Once again, I’m scrapping a half-finished column for this space in favor of something more timely. The other piece was a little more hopeful, a little less serious. It’s evergreen, good beyond this news cycle, so I hope to get a chance to share it with you soon. I will if our state leaders will cool their jets for a week. (Smart bets say you’ll never see it.)
This morning, I read something in The Tennessean that seriously frightened me. On Monday, July 12th, (yesterday as of this writing), the Tennessee Department of Health fired Dr. Michelle Fiscus, the top vaccine official in the Tennessee state government. Fiscus claims she was fired to appease Republican state lawmakers who are angry about efforts to vaccinate teenagers. Maybe you remember the month-old consternation about state health officials “targeting” teens with ads on Facebook and social media? First of all, teens don’t spend too much time on Facebook these days, and, second, “targeting” youth with ads for a life-saving vaccine is a little like “attacking” people with a campaign encouraging them to eat their vegetables and drink eight glasses of water a day.
Fiscus issued a statement, published by The Tennessean, that recounted the pushback she received for doing her job, for simply trying to protect Tennesseans. Though it deeply disturbs me to think that any of our elected officials would prize political party over the health and safety of their constituents, I would be lying if I said it surprised me. That’s been the play, hasn’t it? The messages have been “get back to work” and “don’t live in fear” and “come visit Tennessee,” totally ignoring that if every eligible Tennessean were vaccinated, we could all go back to work — and to restaurants and on vacation and wherever — with relative safety.
Why have we wasted time and energy and money pursuing unconstitutional and discriminatory laws about who can use which bathroom? (A law that was in effect for just eight days before a federal judge issued an injunction — those are our tax dollars at work paying lawyers to defend a disgusting piece of legislation.) Why does our governor spend his time on trips to the southern border of the U.S., on promotional videos with Brad Paisley? Wouldn’t it promote travel to Tennessee if our vaccination rate was above 40 percent? Well, sure, but that’s not going to win anyone a spot on a GOP ticket. The game now is to out-Trump the competition, to vie for a sound bite on Fox News, the only currency that matters.
I think these people are far beyond shame, and I want to use this space for something constructive. So I am again writing an earnest plea for all who can to get vaccinated against COVID-19.
I say “all who can” because I recognize that some Memphians cannot be vaccinated. There are people with health conditions that preclude their ability to get the shot. And of course, there are children younger than 12 years old who can’t legally get the vaccine. Those kids will be back in school this fall. It’s for the sake of those who can’t that the rest of us must do so.
And I’ll say right now, I’m fully vaccinated. It was quick, relatively painless, and absolutely free. I’m not asking anyone to do something I wouldn’t do myself. The side effects were mild. The day after each shot, my shoulder was a bit sore. The day after my second shot, I felt a little tired and muddle-headed. To be honest, I’ve had worse hangovers and far more uncomfortable bouts of the common cold.
Why am I writing this now? Well, it seems we could use a boost. Hospitalizations and positive test rates are rising. The Flyer’s Toby Sells reports that the seven-day COVID-19 averages have more than doubled since last week. The reproductive rate of the virus is 1.22, the highest it’s been since June 2020. Meanwhile, The Tennessean’s vaccine tracker site reports that about 34.56 percent of Shelby County’s population is fully vaccinated, and the Delta variant is knocking on the door.
Remember, every single person the virus infects is another chance for it to mutate, to become resistant to vaccines. To undo all the work we’ve done to claw our way back toward being able to see each other in public again. Because an incompletely vaccinated population presents multiple opportunities for this dreadful disease to become more contagious, more resistant to vaccinations and treatment measures, choosing to be vaccinated is in the public interest. It’s not just a personal choice. No, it’s the cost of living in this world with other people.
Sometimes you have to do things to help protect your neighbors. It’s really that simple.
Jesse Davis
jesse@memphisflyer.com
