"Despite what you may have heard in certain corners, and, yes, from certain governors, the Apocalypse — and has this pandemic been anything less than that? — is still very much upon us, still quite dangerous, still, despite the promise of the near-miraculous vaccines, certain to claim many tens of thousands of American lives before the virus runs its course." - Mike Littwin, Colorado Springs Independent
The happy talk blitz about an end to Covid appears to be all over the mainstream news media: 2.2 million vaccinations now per day, 60 million Americans now vaccinated, new guidelines issued from CDC allowing for the already vaccinated to have small maskless get togethers with family. But as CDC director Rochelle Walensky warned on Maddow last night, we remain in a "race" with the virus variants, and the next two months will be critical as to whether we prevail. As she pointed out, the more the virus circulates the more mutations are possible, the greater the likely infections and the greater the number of cases - now 60.000 -odd per day.
Can humans win this race? The jury is still out, and as Dr. Walensky observed we still have 90 percent of the population not fully vaccinated, which means not fully protected. And this is at the same time human stupidity about the virus - driven by "lockdown fatigue" - shows no signs of abating.
We've already seen the crowds of spring break morons in Florida, and to quote one coed sitting on a beach in Lauderdale (from NBC News last night): "It's almost like people are on top of each other!" Meanwhile, in Boulder, Colorado a SWAT team had to be called out Saturday to break up a crowd of 800 looneytune CU students going berserk on University Hill: reveling in drunken stupors, smashing car windows, hurling bottles at campus police - and in general acting like uncaged baboons. Not an auspicious sign for a Covid-free future.
But other forms of stupidity are present too.
Included here is the recent news that Roman Catholic Archbishops in St. Louis and New Orleans advised their Catholics that the COVID-19 vaccine from Johnson & Johnson, newly approved for use in the U.S., is "morally compromised" left me slack-jawed in disbelief. Disbelief in the depths of human stupidity and gullibility especially in the midst of a horrific pandemic that's left over a half million dead and for which its neutralizing is not guaranteed.
The semi-educated RC fossils argued that because the J&J vaccine is produced using a cell line "derived from an aborted fetus" it is "morally compromised". Transl. It is the next thing to immoral to have it.
Curiously, then the New Orleans Archdiocese said the decision to receive the vaccine was one of "individual conscience." This patter reminded me of another Vatican stance over 25 years ago when then pope John Paul II was asked whether condoms were still allowed, i.e. during the AIDS epidemic in Africa. While still not wishing to give cover to artificial birth control, he did concede condoms could prevent the spread of AIDS and so indicated it could be a matter of "individual conscience". Of course, no such liberty was allowed for RC couples who wished to use any artificial contraceptives to avoid expanding families.
In an even more dubious subsequent statement, the N.O. Archdiocese stopped short of advising Catholics not to take the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, but added that Catholics "should choose" vaccines made by Moderna or Pfizer — if they are available. Reminding me of JP II's advice that Africans should choose "abstinence" to halt the spread of AIDS as opposed to opting for any copulation using condoms. In other words couples in Africa could wait for years to resume marital relations or until the AIDS epidemic was under control.
Later, a statement issued by chairmen of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops' committees on doctrine and abortion issues issued a statement reiterating the moral concerns. It said the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines were preferable "if one has the ability to choose a vaccine."
Again, all of this is so much bafflegab, bull crap and baloney, and the Church's stewards know it. Johnson & Johnson finally issued a statement stressing that there was no fetal tissue in its vaccine. It was made using a harmless cold virus, called an adenovirus, the same technology it used to produce a successful Ebola vaccine. The adenovirus is grown using what's called an immortalized cell line, and the virus then is pulled out and purified.
Several types of cell lines created decades ago using fetal tissue exist and are widely used in medical manufacturing but the cells in them today are clones of the early cells, not the original tissue. Hence, the RC leaders claim the cells used are "abortion derived" is nonsense. This is also why the opinion writer in The Philadelphia Inquirer could assert:
Johnson & Johnson vaccine is not morally compromised and even the Vatican knows it
Again, the church's interference at a critical time when we are trying to maximize vaccinations and reach herd immunity, is irresponsible and itself morally reprehensible. Human stupidity - in this case misplaced morality - or what I call "moralism", run muck. A stupidity that could well prove costly in controlling the pandemic especially with dozens of variants -mutations on the loose, e.g.
Then there is another, arguably more egregious display of virus ignorance and idiocy, i.e. in destroying the very implements Dr. Walensky (and Dr. Ashish Jha of Brown University) have warned are essential to winning the race against Covid. They were talking about masks and the need to wear them - even among the already vaccinated. This is since science still isn't sure if the virus can be carried asymptomatically by the already vaccinated and spread to others
Case in point of the latest idiocy: Parents cheered Saturday on the steps of the Idaho Capitol building as children threw handfuls of surgical masks into a fire. Far-right groups and some lawmakers held similar demonstrations in more than 20 Idaho towns, seizing on growing impatience with COVID-19 restrictions. As the scenes unfolded on the news Janice and I stared in disbelief, as I blurted out out: "It's like all these morons are screaming: 'Hey, virus! Come and kill me!'"
But what we heard were cries like issued from one deluded boy:
“Hey fire, you hungry? Here’s another mask!”
Tossing it gleefully into a burn barrel. As Janice responded to the scene: "I wonder if that dumb kid would do that if he knew that might be the only ting stopping him from getting Covid."
Idaho Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin and state Rep. Dorothy Moon addressed the crowd of more than 100 people, standing behind a lectern on the Boise Capitol steps. Nearby, a banner with the racist phrase “Wu Flu” was draped over a replica Liberty Bell. All sad and misplaced displays by halfwits convinced their "liberty" resides with the destruction of surgical masks, one of the primary means to prevent viral spread.
It reminded me of the scenes described in one plague account in Germany, when the town folk went about a mass feline killing spree- believing the cats were 'familiars' in league with Satan. The poor, ignorant fools could not have known they were annihilating the one creature that might have reduced the plague-carrying rat population.
But at least that lot from the middle ages could be forgiven - kind of - based on their forlorn lack of scientific education. The inhabitants of the Idaho towns burning masks cannot, they ought to damned well know better. As opposed to bragging like one imbecile named Darr Moon:
“We’ve got people in groups from Bonners Ferry ... all the way to Pocatello. It’s a widespread grassroots movement, an uprising in that regard.”
Yeppers, an uprising of idiots and imbeciles for sure. But make no mistake it's not confined to Idaho - one of 16 states that have not implemented a statewide mask mandate. (Still, some cities in the state like Boise, where Saturday’s rally was held, have emergency orders requiring face masks and social distancing.)
Saturday’s rally fits with recent actions by Republican-controlled states across the country, including Texas, Mississippi, Alabama and West Virginia, which have gone as far as announcing plans to loosen or repeal COVID-19 restrictions entirely. All of which illustrates an impatience to be done with Covid and its burdensome protocol obligations - whether in masking or social distancing. A sign of "Covid fatigue" setting in for sure, but at the absolute wrong time - just as we may be about to turn the corner with the herd immunity goal in view. But rather than hold strain, too many want to rush into their illusory freedom ahead of time, before enough people are vaccinated and the deadly virus is at bay.
Hence, in response to recent moves to scale back or end coronavirus restrictions, U.S. Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky warned that “now is not the time to stop wearing a mask.”
In Dr. Walensky's words: “We cannot be resigned to 70,000 cases a day, 2,000 daily deaths.”
But alas, from Florida to California too many are. All of which reinforces my take in my Jan 29 post, i.e.
"The more 'individual liberty' -obsessed we are about sustaining Covid protocols the more certain we are to get lambasted by a more deadly (and contagious!) mutation of the virus.
The impatience to escape the shadow of Covid is understandable. But if we aren't smart about it, and rush pell mell into an illusory freedom unsupported by the science, we may have to endure even tighter restrictions and for many more years.
See Also:
A viral tsunami: How the underestimated coronavirus took over the world
AND:
by John Buell | March 9, 2021 - 6:49am | permalink
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