Anti-Vaxxers, Flat-Earthers & Conspirators: Their Disinformation Running Amok

 

Funny but also possibly true

Main story: Anti-Vaxxers vs. CoVID-19 story here from CNBC and related story here from the Kaiser Family Foundation's Health News.

A recent poll of New Yorkers shows significant hesitancy in minority communities. The poll, conducted by the Association for a Better New York, found that 78% of White residents would take the vaccine as soon as they could compared with 39% of Black residents, 54% of Hispanics, and 54% of Asians.

Fear due to the pandemic and misinformation last year from Trump and others about the virus has exacerbated the situation and could hinder the government’s plan to vaccinate the U.S. population, medical experts told CNBC.

Now a short break (5-minute video) for some humor (or not) on this topic. Ice cream lovers be forewarned. This may hit a nerve:

Correlation vs. Causation

Daniel Salmon, director of the Institute for Vaccine Safety at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health said: “We’re in a tough spot. A substantial proportion of the population thinks that CoVID isn’t really a big deal and it’s kind of a hoax and the numbers are being, you know, overblown and doctors are making money by diagnosing CoVID and calling deaths. I mean, that’s obviously ridiculous. It is not true. But that’s what maybe a third of the population thinks.”

This video explains why people think the way they do:

From a renowned expert in many fields

My 2 cents: Related link here (and a very good one) on this subject.

Anti-Vaxxers (some may have legitimate reasons to resist) but most I suspect are like “flat-Earth” believers or hard-core conspiracy people who fall for the slightest bit of disinformation.

They read or hear about something, usually from like-minded or a single-source outlet, they believe and fall for it and they start spreading it trying to convince as many people as possible to share their wild beliefs.

They truly are not only a risk to themselves, but a risk to the general public.

Freedom of speech and thought are the foundation of America, but disinformation and wild unproven conspiracies make that foundation shaky and over time unstainable with national division – and we have plenty of that today most noticeably in Congress.

That is a risk the vast majority I believe is not willing to take for our national mental health and sanity. What to do about it – that is the $64,000 question. I think we must present a strong counter message based on facts and reason and logic.

We can’t or won’t reach everyone, that’s for sure, but we must strive for honesty in our media life-stricken world to always try to be and do that which is true not false and right not wrong to as fair and honest as possible. I don’t see much of that today and that is slightly depressing, isn’t it?

Thanks for stopping by.