Converting the Vaccinated

I had a conversation with my parents the other day, and it made me realize that it isn't my mother who fell for the vaccine hoax. It was my father. My mother has been skeptical to the vaccine all along.

This is the opposite of what I'd been thinking, because my mother is the gullible one. She falls for practical joke while my father sees straight through them. However, my father is the hypochondriac, and this, rather than my mother's gullibility, is the reason they went along with the vaccination program.

This realization put a lot of pieces into place. It explained my mother's humorous take on much of what's going on. It explains why she detailed her vaccination ordeal to me in an e-mail. It also explains my father's aggressive reaction to my contrary views.

Our conversation was not about the virus, but the subject was brought up briefly by my father, and it was the way my mother struck it down that gave me the clue to what's been going on. My mother didn't want to talk about the virus. It's not very dangerous, she said. We should accept its existence, and learn to live with it.

My mother seems intent on not taking the booster shot. Armed with some of my arguments, she'll put her trust in God, aka Nature, instead of Pfizer. However, my father will probably take the booster. He's still convinced that the flu is a major crisis.

The dynamics between my father and mother is not unique. I've seen it play out in other setting as well. A doctor friend of mine has pressured his entire family into taking the vaccine, and I've noticed that many of his family members have been reluctant to comply. He's not an expert on mRNA technology, so he has no more understanding of the vaccine than anyone else. But he uses his authority to exert pressure. His motivation appears to be his hypochondria rather than insight.

Then there're couples like my older brother and wife who've taken the vaccine for practical reasons. They don't trust the vaccine. On the contrary, they expect their health to suffer in the future. But they want to travel, and with this liberty taken away from them unless they vaccinate, they went along with the program.

It appears that conviction is concentrated among hypochondriacs, and that most people are either skeptical or indifferent. The vaccination rate in a country or region does not reflect sentiment. Most vaccinated individuals are not pro-vaccination. They are pressured or lured into it, and many are resentful of this.

This means that the unvaccinated have more sympathy in the population than it may appear, and this should be taken advantage of. The recipe for success in this respect is to promote the sort of messages I've used on my parents. Point out that the virus isn't very dangerous. Tone down anything that may concern the unhappy vaccinated. Don't tell them that it cannot be undone. Tell them that the vaccine fades over time. Nature heals all. We have to put our trust in God and learn to live with the virus.

It's the age old message of love, faith and hope. Keep in mind that love is the opposite of fear. By encouraging people to stop fearing the virus, we make them open up for the good things in life. It brings immediate relief and joy. Point out the power of nature to regenerate and heal. I have a balcony of flowers. I have micro-composts. There are insects and plants everywhere. Nature is amazing, even when confined to an area as small as a balcony.

Finally, we should present a vision of a future worth striving for. A vision of children playing freely and carelessly, people traveling wherever they please, and where every store is open to all people regardless of their vaccine status.

These are messages that we should share directly with friends and family. We can do this in combination with our strategy of dread towards minions. There's no conflict in doing both, because dread is a stepping stone to doubt, and doubt opens up for alternatives.

Liberty