This is obviously the current polarised Brexit debate as it’s impossible to convert the stubborn to switch teams. I’m team science and was first in the queue to get both vaccinations at the earliest opportunity. Pretty much all others I know from friends and family over twelve or seventeen are double vaccinated too.
I have come across one neighbour who shocked me as being anti vaxx. I listen to his story and understood his concerns and unique lifestyle and brief personal historical background. I was not so much surprised in what he said as he is a recent immigrant from a particular BAME background being of (by his own admission) mixed First Nation Native African American heritage but grew up in Washington DC. He is married to a British Afro Caribbean lady. We live in a tolerant and harmonious multicultural society with English and other west European amongst peoples from east Asia, Russia and Middle East who even bring their high power exotic cars over to stay during the summer months.
As an aside but relevant background here - this chap told me about the historical treatment of his peoples in recent decades and centuries and how the European colonialists essentially experimented scientifically with various drugs and treatments on his type over recent lifetime memory as if human rats or monkeys in a lab for drugs and cosmetics development etc. A lot of first hand or passed down knowledge that is not reported on or spoken about outside of these communities in the media. He is the only person of his background in my community. They are an interesting couple as a bit different from my core central London residence typical trim and healthy yummy mummy wearing ubiquitous Reformation summer dress Veja white trainers, Luluemon yoga or The Fold formal office attire and cool dads brigade wearing Lorro Piana etc all mostly driving Tesla or Audi RS6 or Mercedes G Class AMG with a few in “green” Range Rover Autobiography plug in hybrids just to set the scene. All of us are otherwise double vaccinated and don’t see the what the fuss is all about and grateful that England finally did one proactive Covid mitigation right and that was to procure and develop our own vaccines and to get the NHS and British Army to logistically roll out the mass vaccination at some pace efficiently.
I believe the vaccination has made a major difference in community transmission and onwards super spreading. It has prevented many from severe symptoms or needing hospitalisation. It does not prevent contracting the virus but does I believe make a huge difference along with all hands, face, space and trace mitigations. If the whole country is anti vaxx or we not had the opportunity to be vaccination - we would see a totally different deadly Covid landscape!
I believe as widely recently media reported some anti vaxx who are unlikely to recover from Covid are although too late for them - asking their fellow anti vaxx lovers to get on board with science and get jabbed or continue to roll the dice on fate. I believe it’s a free choice but if you perish with Covid unvaccinated - that would indicate it is not the better choice! Naturally immunity without scientific intervention via vaccination may not do much against fast spreading and mutating super contagious and more deadly variants.
Finally there are a few, a small percentage of the population who for various medical complications can not be vaccinated and therefore have no luxury of added vaccinated protection. For these in our communities - the vaccinations protects us first and foremost but obviously also others in our breathing space and nearby contacts when out and about our daily lives including the medically compromised and vulnerable.
Get fully vaccinated to protect yourself, your family and friends and by extension - the community and nation! And no - not convinced by any anti vaxx other than being foolish and dangerous to themselves and others.