Finding the real freedom fighters in COVID war By: Tom Brodbeck Posted: 7:00 PM CST Tuesday, Feb. 15, 2022

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 15/02/2022 (1300 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Close to 100,000 Manitobans have stepped up to get their third dose of the COVID-19 vaccine over the past month. That’s equivalent to the combined populations of Brandon, Morden, Thompson, Selkirk, Portage la Prairie and Sandy Bay First Nation. It’s pretty impressive.

While the loud and the belligerent stage protests across the country and block borders to demand the return of what they call “freedom” (or whatever other twisted, far-right objectives they may be pursuing), the strong and the steady continue to roll up our sleeves to secure a safe future for themselves and their communities.

The number of Manitobans with a third dose of the COVID-19 vaccine increased to 565,482 from 469,917, from Jan. 14 to Feb. 14.

As of Tuesday, 81 per cent of Manitobans over the age of five had received at least two doses.

Data from around the world continue to show a third dose of the COVID-19 vaccine significantly reduces the risk of severe illness, hospitalization and death compared with just two shots. It also helps reduce transmission, recent studies have shown.

Third doses are the single most effective weapon against a virus that will continue to mutate and pummel the world with new and punishing variants. They are the best insurance against severe illness and a renewed threat to hospital capacity.

The majority of Manitoba adults understand that: 52 per cent of Manitobans 18 and over (56 per cent in Winnipeg) have received their third dose. While demand for booster shots has dropped off since last month, the number continues to grow by more than 1,000 people per day.

It hasn’t been easy to stick to the battle plan in recent weeks, with the distraction of protests and blockades attracting a disproportionate amount of attention. Fortunately, the adults in the room — the majority of Canadians — have not wavered (even though some of their elected officials have).

COVID-19 can’t be wished away. The rules of engagement in the war against this deadly virus haven’t changed.

COVID-19 can’t be wished away. The rules of engagement in the war against this deadly virus haven’t changed. SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, is highly transmissible and has become more infectious.

The newest variant, Omicron, may be less lethal than previous strains, but the sheer volume of infections is killing people (mostly the unvaccinated and those without a third dose) at rates approaching previous pandemic peaks. Hospitalizations from COVID-19, although subsiding, reached record levels during the Omicron wave. It wouldn’t take much to drive those numbers up again.

There are long-term solutions to avoid that, including improved indoor air quality in public spaces and continued vigilance around hand washing, staying home when sick, mask wearing when needed and better protection of the most vulnerable. Equitable distribution of vaccines around the world will be critical.

Vaccination is the single most effective tool in the fight against this virus, as it has been for many deadly and debilitating infectious diseases. COVID-19 vaccines will improve and evolve over time. They are, and will continue to be, the gateway to normalcy.

The majority understand that, even in the face of those trying to throw them off their game.

Public health restrictions are being wound down across the country for the fourth time during the pandemic. The surest way to prevent them from returning is not by staging protests, organizing illegal occupations, or waving white flags; it’s by getting immunized, including a third dose.

COVID-19 doesn’t care if society is tired of it — it will attack the moment people let their guard down. It doesn’t care about blockades, protests, or demands for greater freedom. It will strike at the first sign of weakness. It has in the past and it will again.

While protesters outside legislatures, public schools and at border crossings demand their “freedom,” it is the Manitobans who roll up their sleeves who will ultimately deliver that freedom.

Every additional vaccine dose (as well as adherence to public health measures such as mask wearing, even after governments prematurely make them voluntary) adds a layer of defence against that onslaught.

While protesters outside legislatures, public schools and at border crossings demand their “freedom,” it is the Manitobans who roll up their sleeves for their third dose (and the hundreds more per day who get their first and second shots) who will ultimately deliver that freedom.

They are the soldiers on the front line who keep their eye on the enemy. They will win the war, not the defectors.

tom.brodbeck@freepress.mb.ca