Monday, August 9, 2021

The Refusers

People who today refuse vaccination have not suddenly become foolish. They were foolish in high school.  

In general the best among us are mediocre at weighing relative risks. Some people are worse than mediocre. 

Yesterday  the Republican governor of one state announced that everyone in his state who died recently of the coronavirus was unvaccinated. Nobody has died from the vaccination. So what are the odds that vaccination is worse than the disease?

TV  showed a small resort town in a state where there are no mask restrictions or distancing rules. People from more competent states are flocking this small town for vacations, where many will get infected and some will die. When interviewed they said that vaccination is a private matter (it's a public health issue). They said they were reclaiming their freedom from the government (but they obediently strap on seatbelts). 

Their true reason, in many cases, is that they are afraid of the vaccination. They don't trust the government, which has lied to them most of their lives.  And they don't trust science. They don't know how to weigh the odds. They've made another bad decision. 

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