I agree with many of your reflections. Let me also point out one more observation. I was a part of the Christian homeschooling community for 6 years before my kids started public school last year. There are many white evangelicals that have been a part of the anti-vax movement for years before the pandemic. The pandemic has given them a very large platform to voice their opinions and they've felt validated by widespread acceptance of conspiracy theories.
I am a participant in the phase 3 Pfizer trial, so I am trying to pass along science based knowledge. Some evangelicals are actually looking for truth amidst the rhetoric. But many have already been swayed away from vaccination and it's way too late for an impact now.
I watched this interview. The statistics are deeply disturbing. In our county only 12% are fully vaccinated. The vaccine has been readily available. People just don’t want to get it. We live in the highest Trump voting county in TX. Unfortunately our Governor has not helped the situation. I think there is going to be a deeper impact in the churches than people realize.
And let me add this final point. There’s a little thing taught in Economics 101: Incentives. According to Fauci, getting the vaccine changes nothing in terms of wearing masks, social distancing, gathering in groups, etc. Perhaps if people were *incentivized* to get the vaccine (i.e. taking their mask off indefinitely) there would be a higher rate of people getting vaccinated. Conservatives used to know about incentives. But alas, they have largely abandoned them like their ‘friends’ on the other side of the aisle.
Perhaps your inferences from the data are accurate. Perhaps not. I think the situation is far more complicated than you or anyone else knows at this point.
On another note, not unrelated to what you said at the beginning of this post, Trump’s mistake was promoting Fauci as the singular authority on COVID and America’s political/policy response. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are 6,780 practicing epidemiologists in the U.S. The Trump administration was dumb enough (and politically naive enough) to build an entire policy around one man. How stupid. It didn’t take long for Fauci to become a political shill, a role he seems to relish.
I got the vaccine without a moment’s hesitation. I’m encouraging my family and friends to get it, too. My problem is not with the ‘science;’ rather, it’s with way most of America’s elected representatives willingly gave carte blanche authority to Fauci (who’s unelected) without bringing several other voices into the public conversation/debate.
I totally agree on your comments re: this being BOTH political and religious. Also, as some version of the old saying goes, "You cannot reason someone out of a perspective they didn't arrive at using reason in the first place," and - sadly, despite the human tendency to want to protest otherwise - many of our perspectives are NOT arrived at using reason/logic, which definitely appears to be the case when it comes to the anti-vax movement.
The pandemic division has bloomed over the last year or so. I have to admit I am guilty of not being able to see the other side. I fail to understand why someone wouldn't want the vaccine. So am I also contributing to the pandemic division by that failure?
There are a lot more reasons to be suspicious of the Covid vaccine then just science. Although there are plenty of scientific reasons as well
pharmaceutical companies are first and foremost in the business of making money. There are plenty of evidence of pharmaceutical companies misleading consumers of the dangers and side effects of their products.
It’s also commonly known and accepted by the majority of the public that lobbyists have a profound impact on the government’s priorities. Pharmaceutical lobbies are strong.
By rule vaccines are not to be developed unless there isn’t a treatment. Many doctors have come forward to suggest that the vaccine roll out ignored treatments for Covid such as Ivermectin
There is also a good argument that the medical industry as a whole has a net loss on public health. Medical errors are the third leading cause for death in the US . That’s not nothing.
People are rightly suspicious of those in power positions who stand to profit financially from vaccines.
Science denial has nothing to do with it but trust does.
I liked your thoughts. I found the following helpful: Dr. Tim Clinton's (director of American Association of Christian Counselors) interview with Dr. Francis Collins, the director of the National Institute of Health who is also a Christ follower. He gives facts that are especially helpful. Dr. Collins is a physician-geneticist noted for his landmark discoveries of disease genes and his leadership of the international Human Genome Project,
I haven't got the vaccine yet, but not because of religion or a lack of belief in science or anything to do with Trump. I'm not adamantly anti-vaxx (I've had several vaccines over the course of my life), but admit I'm not anxious about getting the COVID vaccines. If I had to put my finger on why. I'd say it simply boils down to some some skepticism about how quickly the vaccine(s) rolled out. It's the same reason I typically don't buy a car in its first model year. Typically, the auto maker hasn't worked out all the kinks and I have to deal with a bunch of recalls.
Thanks. I would have some kind of response to this one: I believe it was Pfizer (perhaps Moderna) that said they had the vaccine ready two days after they received the news of the specs of the virus. (I could be wrong in details but that's the general picture.) This kind of virus had been researched and researched well before it became a threat to humans. So that permitted immediate opportunities for testing. That's how I understand it.
I agree with many of your reflections. Let me also point out one more observation. I was a part of the Christian homeschooling community for 6 years before my kids started public school last year. There are many white evangelicals that have been a part of the anti-vax movement for years before the pandemic. The pandemic has given them a very large platform to voice their opinions and they've felt validated by widespread acceptance of conspiracy theories.
I am a participant in the phase 3 Pfizer trial, so I am trying to pass along science based knowledge. Some evangelicals are actually looking for truth amidst the rhetoric. But many have already been swayed away from vaccination and it's way too late for an impact now.
Thanks Sarah. There is a long history of suspicion of any and all science. This impacts us all.
I watched this interview. The statistics are deeply disturbing. In our county only 12% are fully vaccinated. The vaccine has been readily available. People just don’t want to get it. We live in the highest Trump voting county in TX. Unfortunately our Governor has not helped the situation. I think there is going to be a deeper impact in the churches than people realize.
And let me add this final point. There’s a little thing taught in Economics 101: Incentives. According to Fauci, getting the vaccine changes nothing in terms of wearing masks, social distancing, gathering in groups, etc. Perhaps if people were *incentivized* to get the vaccine (i.e. taking their mask off indefinitely) there would be a higher rate of people getting vaccinated. Conservatives used to know about incentives. But alas, they have largely abandoned them like their ‘friends’ on the other side of the aisle.
Perhaps your inferences from the data are accurate. Perhaps not. I think the situation is far more complicated than you or anyone else knows at this point.
On another note, not unrelated to what you said at the beginning of this post, Trump’s mistake was promoting Fauci as the singular authority on COVID and America’s political/policy response. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are 6,780 practicing epidemiologists in the U.S. The Trump administration was dumb enough (and politically naive enough) to build an entire policy around one man. How stupid. It didn’t take long for Fauci to become a political shill, a role he seems to relish.
I got the vaccine without a moment’s hesitation. I’m encouraging my family and friends to get it, too. My problem is not with the ‘science;’ rather, it’s with way most of America’s elected representatives willingly gave carte blanche authority to Fauci (who’s unelected) without bringing several other voices into the public conversation/debate.
I totally agree on your comments re: this being BOTH political and religious. Also, as some version of the old saying goes, "You cannot reason someone out of a perspective they didn't arrive at using reason in the first place," and - sadly, despite the human tendency to want to protest otherwise - many of our perspectives are NOT arrived at using reason/logic, which definitely appears to be the case when it comes to the anti-vax movement.
The pandemic division has bloomed over the last year or so. I have to admit I am guilty of not being able to see the other side. I fail to understand why someone wouldn't want the vaccine. So am I also contributing to the pandemic division by that failure?
There are a lot more reasons to be suspicious of the Covid vaccine then just science. Although there are plenty of scientific reasons as well
pharmaceutical companies are first and foremost in the business of making money. There are plenty of evidence of pharmaceutical companies misleading consumers of the dangers and side effects of their products.
It’s also commonly known and accepted by the majority of the public that lobbyists have a profound impact on the government’s priorities. Pharmaceutical lobbies are strong.
By rule vaccines are not to be developed unless there isn’t a treatment. Many doctors have come forward to suggest that the vaccine roll out ignored treatments for Covid such as Ivermectin
There is also a good argument that the medical industry as a whole has a net loss on public health. Medical errors are the third leading cause for death in the US . That’s not nothing.
People are rightly suspicious of those in power positions who stand to profit financially from vaccines.
Science denial has nothing to do with it but trust does.
I liked your thoughts. I found the following helpful: Dr. Tim Clinton's (director of American Association of Christian Counselors) interview with Dr. Francis Collins, the director of the National Institute of Health who is also a Christ follower. He gives facts that are especially helpful. Dr. Collins is a physician-geneticist noted for his landmark discoveries of disease genes and his leadership of the international Human Genome Project,
I haven't got the vaccine yet, but not because of religion or a lack of belief in science or anything to do with Trump. I'm not adamantly anti-vaxx (I've had several vaccines over the course of my life), but admit I'm not anxious about getting the COVID vaccines. If I had to put my finger on why. I'd say it simply boils down to some some skepticism about how quickly the vaccine(s) rolled out. It's the same reason I typically don't buy a car in its first model year. Typically, the auto maker hasn't worked out all the kinks and I have to deal with a bunch of recalls.
Thanks. I would have some kind of response to this one: I believe it was Pfizer (perhaps Moderna) that said they had the vaccine ready two days after they received the news of the specs of the virus. (I could be wrong in details but that's the general picture.) This kind of virus had been researched and researched well before it became a threat to humans. So that permitted immediate opportunities for testing. That's how I understand it.
Interesting how the Johnson and Johnson vaccine just got paused...