On Vaccine Hesitancy
“If there are to be tradeoffs, isn’t it morally better, at least from Luther’s neighbor-centered ethic, for you to die than for you to cause someone else to die? The worldview I am hearing, even from Christians, seems more libertarian–Ayn Rand, who has a big following among secularist conservatives, scorned the obligation to do things for others rather than for yourself–than Christian.” - Gene Veith
I’ve liked Veith for a long time, and he nails it here. For my own part, I’ve noted for a while that when I got vaccinated, I was taking an uncertain risk (side effects with vaccine) vs. a somewhat uncertain benefit—the reduced risk that I would be able to pass the disease on to others.
Really, that’s the argument for any vaccine—it’s an argument of altruism more than “if I get vaccinated there’s no chance I’ll get the disease.” I’m doing it for me a little, sure, but more, I’m doing it for y’all. I have to wonder if we’d have less hesitancy if we phrased the argument in positive terms instead of negative.
One thing to note as well is that whites often have little understanding of the level of distrust blacks have for many doctors after atrocities like the Tuskegee Experiment. A friend of mine who is a pathologist at Mayo has been trying (with a bunch of others) to recruit volunteers to take part in a study of a disease that disproportionately affects blacks. After several years trying to get 50,000 test subjects—all they need is a blood sample—they’re stuck at about 1000. The politician’s “do this or else” approach is going to go over like a lead balloon in this community and many others.
Aspiring to be a stick in the mud.
Discussion