Flu Shot Season...

This has nothing to do with baseball, just on my mind! - Baseball Buddha

It’s flu and Covid shot season again. I went in last week and got both, no hesitation. As I sat there, I remembered a conversation from my class reunion over the summer. A friend shook his head at me when I mentioned vaccines. He told me he takes Ivermectin for Covid instead. I tried to explain the difference to him but felt I didn’t do a very good job. So, this is how I would it explain it to him today…

Ivermectin is a medicine that treats parasites. In humans it works against things like roundworm, river blindness, scabies, and lice. In animals it knocks out worms and mites. It works by shutting down the parasite’s nervous system, which paralyzes and kills it. That is its purpose, and it does that job well.

But a virus is not a parasite. A parasite is a living organism. It eats, reproduces, and survives on its own while feeding off a host. A worm in your gut or lice in your hair is alive in its own right. A virus is different. It is not alive in the same way. It is just genetic material wrapped in a protein coat. It cannot eat, breathe, or move by itself. It can only survive by invading your cells and hijacking their machinery to make copies of itself.

That is why vaccines exist. A vaccine is a training exercise for your immune system. It shows your body a safe version or a piece of the virus so your body learns to recognize it. When the real virus comes along, your immune system is already primed and ready to shut it down before it spreads. Parasites need parasite medicine. Viruses need vaccines. Thank a scientist for that. Thank you Tracy.

The flu is caused by influenza viruses. They mutate constantly, which is why the flu shot changes every year. The vaccine does not cover every strain, but it reduces the risk of severe illness and hospitalization.

Covid is caused by a coronavirus called SARS-CoV-2. Like influenza, it mutates, which is why updated boosters are offered as new variants appear.

The common cold is also caused by viruses, mostly rhinoviruses. There is no vaccine because so many different viruses can cause a cold. Most colds are mild, and you ride them out with rest and fluids.

Here is where my frustration comes in. People can live their life however they want. Question the status quo. Push back against authority. I am all for that. But the ease with which people believe conspiratorial nonsense and then spread it around as if it were gospel, drives me nuts. I do not mind skepticism. I mind when skepticism gets swapped out for stupidity.

Mark Twain nailed it when he said, “Never argue with stupid people, they will drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience.” My friend Tim reminded me of that line today, and it stuck. Because every fall, when shots are offered and the arguments fire up again, I feel like Twain was writing about this exact moment.

I will argue one time though. Not to win an internet fight, but to make something clear. Viruses are not parasites. Ivermectin is not a vaccine and does nothing for a virus, if you felt better after taking it chances are you have a strong immune system plus it was probably more of a placebo effect. And if you do not see the difference, then you are fighting the wrong fucking battle.

I could talk about the delivery vehicles of these vaccines, how the flu shot uses pieces of the virus and how the COVID shot uses mRNA wrapped in lipid bubbles, but I know most of you would tune out. What matters is this shit has been studied for years and it’s safe, not because I say it is, but because science has proven it over and over again.