A new study, published in Lancet Infectious Diseases suggests the peak viral load for both vaccinated and unvaccinated people who are positive for the coronavirus is broadly similar. With the recent surge in hospitalisations coming primarily from the vaccinated, the continued apartheid-like treatment of the unvaccinated is losing any pretence of moral standing.
With vaccination numbers amongst the highest in the world, Ireland continues to have relatively high levels of infection and transmission of Covid-19, ironically while also maintaining levels of restrictions on social interaction that have been abandoned in many countries across Europe – places that have seen their infection and transmission rates drop significantly.
While Ireland continues to catastrophise the possibility of infection in schools amongst children who are hardly vulnerable to the virus, the UK has seen the level of infection and transmission among school children fall off a cliff in recent weeks as it is estimated that over half of school children have had the virus.
Additionally, analysis shows no correlation between vaccine levels and infection rates across countries and even within countries – with Waterford having the highest level of vaccination in Ireland and far and away the highest level of infection.
All this points towards the question: why the vilification of the unvaxxed? The practical and scientific arguments, the health arguments, are all falling away quickly. The efficacy of the vaccines – their longevity as well as their ability to reduce viral load and inhibit transmission – is well and truly being questioned by reality. The theory of vaccinated=holy, unvaccinated=unclean is gradually being eroded by the science though this reality has not been allowed to puncture public consciousness.
What is the value of creating a two-tiered society without any strong scientific basis to justify discriminating against a minority? The persistence with this policy increasingly looks like vindictive, ideological segregation bordering on fanaticism. Yes, that sounds very strong but the longer it persists the truer this accusation seems.
Surely now it is clear that allowing the vaccinated to mix together in nightclubs – whether masked or unmasked while dancing – makes a mockery of the restrictions placed on religious services for 18 months in 2020 and 2021?
Surely it makes a mockery of forcing the unvaxxed to sit outside in the rain while the viral-load carrying vaccinated cross infect each other on the dancefloor?
Certainly it makes a mockery of not allowing the auld fella to sit at the bar to drink his pint and talk to the barman as he has done for decades.
The only argument seemingly remaining from the government is that they are protecting the unvaxxed from the vaccinated at this stage. Or maybe they are protecting the unvaxxed from themselves and their own folly as it remains true that the unvaxxed get sicker – on average – than the vaccinated when infected. But even those numbers are coming together as the weeks pass. Among the unvaccinated in Ireland since 11 September, there has been 1 death per 10,344 people, and 1 death per 25,503 people for the vaccinated. To be fair, the difference is not insignificant but not to the extent that you would be led to believe. This ratio aligns with the general trend due to vaccines, in January, 50 people ended up in hospital for every 1,000 Covid-19 cases, now there are about 20 hospitalisations occur for the same number of cases.
With all of this, for those taking a position of conscience on the vaccines, because of their connection – albeit remote – to cell-lines derived from aborted babies that have contributed to the manufacture of these vaccines, the repeated haranguing by politicians (including the Taoiseach), media commentators, and even members within the Catholic Church, who refuse to engage with their reasoning of conscience, no longer makes sense.
Although the Church’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith has said that Catholics can take the vaccine, it does not say that they ought to take the vaccine. Although, you would be led to believe that this is the case listening to the commentary that gains most coverage.
Fr Brendan Hoban, writing in the Western People on 19th October, tries to create a caricature of the ‘anti-vaxxer’ but it is clear he has never actually talked to one, let alone a reasonable sample, to understand where they come from. Instead, he paints them as clown-like figures (something along the lines of Pennywise from Stephen King’s It) that are a threat to life of everyone else, ominously calling for more restrictions on their freedoms.
The Catholic position remains one of conscience, as Bishop Doran has said on the Diocese of Elphin Facebook page, is “based on fact, NOT on opinion”. However, the message from the Diocese is one that indicates the correct result of an examination of conscience ought to be deciding to take the vaccine. It does not explain which facts have been mistaken as opinion. The emerging facts above should provide some pause for thought if we are to ‘follow the science’.
Coupled with the weakening public rationale for placing unquestioned faith in ‘the vaccines’, along with the reality that aborted babies bodies continue to be used in scientific testing for future vaccine creation, creates a calculus of conscience that is significantly changed from when we were led to believe the vaccines were practically infallible.
The position the Church has taken is that those agreeing to take the vaccines in good conscience, are still obligated to make known, loudly and clearly, their objections to the unethical sources of these vaccines. The silence in this regard has been notable.
With testing on the cells of aborted foetuses continuing in order to produce the vaccines of tomorrow, it pains me as a Catholic to know the position of the Church is akin to a vegetarian who might not tuck into a juicy burger, but has no problem with a bit of an Oxo stock cube flavouring their Quorn.
“Sure this cow is already dead, far away, in the distant past and can’t be unkilled so I may as well benefit from the meaty goodness cos the stock cube is far removed from the actual meat, and the cow wasn’t directly killed for the stock cube.” What the committed vegan knows however is that enjoying the stock cube – even if it is a by-product of the killing of the cow and not the direct reason for the cow to be killed – maintains demand for new stock-cubes that are being made from the cos being killed today.
And that vegetarian does not join the fundamentalist vegans at the protests to declare meat is murder.
Dualta Roughneen