Thanks for the good discussion, gentlemen. This can be a heated topic, and I really appreciate the honest stories and experiences that have been shared here. I feel fortunate to say I have only lost an uncle to COVID thus far.
I am not a denier, just a thoughtful individual trying to make sense things. Everyone I know has been affected, directly or indirectly. It's very interesting to hear the different perspectives and truly amazing that intelligent people can look at our situation and draw drastically different conclusions.
Viruses are tiny. This makes them hard to study because we cannot see them - even with an electron microscope - I understand the estimated size of the COVID-19 virus to be ~250nm. That's smaller than the wavelength of ultraviolet light - basically 1/4 of a micron.
Due to this complication Covid-19 has not yet been isolated in a lab. This is problematic when it comes to performing controlled, scientific tests.
My understanding is that we are dealing with an invisible enemy. We can't really see how it's interacting with our bodies, but we see how are bodies are reacting to IT. Reactions vary, but often what gets individuals in trouble is an inflammatory response (often in the respiratory system).
A lot of people compare COVID to the flu. Sources vary, but findings consistently indicate that COVID-19 is more serious than the flu. How much? It's hard to say. To me it looks like COVID has possibly 3x the mortality rate of influenza (it is strange that influenza took the year off). Either way - influenza and covid are both well below 1 death per 100 cases. Less than 1%.
According to the CDC, the fatality rate attributed to those infected with the Spanish Flu was one in ten. 10%! If that were the case presently, I might have a different outlook on these rushed vaccines.
Flu vaccines have been around for a long time. How is the COVID-19 vaccination any different? Well it is the FIRST mRNA VACCINE of its kind! This is my point. Scientists have been working on mRNA vaccines for nearly two decades (perhaps longer). Past trials have been plagued with undesirable side effects, which indicates it is not an easy thing to get right.
At the moment, I'm with
@JMW67
In preliminary trials, Ivermectin has been shown effective not only as
-a prophylactic (preventing people from getting sick),
- for treatment COVID symptoms (reducing inflammatory response).
- It has even shown effective treating POST-COVID syndrome (I'm not sure if that's actually a recognized syndrome, but there are people who get messed up by the virus, test positive, then in time the virus leaves, they test negative but these people can't work and long term disability doesn't know what to do with them)
They best part, Ivermectin has been used by BILLIONS of people. It's cheap and proven to be harmless (well, not to parasites, but harmless to humans).
Anyhow, for those on the fence, it's another option to look into.
I hoped to be more active in this thread, hopefully things slow down here for me this week.