As a libertarian, I'm fully supportive of people choosing not to get vaccinated.
As a scientist, I worry that they are misinformed. It's neither "experimental" nor "gene therapy".
As a scientist, I worry that they are misinformed. It's neither "experimental" nor "gene therapy".
https://twitter.com/RobSchneider/status/1413884214726971394
Saying the vaccine is "experimental" is like saying evolution is "just a theory", technically true, but misleading.
Everything scientific is "just a theory", including all the theories that tell us how airplanes fly or that make computers work. Gravity is "just a theory".
Everything scientific is "just a theory", including all the theories that tell us how airplanes fly or that make computers work. Gravity is "just a theory".
Every medical treatment is "experimental" in some fashion, as doctors never know for certain what will happen.
After 8 months and over 3 billion doses with medical professionals focused on it, we have better understanding of these new vaccines than most old ones.
After 8 months and over 3 billion doses with medical professionals focused on it, we have better understanding of these new vaccines than most old ones.
The word "experimental" is just a bureaucratic distinction deliberately distorted to satisfy political positions. What needs to be done to satisfy bureaucrats is far different than what we need to satisfy scientists. Scientifically, the vaccines look great, even AstraZenica.
Likewise, "gene therapy" is a technical misunderstanding. What people understand by "gene therapy" is something that permanently alters some of your genes. That's not what happens with these vaccines.
Again, technically adenovirus or mRNA are using genetic material. But this just another way of manufacturing and delivering proteins to body with no lasting changes (other than "immunity").
Every vaccine, every single one, is technically messing with some of your genes. Diseases, too. Your body fights disease by mutating DNA in white blood cells to generate anti-bodies, then storing those white blood cells with the new DNA for potential later use.
Yes, yes we do know a lot about the long-term effects. It's just that we don't know everything.
If this is your standard of "we know nothing", then we know nothing about anything. Including long term effects of staring at computer screens all day.
If this is your standard of "we know nothing", then we know nothing about anything. Including long term effects of staring at computer screens all day.
https://twitter.com/msimoni/status/1413996943873822720
We can measure risks of the unknown (I do this all the time in my own job).
We know the long-term risks of getting infected by even a mild case are far higher than the long-term risks of the vaccines. We have a huge number of patients that appear permanently damaged by covid.
We know the long-term risks of getting infected by even a mild case are far higher than the long-term risks of the vaccines. We have a huge number of patients that appear permanently damaged by covid.
Many people's risk models assume they probably won't get infected, because only 10% of the population got infected last year. But we won't achieve herd immunity, meaning you will likely get infected by covid sometime in the next 10 years.
It's like how most people eventually got infected by the Spanish flu of 1918. Just because you don't get infected in the first wave when it overwhelms the healthcare system doesn't mean you won't get infected eventually.
Some good questions, so let's answer them. The "2 years old" is an arbitrary number. The underlying science has been understood for decades. The reason the mRNA vaccine like Pfizer/Moderna is so exciting is because scientists understand it really well.
https://twitter.com/James_inthe_box/status/1414000662661132289
The pro-vaxxers are fucking dickholes overstating the benefits of getting vaccinated after recovering from an infection.
From what I read in the literature, an infection gives you the same sort of immunity as 1 shot. Thus, a second will boost immunity.
From what I read in the literature, an infection gives you the same sort of immunity as 1 shot. Thus, a second will boost immunity.
https://twitter.com/James_inthe_box/status/1414000662661132289
It appears from the data that vaccines give some protection even against breakout variants. We see that in the UK variant that hospitalizations are down even though Delta variant infections are up.
https://twitter.com/James_inthe_box/status/1414000662661132289
As for blood clots, their numbers are so small that we aren't certain if they are even a thing. I'd rather have a Pfizer than AstaZeneca, but I'd rather get AstraZeneca rather than wait an extra day for Pfizer.
https://twitter.com/James_inthe_box/status/1414000662661132289
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