Dying to Own the Libs?

Two pokes and done!

The good news is that as of today, both Mona and I have received our second Moderna shots.  We’re part of the 25% of Oregonians who are “fully vaccinated” against COVID, even though “fully” means 90%, not 100%.  I guess it’s because “close enough” doesn’t sound promising enough.

That’s not why some folks aren’t getting the vaccine, of course.

You’ve no doubt read that nearly half of those who voted for Trump do not expect to get the vaccine.  Now, to be fair, some of them say, “not yet” and they actually give “compelling reasons” for why they plan to wait.  They want to see just how good it works in actual application vs. clinical trials, they want to see if it’s effective against the variant strains, they want to see if any serious side effects emerge.  The problem with their skepticism is that they won’t do the groundwork themselves to find out the answers to these questions, and, given their news sources of choice (Fox, Rush, Glenn Beck, Alex Jones, et al), they won’t get answers there, either.

Not good ones.  Not true ones.

Just imagine how many mental gymnastics a conservative must do nowadays to navigate the COVID/vaccine maze.  After all, this is a disease introduced by the Chinese that’s a hoax and is no worse than the flu which hardly affected anyone this winter and even though a half-million Americans are dead and there are more than 140 million cases worldwide (and the US accounts for almost a quarter of ‘em) the numbers are fake thanks to the CDC and WHO and the Deep State.  But it’s real because Dear Leader got the virus and beat it and then developed a vaccine in record time all by himself and deserves the Nobel Prize for it and even though all the former Presidents got vaccinated in public to promote it and he did in secretly and didn’t tell anyone but he deserves all the credit and Biden doesn’t even though vaccination rates are four, five, even ten times higher now than they were when he was in charge and it’s the states’ fault anyway even though it’s tough to get an appointment and places are throwing away the vaccine because no one is signing up and I never get the Flu Virus Vaccine except for those three times before when there was a Republican President and that’s why I ain’t gettin’ no COVID vaccine because even if I do get it, it won’t be so bad like a cold and poor old Aunt Betsy was old and had a bad ticker and was gonna die, anyway. 

I’m sure I missed something.

Last seven weeks here in Oregon.  Not good.

What I am not missing is the fact that even though more and more people are becoming fully vaccinated like me, the case count is going up, up, UP!  Fortunately, deaths are not rising as dramatically (yet) although we still don’t know all the long-term effects of the disease even though preliminary indications are that it’s not good for you, period.  As if any illness is.

And why are positive case counts going up, up to levels not seen since the Christmas/New Year’s bump?

Because folks are stupid.

Like many other states who are experiencing large bumps in cases (looking at YOU, Michigan), Oregon is “opening up” prematurely.  Yes, that’s my opinion.  Others think differently – High Schools are playing football and other sports, many classes are back in session, you can eat inside at the restaurants and bars (though there’s some “limited capacity”) and even the soccer teams are putting (some) fans back in the seats.  We also had the annual “spring break” on the coast and big crowds in the churches for Easter and every time we go to the market (still only once a week or less because why take the risk?) we see mask-less folks and many chin-straps.  And folks are just SO DAMN EXCITED ABOUT IT – CAN’T WAIT TO GO EAT AND HUG SOMEONE.

Like I said, stupid.

To me, it’s like someone serving a 15-year prison sentence who breaks out of jail three weeks before the end of his sentence.  We’ve been putting up with masks, social distancing, washing our hands, limiting trips, ALL THAT SHIT FOR SO FUCKING LONG – surely we could hold off just a little longer to get (almost) everyone (who wants it) vaccinated to eradicate ourselves from this horrible disease?

Nah.

Because stupid.

Every day we see evidence of America’s growing stupidity.  Not just about COVID.  Not just political thought.  Not just bad spelling and poor grammar.  But bad decisions with horrible consequences from folks who you wonder sometimes how they got dressed that morning they seem so stupid.  But not only does no one seem bothered by our increasing stupidity, but many folks also revel in it.  They celebrate not only the stupidity of others but of themselves.

Yes, I know…Dunning-Kruger effect in action.

The stupidest idea though is the one that’s been circulating for a while underground and is now “mainstream” because it’s been in the New York Times – the concept that conservatives are denying themselves the vaccine because “it would make Biden look good,” ergo, “I’ll take my chances / get sick / die just to own the libs.”

Now that’s stupid.

The longer we fail to meet “herd immunity,” the longer it will take to reach “herd immunity.”  They want all the restrictions lifted, and a quick return to normal.  But they won’t do the things we need to do for that to happen.

No wonder we called ‘em fuckers.  But no longer.   Now, they’re stupid fuckers. 

And if they catch the virus, I will not cry.