Politics and COVID

[guest1168940]

Mirroring our countries growing partisanship and divide I noted often our threads degrade into politics, so here is the “white elephant/donkey” in the room thread.

 

 

 

[toomuchbaloney]

It's a sad reality. 

[jive turkey]

This is interesting.  Share graphs that show other time frames during COVID's history.  This one says its a 14 day moving average.

[NRSKarenRN, BSN, RN]

Kaiser Family Foundation  9/14/21

The Red/Blue Divide in COVID-19 Vaccination Rates

Quote

There continue to be differences in COVID-19 vaccination rates along partisan lines, a gap that has grown over time. We’ve documented this in our COVID-19 Vaccine Monitor surveys of the public, and we’ve been tracking county-level data to assess vaccination rates in counties that voted for Trump in the 2020 Presidential election compared to those that voted for Biden....

As of September 13, 2021, 52.8% of people in counties that voted for Biden were fully vaccinated compared to 39.9% of Trump counties, a 12.9 percentage point difference (Figure 1)....

This data snapshot is based on an analysis of data on the share of the population fully vaccinated by county from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) COVID-19 Integrated County View and data on the 2020 Presidential election results by county from here (for more detailed methods, see: https://www.kff.org/coronavirus-covid-19/issue-brief/vaccination-is-local-covid-19-vaccination-rates-vary-by-county-and-key-characteristics/).

Denver Post  June 25, 2021

Seth Masket: The great vaccine divide puts Republican leaders in a moral quandary

[NRSKarenRN, BSN, RN]

CNN 7/10/21

2 maps that explain how partisanship has poisoned our fight against Covid-19

2020 Election Results

 

July 2021 COVID Vaccination rates

 

 

[Guest219794]

The title is wrong.

"Politics and Covid" Should be "Covid is Politics."

On a national level it is the Republican governors claiming they are anti mandate, and at best, supporting those spreading disinformation about risk/benefits of vaccination.  Every single one of them:

A- supports mandatory vaccines, and has for years.

B- Is vaccinated, but rarely make this public.  Simple calculation.  The amount of votes they lose to Covid deaths is less than what they lose if they break from herd.

A routine hearing in the State House turned confrontational last week when the state’s health commissioner called out a top Republican lawmaker, Rep. Ken Weyler, for spreading disinformation about the COVID-19 vaccine. The exchange – between Health and Human Services Commissioner Lori Shibinette and Rep. Weyler, chair of the House Finance Committee – highlights a conspiracy-driven ideology tied to the pandemic that’s on the rise in state Republican politics.

The exchange centered on Shibinette’s statement that the vast majority of COVID-related hospitalizations in New Hampshire are among unvaccinated individuals. Weyler countered, without citing any sources, that the vast majority of hospitalizations are actually for vaccinated people. Shibinette described Weyler’s claims as “misinformation” and a barrier to increasing vaccinations.

At higher levels of politics, they are flat out lying for political benefit.  Well educated, they, for the most part, possess the critical thinking ability to discern misinformation.  As we move down the food chain, there is a combination of liars and gullible followers.

 

[toomuchbaloney]

Alaska has successfully politicized covid mitigation and vaccination. 

By Jaclyn Peiser

https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/10/01/anchorage-mayor-bronson-star-of-david/

[nursej22, MSN, RN]

1 hour ago, toomuchbaloney said:

Alaska has successfully politicized covid mitigation and vaccination. 

By Jaclyn Peiser

https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/10/01/anchorage-mayor-bronson-star-of-david/

Putin must be feeling a great deal satisfaction over the division in our country.

[toomuchbaloney]

Koch-backed group fuels opposition to school mask mandates, leaked letter shows

Quote

The document offers a rare glimpse into the inner workings of a well-financed conservative campaign to undermine regulations that health authorities say are necessary to contain the coronavirus. The frustration of many parents who want a greater say is deeply felt, school superintendents say. But their anger is also being fueled by organized activists whose influence is ordinarily veiled.

Why?

[toomuchbaloney]

Murkowski bemoans surge of covid cases in Alaska, decries Nazi references about mask mandate

Quote

While the overall rate of new cases has declined 12 percent nationwide, the rolling seven-day average of cases per 100,000 people has risen 35 percent in Alaska, according to data tracked by The Washington Post, with more than 15,000 cases per 100,000 people.
“If Alaska were a country, it would be the nation with the world’s highest per-capita case rate,” Murkowski said, basing her statement on data from the Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems, Science and Engineering.

I'm getting out of here soon to go visiting.  Unfortunately, all of my family live in republican dominated states with relatively low vaccination rates and high covid case rates...at least I'll be visiting with vaccinated folk.