Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers Rodgers has strongly questioned the NFL's COVID-19 protocols, along with any organization forcing health requirements on individuals. Rick Scuteri/AP hide caption
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers Rodgers has strongly questioned the NFL's COVID-19 protocols, along with any organization forcing health requirements on individuals.
GREEN BAY, Wis. A Wisconsin health care organization has ended a nine-year partnership with Green Bay Packers star Aaron Rodgers after the quarterback detailed his reasoning for avoiding the three COVID-19 vaccinations endorsed by the NFL.
A statement posted on Twitter by Prevea Health said the company and Rodgers mutually agreed to end their partnership, effective Saturday. Prevea Health and Rodgers had been partners since 2012.
The statement said Prevea Health "remains deeply committed to protecting its patients, staff, providers and communities amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. This includes encouraging and helping all eligible populations to become vaccinated against COVID-19 to prevent the virus from further significantly impacting lives and livelihoods."
The move comes a day after Rodgers told "The Pat McAfee Show" he had sought alternative treatments to COVID-19 vaccination because he is allergic to an ingredient in two of the FDA-approved shots. Rodgers, who turns 38 in December, did not say what ingredient he was allergic to, or how he knows he is allergic.
Rodgers has strongly questioned the NFL's COVID-19 protocols, along with any organization forcing health requirements on individuals.
"I believe strongly in bodily autonomy and the ability to make choices for your body, not to have to acquiesce to some woke culture or crazed group of individuals who say you have to do something," he said Friday. "Health is not a one size fits all for everybody, and for me it involved a lot of study in the offseason."
The COVID-19 vaccines authorized for use in the U.S. were tested in tens of thousands of people and proven to be both safe and effective at dramatically reducing the risk of serious disease and death. The vaccines now have been given to more than 200 million Americans and that real-world use plus extra government safety tracking have made clear that serious side effects are extremely rare and that any risk is far lower than the risks posed by COVID-19.
Rodgers, who has been tested daily as part of NFL protocols for unvaccinated players, found out he contracted COVID-19 on Wednesday. He can't rejoin the Packers for 10 days and will miss Sunday's game at Kansas City. He must have a negative test to return to the team on Nov. 13.
The reigning NFL MVP, whose endorsement deals include a starring role in commercials for insurance company State Farm, hinted that his stance on vaccination could have consequences when he described himself Friday as a victim of "cancel culture."
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Health care company cuts ties with Aaron Rodgers after COVID-19 vaccine comments - NPR
CDC panel debates Pfizer's COVID vaccine for kids
A government advisory panel is discussing which schoolchildren should get Pfizer's pediatric COVID-19 vaccine. The FDA last week OK'd the use of kid-size doses for children ages 5 to 11, but the CDC also must sign off before vaccinations begin. (Nov. 2)
AP
Children ages 5 to 11 are now eligible for the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, after the director ofthe Centers for Disease Control and Prevention signed off Tuesday night on an expert panel's recommendation.
Children in this age group could begin getting shots as soon as this week, ashealth providerscan start vaccinating them"as soon aspossible," theCDC said in a release.
Last weekthe Food and Drug Administration authorized Pfizer-BioNTech's vaccine for children 5 to 11, and the CDC's recommendation now clears the vaccine for those ages.
President Joe Biden called the news"a turning point in our battle against COVID-19," in a written statement Tuesday night.
Presidential adviser Jeffrey Zients said Monday that the Biden administration ordered enough vaccineto cover all 28 million American children in the age group. The administrations distribution program will be running at full strength the week of Nov. 8, he said.
Though the vaccines carry some risk for children, their benefits are greater, concluded the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, made upof vaccine and immune system experts from universities and medical schools acrossthe country.
"We know millions of parents are eager to get their children vaccinated and with this decision, we now have recommended that about 28 million children receive a COVID-19 vaccine," a Tuesday release quotesCDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky. "As a mom, I encourage parents with questions to talk to their pediatrician, school nurse or local pharmacistto learn more about the vaccine and the importance of getting their children vaccinated."
Vaccines will be available at 100 children's hospitals, temporary clinics in the community and at schools, as well as pharmacies and pediatricians' offices. Shotswill befree, at one-third the dose of the adult vaccine and will be delivered in two shots at least three weeks apart.
A number of professional groups added their support Tuesday for childhood vaccination, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Family Physicians,theNational Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners and the Pediatric Infectious Disease Society.
In several small trials, Pfizer-BioNTech, which makes the vaccine, saw no serious side effects connected with the shots.
It is likely, committee members acknowledged, that some potentially dangerous side effects will become apparent once the shots are delivered to millions of children, just as rare side effects not seen in clinical trials of adults turned up with widespread vaccinations.
"We need to acknowledge the unknown," said Dr. MatthewDaley, a committee member and senior investigator at theInstitute for Health Research at Kaiser Permanente Coloradoin Aurora.
Daley said he was more concerned about the risk of waiting to vaccinate kids. "If we wait, we miss the chance to prevent many cases of COVID-19 in this age group, and that includes some very severe cases."
Data from the CDC suggests that vaccinations can prevent 600,000 infections in the age group by March, including a number of hospitalizations and a few deaths.
Fully vaccinating1 million children in the age group would prevent about 57,000 cases of COVID-19 and about 200 hospitalizations, the CDC said.
The data that was presented really speaks volumes in terms of the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine, said Dr. Pablo Snchez, a professor of pediatrics at Nationwide Childrens Hospital in Columbus, Ohio.
Children are dying, and we can reduce hospitalization and death with this safe and effective vaccine that will benefit the community, said Dr. Oliver Brooks, chief medical officer for the Watts HealthCare Corporation in Los Angeles.
Parents who have concerns about the shots should speak with their pediatrician, CDC and committee members said.
Kid shots Q and A:Everything to know about COVID-19 vaccine and children
The potential vaccine side effect ofbiggest concern is a swelling of the heart muscle, known as myocarditis, which has been seen particularly amongyoung men who received vaccine.
Out of every one million 16- and 17-year-old boys vaccinated, 69 have developed the condition, compared with two out of every million men in their 40s, government statistics show. None hasdied, and most cases appear to be mild without long-term consequences.
Matthew Oster, a pediatric cardiologist at Childrens Healthcare of Atlanta,said he expects the side effect will be even rarerin children.
Before COVID-19, myocarditis wasmostcommon among adolescents and young men probablybecause of their relatively high levels of the hormone testosterone, Oster told the committee. Children younger than 12 typically have low levels.
Infection with COVID-19 can cause myocarditis that appears to be more serious than swelling seen with vaccination, he said.
Many children who receive the shots will, like adults and teens, feel side effects in the first 48 hours or so. The most common side effects in the trials were fatigue, headaches, joint pain, pain at the injection site and vomiting, nausea or diarrhea.
The CDC monitors vaccine recipients, including children, for serious vaccine reactions through several different systems. One involves self-reporting of symptoms, another is reported mainly by doctors and two others collect data from hospitals, the CDC's Dr. Tom Shimabukurotold the committee.
The Food and Drug Administration has a separate vaccinesurveillance system, as does the Department of Defense, which first identified myocarditis as a risk among service members.
Rush is on: With vaccine orders placed, doctors, pharmacies prepare for a flood of young children
Last week, the Food and Drug Administration authorized vaccines for use in this age group aftera signoff by an independent group of vaccine experts who determined that the benefits outweighed the risks.
Of the three vaccines available to adults in the USA, only Pfizer-BioNTech has completed studies in minors. Moderna said Sundaythat the FDAasked for more information about its shots in adolescents, which probably will defer its authorization until January.
Johnson & Johnson is further behind in its trials in adolescents and children.
Typically, companies test vaccines in adults, then move down in age as the shots are provedsafe. Pfizer-BioNTech continues to study even younger children, down to 6 months of age.
Though fully approved for use in adults and older teens, the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is authorized only for emergency use in children and younger adolescents. The collaborating companies will probably request full authorization for these age groups next year, once they have longer-term data and more details on manufacturing.
Vaccines are somewhat more controversial in children than adolescents and adults, because children are less likely to suffer severe COVID-19 infections.
Still, 94 American children ages 5-11have died from COVID-19 since the pandemic began the eighth leading cause of death in this age group and about 8,300 have been hospitalized.
Although at lower rates than adults, children ages 5 to 11 can suffer from lingering symptoms of COVID-19 infections, so-called long COVID including months-long fatigue, pain, headaches,insomnia and trouble concentrating.
All children, regardless of age, can catch and pass on COVID-19,one study confirmed.
Pfizer-BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine is clearly effective in children 5-11, preventing more than 90% of infections,according to a company-run study in about 2,500 children.
Questions remain about the effectiveness and safety of the shotsbecause of the relatively small number of children who havereceived them so far fewer than 3,500 across three company-run studies. It is not clear how long this protection against COVID-19 will last or whether booster shots will be needed.
Data from the CDC suggests that nine children would have needed to be vaccinated to protectone of them from contractingCOVID-19 in September during the peak of the last wave, and about 26 today when rates are lower. About 2,200 kids would have needed protection six weeks ago to prevent one hospitalization and about 8,200 more recently.
Children who are immunocompromised or have health issues such as obesity and metabolic disease are at higher risk for serious COVID-19 infections. Two-thirds of children hospitalized for COVID-19 had preexisting health conditions, while one-third were previously healthyaccording to the CDC.
The CDC's recommendation for vaccination includes all children,regardless of their underlying medical conditions.
Childhood vaccinations willhelp families in which parents are fighting cancer, said Dr. Gwen Nichols, chief medical officerof the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Vaccination will allow "children to interact with more freedom, including with their parents and grandparents," she said. "This is particularly important for immunosuppressed patients, including those with blood cancers who have been in an impossible situation with their younger children returning to school in-person.
Children of color have been hospitalized at three times the rate of white children, data shows.
About 38% of American children have been infected with COVID-19, according to data presented to the committee.
Children who have already had COVID-19 will get some protection against severe disease butshould still get vaccinated, according to the recommendation, because the shots provide more consistent protection than infection.
An FDA analysis of infectionspresented to a different advisory committee last week found that the benefits of vaccination generally outweigh risks among children. If COVID-19 cases are extremely low less than 10% of the rates seen in mid-September the benefits of vaccination are less clear, the report concluded.
Vaccines take about five weeks to come to full effectiveness, two weeks after the second shot, so parents will not have time to provide vaccine protection in the face of a sudden outbreak or a fast-spreading new variant.
COVID-19 has already caused substantially more misery than other childhood diseases, CDC data showed. COVID-19 led to at least three times more hospitalizations and deaths thanhepatitis A, meningococcal disease, varicella, rubella and rotavirus did before vaccines were introduced against those diseases.
Dr. Katherine Poehling, a professor of pediatrics at theWake Forest School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, said that information helped convince her to strongly support COVID-19 vaccines for elementary school children.
"We can now make these COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths vaccine preventable," she said.
Contact Karen Weintraub at kweintraub@usatoday.com.
Health and patient safety coverage at USA TODAY is made possible in part by a grant from the Masimo Foundation for Ethics, Innovation and Competition in Healthcare. The Masimo Foundation does not provide editorial input.
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COVID-19 Vaccinations in Maryland COVID-19 Vaccinations in Maryland The Food and Drug Administration has granted full approval for the Pfizer vaccine for individuals ages 16 and older. Emergency use authorization for the Pfizer vaccine also remains in effect for individuals ages 5-15. Marylanders 18+ who meet specific criteria and received their second Pfizer or Moderna COVID-19 dose at least ...
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PARIS (AP) French drugmaker Sanofi said Tuesday it was shelving plans for a COVID-19 vaccine based on messenger RNA despite positive results from early stage testing.
The Paris-based company said it will continue to develop another vaccine candidate that is already undergoing late stage human trials. That vaccine, developed jointly with Britains GlaxoSmithKline, is based on the characteristic spike protein of the virus that causes COVID-19.
Messenger RNA vaccines use a different technology that uses genetic information from the virus to trigger an immune response. This technology is already being used in the vaccines produced by Pfizer and Moderna.
From a public health perspective, mRNA COVID vaccines are widely available today, and starting a placebo-controlled study in countries where vaccines are available would be extremely challenging, so it does not make sense for us to further advance our mRNA Covid vaccine into Phase 3, Sanofi said in response to questions from The Associated Press.
Sanofi recently expanded trials of its recombinant protein vaccine to test its effectiveness as a booster dose to extend immunity for people inoculated with a variety of other vaccines. Results from that study are expected later this year.
While Sanofi has decided not to pursue a COVID-19 vaccine base on messenger RNA technology, the company said early testing showed promising results. As a result, Sanofi said it plans to use the technology to develop a new flu vaccine, with clinical studies expected to start next year.
Today, we have a promising mRNA platform, which were taking to the next level in development, including moving to modified mRNA, and against other diseases, including flu, Jean-Francois Toussaint, global head of research and development at Sanofis vaccine unit, said in a statement.
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Getting the COVID vaccine is the best way to protect yourself and others from the virus and to help stop the spread.
Get vaccinated as soon as possible wherever you can. Visit the Cecil County Health Department websiteto learn where to get the vaccine. Patients of ChristianaCares primary care practices may also call their doctors office or send a message via theirpatient portal to request a vaccination appointment.
Thursday, October 28, 2021, 10:00a 12:00pModernaMedical Professional Building111 West High Street, Suite 112https://www.marylandvax.org/appointment/en/reg/0013262899
Friday, October 29, 2021, 6:30a 9:30aPfizerMobile Units across from the Emergency Departmenthttps://www.marylandvax.org/appointment/en/reg/0633621319
Wednesday, November 3, 2021, 6:30a 9:30aModernaMobile Units across from the Emergency Departmenthttps://www.marylandvax.org/appointment/en/reg/1360724903
Friday, November 5, 2021, 6:30a 9:30aModernaMobile Units across from the Emergency Departmenthttps://www.marylandvax.org/appointment/en/reg/9969330221
Wednesday, November 10, 2021, 6:30a 9:30aModernaMobile Units across from the Emergency Departmenthttps://www.marylandvax.org/appointment/en/reg/9326809129
Friday, November 12, 2021, 6:30a 9:30aModernaMobile Units across from the Emergency Departmenthttps://www.marylandvax.org/appointment/en/reg/0966231997
Wednesday, November 17, 2021, 6:30a 9:30aPfizerMobile Units across from the Emergency Departmenthttps://www.marylandvax.org/appointment/en/reg/6023129779
Friday, November 19, 2020, 6:30 9:30aModernaMobile Units across from the Emergency Departmenthttps://www.marylandvax.org/appointment/en/reg/3614229099
Wednesday, November 24, 2o21, 6:30a 9:30aModernaMobile Units across from the Emergency Department https://www.marylandvax.org/appointment/en/reg/9263179099
CDC recommends that the following groupsshouldreceive a booster shot of Pfizer-BioNTechs COVID-19 Vaccine at least 6 months after completing their Pfizer-BioNTech primary series (i.e., the first 2 doses of a COVID-19 vaccine):
CDC also recommends that the following groupsmayreceive a booster shot of Pfizer-BioNTechs COVID-19 Vaccine at least 6 months after completing their Pfizer-BioNTech primary series, based on their individual benefits and risks:
These recommendations only apply to people who previously received a Pfizer-BioNTech primary series (i.e., the first 2 doses of a COVID-19 vaccine).
What you need to know:
You can find additional vaccination sites for the State-approved population at covidvax.maryland.com.
Read more here:
In the most recent WUPHD COVID-19 report, the region counted 340 positive cases of the virus. Houghton County had the most 227, 17 more than the previous report. Gogebic County had the biggest difference between the most recent and previous reports. Jumping from 20 cases on October 27th. Doubling to 40 this week. Ontonagon County was the only one to have fewer cases, dropping from 18 to 10 positive cases. Across the five counties there were 3 deaths, one in each Gogebic, Houghton and Keweenaw counties. The total number of deaths since the beginning of the pandemic for the western UP is up to 183.
Vaccinations continue to rise at a steady pace. In the previous three reports vaccination rates rose by 0.3%, bringing the total to 57.1% of the population receiving the first initial dose. The August 18th report was the last time any of the five counties were below the substantial transmission rate. And since the October 6th report, all five counties have been considered high transmission for the corona virus.
Link to WUPHD November 3rd Report
See the article here:
COVID-19 Cases Continue to Rise in the Western Upper Peninsula - ABC 10/CW5 - ABC 10 News NOW
Vaccine events now available for businesses, community groups, churches, and other organizations.
Free mobile vaccination events are now available to increase convenience and access. These events can be held at your preferred location. We encourage you to request a vaccine event and help Utah end the pandemic.
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Boris Johnson called out for not wearing mask next to David Attenborough
The UKs Covid-19 R rate has fallen to 0.9 to 1.1 in the last week, the latest figures have shown.
Last weeks R rate, which measures the average number of secondary infections caused by a single case, was estimated to be between 1.1 to 1.3.
Meanwhile, a second antiviral pill for Covid-19 cuts rates of hospitalisation and death by nearly 90 per cent among at-risk patients with mild to moderate infections, according to early trial results.
The drug, if taken early enough, prevents the escalation of disease to keep newly-infected people out of hospital. Manufactured by Pfizer, the at-home pill is targeted at the elderly and those with underlying health conditions that make them vulnerable to Covid.
It comes after the UK became the first country to approve Molnupiravir. The antiviral drug, which is consumed orally as a pill, will be given twice a day to people who have recently tested positive for Covid and have at least one risk factor for developing severe illness, such as obesity, being over the age of 60, diabetes or heart disease.
It comes as the World Health Organisation (WHO) warns Europe is once again at the epicentre of the pandemic amid soaring cases.
Blaming insufficient vaccine take-up for the rise, WHO Europe head Hans Kluge said the continent could see half a million more deaths by February.
Good morning and welcome to The Independents live coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic. Well be bringing you all the latest updates and statistics throughout the day.
Chiara Giordano5 November 2021 10:31
The UK has become the first country in the world to approve a Covid antiviral drug that significantly reduces risk of hospitalisation and death for public use.
Molnupiravir, which is consumed orally as a pill, will be given twice a day to people who have recently tested positive for Covid and have at least one risk factor for developing severe illness, such as obesity, being over the age of 60, diabetes or heart disease.
Our science correspondent Samuel Lovett has the full details:
Chiara Giordano5 November 2021 10:33
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned Europe is once again the epicentre of the Covid pandemic.
Top officials said an insufficient take-up of Covid vaccines was to blame for a more than 50 per cent rise in cases across the continent in the last month.
WHOs Europe director Dr Hans Kluge said: "Europe is back at the epicentre of the pandemic, where we were one year ago.
Describing the spike in cases as being of grave concern, the expert said coronavirus hospitalisation rates more than doubled in the last week and predicted Europe could see another 500,000 pandemic deaths by February.
Chiara Giordano5 November 2021 10:53
A second antiviral pill for Covid-19 has been found to cut rates of hospitalisation and death by nearly 90 per cent among patients with mild to moderate infections, according to new trial results.
The drug, manufactured by Pfizer, can be taken at home to prevent the escalation of disease and keep newly-infected people from ending up in hospital.
Our science correspondent Samuel Lovett has more on this breaking story:
Chiara Giordano5 November 2021 11:22
A government-back campaign is urging people to regularly open windows while socialising with others at home in order to prevent the spread of Covid.
The public will be told opening a window for 10 minutes every hour when socialising indoors can help tackle the spread of Covid as the pandemic enters its second winter.
Zoe Tidman has the full details:
Chiara Giordano5 November 2021 11:44
Tens of thousands of care home staff in England have not been fully vaccinated against coronavirus and could lose their jobs next week, the latest figures suggest.
Around 89.4 per cent of staff working in older age care homes had received two vaccine doses as of 31 October, according to data from NHS England.
The remaining 49,040 staff - around one in 10 of the total - had not been recorded as having received two doses at this point.
The equivalent figure for staff in care homes for under-65s is 13.6 per cent - 11,924 staff.
This suggests a total of 60,964 staff have not had a second jab or their second jab has not been reported as of the end of October.
The total includes staff who cannot be vaccinated for valid medical reasons and those whose vaccination status is unknown, while there may also be a time lag in some vaccinations being reported.
The government has made it mandatory for staff in registered care homes in England to have both jabs as a condition of deployment, unless they are exempt for valid medical reasons.
From next Thursday, it will be a legal requirement for staff who are not exempt to be doubly vaccinated if they are to continue in their role.
Sector leaders fear an exodus of care staff which they warn will threaten safe care.
Chiara Giordano5 November 2021 12:00
About one in 50 people in private households in England had Covid-19 in the week to 30 October, unchanged from the previous week, according to the latest estimates from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
One in 50 is the equivalent of about 1.1 million people, and is the same proportion of people who were estimated to have coronavirus at the peak of the second wave in early January.
The latest figure is one in 40 for Wales, one in 65 for Northern Ireland and one in 80 for Scotland.
Chiara Giordano5 November 2021 12:17
When modelling the level of Covid-19 infections among different age ranges in England, the ONS said rates have increased in the latest week for those from school year 12 to age 24 and for those aged 50 to 69.
Rates have decreased for those in school years 7 to 11, though the percentage of people testing positive in this age group remains high, at 7.5 per cent.
In all other age groups the trend is uncertain.
Chiara Giordano5 November 2021 12:30
Scientists at Oxford University have uncovered a gene that can double the risk of fatal respiratory failure in those who contract Covid-19.
The high-risk genetic signal is carried in sixty per cent of people with south Asian heritage, which could help to explain the excess deaths seen in some south Asian communities across the UK as well as the impact that Covid has had in India.
Eleanor Sly has the full story:
Chiara Giordano5 November 2021 12:45
The Department of Health and Social Care has revealed their new video campaign to encourage people to regularly open windows at home in order to prevent the spread of Covid.
The advert, produced with the University of Cambridge, show researchers carrying out an experiment into how Covid particles spread indoors.
A voiceover says: Covid-19 particles disperse much faster when we let fresh air into the room so that chance of breathing them in is greatly reduced.
It continues: Opening your windows for just a few minutes at a time can make a big difference.
Holly Bancroft5 November 2021 13:00
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CDC safety meme.
Our pseudonymous Twitter correspondent Benjamin Braddock wrote a thought-provoking post about the parallels between the federal governments restriction of civil liberties post-9/11 and the current pressure to require proof of vaccination. Weve posted it in full below. First, a quick update on a COVID vaccine maker that reappeared among our top names on Thursday.
Regular readers may recall that our systemgauges stock and options market sentiment each trading day and uses that to rank the thousands of securities in our universe by their potential returns over the next six months.The COVID vaccine maker and Pfizer (PFE) partner BioNTech (BNTX) first appearedhit our top ten on May 13th.
Screen capture viaPortfolio Armoron 5/13/2021.
BioNTech has pulled back sharply from its highs in early August, and has now been outpaced by the crypto bank Silverlake Capital (SI), which we wrote about recently (Silverlake Soars) and Laredo Petroleum (LPI), which we also wrote about recently (Gold versus Black Gold). Nevertheless, it was still up more than 36% since May 13th as of Thursdays close.
And on Thursday, BioNTech appeared in our top ten again.
Screen capture via Portfolio Armor on 10/7/2021.
So, were bullish on BioNTech again. But were not too bullish on the prospects for our civil liberties, unless people in power take the steps Benjamin Braddock suggests below.
Authored by Benjamin Braddock at American Greatness
There are many lessons to draw from the governments response to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. One of them is that temporary government measures have a way of turning into permanent features of our lives. One feature of these temporary measures is that theyre usually little more than knee-jerk reactions to eventsreactions that dont do much to accomplish anything other than to brutalize and humiliate normal people. Take the example of the Transportation Security Administration.
Private airport security was abolished after the attacks and replaced with this central federal agency assigned with securing Americas air transportation infrastructure. But Congress motivation for establishing the new agency was less about securing air travel and more about rescuing the airlines from civil lawsuits.
Fact is, there werenoairport security breaches at any of the airports on 9/11federal regulations at the time permitted air passengers to carry on box cutters. If Congress had actually been moved to prevent similar acts of terror, it would have taken on the FBI, which ignored reports that some devout Muslims were paying cash to flight schools to learn how to fly airplanes but not to land them.
Well, 20 years later we still go through the security rituals every time we fly. Standing in long lines. Taking off shoes (risking fungal infection in the process). Getting irradiated by imaging machines. Getting yelled at for such offenses as having a sealed bottle of water in your bag. And thats the best case scenario.
More serious abuses also occur, like in the case of theDenver TSA scandal, where one TSA agent would signal to an accomplice operating the security scanner when an attractive male passenger would enter; his accomplice would then input that the passenger was female, triggering the security system to identify an anomaly with the passengers genitals, which then allowed him to to carry out a hands-on grope-down search of the passengers genitals. Or like the case at LaGuardia Airport, where a TSA agent took a 19-year-old foreign exchange student to a restroom for a screening where he thensexually assaulted her.
Is this indignity the price we pay for safe air travel? No, because we dont even get security out of the arrangements.
Year after year, the Department of Homeland Security has found that undercover agents were able to get explosives and loaded weapons through TSA checkpoints undetected, with detection failure rates reachingas high as 95 percent. The bureaucracy knows. The politicians know. The media knows.Weknow. And nothing happens. The beast rumbles on, consuming government dollars and molesting American passengers, by force of sheer inertia, because thats just the way things are now, and there are no powerful special interests groups with a vested interest in changing it. There is no mass public outcry because the public has simply gotten used to it.
I had gotten somewhat used to it myself, until I began traveling outside of the United States in places like Colombia and Brazil. Airport security checkpoints in those countries are typically unobtrusive and take no more than a few minutes. You can leave your shoes on and your dignity intact. Air travel there retains the feeling of leisure and adventure. Now when I fly in America, the difference is palpable. The atmosphere of the airports here is tense and heavy. Travel becomes something to beendured, not something toenjoy. If in 2001, we had peered into the future and foresaw what effect our panic response would have, things may well have been different.
Time is a flat circle. We are once again locked in crisis mode, this time for a crisis of much longer duration, and a new set of knee-jerk reactions are leading to more temporary-but-actually-permanent policies doomed to failure. Only this time they are even more ineffective and invasive. Joe Biden says that his patience is wearing thin. Mine ran out a long time ago.
The public-health establishment has continued to utterly fail in every decision theyve made to address a problem they created, doing nothing but repeating failed short-term interventions while ignoring the solutions that could actually crush this disease. The sane approach would be a two-pronged onesecuring access to safe and effective early treatments to minimize deaths in the short term, while finally taking seriously the problem of chronic disease and obesity to make our population more healthy and resilient in the long term.
Nearly two years in and we have yet to hear the first thing from the government or media about the importance of getting in shape or cleaning up our toxic food supply. Instead, there is a near-total reliance on gimmicks, safety theater, and questionable pharmaceuticals. The only systemic effect these have is to boost the profits of drug companies and increase the power of those who seek to control and enslave. The latest of these is vaccine passports and mandates, the only effect of which has been to create a large population of vaccinated super-spreaders that put others at risk of infection.
The pandemic is nowworse than before the vaccinewas available, with more cases, hospitalizations, and deaths than at this point last year. High caseloads in southern states over the summer was not a function of low vaccination rates but of seasonality. As winter approaches, the spread has moved northward, with surges now underway in Michigan and heavily vaccinated Vermont. It could be a dark winter indeed.
Even worse, theselection pressureon the virus created by these flawed and often harmful vaccines has driven the evolution of ever more infectious and aggressive variants. Because the vaccines do not prevent infection and transmission, requiring vaccination to eat out, attend a concert, or go to work will not have any positive impact on the actual pandemic other than to remove those with natural immunity who would otherwise mitigate the spread by breaking the chain of transmission.
The practical outcome of vaccine passports and mandates will be that youll have to show a vaccine record every time you enter a restaurant, grocery store, movie theater, or any other public establishment for the rest of your life. A TSA experience at every coffee shop. Your HR department will have a foothold into your personal medical records. It will be yet another tool for bureaucrats to harass you.
Worst of all, it will desensitize the public to the construction of a system of massive social control and coercion that will be like Chinas social credit system, but somehow more fake and ridiculous. The precedent is terrifying. If they can coerce you to take one pharma product, after all, they can coerce you to take any pharma product. From here its a quick jump to mandatory flu vaccines, then who knows what else? Is there a pandemic of toxic masculinity? Why not mandatory estrogen injections for those deemed to be suffering from it?
This is not hyperbolea Pennsylvania legislator just introduced a bill to require all inseminators to undergo vasectomies within six weeks of having their third child or 40th birthday, whichever comes first. The slippery slope is not a logical fallacy, its how policy in America works. But we dont even have to look to the future to see the hell that these policies are unleashing, the price is being paid here and now, not in dollars but in peoples lives.
People like Jessica Berg Wilson, a 37 year old mother of two who died of COVID-19 vaccine-induced thrombotic thrombocytopenia. From herobituary:
She had been vehemently opposed to taking the vaccine, knowing she was in good health and of a young age and thus not at risk for serious illness. In her mind, the known and unknown risks of the unproven vaccine were more of a threat. But, slowly, day by day, her freedom to choose was stripped away. Her passion to be actively involved in her childrens educationwhich included being a Room Momwas, once again, blocked by government mandate. Ultimately, those who closed doors and separated mothers from their children prevailed. It cost Jessica her life. It cost her children the loving embrace of their caring mother. And it cost her husband the sacred love of his devoted wife. It cost Gods Kingdom on earth a very special soul who was just making her love felt in the hearts of so many.
Some of the most pernicious mandates are those targeted towards young people whose risk of dying from COVID is minimal, like the one put in place by California Governor Gavin Newsom, whichrequires all California schoolchildrento be vaccinated as soon as it is approved for their age group by the FDA. Other school districts around the country are moving forward with plans toforce student athletesto get vaccinated in order to participate in sports. This will only lead to more tragic cases like that ofRoy Butler, a young Irishman who died of a hemorrhagic stroke just three days after taking the Johnson & Johnson vaccine so that he could travel with his soccer team.
And the human cost of these mandates is not just limited to the risks from the vaccine itself, but to the strain it puts on our healthcare system, which was already short-staffed. We are in the midst of a severe shortage of nurses, and tens of thousands are being fired for not taking the vaccine. People who were hailed as frontline heroes last year are treated like dirt today, along with hospital support staff, paramedics, firefighters, police, and the essential workers our supply chains depend on.
There is no question about whether or not vaccine mandates are acceptable. Theyre not. There is no question about whether vaccines pass the risk/benefit test for low-risk groups or those with natural immunity. They dont. There is no question about whether or not our leaders are acting in good faith. They arent.
The only question that remains is, what are we going to do about it?
People all over the world are standing up courageously. Theyre sacrificing their careers and comfort to take a stand. Its a tough thing to do, something that is unfeasible for many. And its not just those who are unvaccinated, some who are vaccinated are taking a stand for freedom too and are refusing to comply. In Italy, vaccinated protestors have beenburning their vaccine passportsin solidarity.
But as strong as this popular movement is, we need support from those in a position to rally mass strikes and acts of civil disobedience, people with huge followings like President Trump or Joe Rogan. And politically, we need those in positions of power to leverage that power to shut down the mandates. The most proximate levers of power to accomplish this are the spending bills and debt ceiling increases in Congress. My message to Senate Republicans is simple: your stated opposition to the vaccine mandates is not enough; get rid of them by any means necessaryincluding sovereign defaultor be prepared to lose your next primary.
Corona Doom 2.0: Vaccine Passports
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