Coronavirus, Week 76B: More untruths refudiated

First, Atlantic reports on people saying their doctors told them not to get vaccinated, and looks at what may be behind the doctors' statements.

Second? For the COVID denialists touting "Dutch study" on social media? Here's a good breakdown of what that study actually says, linking to a Science mag piece for more information. TLDR? Natural immunity DOES protect you as well as a vaccine IF AND ONLY IF you get sick enough to have to go to a hospital and be ventilated.

Third, Jonathan Bernstein writes the 1 millionth "most are vax-hesitant, not vax-resistant" piece. Wrong. See my refutation of Yasmin Tayag earlier today.

Fourth, a note for antivaxxer and COVID denying leftists — ivermectin is made by "Big Pharma" Merck, which is explicitly NOT trying to run to the Big Pharma bank. As for money Pfizer is allegedly making? I'm not justifying all of it, but I will say there's first a difference between gross and net profits. And, lack of civil liability? Antivaxxers claiming that on Twitter are just gaslighting people versus the realities of the federal vaccine court, or else they're ignorant of how it works. In either case, they're spreading misinformation if they're ignorant, lies if they know better

Fifth? Lurking in the shadows? One new study says that almost half of those hospitalized with COVID are either asymptomatic or mildly so. 

Sixth and related, as for COVID denialists saying "we can't believe a disease can be carried asymptomatically by so many people," I present, after 10 seconds of Googling, salmonella and typhoid, including in the latter case Typhoid Mary, who had immediately popped into my mind. More on her here. Now, tis true, both of them are bacterial, not viral, but ... the person on Twitter just mentioned "disease," not virological disease.

But, on the viral side? HIV long lurks asymptomatically. Asymptomatic polio has also been documented. 

Back on the bacterial side, cholera is highly asymptomatic, it seems.

Seventh? See just how much of a hypocrite butt-hurt COVID antivaxxer Robert Malone is. He built on a decade of previous work, was trying to invent an mRNA vaccine — the very thing he claims today is unsafe — a decade after he claims he was deliberately written out of patent opportunities — and much work had to come after him. He has a place, but not a big place.

Eighth? Contra the COVIDZero gaslighters on Twitter, most antiviral vaccines have never claimed to eliminate what they vaccinate against. (Unfortunately,  unlike Coke Zero, CovidZERO is not being phased out.)

And, now, a couple of protection items.

First? Want to know your COVID risk based on actual real world scenarios? Click the link.

Second? If you're one of the 1 million Texans who got ONLY the first shot of either Pfizer or Moderna and are 90 days or more overdue on the second shot, well, you're at risk. Derp.

Third, Daily Kos suggests Washington state should require vax passports to keep Idaho's vax resistant on their side of the state line and force Gov. Little to clean up his own mess. Agreed.