Letter to the editor: Choosing the risk of COVID-19 over the risk of the vaccine
Nov. 12, 2021
Dear Editor,
I would like to know why wanting a choice is “scary”? Why does having an opposing view strike fear into people. This country is free and we have the right to have opinions. You can choose to listen or avoid listening by plugging your ears and humming. I personally like to hear both sides of a story. I may not agree but I like to consider a point of view that I may not have considered. I also like for the person with the opposing view to listen to my side. Sounds pretty simple. Why does one side have to be right and the other wrong? As with most things in this world, there are many shades of grey when we truly dig into an issue. There is a difference between fact and truth. Truth takes in consideration feelings and beliefs, whereas they may have no place in fact. When presented with data (facts), you can draw your own conclusion (truth). What conclusion you draw from the facts (your truth) and what conclusion I draw from the facts (my truth) are not always the same. I would like to continue to provide truthful scientific information about the SARS-CoV2 Covid-19 vaccination to provide readers with facts for consideration.
Probably the first big question is why anyone would be hesitant to get the Covid 19 vaccination? People don’t want to die and most people feel a civic duty to their neighbor. I did research and did not get my questions answered adequately for me to feel comfortable exposing my body to a conditionally licensed emergency use vaccine. People will argue, well the vaccines are okayed by the FDA, why are you dragging your feet? I did my due diligence and called the Washtenaw Public Health Department. I spoke with a nurse that had just finished drawing up over 200 Covid 19 vaccinations for administration that day. I asked questions I felt that after 10 months of Covid 19 vaccination, they would have at their fingertips. They would know exactly what they were administering to the voluntary group of people after 10 months of conditional emergency use approval of the vaccine. Maybe these are dumb questions but, for those of you who received the vaccine voluntarily, did you think to ask the following questions before you rolled up your sleeve: 1) Can I view the animal studies for the Covid 19 vaccination? 2) What does the radiolabeling data say about distribution and elimination of the mRNA and Lipid Nano Particles (LNP) fractions of the vaccine? 3) What is the half-life of mRNA and the Lipid Nano Particle carrier? 4) How many replications of the spike protein are expected? The nurse made a quick search for the animal studies and the first thing to pop up was an Associated Press article that said something about severe inflammation in the animal vaccine trials. But the Associated Press is not a scientific resource and we both agreed it was not reliable information. She suggested searching resources from the CDC, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and the vaccine label insert which could be looked up on-line. She was nice and tried to help, but she only knows what the CDC tells her and nothing extra. I need more information!
I read through 12 pages of the Pfizer’s BioNTech Covid 19 vaccine label and did not find any answers. It talked about the specific handling requirements, dosing information, types of adverse reaction and reporting adverse reactions. A couple things I noted while reading were; “The significant known and potential risks and benefits of Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine, and the extent to which such risks and benefits are unknown” and “The Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine may not protect all vaccine recipients”. I searched for radiolabeling data and found an interesting 140 page February 19, 2021 document from the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use in the European Medicines Agency, Science Medicines Health that had a lot of information on the process of making the mRNA from DNA produced via plasmid DNA from transformed E. coli cells on Page 16. On page 134, it is stated “This vaccine contains two new components (cationic lipid ALC-0315 and PEGylated liquid ALC-0159) in the LNP, for which there is limited experience. Some uncertainties remain regarding the ALC-0315 long half-life”. I did not find the animal study research, only the one comment on the LNP long half-life but no duration, and no distribution, elimination or replication data. I was disappointed this information was from a European source and not a United States resource. Why is this information so hard to find? I am not a vaccine scientist or virologist, but I do have legitimate questions regarding the vaccine before I make any further decisions on receiving it. Current reasons that are given to receive the vaccine are not good enough for me. Just because it is relatively safe and effective does not mean the Lipid Nano Particles will not cause problems down the road, especially in young children and young adults who have those molecules in their bodies longer. The television commercials about Class Action Lawsuits for talc baby powder, Zantac antacid and Glyphosate and Paraquat herbicides make me uneasy because they are approved products turned bad with long-term data. I don’t like “oops, sorry for your luck”. I hope you can appreciate my and many others’ apprehension about rolling up our sleeves for this new and unproven technology and vaccine.
Another consideration is the number of adverse reactions being reported to the CDC through the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS). Initially I found comfort in knowing they were keeping track and compensating people for injury. However, that changed when I read this: “More than 408 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines were administered in the United States from December 14, 2020, through October 18, 2021. During this time, VAERS received 8,878 reports of death (0.0022%) among people who received a COVID-19 vaccine. FDA requires healthcare providers to report any death after COVID-19 vaccination to VAERS, even if it’s unclear whether the vaccine was the cause”. I know the adverse events are under reported as I have talked with a few people who had lymphadenopathy in the arm that received the vaccine or nerve pain in the skin of the arms and the doctors did not report these reactions to the vaccine stating it was not caused by the vaccine. Even more interesting was the Covid 19 vaccination summary which showed that as of October 1, 2021, in the Unites States, 7,437 people died after receiving a Covid 19 vaccination. That is more than the total number of 5,129 deaths reported for all other vaccines combined from 1990-present, over the last 30 years. If I happen to be one of those unfortunate few that die after vaccination, who will take care of my family? I know, I know, there is an opposite argument about getting the actual Covid virus. I will take my chances with the actual Covid 19 virus than the risks of vaccination. At least until they can explain the demise of so many people that rolled up their sleeves in the name of humanity. Do you see how you could interpret this information differently than me? My truth is the Covid 19 vaccines are not safe, my opinion. “One Covid 19 death is too many” people shout. One Covid 19 vaccine death is too many for me! Please, please review the CDC’s own VAERS reports and be sure you are comfortable with your decision to receive the Covid 19 vaccination.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/safety/adverse-events.html
There are numerous other reasons some people, like myself, do not want to be vaccinated with the Covid 19 vaccine. The reports of blood clots causing death are real warnings on the label of one of the Covid 19 vaccines. The cardiac adverse events are alarming and noted on another vaccine. There are reports of increased death after vaccination in the frail elderly published in The Journal of the Norwegian Medical Association on May 19, 2021. They concluded: “For those with the most impaired physiological reserves, the advantages and disadvantages of vaccination must be carefully considered”. None of the Covid 19 vaccines can stop shedding of the virus, so vaccinated people can still cause infections in other people and close to 50% of the current Covid 19 hospitalizations are people who are fully vaccinated. This vaccine has given people a false sense of security because it is a new vaccine and we are collecting data. This should not be a right or wrong, good or bad debate. We should decide what is right for ourselves. The vaccine is far from perfect despite what the CDC and NIH tout. I know a close non-vaccinated friend who gives blood every 60 days, even through the shut down last year and was negative for antibodies. He showed detectable antibodies in June, indicating exposure and immunity to the Covid 19 virus and had no symptoms whatsoever in the previous two months. Natural immunity is sadly being ignored by our government agencies and the president. There is a study done in Israel, a country who has close to 90% of their population vaccinated and many receiving their 6 month booster doses, that shows natural immunity is superior to vaccination. Please read “Comparing SARS-CoV-2 natural immunity to vaccine-induced immunity: reinfections versus breakthrough infections” by Sivan Gazit, MD MA and colleagues at Kahn Sagol Maccabi (KSM) Research & Innovation Center, Maccabi Healthcare Services, Tel Aviv, Israel. They discovered: “SARS-CoV-2-naïve vaccinees had a 13.06-fold (95% CI, 8.08 to 21.11) increased risk for breakthrough infection with the Delta variant compared to those previously infected, when the first event (infection or vaccination) occurred during January and February of 2021. The increased risk was significant (P<0.001) for symptomatic disease as well” and “SARS-CoV-2-naïve vaccinees were also at a greater risk for COVID-19-related-hospitalizations compared to those that were previously infected”. Please read the article for yourself for more details.
The mandated Covid 19 vaccination by the president is once again a broad brushed policy that does not fit everyone’s circumstances. The Constitution states the federal government cannot order its citizens around. The Constitution also states the government must protect our rights. Mandating the vaccine is a direct violation of The Constitution. Ironically, the same Constitution the president took an oath to uphold. I want to make decisions about my body and my children’s bodies for the above reasons. I don’t want to be permanently injured or dead to “save” someone else’s life. What is society gaining? We have traded one life for another and we are still minus one meaningful member of society. There have been many lives traded to save a Covid death. The suicide rate, drug addiction, alcohol abuse, domestic abuse, child abuse, delayed preventative care and delayed treatment for advanced aggressive cancer or acute heart attacks were all lives traded to save a Covid patient. Open your minds to the bigger picture and differing points of view. I have talked to health care workers whose hearts ache for the other non-Covid patients they have lost. How can anyone judge a person for not wanting the Covid 19 vaccine when each person’s circumstances are unique and different? Would you believe someone if they said they had the Covid 19 virus and natural immunity, but it was before testing was available? This is why vaccines should always be a choice. It is selfish on both sides of the argument to say they are “right” because I can’t see a correct answer when I feel for both sides. These are circular arguments that can be ended when everyone has a choice and it is not labeled good and bad by the leader of our country. Our current president promised to unify us during his campaign, but his actions and policies are divisive and hurt this beautiful, powerful nation. He wants unity through uniformity. Outside opinions and research are silenced, censored and persecuted if it does not support his truth. He mocks freedom in his recent town hall meeting by belittling the non-vaccinated with a joke that the audience laughed at. Not very nice mr. president. This feels so very, very wrong. Communist China censors and controls their citizens’ information too. I really want to believe we are not headed down that road.
I hope the readers can see, I have not taken my choice lightly. I have tried to educate myself to make an informed decision on Covid 19 vaccination. Time will give me the information because my interest and search are not over.
Educated Manchester Citizens,
Rhonda Guido (Manchester Township), Jason Fuchs (Village of Manchester), Tracy Eberle (Village of Manchester), Santo Guido (Manchester Township), Katie Brinkman (Village of Manchester), Michelle Jedele (Village of Manchester), Tracey Hock (Freedom Township), Lori Nickerson (Manchester Township), James Stewart (Manchester Township), April Stewart (Manchester Township), Brad Helmke (Manchester Township), Anna Naebeck (Manchester Township), Raquel Hulswitt (Manchester Township), Lisa Volpe (Village of Manchester), Darci Majewski (Village of Manchester), Kelly Flaherty (Freedom Township), Susan Amrhein (Bridgewater Township), Jennifer Alexa (Freedom Township), Laurie Krauss (Manchester Township)
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