My pointless attempt to reason with and anti-vaxxer, who is a friend

[lindysalsagal]

We share a hobby we both absolutely love, but, this is interfering: There are people we want to share this hobby with who will expect her to be vaxxed.

She says she's done "research" but hasn't sent me a single link from a scientist to back it up. She's saying god made people perfect and we don't need vaccines. But then in the same breath, when I mentioned polio, oh, well, that one is ok, I guess.....

She has one woman who is a source for this "research", a total anti vaxxer, who claims the government is getting rich with this hoax. When I asked her how much her so-called expert was making being oppositional, she floundered.

I told her we have a common friend who is a lab scientist who works with viruses, who is vaxxed, but that meant nothing to her.

She will forgo her total passion hobby in order to avoid getting vaxxed. She also claims not to see doctors or take any meds. I don't know if that's true...

I wanted to say, "Well, then call me when your fever jumps and you can't breathe, because I want to hear you ask for a doc."

[Hoyt]

1. We are vaccinated. My Ladyfriend's kids were hesitant until employer said

“no can work.”

I know a few Democrats that should know better who are hesitant too. Don’t get it, though it’s just become readily available to their age group. Folks will get it, but it takes awhile for some to accept truth.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

2. I think you should say your last sentence to her!

Of course, you'll probably lose her friendship.

There is no reasoning with these people, none!

I am sorry that I cannot make a reasonable suggestion.

[I_UndergroundPanther]

3. Antivaxx is a stupid thing to be.

Btw curious what is your beloved hobby?
Curious.

[lindysalsagal]

4. It's musical. Ordinary.

[smirkymonkey]

5. I have a friend, a Democrat, who thinks exactly like your friend about vaccines, doctors and

medications. Her reasoning makes absolutely no scientific sense whatsoever, but there is no talking her out of her views and pushing the matter is only going to lead to a fight and bad blood between us.

Fortunately, she lives almost 2,000 miles away, so I do not have the added complication of having to socialize with her in person and probably won't for at least a year or so.

It's very frustrating though. She is afraid of dying of blood clots from the vaccine, but her chances of catching Covid and dying from it (she lives in TX) are much, much higher as she has a few risk factors, including compromised immunity and pre-diabetes.

[lindysalsagal]

6. It's irrational and self-serving. I can tell she's withholding the really super crazy stuff

that's really driving her. I don't push and pull and I don't react or become emotional. I let her keep letting out more fishing line so she'll hear herself sounding foolish. None of it makes a lick of sense, but it's like her own death to admit what the rest of the world thinks.

She says, I don't need it." I calmly said, "But the people around you need you to get it. "

[smirkymonkey]

7. I think they would rather die than admit they are wrong about things.

In some ways, literally. They just can't allow the truth to penetrate. Somehow, it is too threatening to their egos.

[Beartracks]

18. I also have a close relative who gave several of the "ordinary" irrational excuses before ...

... he finally blurted out, "You need to go look up Bill Gates and population control online !!1!11"

(sigh)

=======

[liberal_mama]

10. I know a few democrats who don't want to get vaccinated

They are afraid of the vaccine for different reasons.

[Demovictory9]

21. Some say they wont trust it until it has fda approval

That it was developed too fast

[liberal_mama]

23. I had the vaccines, but I had and still have concerns that it was developed too fast

I guess time will tell.

[Steelrolled]

8. I know of number of people who are choosing not to get vacinated

at least at this time.

I told them I got vaccinated. It didn't seem to bother them, and I'm really not that bothered that they are not getting vaccinated. End of discussion.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

9. God made people perfect.

That's a nice sentiment, but how does she then account for the many imperfections people have?

Christian Scientists have a very similar belief, and they tend to not get any kind of medical help no matter what. Not so oddly enough, they tend to die younger than most of us, and of illnesses that we generally don't have. Hmmm. I wonder why that is.

For further enlightenment, read God's Perfect Child by Caroline Fraser. A completely amazing book.

Fraser also wrote Prairie Fires: The American Dreams of Laura Ingalls Wilder which is possibly the best book I have ever read in more than 65 years of reading. I have long been a fan of Laura Ingalls Wilder, read all of her books multiple times, and all of the biographies about her before Fraser's. Most of those simply depend on her Little House books. Fraser researches her families, the Ingalls and the Quiners, and looks very carefully at the events of her life. Her daughter Rose was a piece of work, to put it mildly.

I'm only sorry Fraser hasn't written more books.

[dawg day]

14. "If God made people perfect... There would be no Trumpers."

Ooops, can't say that.

[RockRaven]

11. Beyond a certain point, not very far out there, this crap isn't about evidence/arguments. It's about

emotions/psychology. There is some need being filled by this position/worldview. That's why people fail to "deconvert" people in their lives with evidence and reason.

At the moment she's hanging it on the scaffold of this "expert," but even if someone succeeded in tearing down this one, she's gonna seek out and find a new so-called expert to hang her shit on -- and with the internet she'll find one. Because it's not about the expert or the evidence, it's about what need this worldview fills which other things do not (or are not at the moment, anyhow)...

[Johonny]

12. I agree

The whole odd Covid response from not wearing masks, not wanting to social distance, to now, not vaccinating is about showing "them" how smart/better they are. People make a lot of money selling contrarianism and there's a huge market for it in this country. It makes people feel "smarter" "well informed". It generally preys on the people desperate to feel right or smart.

The oddest thing is, people in this country would spend hours learning bullshit than just actually studying real information.

[lindysalsagal]

15. I think you're right. She can't imagine being a mere mortal like the rest of us.

[dawg day]

13. "Did your parents get you vaccinated as a child?"

Well, yeah.

"So were your parents evil? Did they want to hurt you?"

I wonder if (if she has children) she has denied them vaccinations all this time.

[SunSeeker]

16. If this nutjob doesn't believe in medicine or doctors, she can expect an early needless death.

Last edited Mon May 17, 2021, 01:36 PM - Edit history (1)

People's life expectancy used to be only 42, before those medicines and vaccines she hates so much were invented.

I could never be friends with such an idiot. You have way more patience than me.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

17. Read

God's Perfect Child to see what the results are of denying modern medicine

[Sibelius Fan]

19. Tell her that you never thought of her as a stupid person before, but now you do.

[Bullfeathers]

20. Let it go

if she’s a friend. You’re not going to change her, but for now you can protect yourself by being vaccinated
I’m more concerned that this is going to turn into a yearly shot. If that happens less people will be vaccinated as time goes on. I know so many people who don’t get yearly flu shots and I think Covid will fall under this

[lindysalsagal]

22. I think you're right.