Taylor LorenzMay 1, 2025
If you're not masking and pretending the ongoing Covid pandemic is over, kindly shut the fuck up about vaccine hesitancy and vax rates. You are the one contributing to the problem and helping to dismantle public health and spread rampant disease! As someone who does vaccine outreach, no other article has explained this topic so well https://www.thegauntlet.news/p/liberals-joined-conservatives-to
Liberals joined conservatives to mainstream anti-vax beliefs about viruses and public health

Viruses are bad for kids' health. Public health is a collective effort. Liberals no longer believe either.

The Gauntlet
Show threadFediThing May 1, 2025

@taylorlorenz

As the article says, it's worth getting vaccinated for Covid, but current Covid vaccines aren't enough on their own and require other measures alongside them (fresh clean air, masking when that's not possible).

If we want a return to the 2019 world, we need next gen Covid vaccines that either prevent infection or prevent long term damage.

I'd highly recommend following @hildabast who has just today published another of her excellent roundups of next gen Covid vaccine news.

Show threadTaylor Lorenz
@FediThing @hildabast If we want to return to 2019 world we'll need MASKING, upgraded ventilation, free and accessible testing and so on. Sterilizing vaccines are a crucial part of that (which we will likely never have), but millions of people including babies can't get vaccinated or have their immune systems so damaged by covid they don't respond to the vax. This is why a vax only strategy is disastrous for public health and masking and layered protections are key!!
May 1, 2025 at 5:25pmWeb
Show threadFediThing May 1, 2025

@taylorlorenz @hildabast

Yup.

Show threadHilda BastianMay 1, 2025

@taylorlorenz @FediThing I agree that all those things would be needed to protect people from Covid (and other diseases). But I don't believe that most countries will have widespread masking and upgraded ventilation.

However I do think vaccines that can reduce infection & transmission are on the horizon, and I think that's going to be very important for many of the people who can get them.

Show threadTaylor LorenzMay 2, 2025
@hildabast @FediThing I think widespread masking is possible with the right public health messaging! Maybe I'm being too optimistic but it's pretty normalized in Asia. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. In the meantime, yes here's hoping for better vaccines too! I know you follow this stuff, how many years away do you think we are from a vaccine that fully prevents transmission?
Show threadHilda BastianMay 3, 2025

@taylorlorenz @FediThing It's only normalized in parts of Asia, so it's still exceptional. Strong English-speaking anti-mask energy in many other places.

Fully preventing transmission is a lot to expect. I think Europe & some other parts of the world will have at least one very good one within 2 years if all goes well. (For the US, depends on where the FDA etc go with vaccines, which isn't very reassuring at the moment. Great vax existing & having access to it are different questions.)