I was fortunate to have acquired a BSc in Biochemistry/Chemistry before graduating from dentistry. It gave me a profound understanding of the complexity of matter and life at a molecular level. It provided me with the language of science. Those 8 years at U of T changed my life forever. Did it make me an expert on vaccines? Absolutely not! Scientists like Dr. Fauci whose education would dwarf mine in volume and complexity are the experts we must rely on. Yet on social media we have people who claim to understand science and vaccines better than Dr. Fauci, people who have never set foot in a university classroom. They tell their followers to avoid the vaccine with outrageous claims that they contain a microchip, or that it will kill you or cause this or that. It’s nonsense similar to Trump suggesting that injecting some disinfectant will cure COVID. No claim is ever backed up with scientific data. There are a very small number of people who for medical reasons should not take vaccines and only the medical profession should decide who they are.
Listening to these self-proclaimed pseudo-experts talking about complex medical subjects is like listening to someone who has never put on a pair of skates tell Gretzky he doesn’t know how to play hockey. They dabble on the internet and believe they are learning like attending college or university. They give a whole new meaning to the old adage “a little knowledge can be a curse”. Their followers don’t question these cult leader’s credentials and don’t care that they have none. Would you go to a medical doctor who has no university degree? Furthermore, their sources are not vetted so they can spew out false information without consequences. University professors are fired for making false statements that are not backed by scientific data. That is the difference between formal post-secondary education and social media learning, and it is a profound difference. Don’t get me wrong, excellent education is available online, but these people are not referring to those resources and are willingly impervious to scientific evidence.
I observed one local conspiracist discussing DNA as if he was Dr. Fauci speaking at a world health conference, spewing out words he can’t spell, pronounce or comprehend. A perfect example of the Dunning-Kruger-Effect (Google it). I find the “role playing” hilarious, similar to acting as a doctor on General Hospital. This person has ZERO knowledge of the complexity of biochemistry, immunology, virology, and pathology. Talking about a misappropriated sense of grandeur! If one wants to practice medicine one has to do the time not skip the line. Unfortunately, once you realize that his followers have drank the cool-aid and firmly believe his pseudo-science it becomes a serious issue. This kind of misinformation kills people!
This same person discourages his followers from attending university, claiming that government sponsored higher education indoctrinates us into a herd of non-thinking zombies. In fact, universities do the exact opposite, they teach us to think rationally and critically on our own. Yet he clutches his phone when he produces his conspiracy blogs on Facebook, not knowing that his phone would not exist without university research. His GPS would fail without Einstein’s theory of relativity, no cars to drive, no planes to fly, no internet or Wi-Fi, no satellites , no modern medicine, no x-rays or MRI, no titanium dental implants, no life saving drugs or vaccines, no heart surgeries or antibiotics, no clean drinking water, no electricity or nuclear energy, etc.…. the list goes on. Without higher education we would be living like before the age of enlightenment 400 years ago. Basically, what this con artist is saying is “enjoy and take advantage of all the discoveries and inventions of modern science but don’t bother participating in the system that creates them, let others do the work”. Fortunately, we love doing the work. Ironically the majority of these anti-vaxxers are alive today thanks to the vaccines they received when they were young, vaccines that were developed from university research.
Then we have the “hoaxers”, my favourite of them all, the real conspiracy junkies, calling the pandemic a “plandemic”, who believe there is no corona virus and the entire pandemic is a global orchestrated hoax. They are the dumbest of the dummies. How on earth can over 200 countries get together and start coordinating all the hospitalizations and deaths. Lock up two “hoaxers” in a room and you have a new episode of “Dumb and Dumber”. Enough said on hoaxers.
If not being vaccinated only put the unvaccinated at risk no one would care if they didn’t get the vaccine. But the reality is that they put others at risk when not vaccinated and that seems to be the quagmire. They simply don’t get it. They are being selfish without knowing they are! If you don’t trust science and medicine, consider staying out of hospitals if you catch COVID. Tough it out on your own. Rip up your health card.
These protesters have to be really bored with their own existence if they have nothing better to do than protest against our government over these mandates. What about the rights of the vaccinated who are forced to live dangerously among these unvaccinated? They should not have the right to spread a disease that we have a cure for. They complain about the government infringing on their freedom for forcing them to wear masks. Are they serious? Imagine telling them they must pack their bags and go fight in WWI or WWII. That was a reality not that long ago. In Israel today everyone must serve in the military whether you want to or not. Now that’s what “loss of freedom” looks like, to fight and die protecting the freedom of others. Telling people, they must wear a mask while they walk the aisle of a grocery store impinges on nobody’s freedom. We have lots of laws like public smoking laws, stop signs, speeding laws that we all live with. Imagine these complainers living in a country with very limited freedom, where women can’t drive, must wear total body coverings when leaving home, or living in an autocratic country like Russia or China where freedom is controlled by the state. And these Canadians complain about wearing a mask? Give us a break. Shame on you. We are embarrassed for you. I recommend you have a frank conversation with a war veteran or read a book or two on the wars of the 20th century. You will then realize that wearing a mask is embarrassingly easy. If you don’t like masks you certainly won’t like ventilators.
Today we expect to live well into our 80’s and beyond when only 100 years ago it was a fraction of that. Many people with cancer today can expect to live a relatively normal life. That came about because of our government sponsored education in science, technology and medicine including vaccines. Unlike most countries our Canadian government also provides us with a free medical system that has treated us very well since it’s inception some 60 years ago. So why are these people embracing our medical system when they get sick, yet reject the same doctor’s advice to take the vaccine? Is it willful ignorance? If they were involved in a serious car accident who do you think they would call? Their favourite cult leader or 911? We all know the answer.
It’s a known fact that people all over the world consistently rate Canada as one of the best places to live. If it’s not good enough for these protestors may I suggest they go live elsewhere. Perhaps in a red state where a pandemic of the unvaccinated is taking place, with COVID cases matching up perfectly with red trump states where vaccination is lowest, proof that vaccines work. They can watch each other get sick.
All this to say that being nice to those who refuse to be vaccinated or wear masks is getting awfully tiresome. Like it or not COVID vaccine passports will be the way to go. They’ve been used for decades. Events are opening up everywhere for the vaccinated. If you hate lockdowns so much remaining unvaccinated will only prolong them. We no longer have any intention of sacrificing our time and freedom for those who refuse to be vaccinated. This time you stay home, not us. Be part of the solution instead of the problem by embracing modern science instead of rejecting it. You should also count your blessings and forever be grateful for living in such a great country called Canada. We certainly are.
Louis Cardinal BSc, DDS, FAGD.
