in which medically fragile individuals would be imperiled by vaccination. Society needs to stop treating this assault on public health as a “freedom” and “liberty” issue. This isn’t a “personal health decision.” It’s not about “doing your research.” We already have all the research we need, given the millions who’ve already received the vaccine.

Get vaccinated to protect yourself and your community. Or stay home and be a shut-in. Not much of a choice, eh?

Truth be told, I’m tired of selfish anti-vaxxers setting the agenda via their intransigence and self-absorbed refusal. If they decline to meet their responsibility to do right by the general public, then the general public is well within their rights to demand that they stay home in their own personal COVID-19 bubble.

Speaking only for myself (but I have a feeling I’m not alone), I’m tired of paying the freight for those who’ve refused a safe, effective, readily available, and FREE vaccine. If you’ve refused a shot that would’ve protected you against the worst ravages of COVID-19, why and how should you be able to expect society to cover the cost of your treatment when you contract COVID-19? That’s neither fair nor reasonable, especially when more than 95% of those currently in COVID-19 wards are unvaccinated.

I’m generally pretty laissez-faire when it comes to matters of personal responsibility. Government normally shouldn’t play a role in such issues. But when dealing with matters of life and death on a massive scale, government is the only entity with the power, influence, and reach to quickly make a difference.

Vaccination mandates are our way out of this pandemic. You can scream “MUH FREEDUMB!!” or “MUH LIBERTY!!” or even “MUH BODILY AUTONOMY!!” all you want, but none of it will matter until/unless defeat COVID-19.

It’s time to understand that the way back to freedom, liberty, and bodily autonomy is to accept the need to give up a measure of those things in the short term. Unless you want to end your life hooked up to a ventilator, of course.