I never said that. This conversation started because Texas is rolling back 100% of its restrictions and going back to pre-COVID ops. I said masks and social distancing are necessary, common-sense procedures that should be maintained until we have an acceptable level of our population that is vaccinated - a minimum of around 70% according to the people who know the best.

Fauci most certainly doesn’t dream about this - it’s not like he’s getting paid extra for everyone who dies from COVID. He’s widely considered the world’s foremost expert on diseases, and is one of the most cited researchers of all time. He wants this to be over more than anyone - how do you figure he dreams about keeping people locked down for eternity?

Fauci is extremely suspect and has lost the trust of many of us.

This isn't about long term, or ICI replacing vaccination in the drive toward herd immunity - this is about ICI contributing to a reduction of infection in the near-term because it is additive to the percentage of vaccinated population as the vaccination campaign expands in the next three months.

It isn't an either/or proposition. Nobody is saying previously infected don't need or shouldn't get vaccinated. That is a false dicotomy.

What I and other people are saying is previously infected people are, to a high degree, scientifically determined to be afforded protection from reinfection similar to that of vaccines and that protection across a significant portion of population (40% of the US population is estimated to be previously infected) starts substantially reducing potential vectors for spread IN THE NEAR TERM.

ICI is a force multiplier for infections. We don't need to vaccinate 70-75-80-85% of the population in order to start seeing herd immunity because ICI will get us there in conjunction with vaccination. That scientific and clinical reality in no way means we as a society don't attempt to vaccinate 70-75-80-85% of the population - it just means we'll see the benefits of that before vaccination percentages get that high.

I grew up in KC and now live in Texas. I agree with you.

No, it’s straight test results. The vaccines were created to mitigate symptoms. They will create antibodies to help ward off sickness, and they may lead to some immunity, but they don’t necessarily stop transmission either way. Symptom mitigation is their greatest benefit followed by antibodies.

Its helpful, don’t get me wrong, but it’s far from a panacea. I’m not worried about mutations. They’re always less virulent.

That's not how other virus vaccines behave. I have seen no definitive studies either way (I believe at least one is in progress), and the clinical trials were not designed to measure transmission. Best to just wait and see, but it's highly unlikely that this or any other virus can rage unchecked in your system, shedding massive virus, but generating little or no symptoms. That's not how viruses work, and it's not how your immune system works. At the very least I'd expect a very shortened window of infectiousness in vaccinated asymptomatic or low-symptomatic people.

It doesn't need to be perfect by any means, just needs to take a big bite out of transmission, which it should do.

Yes, since the mutations are occurring in the human population the natural trend will be towards milder (possibly more infectious) variants. More so than animals, conscious human behavior will drive virus mutations towards less severe variants. Ebola never gets traction in the developed world because it scares the bejeesus out of us, and we handle it accordingly.

PlaneS

Do you understand the art of sarcasm?

BTW Fauci is no longer an “expert” nor a researcher, he is a mouthpiece for the industry he represents.

Name the last time he actually researched something. He’s 80 years old and lets the younger more technically adept men and women do the work.

Also did you and all the others forget to actually read the Texas Governor’s statement?

Today's announcement does not abandon safe practices that Texans have mastered over the past year. Instead, it is a reminder that each person has a role to play in their own personal safety and the safety of others. With this executive order, we are ensuring that all businesses and families in Texas have the freedom to determine their own destiny."

I will state this, hope I’m as physical able as he is when I hit 80 and you should to.

Please point me in the direction of some of this BBQ. I have some expertise in the area and found KC BBQ to not even touch central Texas BBQ.

Arthur Bryant’s. The New Yorker food critic rated it as the #1 BBQ in the world. The heritage and sauce date back to 1880. That is 140 years ago. All in KC.

https://www.arthurbryantsbbq.com

He's never been to Snow's, Cooper's, or Franklin's, IMO.