Not Merely a Matter of Principle

It's been two months since my wife declared she's taking the vaccine. I talked her out of it back then, but she brought it up again today. She told me that there's no way out of this. Everybody will have to take the vaccine at some point. "What if we need to visit somebody in the hospital? Practicalities trump principles."

Apparently, my wife still think the vaccine is largely harmless and that our refusal to take it is merely a matter of principle. But that's not how I see it. I believe this is going to end up as the biggest medical disaster in history, so I'm prepared to do whatever it takes to postpone any decision to participate for at least two more years. Only then will we know enough about the vaccines to make a decision, and I suspect the cons will greatly outweigh the pros. If there ever was a time when a two year vacation was in order, it's now.

We're in the privileged position that we can afford up to twenty year of vacation, so a two year break is well within our means. Besides, things are changing so rapidly that I doubt any real inconvenience will be thrown our way. If there is a need to visit someone in a hospital, we have plenty of vaccinated friends and family that we can ask for help. My wife's imagined hurdles are not nearly so difficult to live with as she believes.

My guess is that none of us will suffer much inconvenience by remaining unvaccinated. The Delta is already in decline, and may be a thing of the past in a month from now. Who then will insist on vaccination passports and tests? Adverse effects from vaccines will emerge, and it will become increasingly clear that the vaccine was a bad idea. There may even be so many sick people that my wife and her daughter get extra job offers simply for being in good health.

The worst that can happen if we stay low for two years is that my son gets a smaller inheritance. My wife will face some inconveniences. Her daughter may have to stay away from acting for a while, but that will give her opportunities to explore other avenues. There are other ways to make a living as an actress than standing on stage or in a TV studio.

However, in a worst case scenario for the vaccinated, most of them will be dead in a few years. That's unlikely to happen, but the fact that this cannot be dismissed presents us with a simple cost benefit analysis, and this analysis remains unchanged no matter how many of our friends and relatives end up vaccinated. In fact, the more friends and relatives take the vaccine, the more important it will be to remain unvaccinated. Somebody must remain unvaccinated in the event of a catastrophe. Otherwise, there will be no-one to take care of the children.

However, the most likely scenario is much less extreme. My guess is that the vaccine will be proven counterproductive, and that this will be generally accepted within two years from now. That will take the pressure off the unvaccinated, and may even end up to our advantage because of the generally good health enjoyed by the unvaccinated relative to the vaccinated.

Liberty