On being a Flat Earther
How is it someone who actually helps MAKE science ends up an anti vaxxing prole?
I was trying to get into a weekly-ish routine to put something together here, and fell off that wagon. Or was pushed off that wagon. Or it fell on me. Not sure. I’m one of the too many people scrambling to figure out how or whether to remain employed while being mandated to have one of the EUA covid vaccines1 injected into me, or worse, my family.
I am though, I suppose, fortunate that my employer is offering employees the opportunity to argue a medical or religious exception to this mandate. As that process is ongoing, I have no idea if these things go anywhere, but it seems they are trying to cover their… bases with what the law says about these sorts of things. To the extent we now follow law.
Probably at this point is where I try to lay out my limited, but less limited then I ever wanted, knowledge of the law here2: It appears how these mandates are implemented, is by nature of The President being in charge of the executive branch of government, and therefore being able to make requirements as an employer on the executive branch’s employees and requirements on the contracts it makes. So far it doesn’t look like there is some wide mandate to US citizens (probably because thats actually not going to fly constitutionally). It’s an interesting and sneaky trick, and I think speaks to the wisdom or lack thereof having such a widely ranging federal government, under which such large swaths of critical people can be affected by a whim of their employer3.
So generally, if an employer makes a requirement on their employees… Lets say its requiring a safety helmet, they’re able to do this, and are even able to fire employees who refuse to wear them. There are laws though, somewhat in the way of them just hauling off and booting them out the door just like that. One of the possible exceptions that may be made is if there is some medical reason for an employee to not be able to follow that requirement. Making a medical exception to the requirement usually involves a doctor to sign off on the medical condition or reason why that requirement wouldn’t be medically advised for that person. One can also have a “religious” (not scare quotes) objection to that requirement, that prevents them from following it. In either case, a person can apparently be considered having a “disability” that prevents them from following the employer’s requirement. The American Disabilities Act4 then has rules about what can be done in this case. If the employer can make a reasonable adjustment to the work or workplace to accommodate this disability then they are required to do so before terminating that employee.
So... in the medical case, in our hypothetical helmet requiring workplace, say someone has a ridiculously large head, such that they don’t make helmets that size. They get their doctor to fill out a form, and they turn that into the employer. The employer then has a choice — they can maybe make adjustments to the workplace. Say put a roof over where the employee has to stand or change their work to a desk job that doesn’t necessitate the helmets anymore. But if building the roof costs too much, or the employee isn’t able to type, they can still let them go.
In the religious case, I put “religious” in quotes earlier because what that is is not necessarily that you go to church on Sunday (though some employers are requiring some proof of organized religious participation), but that a person has a “sincerely held belief” that conflicts with the requirement. So… imagine a different employee possessing a firmly held belief that they may not wear a head covering. Interferes with their access to God say. Again similar track, maybe roof over where they stand5 or desk job. If this employee can do the desk job, but there are already too many people doing that line of work at this company, I think they can still let them go. One very much depends on the charity of the employer in coming up with some accommodation for the medical or belief based disability. Disagreeing with the politics or political party of your employer probably does not rise to the “sincerely held belief” level. I would not be surprised though disagreeing with the politics leans things more likely toward finding an excuse for dismissal, not to mention likely having helped motivate the mandate in the first place.
At the moment, where I work, we are told that we must either provide a proof of vaccination or have had an exception approved to remain employed by December. There is some fuzziness about how remote work plays into this, probably related to state laws tying some of this to workplace safety, and that its hard to argue a remote worker even infected with covid is a risk to on prem. workers they don’t come into physical contact with. The medical exception seems straightforward enough, if a medical case can be made with your physician, they need sign a form attesting such, and you’re possibly approved. There is then in principle masking and regular testing involved for the people granted exceptions.
In my case though, I don’t expect, beyond the dubiousness of the the medical and scientific argument for the current vaccines as the exclusive and long term safe solution to the pandemic for all age groups, that I personally would have a medical argument against them. Not particularly allergic, and don’t that I know of have a disorder which I would think would prohibit their application according to the standard narrative. I’ve also been surprised to learn that the medical exception path is not as cut and dry as I would have thought, as I learned from a colleague:
As with anything nowadays, the conversation started cautiously. They don’t work for the same employer as I, but are in a similar predicament. “So how have you guys been handling this vaccine mandate?” I mentioned what the process was that we were to follow, and probably was loose on my opinion of the mandate concept. But then they’d I’m sure also observed I’m always masked up. “So then are you vaccinated? What are you doing about this? I don’t know what we are doing with this yet.” I knew that this person’s family had all gone through covid in the past year. OK, we’re same tribe in this apparently. Long discussion followed. I learned that not only had this person and their family all had and defeated covid, but they even had strong antibody test results. I learned they also had been seeing a specialist for an autoimmune disorder for several years. I told them I thought the medical case for them must be a slam dunk. It sounded like there were legitimate reasons to be careful of any vaccine, not just this one. They also clearly are not any risk to public health by having documented antibodies, and beyond that are completely willing do regular testing and mask up (as they have been for the last year, and we were by the way, talking, both masked, outdoors). In many ways they are actually more safe to themselves and others than the typical vaccinated person granted a free pass from masks and testing. “No. My doctor won’t sign one of the forms. They told me to go to my general practitioner. I went to them and they won’t sign one either. They can’t get permission.”
As if that is not dark enough, the conversation took a darker turn. We talked about how this person’s family came to this country to escape religious persecution in their former home. That they came here with nothing and with a lot of hard work successfully built a life and family. Classic glorious American Dream. But that the conversation we were having right then also proceeded like many they had under the repressive regime they came here to escape from, and as most we all seem to have nowadays. Don’t know who would be listening. Don’t know what words are safe to say. There are understood things you know you cannot say. Cannot trust what one learns from authority, as the political outweighs fact. And there are penalties. “Where do I go now? I came here to escape this!”
I grew up in the Reagan era, with a childhood steeped in the critical outside view of 1984-esque regimes. We would see the silly slogans, laugh at the obvious inconsistencies of the state run media engines behind The Wall. But then that wall fell, and many since seem to romanticize and dismiss all that as quaint. I’ve known my entire life as a scientist, the perpetual incompetence of our information providers in conveying the products of science6, and have begun to see that seemingly innocent incompetence coupled with a political view, change, gain power and accelerate from TV to Internet.
I have in the last year stood gobsmacked at the overt censorship and manipulation of speech and scientific process I had thought held sacred. I now have seen colleagues descended in nationality and as a people from the antagonists and the victims of Second World War Europe (I.e. who DAMN well should know better) proudly display and affix to their clothes their symbols of membership in a new privileged class. And then proudly and publicly denigrate the dumb anti vax flat Earther proles stupid enough to be pushing against this thing that will clearly free us all. Its OK to impose a mandate on them after all. Lets just get this done. The rules in this case are OK to be bent. Things were indeed rough in 1920’s Germany.
So. I’m there. I’ve found religion. A secularist, well educated PhD scientist is now in the the process of taking up the flag of a religious objection to vaccination. It will likely fail. It is based on the following:
The vaccines available today are all under EUA. In order for a person to obtain one of these vaccines (or any EUA medication), they must sign a document attesting that they both understand the risks, and that they are volunteering to have it administered into themselves.
There is a growing volume of scientific data, quite a bit even from government sources, that lead to genuine concerns which prevent me personally from signing my name to such a document in good faith7. Unprecedented reports in VAERS, personal experience from family members, documented increase in breakthrough cases showing erosion of the utility of said vaccines…
I actually treat the scientific method and scientific skepticism as articles of faith in my life. I have learned I must verify and question both statements of fact presented to me and those I myself come up with. In the last several weeks, I’ve actually come to realize I really have taken science into myself as deeply as one takes religion. Not as one blindly followed, but as one practiced. I do not Follow The Science, I follow science.
And so I’ve tried to lay this sort of thinking down in a religious objection to vaccination form provided by my employer. I’ve included links to various sources of data and explanations of numbers as I go — when the question about whether I’ve taken other vaccines or other over the counter medicines comes up8, I honestly point out indeed I have been vaccinated for other things, as has all my family, then list the VAERS numbers for adverse reactions for those common vaccinations listed in the question, and then the fantastically large covid vaccine number.
When asked about how my religious practice interferes with this mandate, I emphasize that I believe fundamentally I should have all the means available to me to understand and address risks of an action, particularly a medical one, but in this they are not available. And to satisfy the mandate I must lie by contract that I am satisfied, and that I take it willingly. I say that I fundamentally believe I have an absolute right, or should, to control what is introduced to or taken from my own body9.
And then we get to the accommodation part of the argument, where I point out the effectiveness of masks, try to argue that masks + social distancing + natural and human constructed immunity are likely the cause (ordering chosen intentionally) of all case downturns we have seen in this pandemic (actually something I should put together here when not defending/destroying my livelihood). That I have been able to achieve all of my work functions remotely during lockdowns and for that matter the bulk of the past year and a half, and can continue that, wear a mask and even take covid tests. So in my situation perhaps could be lucky that the roof or desk job piece of the helmet argument above should be possible.
I don’t believe any of this will work.
Ultimately I am likely going to get to a place where I really have to decide whether to take this thing or put my family through a whole hell of a lot of hardship as we figure out what else to do. I will say though, and I think I’ve said this in other posts here, that when it comes down to it, short term, the vaccines are indeed not looking like the worst risk one could ever take for most people. Looking at the data, certainly other causes of death come out ahead year by year. Even the mind boggling VAERS data, is very much skewed toward people much older than I am (but so is COVID itself). So it probably comes down to a choice of whether or not I incur a personal risk for the benefit of my family. All things being equal it should be an unnecessary risk, but they aren’t. So if up against the wall there, I probably have to end up getting the thing. In some sense there is the obvious choice — bad thing happens to you or the kids, you pick you. Of course that assumes the choice is an “or”. I think my goal now is to try to help make sure there is at least an “or”.
I suppose there is maybe another side to being forced to taking the thing in my position. Right now, though I have to be extremely subtle about it, I can poke at bits of some of the monster that is trying to eat us10. Despite it becoming more and more distasteful as we go, perhaps taking a hit like this to be able to stay close enough to continue to poke more forcefully at that monster is the right strategic move to be able to do my small part to help end it. Get jabbed so one can jab back. Or am I being weasel-y as an excuse to be able to just keep eating my BLT’s11.
If nothing else, I hope my arguments, which I’m sure come completely out of left field to the unfortunate souls who have to read and decide on them, trigger some questions. Getting people to ask questions I think is how we jab back. See if we can get more people to follow science rather than The Science.
Meanwhile I guess I’m out to go buy a roll of tinfoil for my head, and I suppose prepare for my role as the silly Flat Earther anti vaxxer question asking clown. That and working out the glassdoor query for lighthouse keeper openings. Oh. Nuts. Thats probably Department of Interior…
At this writing it is still the case that Comirnaty, the conditionally FDA approved covid vaccine is not actually available in the US. In fact one can argue it can’t be in order for EUA boosters and planned covid vaccination of children to be able to happen. https://www.fda.gov/media/150386/download
This is probably also where I re-iterate my caveat that I am not a medical doctor or lawyer, and that it is still the case that I have not stayed at any particular brand of hotel last night, recent past, or in fact last year and a half. I did earn a PhD though, and I do own a lab coat, which means I can Make Science. Generally though, I only wear the lab coat when Making Science in my garage and don’t want it to get on my clothes. If I Make Science in my garage, and some of it leaks out, whatever you do: DON’T Follow the Science.
I would think the long term legal implications of this being successful are incredible. Incredibly bad. Imagine we elect a pro life president who chooses to impose a mandate to protect the lives of the unborn. Imagine a pro choice president who chooses to impose a mandate to ensure choice of the mother. Imagine a more fiscally minded universal health care president realizing the cost savings on state funded insurance of mandating employees stop smoking or not eat fatty foods or sugar. Or worse limiting the extent/duration of life support in critical care. I believe incredible power has been exposed here.
https://www.ada.gov/
And we won’t even get into here, the entire debate over whether a roof constitutes a head covering. That led to much strife and warfare during the Great UnHatted Schism of 1523. Fortunately, without helmets the conflict ended swiftly.
And why by extension, should we ever believe any thing else they offer?
Loop back to basically anything else I’ve posted here. Yes I need to catch some things up. We’ve been somewhat busy.
I.e. where they’re trying to trip up the people who argue against the use of human stem cells in these vaccines, but don’t who realize that the same technology has been used in the developent of virtually every drug in common use today, including over the counter drugs like Tylenol.
Is this not the root of both the pro choice and pro life movements after all? Certainly pro choice.
I am not sure what the definition of this word is.
Since I chickened out and ended up not using it in my form I’ll put it here. So part of my religion argument was that an indication that a choice is a religious one is that it is taken despite an understood personal risk (covid disease) or discomfort (potential loss of employment). At the end of that I originally had “And I’m sure there are many for whom were it not for their faith, that nice juicy BLT would taste Oh so good”. I should have kept it. If know you’re gonna fail, fail hard.