Day 14 - the WHO names Omicron a “variant of interest”
I set up the Xmas decorations today…this is one of the areas…
Another Xmas area…
12/8/21. Wednesday
On 12/3/21, the Moderna [BioNTech] CEO announced that a new vaccine would be needed for the Omicron variant. Stephane Bancel predicted “a material drop” in protection against the Omicron variant with the current vaccine. If this is the case, why would I get a booster containing the same vaccine used against the original Covid-19 in 2020? Isn’t it more prudent to wait for the new Omicron vaccine?
On the same day, Pfizer’s CEO, Ugur Sahin, gave a press statement saying, “Nothing to see here folks. A third jab of our product should be enough protection.” [paraphrasing]
It’s so obvious what’s happening here. Big Pharma is taking the reins during the Omicron crisis:
1) Moderna is “going long” on their approach and doubling down on the hope that a new vaccine will quadruple profits and dividends, thus satisfying their shareholders. However, creating a new vaccine appears to be costly. Recall that these MRNA vaccines were heralded by both Pfizer and Moderna as revolutionary in the ease it takes to insert a small section of a new variant’s DNA into the current vaccine to create a new vaccine. And yet, this has never been done…even when Delta was, and still is, ravaging our country. It’s either NOT as easy as they said it was to create a new vaccine OR it’s cheaper to keep administering the same vaccine over and over again by referring to it as a “booster.” Seriously folks…the third jab has been reframed as a “booster”, when it’s really just a third dose of the same vaccine that was used to treat a much earlier variant.
2) Pfizer is “going short” on their approach. Constantly advocating for a “third shot of the same shit“ will increase profit margins now, for the 1st quarter, without increasing overhead or expenditures that would naturally occur if their scientists actually tried to fight Omicron. It’s simply easier to keep generating the same vaccine, re-market it as a “booster”, and then tell everyone a third dose is necessary. Those people who were vaxxed the moment they became eligible [30% to 40% of the population] will immediately get the booster as soon as they are able, giving Pfizer’s shareholders a welcome “shot in the arm” [pardon the pun] with regard to their dividends.
The fact that TWO pharmaceutical companies, whose primary goal is to make money, are responsible for creating a life-saving vaccine for my fellow Americans and the citizens of the world is disgusting.
Note: On 12/8/21, BOTH companies will announce that three doses of their Covid-19 vaccines effectively neutralizes the Omicron variant. It won’t.
On 1/7/22, Moderna will announce that a fourth booster may be needed for Fall 2022. You don’t say…
On 1/17/22, Moderna will announce they are hard at work developing a vaccine-combo for 2023: the Covid-19 booster [the old vaccine from 2020] with the flu shot [typically only 40% effective because flu variants suspected of wreaking havoc on the citizenry are approximated a year in advance]. What a rip-off!
—————-
8:00 – My alarm goes off, but course content is already published so I lie in bed for transition time. It feels like I’ve been run over by a truck.
8:30-9:00 – I’m up so I go downstairs to greet the animal, but she’s still asleep on the couch. I sit next to her for kisses and cuddles, then cue her to go outside. She grabs her toy and we head to the patio – I check my yard while she goes potty. Once she’s finished, return inside and coffee for me; cheese for her. I go to work.
9:00-9:30 – I check the Discussion Board in the Canvas shell and see that some of my highschoolers used the forum to say good-bye to each other…Awwww. All of them are taking the Final without incident, thank god. Whew! I’m relieved to see there are no glitches. I go back to bed.
10:30 – Oh no! I have a dentist appointment at 11:00! I jump out of bed, throw on my Covid-19 uniform, wash my face, and brush my teeth. Light make-up. I quickly check in on my highschoolers and see that they all finished the Final, with scores ranging between 90%-100%. I suspect collective cheating, but could care less. These kids have it hard…
11:10-12:30 – I’m 10 minutes late to my dental appointment. I have a basic cleaning – no cavities. I leave.
12:30-1:30 – I swing by Starbucks and order a Peppermint Hot Chocolate. Return home and I make my final selection for the door hardware. Apparently, John tried to pick up the doors but was turned away because Kellie couldn’t release them due to the fact that I still have a balance on my account. Yes, I know I have a balance, but I don’t know what I owe because Kellie never emailed me the follow-up invoice!
1:30-4:30 – I drive to Simi Valley so I can settle my account with Kellie in person. Once there, I show Kellie the hardware I selected and add the cost to my final balance. I write the check and then Kellie informs me that the hardware won’t arrive for 4 to 6 weeks. great. Before I leave, Kellie takes me to the warehouse and shows me the doors. They look incredible!
-I text John and tell him he doesn’t have to pick up the doors until the hardware arrives, which should take around 6 weeks.
-Return home.
4:30-6:00 – I eat half the salad that Mom bought for me from Malibu Farms and listen to a podcast. I fall asleep briefly.
6:00-7:30 – Blog posts.
7:30-9:30 – bullet journal
9:30-5:30 – I clean the entire downstairs, then pull down all of the Xmas decorations and create the interior display. It takes me 8 hours to complete the set-up, BUT the interior is done.
5:30-6:00 – Nighttime routine. Bed. I set my alarm for 8:00.