Thursday, March 28, 2024
36.0°F

Why should we care about the danger facing the unvaccinated?

| August 3, 2021 7:00 AM

To the editor:

"We won with poorly educated. I love the poorly educated," crowed former President Donald Trump at a rally in February 2016. I am reminded of this whenever I hear of the political divide between the vaccinated and the unvaccinated. I am reminded of this when I hear the misinformation and lies perpetuated by rightwing politicians, conservative media outlets and the folks who parrot them.

99.5 percent of the sick and dead resulting from the delta variant of the coronavirus have not been vaccinated. It seems those wacky scientists are right yet again. Imagine that.

The moral of the story is that if you enjoy not worrying about all the horrible things our grandparents had to worry about — polio, for example — you can thank the responsible people who got vaccinated for this.

Now I listen to the poorly educated hooting and jeering at doctors and scientists. I listen as they chortle while making Nazi references at people trying to save our lives. I listen as they argue that our children should be stuffed together while a plague ravages the planet.

So here's the deal: A virus is stupid. It looks for vulnerable populations and exploits them. Given the demographics, it is a guarantee places like churches, blue-collar factories and NASCAR races are going take quite a hit. After what the responsible have been putting up with why should we give a toss about their plight?

Indeed, given the stridency of their belligerence, when is it no longer cynical to get some slight sense of amusement watching the poorly educated march like lemmings to the hospital and their graves?

Tom Taaffe

Libby