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Comment by crocodiletears | Hacker News Reader

At this point I'm not hesitant about the vaccine, but getting it would only validate the heavy-handed approach we're seeing wrt censorship.

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When have internet websites where the public can comment on not been heavily moderated? It's been like that since forums came out. HN is also heavily moderated, it keeps the weeds out of the garden.

So you understand and acknowledge that this vaccine can literally save your life, and you accept all the science that shows that it is safe and effective, but you refuse to get it because some people are being forbidden (by a privately-owned platform, only on that platform) to spread lies about how it's not safe or effective? That's a very strange position to take, to put your own life in literal mortal danger because other people want to spread lies (that you acknowledge are lies) that put their own lives and the lives of people who listen to them at risk.

I have values and principles that I want to see embodied by the society in-which I participate. The vaccination rate is (to my knowledge) the only metric being used to validate these policies that I can directly and consciously affect. So I do.

If I was unwilling to tolerate even the minute risk of not getting the jab, my position wouldn't be based on values or principles, it'd simply be aesthetic preference.

As it stands, I keep an eye on my health, keep an extra distance when I'm around others, mask when it makes sense, and keep social interaction to a reasonable minimum. If the mortality rate of covid increases significantly I'll reconsider my position in light of the new numbers, though I don't know if I'll reach a different conclusion.

While none of the widespread variants show increased mortality compared to the original strain, the Delta variant is significantly more infectious than the original strain meaning that even if you're still taking the same precautions you were before vaccines were available you're much more likely to get it today than you were then. And it's not just about whether you live or die, look up people who have "long COVID" who are still suffering significant disability for months after they've "recovered". Vaccination doesn't only prevent you from dying, it has also been shown to significantly reduce the length and severity of the infection if you do get it.

All of which I'm aware of. But none of which has changed my arithmetic, though I apppreciate your concern.

I'm a breakthrough case. Nobody in the testing office asked me if I was vaccinated. The breakthrough wasn't tracked in any system to my knowledge. How many more of me are out there? I only know anecdotally that at least 10 people 1 or 2 degrees of separation from myself are also breakthrough cases. I'm sure I was very contagious during this time but as soon as I tested positive I quarantined. I personally don't trust that these statistics are being tracked properly.

My point is that although I'm glad I got vaccinated, vaccination is not the panacea the media makes ot out to be.

Dude read that back to yourself and think about it for just 5 seconds.

"Validate" it how exactly. This is just like a child folding his arms and saying "well now I'm not doing it" because somebody asked them to. It's the same attitude that has left hundreds of thousands pointlessly dead, because owning the libs is more important than self-preservation.

I'm not happy with it either. If there's another way to push back against corporate censorship that's more effective than boycotting their services and the objectives they're working towards, I'm all ears.

But so far as I can tell, I don't have a voice in the matter so I'll opt to be a statistical papercut.

Without condoning or condemning your goals or the goals of YouTube: the more effective way to push back is to get the vaccine and live another day to actually push back. Do you really think pro-censorship advocates will change their mind because anti-censorship advocates die in large numbers by refusing an effective medicine? Look around this thread, there are plenty of pro-censorship commentators right here. Do you think your death or hospitalization will move the needle in your favor?

Martyrdom is not a very effective and reliable strategy. People martyr themselves because there's nothing left, the cause they fight for is so important to them that they would rather die than lose the fight. Does that really describe you? Would you rather die than tolerate YouTube censorship? Maybe it is that important to you. I just want you to think it through a bit more, I don't really get the sense that you're weighing your options seriously.

Here's the thing: What about the vaccine is saving the lives of others? It doesn't prevent spread. It simply provides you with protection from the virus for a limited period (~270 days). So what, exactly, are unvaxxed people doing to harm others?

Clogging up hospitals and traumatizing the healthcare workers. If it wasn’t for that, I’d be all for lifting all restrictions and letting it rip.

i'm glad you have the balls to say this. Not being vaccinated is close to becoming a stance against authoritarian rule.

I'm vaccinated (almost regrettably now) but I support anyone's choice to not get vaccinated, i feel like you should because it's been shown to dramatically reduce your risk of getting seriously ill but I absolutely respect your choice and will defend the right to choose.

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