It did take Joe Biden long to woefully pivot from his, how shall we say, “historic” foreign policy nightmare back to the Left’s favorite topic after Trump: COVID-19.
Hot on the heels the FDA’s approval of the Pfizer vaccine for people 16 and up, Biden, probably relieved to be talking about anything that does not involve the words “Afghanistan” or “Taliban,” told the nation: “If you’re a business leader, a nonprofit leader, a state or local leader who has been waiting for full FDA approval to require vaccinations, I call on you now to do it, require it. Do what I did last month, require your employees to get vaccinated or face strict requirements.”
He added that with FDA approval, the moment vaccine-hesitant people have been waiting for is here. FDA Commissioner Janet Woodcock and Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said they hope the federal green light will convince fence-sitters and anti-vaxxers to finally join the ranks of the faithful. Moderna and Johnson & Johnson are hoping for approval in the near future. The Pentagon announced the same day that it will require vaccines for active duty service members, and vaccine mandates are cropping up in other institutions across the country.
Weill Cornell Medicine virologist John Moore opined that the announcement might move those who heretofore have been reluctant to roll up a sleeve, but also noted that Americans in “QAnon mode” would still remain unconvinced.
The announcement itself may be more fanfare than anything else. Since the free vaccines have been available for a sizeable amount of time, one might infer that most people who wanted the vaccine have already had it.
In the interest of full disclosure, I am fully vaxxed. I am married to a healthcare worker who works with COVID-19 patients and ICUs are at capacity across the nation, so I felt the vaccine was the right move for me. But Moore’s QAnon comment cuts to the heart of the problem with vaccines and masks. For the Left, a shot in the arm and an N95 masks means you operate on a higher intellectual plane than those around you. And you are more sophisticated and get to the go to all the right parties. For the hardcore vaccine-deniers on the Right, the masks and the jab have become a mark of submission to an elitist agenda. I have known good people on both sides of the issue who have disappeared down their respective rabbit holes.
Noteworthy as well is the number of people who would not have taken the jab under the Trump administration who can’t wait for everyone else to get fully vaxxed now that they are the people in power. To vax or not to vax has become the equivalent of either a haute couture fashion statement or the singing of the Marseilles in Casablanca. To be honest, Big Pharma and Big Government could make for a cozy picture. And our leaders have not exactly been consistent with the message, to say the least. For that matter, if you want to build confidence in your product, Joe Biden is probably not the spokesperson you are looking for right now. I get that not everyone is on board and many of those people have good reasons for opting out. With that decision comes the responsibility of owning your choices if you get sick. But our media and our government need to own their choices of politicizing public health.
