The math may seem simple, but I think the statistics can be used in an incredibly misleading way. I was recently at the pediatrician's and in the waiting room there was a giant poster about the HPV vaccine (helpfully made by the manufacturer) and the statistics were shocking, to be sure - but they provided no context. What does 1 in so m…
The math may seem simple, but I think the statistics can be used in an incredibly misleading way. I was recently at the pediatrician's and in the waiting room there was a giant poster about the HPV vaccine (helpfully made by the manufacturer) and the statistics were shocking, to be sure - but they provided no context. What does 1 in so many people mean - is that worldwide, or the US? What's the male/female split? By age group? What about access to clean water, emergency medical services, adequate nutrition? What about behavior? What about other health conditions? What's the risk to me or my children based on our own health and demographics? It could very well be a lot less than they say (or it could be more.) The risk is not spread randomly and equally. Some people might very well think they'd rather take their chances that they might come into contact with a disease, rather than certainly injecting a vaccine.
I am not sure what I think about herd immunity anymore. Diseases rise and fall sometimes without any human intervention at all. The big push for Covid vaccines depended on this argument or a variant of it, and it turned out to be untrue, and at worst known to be untrue but they said it anyway. It is rational that people begin to mistrust what institutions tell them when they are wrong or they lie. There are grifters, to be sure, but they don't have to be on the sidelines. Sometimes they make policy.
Well stated. Not to mention that death from vaccine reaction is not the only thing at play- other injuries occur at a more prevalent rate than death, full stop. (Yes, there are complications from various illnesses that are more nuanced than just death as well! That’s why this is not a black and white discussion and why reasonable people may come to differing conclusions here based on prudential judgment.)
The math may seem simple, but I think the statistics can be used in an incredibly misleading way. I was recently at the pediatrician's and in the waiting room there was a giant poster about the HPV vaccine (helpfully made by the manufacturer) and the statistics were shocking, to be sure - but they provided no context. What does 1 in so many people mean - is that worldwide, or the US? What's the male/female split? By age group? What about access to clean water, emergency medical services, adequate nutrition? What about behavior? What about other health conditions? What's the risk to me or my children based on our own health and demographics? It could very well be a lot less than they say (or it could be more.) The risk is not spread randomly and equally. Some people might very well think they'd rather take their chances that they might come into contact with a disease, rather than certainly injecting a vaccine.
I am not sure what I think about herd immunity anymore. Diseases rise and fall sometimes without any human intervention at all. The big push for Covid vaccines depended on this argument or a variant of it, and it turned out to be untrue, and at worst known to be untrue but they said it anyway. It is rational that people begin to mistrust what institutions tell them when they are wrong or they lie. There are grifters, to be sure, but they don't have to be on the sidelines. Sometimes they make policy.
Well stated. Not to mention that death from vaccine reaction is not the only thing at play- other injuries occur at a more prevalent rate than death, full stop. (Yes, there are complications from various illnesses that are more nuanced than just death as well! That’s why this is not a black and white discussion and why reasonable people may come to differing conclusions here based on prudential judgment.)