Rights vs. Responsibilities
There’s a proverbial line in the sand and it’s becoming more pronounced in the fight against COVID-19. With increasing frustration and diminishing empathy, those vaccinated are realizing it is the eligible but unvaccinated prolonging the pandemic. How can herd immunity be attained when there are clearly two herds amongst us?
There is a very large ineligible population that requires protection – children under the age of 12. The best way to protect them is to surround them with those who are vaccinated. Admittedly, it’s hard to create an impenetrable bubble now that schools are back in session and vaccination rates among the eligible have waned.
For the unvaccinated waiting for full FDA approval, all indications are it’s only a matter of days away. Hopefully, those individuals will rush to fulfill their promises once the announcement is made. Individuals who remain apprehensive about the newer mRNA technologies have the one-shot option, which is based on time-tested technologies of the past.
It is a much tougher population to persuade those resisting the vaccination based on personal freedoms. As important as individual rights are in our nation, there’s an even greater imperative to consider societal responsibility. While we are privileged with freedom of speech, we can’t scream ‘fire’ in a crowded theater just to cause chaos. The right to free speech simply does not eclipse the responsibility we have to others not to cause harm. If over the age of 21 the right to drink alcohol is granted. But that right does not transcend the responsibility to society not to drive while intoxicated. Smoking is a personal choice, but smoking in bars, restaurants, workplaces and even public parks in some cases are banned. See how this works? Social norms provide structure, set expectations on behaviors, and protect others from many of the choices we make.
Where and how this pandemic ends is anyone’s guess. And how many more cases, deaths, and hardships will our communities endure that could have been prevented now that we have vaccines available? Lastly, what horrific impact might the eligible but unvaccinated population have on the proliferation of the virus and its mutations on our unprotected children? For the good of humanity, may the sense of social responsibility outweigh the individual rights argument. Choose wisely.
