Thread by @sailorrooscout

Vaccines are preventives, not cures.
The purpose of vaccination is to bring the severity level down to that of a benign virus. That’s how this works. Our best protection is to keep cases low and get people vaccinated. To expect eradication of this virus right now is unrealistic.

With this said, the more people vaccinated, the more restrictions should start to be lifted. Why? We are already starting to see evidence these vaccines do prevent transmission the more data comes out; it would be extremely ignorant to suggest otherwise or disregard it.

Eradicating this virus right now from the world is a lot like trying to dig a tunnel to the center of the Earth using only a plastic spoon. It’s unrealistic. Some forget or simply don’t care (totally different virus) but Polio was endemic before it was 100% declared eradicated.

BUT, and hear me clearly and don’t even attempt to twist my words on this one: failure to eradicate this virus DOES NOT mean that death, illness or social isolation will continue on the scales we have seen so far. If you suggest otherwise you are either 1. Blatantly disregarding

the physical properties of viruses and the mechanism of vaccines and how they work or 2. Trying to push an agenda. You choose. I think a lot of people tend to forget this or just not want to acknowledge it at all. In addition, let’s not forget when we look at similar viruses that

Influenza and the four human coronaviruses (229E, NL63, OC43, and HKU1) that cause common colds are also endemic. But guess what? A combination of annual vaccines and acquired immunity has allowed all of us as a society with the means to tolerate the seasonal illness they bring

without requiring lockdowns, masks and social distancing for extended periods of time. Do I think it’s a good hygienic practice for those who are sick to wear masks out in public? Absolutely. Do I believe everyone has to until we are down to 0 cases? No, because I know how this

works and I understand how viruses work and how this has gone throughout history when we look back on past pandemics and epidemics. Our future will depend heavily on the type of immunity people acquire through infection or vaccination and how this virus evolves. But, if you have

read my other thread on selective pressure, which I highly recommend you do, you will see that keeping cases low and subsequently outrunning this virus by upping mass vaccination efforts and knocking out transmission (which again, the heavy use of masks was due to the unknown

ability of these vaccines to prevent transmission at the time) is the way to go. The more we see they prevent transmission, the more they are like any other vaccine. This Coronavirus is no different than any others in a biological sense, only different in the way we treat it.

Some may not like what I have to say and that’s okay. Zero COVID is unrealistic. It has not been expected immediately of any other virus prior to it. It disregards properties of viruses, the purpose of these vaccines, and teeters dangerously on the edge of antivaxx propaganda.

Also goodness cause I’m already seeing this. Don’t take it out of context. Yes, until there is more data on the fact these continue to prevent transmission, still wear your mask. What I refer to above is more so when the majority of a population is vaccinated and protected.

I think it’s a good day to bring this up again, as we are witnessing exactly how well these vaccines do work. Lastly, if you are confused as to why it’s optimal to keep transmission down (with NPIs AND vaccines) please see this thread.