Vax & Opinion

The Snow Moon is said to shed light on the ability to remain steadfast, strong and determined

A side effect to embrace?


Pfizer arrived. On its heels came Moderna.
Now Johnson & Johnson’s version has been approved and will soon begin distribution.
Nationally we’re closing in on 50 million who have had at least one shot in the arm.
And last week the Gov announced the state had administered its 2 millionth hit.
And in our fair county?
A total of 8238 total doses as of last Thursday and 3082 of those were shot #2. 
A bit over 5000 of these were delivered to folks 65 and older split evenly between those over 75 and the 65-74 crowd. From there the numbers go down with the age.
50-64 1469  with 626 2nd doses.
40-49 794-347
30-39  627-279
20-29  314-135
16-19  326-140

One out of every 6 Newaygonians have taken the plunge (or maybe the poke) thus far and many more are anxiously waiting their turn.
Meanwhile there are those who perhaps don’t share the enthusiasm about this vaccine as do the people wishing they could access it sometime sooner than, say,  yesterday.
Of course one would  imagine there would be some who refuse due to adherence to the principles of their organization such as Christian Scientists, however from what can be gleaned from social media it runs a bit deeper than that. In an age of thriving conspiracy theories nothing, it seems, provides more fodder than a pandemic and COVID has served to deliver another decisive dose of distrust among an already cynical  citizenry. 

When we’ve posted stories about local Vax efforts and press releases from our good friends at DHD#10 most readers support these initiatives. Of course there are inevitably the comments that range from mild rebuke to those that seem to arrive alongside implausible  hypotheses regarding the conniving and colluding of a cabal of scientists, public health officials, legitimate and lucid medical experts, and of course the ultimate arm of misdeeds and misconduct, our government. 

While not naive enough to blindly follow what might be served up by others and always leery of info coming out of Lansing and D.C., when the combination of the first three in that group concur (with the exception of a sprinkling of outliers) my tendency is to listen. Their knowledge is greater than mine and more accurate than any online research  some folks feel inclined to share.
In addition, having spent nearly half a century living with my favorite nurse and Lifetime Spousal Companion (LSC) Lil, there has been first hand experience of what personal carnage  can occur when not heeding the advice of those whose judgement and knowledge far surpasses one’s own. Especially in the area of  judgement but another story, another time.
And I digress.

We got the Vax. Both doses. We’ve had many friends announcing their success at gaining access (it helps when most of your friends are either staring at 70 or watching it speed away in the rear view mirror) and they’ve shared stories of how they got their doses, which one was received and any side effects, which  generally have had little note. 
But it was something else being shared that resonated with me.
Getting inoculated felt undeniably empowering to many who shared their vax fortunes.
 “I may have been only fooling myself, but getting the shot made feel like there may actually be an end to all this shit.”
​
Not an uncommon response. Well, some were a little more ‘G’ rated and others edged more toward ‘R’ but all were in the same ballpark, a side effect producing a hopeful, optimistic glance at a future that may be more like our past. When our lives can return to some semblance of the way of life  we all miss so much. 

Recent stats indicate about 30% of folks nationwide  are maintaining their disdain for the immunization, down significantly from a few months ago and likely to continue trending downward. This number would translate to about 11-12,000 adult Newaygonians eschewing inoculation.

 And I get it. If you don’t believe it's the right thing to do and you remain steadfast in those beliefs you are more than likely already committed to remaining vaxless (as well as apparently committed to sharing this  belief with all the zeal of a new devotee to veganism or cross training). Totally your call.

But man, after a year of discombobulation, disruption, divisiveness, and disorientation I gotta say, this notion of having turned the corner and maybe made some gains on a pandemic that has handcuffed our way of life for far too long...
Feels pretty damn good.


-Ken De Laat, Publisher