A Vaccine Or This Marriage: Conspiracy Theories Are Tearing Couples Apart

[citizen blues]

Increasing numbers of couples and families are facing these kinds of decisions. Even dating sites now have people declaring whether they're willing to date vaccinated or unvaccinated people. This is becoming a HUGE social divide. Even my daughter's partner (male), a 42-year-old overweight smoker who drinks a 40 oz. of beer every evening, has refused to get vaccinated. While my daughter has gotten vaccinated, I'm still concerned about my 3-year-old grandson who's too little to be vaccinated.


A Vaccine Or This Marriage: Conspiracy Theories Are Tearing Couples Apart

At the outset of the pandemic, Lucy’s husband and partner of seven years, Shane, was as cautious as anyone about the virus. He kept a big container of hand sanitizer in the car and fanatically washed his hands, keys and other items. He wore a face mask everywhere he went, showered and changed his clothes immediately upon returning home from necessary outings, and was anxious for Lucy and her elderly mother, who lives with them, to get vaccinated as soon as possible due to their heightened vulnerabilities.

But as the crisis dragged on, 60-year-old Shane spent months cooped up inside on YouTube and Facebook, where a vortex of coronavirus conspiracy theory videos was waiting for him. Many declared that the virus was nothing to fear — that it was the vaccines he should really be afraid of. Before long, he was also tuning into the increasingly malicious disinformation networks Newsmax and OAN, which regularly rehashed the lies he’d been fed online. He was completely enthralled, Lucy said, and over time, his worldview “did a 180.”

Among other delusions, Shane is now steadfastly convinced that the COVID-19 outbreak was orchestrated by government-allied forces, the coronavirus is no more harmful than the flu, and the vaccines alter recipients’ DNA — condemning them to slowly perish.

Thousands are still dying, so when are these peddlers of lies like OAN and Newsmax going to be held accountable?

[GulfCoast66]

1. Consider it lucky if you found out your significant other as weak minded

And a dumb ass before they marriage

[Ilsa]

2. I met a nurse with a masters degree who told me

that over 700 people had died from the J&J vaccine, and that the CDC is covering it up. I was dumbfounded.

[GP6971]

5. Welcome to DU! n/t

[Wingus Dingus]

6. CDC halted the J and J vaccine on a relative handful of reports of blood clots.

They were well publicized cases, brought to the media outside of CDC reach or control.

[Wingus Dingus]

10. They restarted the vaccine administration once they were satisfied that the blood clotting

(generally in younger and middle aged women) was a rare occurrence--and it was the J and J vaccine and the Astrazeneca specifically that caused it. Germany studied the mechanisms by which it occurred. It was all well publicized. Edit to add: I see I'm talking to myself now, LOL.

[viva la]

15. They're always so ignorant about how science works...

That part of it is watching for mistakes or bad outcomes and seeking to deal with them.

[Wingus Dingus]

4. Sounds like this guy suffers from general anxiety and he's coping with it

by making the vaccine the focus of his fear, rather than Covid itself or his wife's cancer. Gives him comfort to think he's figured out the conspiracy, and he can control the situation and be safe simply by not getting the shot (and he is trying to control others by not letting them get the shot). Irrational to believe anyone's "shedding" anything vaccine-related, that he needs "pulse magnets" to kill the "nano" stuff, but this is where a fearful brain can take you--right past the real threat of the disease, and down irrational crazy rabbit holes instead. That's my armchair analysis.

[ShazzieB]

7. Your armchair analysis makes a lot of sense to me!

[Wingus Dingus]

8. Thanks! I'm pretty familiar with anxiety/phobia, lol.

[eppur_se_muova]

11. I saw a young couple at the grocery store today. She was masked, he wasn't.

Not a good sign for the future of that relationship.

[Tadpole Raisin]

12. I've thought about this...

I tell people that I grew up in a relatively small town. And anyone who did knows that nothing is a secret. If something bad happens to a person the whole town knows about it in a couple of weeks.

So for this virus to be a hoax, or just nothing to worry about, or a secret plot you would have to believe that

Every hospital in every town in every state is all in on it.

Every ICU, every emergency room, urgent care center, every doctor, nurse, respiratory therapist, physical therapist, occupational therapist, speech therapist, every morgue worker, funeral home director and workers are all in on it.

Everyone in every state of this country and across the world!

I grew up in a small town.

There is not a chance in hell that they are right and they can chew on that till the cows come home.

[DemocraticPatriot]

14. You are talking 'logic'.

Don't you know, that is not allowed now?

lol

[DemocraticPatriot]

13. if I was lucky enough to have a wife or 'significant other' within holding distance,

she damned well better be vaccinated by now...

Of course, I am not, I am alone in this country. All my love objects are far away, in a country with much fewer vaccines available..
Thus I hope that we send all our un-used vaccines overseas now, especially to Colombia--- since the MAGAs here are too stupid to get a shot in the arm to save their own lives...

We are not the only country in the world.. and the rest threaten our security vs. covid, if they cannot protect themselves...