First, thank you Wolfman for keeping this thread going. I’d like to offer another view on Covid.
I am a participant in the Moderna vaccine trial. No complicated reason, I just got damned tired of feeling helpless in the face of this mess. I’m just short of 70, a cancer survivor (10 years now), in really good health. After reading about the Stage 1 trials, which did not cause serious problems for the participants, I weighed the risks and benefits and decided to go for it.
Like many of you, I don’t trust ANY of the mainstream media on EITHER side, nor do I believe that our government is always completely truthful with us. And I refuse to pay any attention to that sewer called social media. Instead, I got my decision-making info from the doctor running the study. And when I asked some very pointed what-if questions about specific risks, she looked me in the eye and said “We don’t know – we’re breaking new ground here.” I’ll take that honesty over a feel-good line of BS any day.
What about reports of someone fainting or feeling ill or whatever after the shot? Yeah, that happens. And there are people who die from eating a peanut or getting stung by a wasp. Any time you’re dealing with huge numbers of people, there will be a few bad outcomes. Personally, I have never had problems with shots, vaccines, or violent allergies, so I didn’t worry about those. You may be different.
What about “this is too new and too fast?” Well yeah, the technology is new and hugely faster. It’s like using a backhoe to dig a ditch instead of a shovel. You’re gonna get it done a lot faster. And yes, they are pushing the trial reviews, and production, and distribution as fast as possible and yes that probably makes the risks somewhat higher. Not, in my opinion, crazy high risk, but again your thoughts may differ.
The biggest reason I joined the trial isn’t just Covid19. I’m not nearly as scared by Covid19 as I am about the NEXT one or the one after that or whenever. We have been blessed that the mortality from Covid19 is only around 1-3%. For comparison, SARS was around 10%, MERS around 35%, and Ebola at first was 90% mortality. When we get another virus slithering out of China or Central Africa or the slums of South America or wherever, and if it has a hugely higher fatality rate, we’re going to be in serious trouble that will make 2020 look like a picnic. And Covid19 has shined a big spotlight on what a clusterf#@k our public health capabilities are. We need to figure out how to fight diseases faster and harder, and trials are a part of that.
Sorry if I sound preachy, don’t mean to. I understand others’ concerns and reservations, I really do. I get it. Everyone needs to make their own risk/benefit choices.
Please stay safe, and God bless all.