This one goes out to our nurses. Yes, they’re heroes. But more than that, they need our help. Get vaxxed.

[This is what I told an anti-vaxxer who said, basically, shut up and leave us alone for natural selection to work its magic. Really, he said this.]

That’s fine in theory, and a lot of us through sheer exhaustion have given up even trying to convince you.

But there’s another angle to this.

Covid patients (*all* of them unvaccinated, since only unvaccinated patients fall critically ill) are taking up ICU beds at astounding rates, in some cases overfilling emergency rooms. That displaces beds that are still needed for those coming into the hospital with strokes, heart attacks, gunshot wounds, and other life-threatening conditions.

Nurses and other medical professionals are quitting their jobs because the sheer scale of death in this pandemic is nothing they’ve ever seen. It’s been going on for well over a year, and there’s still no end in sight. It takes a psychological toll.

“Stop calling us heroes,” is what they say. ”Hero” is just a word. They need real, concrete support. Not words but actions are the only thing that will save lives, and in this case the action is very simple. Take the dang vaccine.

A pandemic is a society-wide condition. If we don’t think socially then we’re doomed.

Thinking socially can and will enable a gradual destruction of individual liberty.

"Gun violence is a society wide condition!"

"Drunk driving is a society wide condition!"

"Obesity is a society wide condition!"

It doesn't mean we shouldn't try to beat COVID...but we need to encourage individual responsibility, not enforce social conformity.

We tried the individual responsibility thing. Too many have proven themselves to be individually irresponsible.

So what's your alternative?

Treat them like the children they are and start mandating.

Not an option, sorry. This isn't China. :)