Facebook pushes back against the idea that they are the reason Biden missed his July 4th Coronavirus vaccination goal

 

A US Airman receives a vaccination. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Facebook pushes back after Joe Biden blamed them for the United States missing the coronavirus vaccination goal on July 4th. The Hill. Last Friday Biden said that social media is "killing people" by allowing "vaccine misinformation" to spread. Facebook hit back saying that they helped people find vaccines and that 2 billion users had seen vaccine information from Facebook. Biden's goal was to get 70% vaccination for adults by the 4th of July. As of Friday 68% of adults have received at least one dose of a vaccine with 59% fully vaccinated. 

My Comment:

I think Facebook is right, the Biden administration is scapegoating Facebook and social media for their own failings. Facebook is not the reason people are hesitant to get the vaccine. Indeed, if social media did not exist I think the government would actually have a lower vaccination rate than they already do have. 

The real reason that people are hesitant to take the vaccine is the total lack of trust Americans now have of expert opinion. The experts got Coronavirus wrong from the start. First they said it was no big deal and that you are racist for being concerned and then they said masks didn't work. Then they said that every treatment available, from Hydroxychloroquine, Ivermectin, and Remdesivir, didn't work, without really studying the issue, and that you are bad if you even suggest using them. And they have downplayed real issues with the vaccine. 

And that's just the Coronavirus issue! Expert opinion has been wrong more times then they have been right recently. The news isn't even trying to get their stories right, the government's solution to high crime rates is to defund cops and even the military is more focused on being woke than actual warfighting. Is it any wonder why people don't trust the people saying "get vaccinated"?

Biden and his VP, Kamala Harris, actually helped fuel distrust in the vaccine. Both criticized the vaccine before it was even released to the public. How can they be mad now that people took their words to heart? Plus Biden still wore a mask around even after getting vaccinated. Getting rid of the masks was a major motivation for many people who got the vaccine, why send mixed messages? 

This action by the Biden administration is a serious threat. Already they have said that they will censor and spam users private text messages via cell phone and now it sure looks like they are pressuring Facebook to ban people who don't get on board with the vaccine message. To me this is far more threatening than anything the virus could do. People should be able to say what they want about the vaccine. 

It makes me wonder if I am going to get the ban. I have said here and on social media that I am vaccinated but I do think that the vaccine isn't right for everyone. I personally wouldn't get the vaccine if I was still a teen and was in good shape or if I had the virus recently. I also wouldn't recommend it for pregnant women. I do think most other people should get it though, and I took it myself after weighing the potential costs and benefits. Does this make me a subversive person who should be banned from Social Media by the Biden administration? I guess we will find out. 

I think Biden's heavy handedness is a major reason why the people that don't want vaccines aren't getting them. "Take this vaccine or be exiled from polite society" isn't an argument, it's a threat. I know if I was still unvaccinated now, I might not take it just on principle alone. And I know that even though I am vaccinated I will not comply with any kind of French-style Covid passport scheme. Americans do not like to be threatened by their own government. It's the reason we own guns and a reason why Biden's door to door scheme got such a negative reaction. 

But I really don't think this is about the vaccine in the end. It's about people not listening to the government and the government throwing a temper tantrum. It's none of the governments business if someone takes the vaccine or not and the government can not just accept that. 

Finally, I have to say that a lot of the anger at the unvaccinated is displaced. Most of the Republicans I know in real life are vaccinated and have been for some time now. Part of that is due to the age of people I know but I don't think that being anti-vax and being conservative are a 1-1 ratio. Indeed, the vaccine was basically President Trump's pet project. Sure a lot of anti-vax people are conservative but it's not universal. 

You know who has really been anti-vax though? Blacks and Hispanics, the Democrats more reliable voting blocks. Bloomberg is saying that only 40% of Hispanics and 34% of blacks have gotten at least one dose of the vaccine. But for some reason it's only Republicans who get blamed for being anti-vax. 

Regardless, I think the whole issue is moot. With 68% of people being vaccinated and even more of the unvaccinated having natural antibodies due to previous Coronavirus infection, I don't think the disease will be able to continue much longer. Sure, people are still getting the virus, but the days of the virus actually being a major threat appear to be over.