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I'm not in the US, I'm in Australia.

And I picked the flu vax just as an example. I should have instead questioned your statement that I wasn't in a risk group. Everyone is at risk from covid, admitedly some much more than others.

According to this data: https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/covid-pandemic-mort... I'm at a 0.4% risk of dying of Covid, and a 8% risk of hospitalization. Those aren't small risks, the vaccine reduces that approximately 10x so clearly its a good idea

Actually, I've just thought of another good example - Whooping cough. Adults are actually at no risk whatsoever of this, but small babies are at severe risk so parents are reccommended to get this vaccination to prevent them passing on what is a very mild or unnoticeable disease for them to their babies. Oh and when I looked up info on this and the vaccine, yes you should get booster shots for this as well https://www.health.gov.au/health-topics/whooping-cough-pertu...

And, uhh yes Pfizer, which was the main covid vaccine used in Australia, is a mRNA vaccine.




Few years ago we asked a GP doc in Melbourne if we should get a flu vaccine, free and widely advertised back then. The doctor said:

- If you really want, go ahead, but it is mostly a waste

- The vaccine is unlikely to help much because it only partially protects against few variants out of hundreds in circulation

- They do not generally recommend flu vax outside of risk groups (small kids, elderly people and medical workers)

- Vaccine is generally safe, but not completely without risks.


Exactly. And I'm just not willing to accept that these recommendations change overnight and now politicians are making these recommendations in place of doctors.


Question is, how much are you going to decrease your risk of hospitalization by force-vaccinating the rest of the unvaccinated population, given that the vaccine doesn't really do much to stop the spread with delta?

If the vaccine was sterilizing - i.e. vaccinated people wouldn't be contagious and spread it symptomatically or asymptomatically - then every vaccination would count. But given the current state vaccination is just going to reduce symptoms and ultimately reduce hospital capacity. Anyone who is in danger (or scared) of Covid can get vaccinated. There's little point in vaccinating children (or even non-consenting adults, although this depends on hospital capacity).

Also, that chart is based on averages. Unless you have co-morbidities (you're fat, have diabetes, heart condition, whatever) the risk is way lower.

You're a 48 year old male? If you're healthy the risks are way lower than the chart indicates (off the top of my head maybe 1% hospitalization, <0.1% death?).


> You're a 48 year old male? If you're healthy the risks are way lower than the chart indicates (off the top of my head maybe 1% hospitalization, <0.1% death?).

And if you're healthy and think about what kind of people are included in the remaining 99% you should feel quite safe.




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