To Fight for the Right

 i live in one of the five areas of the usa that has the highest rates of new infections from the covid-19 virus.  the delta variant has become the dominant strain that causes these infections.  our hospitals are being overwhelmed by young, unvaccinated patients who require extraordinary care, many of them needing to be placed on ventilators.  the supply of ventilators is dangerously low.  the amazing thing is that this surge in new cases is unnecessary.  we have the means to prevent new infections at our disposal.  vaccine availability is high, and local health authorities sponsor frequent mass immunization events at convenient locations.  yet most of the unvaccinated have refused to avail themselves of the opportunity to prevent their infection, so far.  the governor of our state is traveling around the state meeting with any groups that will have him to urge people to be vaccinated.

one wonders why so many have chosen to refuse something that is in their own best interest.  as they ignore the advice of health officials, friends, and relatives, they become breeding grounds for further mutation of the virus into more and more virulent strains.  their failure insures that covid will be with us for a long time.  the winter months are approaching, and people will be forced to spend more time indoors.  with indoor venues and offices fully open once more and mask-wearing less prevalent, the chances of the virus spreading even more rapidly are great.  

we are seeing more people who have been vaccinated developing the virus.  while their illness is less severe, they can spread the virus to those who are not vaccinated.  often those infected do not realize that they have caught covid despite their vaccinations because they are asymptomatic, thanks to the vaccines.  one event that i had planned to attend this week has had to be cancelled because the vaccinated organizer of the event has been forced to quarantine.  it seems that his daughter has tested positive for covid and he was exposed.  a close relative and his family have had to quarantine, despite having been vaccinated, because he was exposed when he took a friend, who had also been vaccinated, to the hospital for a radiation treatment, and the friend tested positive for covid.  we hear of more and more such instances.  some of this may be caused by false positives in the test results, but with covid one can't be too careful.

i can't help but feel anger towards those who refuse to be vaccinated.  for a few, there are good reasons for declining the vaccine, but most have no reason not to take advantage of a cost-free opportunity to stop the spread of the covid-19 virus.  a friend recently told me of one woman who said that she refused to be vaccinated because president biden has recommended it, and she, an ardent trump devotee, won't do anything that biden suggests.  i suspect that many in our area share her sentiment, but there are others who believe that vaccines of any kind are unhealthy.  no amount of scientific evidence will sway them from their position.

may our citizenry wake up to the danger in which they place themselves, those they love, and all of us by their failure to act in their own best interests.  may we each do our part to encourage others to vaccinate.  may we take whatever precautions we can to protect ourselves and those around us.  shalom.