How would you feel if a friend went on freedom marches and posted multiple times a day on FB about vaccines, etc?

[Invasionofthegutsnatchers]

Childhood friend of mine lost her job due to covid and has chosen not to be vaccinated as she feels it is unsafe and untested. She fears the government have pushed the vaccines on to people who don't need it in order to gain control of the masses. Why vaccinate healthy children etc.

I disagree, am fully vaccinated and am concerned with what seems to be an obsession she has with attending protests and sharing controversial posts on her feed. There is virtually nothing else on there.

My stance is that yes, the vaccines were accelerated for approval but also a lot of the research already existed due to flu vaccines coming first. Both my children are vaccinated for everything else that was offered to us.

She doesn't believe that vaccines have chips in them or Bill Gates is the lizard master or any of that nonsense but she is clearly unhappy and spending a lot of time online with people who seem to have unconventional views.

I guess it depends on how good your friendship was beforehand. I have some very differing views on politics/religion etc with many of my friends but we just don’t talk about those things. We have enough in common to keep our friendship going.

The old joke = How do you know if someone is vegan? They'll tell you, similar to the anti-vax crew that use fakebook as a news source.

Quite often, their evidence for stuff is overt propaganda photos with hyperbole written in capitals over the top. Yep, seems reasonable enough

The University of Facebook.

I think I prefer the days when people got their fake news from Rupert Murdoch.

I'd just ignore her tbh.
There is no point trying to discuss this with people when they've started with this shit.

It's boring isn't it? My friend's videos of the freedom marches she goes on are just people hanging around filming each other.

The large freedom gatherings were largely just an excuse for a day out in London and to mix with other people when everything else was shut.

They also attract the nutters like Ickes and crazy ex-doctors to peddle conspiracy theories. Some of those who've just gone for the days out got suckered into the cult after wanting to feel part of something.

I think it’s a bit sad that a very valid cause - protesting against the use of vaccine passports - can get dismissed as anti-vaxx in general or mixed up with conspiracy theory. It is possible for people to be pro-vaccine and against the use of vaccine-passports.

@HarrietOh

I had a friend who was similar but I think she’s finally coming round to the fact that it’s getting a bit boring now. She has a friend who is absolutely obsessed and bombards her with videos about it all. It’s pretty sad really, most people have moved on with their lives now. I worry about what will come of them when they realise it’s not some grand conspiracy and we won’t all drop dead in 2 years time because of the “experimental vaccine.”

most people have moved on with their lives now

I was in London at the weekend and there was another 'freedom march' and while it was more low key, I just thought 'get a life'. People were too busy out enjoying the bank holiday (at Reading festival, a football match, the pub, the theatre etc etc) rather than walk around like a zombie down Oxford Street with an anti-vax placard.

They need to get a grip of themselves.

I have a FB friend that does this and that's fine but she won't listen or entertain counter argument at all. Just shouts people down so I have lost all respect for her

However I can't delete her as I'm
Morbidly fascinated by what she will say next.

@bumbleymummy

I think it’s a bit sad that a very valid cause - protesting against the use of vaccine passports - can get dismissed as anti-vaxx in general or mixed up with conspiracy theory. It is possible for people to be pro-vaccine and against the use of vaccine-passports.

I think the issue is that the marches/protests/FB posts etc do get muddled, though. I understand concern over vaccine passports- though I don't agree - and support a right to protest. But I got caught up in an 'anti-vaccine passport' protest very recently and I was being screamed at to take my mask off and there were quite a few signs/T-shirts/badges which were just batshit and offensive - Nazi comparisons etc. So I'm afraid you will get tarred with the same brush.

Yes, it’s a shame people can’t protest against vaccine passports without people with anti-mask/anti-vaxx/conspiracy theorists hijacking them for their own agenda.

I wouldn’t feel anything. If I only had friends who had the same opinions about everything as me, that would be weird.

I’d mute it though maybe but doubt I would be bothered, I don’t really care.

I have been taught to respect other people's beliefs and that is what I'm doing. If I see falsehood or dangerous things posted online I report it. If an adult don't belive in covid or vaccines it is up to them.

I'm very happy to live in a country where there is freedom of speech and that people can say what they believe in. Yes, there are consequences to it and laws in place to protect others from most harm that arise from it.

I have a friend like this too.

I've just muted her on Facebook and sincerely hope that if she does catch covid then she isn't seriously ill. Unfortunately there isn't much else you can do, a lot of people who think like this don't realise how stupid they are until they are ill.

@changingstages

Look at the last high profile protest. There was thousands of people gathered around listening to that mad Doctor and David Icke. If these people want to be on the side of crazies like them and the likes of Piers Corbyn - as opposed to all the experts - then more fool them.

The early marches may have been a communal day out in London for many, while protesting lockdowns, but they took an increasingly sinister tone into wild conspiracy and unpleasantness.

[quote User135644]@changingstages

Look at the last high profile protest. There was thousands of people gathered around listening to that mad Doctor and David Icke. If these people want to be on the side of crazies like them and the likes of Piers Corbyn - as opposed to all the experts - then more fool them.

The early marches may have been a communal day out in London for many, while protesting lockdowns, but they took an increasingly sinister tone into wild conspiracy and unpleasantness.[/quote]
Yes, exactly.

I'd struggle to align myself with any movement which these loons are on board with.

Your friend has a different opinion to you 🤷🏼‍♀️. Has that not happened before? How about accepting it’s a difference of view and leaving it at that? Or is such sort of tolerance for difference in view out of the question in these strange times.

The toxicity of the political debates concerning covid have been detrimental to a lot of people’s mental health and well-being. If your friend has lost her job as a result of her different views/ choices it’s no wonder that she has become somewhat radicalised / obsessed. Maybe just be a friend to her and be kind.

Sadly I know a few people like this. One has convinced their elderly parents not to get vaccinated because of her beliefs.

It's sad and frustrating to have family and friends like this especially if they are quite forceful with their views. I have a family member like this and trying to reason just ends up with me being called a sheeple and then them ranting about poisoning my body. I think the internet has a lot to answer for as some people are lost looking for answers and reasons during a time of great uncertainty and many found solace in conspiracies that led them being sucked down an algorithm rabbit hole. It's like a form of brainwashing.

@PearlyBird

Id feel bored. But I wouldnt want to fall out over it. Nobody had any preparation for this pandemic. I dont want to judge anybody for their fears. They could be fine in a year's time.

I agree with this - I think everyone has gone a bit wappy over Covid and I don;t want to fall out with people. But... I am a bit internally at some of the unexpected people who are anti-vax, so I might keep a sceptical distance in future.

@Whathefisgoingon

Sadly I know a few people like this. One has convinced their elderly parents not to get vaccinated because of her beliefs.

I knew 2 people like this. I quietly unfriended them.

One then sent me a message to tell me I didn't love my children if I didn't sign his petition. I blocked them after that.

Soon after I came off FB altogether.

I too have a friend who has fallen down the covid conspiracy theory rabbit hole. She continually spouts crap, posts lots of links to american websites that Facebook takes down because they are false news etc. She started off relatively mildly, loads of people agreeing with her and has gradually got more rabid with the result that people are now calling her out on stuff and if you don't agree with her she will argue that black is white.
I've muted her on Facebook, my blood pressure can't take it!

If you report a post on FB does the person reported know who did it?

I've got friends that post mildly offensive posts in Facebook, I just ignore then (I'm slightly intrigued what they'll post next but don't enter into any sort of conversation about it). By mildly offensive I mean calling people sheeple, complaining about people being off work ill, etc. I'm slightly concerned that it is affecting one friend's mental health from some of the things she's posted but definitely don't want to get into a conversation about it.

Normally, I do have differences of politics/opinions with a few friends (mostly school friends, so we are still close and just try to avoid those topics), but on this one I'd keep the friendship just online (and again, just ignore their vaccine stuff).
If I would normally meet up with them in real life then, depending on how close we were, either avoid doing that for a long time in the hope they change their mind, or if they pushed to meet then I would have to say no.

That's the problem with a decision like this - it can impact others in real life. A family member has gone anti-vax, and so I'm not going to meet up with them because it then puts my branch of the family at risk of getting it, as they could be carrying it.