Aunty, is the government lying to us about vaccine safety?
26 February 2021 |
Dear Aunt Sevvy,
Several friends and family have safely received their COVID vaccines with minimal side effects. I’m planning to be vaccinated, but all the conspiracy theories are starting to get to me. Should I wait and see? I’m 95% sure it’s fake news, but the government always tells us only what it wants us to know. There are reports that people 50+ have died after being vaccinated. Maybe they would have died anyway?
Slightly-frightened Vaxxer
Dear Slightly-frightened,
Your question is really about truth. I noted with concern your statement that “the government always tells us only what it wants us to know.” Indeed, we are in the midst of a disinformation blizzard, but not from legitimate scientists—even government ones, like Dr. Fauci. The disinformation comes from politicians who pander to brainwashed doubters to get reelected. (Did you notice, by the way, that even those politicians lined up for the vaccine?)
The government’s scientific experts aren’t politicians. In spite of what some politicians say, it is in the government’s interest to promote good science and save its citizens. Not everything you hear is disinformation. Scientific findings are generally as close to the truth as we can get, and those who ask you not to believe in vaccines refute the science based on nothing but nonsense theories.
Aunt Sevvy is not a medical professional, and cannot give you medical advice. But no one can be an expert on all subjects, so we must place faith in those who are. For example, if you have ever flown on an airplane, you have trusted the experts who designed, built, and maintained that aircraft, the pilots who fly it, and those who staff the airline towers. If you turn on a light in your house you have faith in the experts who designed the electrical system, who wired your house, and who run the plant that produces your electricity. Electricity and airplanes are deadly when mishandled.
That is why Aunt Sevvy turns to those who are experts on vaccinations. And all the experts say that the vaccine is safe, reliable, and critical to ending this pandemic. A quick Google search reveals well-respected medical organizations endorsing the vaccine and vouching for its safety. Johns Hopkins, the Mayo Clinic, and the Centers for Disease Control itself all have information that proves the safety of the vaccine.
As a matter of fact, Aunt Sevvy has already received the vaccine, and her mind has not been taken over and controlled by 5G signals from the Vatican and/or Bill Gates, as one conspiracy suggests. If your physician counsels you to get the vaccine, please do. Every person who receives it is one less person who can contract and spread the virus to others. And as fewer people become infected, the less likely it is that problematic mutations of the virus will arise.
We must get this pandemic under control, and right now this is our most powerful tool. Be safe. Get vaccinated.
Aunt Sevvy
You can write to Aunt Sevvy at DearAuntSevvy@gmail.com. Please keep questions or comments short. What you send us at this address won’t necessarily be, but could be, published—always without real names. Aunt Sevvy writes her own column, and her opinions are not necessarily those of Adventist Today’s editors.
