[jasonlaramburu]

>Has the government been encouraging people to take vitamin D, get fresh air, exercise, and get to a healthy weight?

The government has been advocating for exercise and general health for decades. Despite this, we remain one of the least fit countries in the world. If the government cannot convince someone to take a safe, free shot that might save their lives, how can you reasonably expect them to convince someone to exercise?

[anonfornoreason]

Government sponsored marketing campaigns do not compare to mandates for vaccines in the workplace. Until the government mandates food quality standards and people start arguing about whether they can buy/sell Doritos or Pepsi in schools, workplaces, as part of foodstamps, etc as part of their freedoms, then it's a false equivalence.

[jasonlaramburu]

>Until the government mandates food quality standards

That's a great idea but if you believe that the government mandating workplace safety standards is massive overreach, then how could it possibly tell people what they can and cannot eat?

[anonfornoreason]

Not advocating for anything here, just pointing out (what seem to me) logically comparable things.

[ImPostingOnHN]

cynically advocating for a position you don't actually hold is one of the weakest ways to make a point, and the people who resort to it are almost invariably bad at judging what is and isn't comparable

be bold enough to advocate for a position here and defend it

[anonfornoreason]

Thanks for the feedback

[moistrobot]

Because obesity will kill them. That's the message that's not being said in a COVID context. Healthy at every size is one of the biggest health lies in America

[jasonlaramburu]

>Because obesity will kill them. That's the message that's not being said in a COVID context.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in America, and obesity is the #1 risk factor for it. This message has been clear and emphasized since the 1970s. Despite messaging, obesity has gotten worse, not better. You are wrong and oversimplifying the problem if you think COVID can be solved by telling people to lose weight.

[CryptoPunk]

That message can be reinforced in the context of COVID, given obesity is the leading preventable risk factor for COVID.

Instead, a huge number of people are laser focused on rationalizing the imposition of mandates, especially on extremely low-risk group, even children.

[edanm]

It's really not an either-or situation. You can encourage people to be generally healthier, and also encourage them to get vaccinated (or force them).

And if you compare the two, the vaccine is much closer to a magic cure - it's very dependable and takes "1 month" to work (assuming a two shot vaccine). Whereas encouraging people to be less obese is both incredibly hard (as decades of campaigns prove), and even in the best case scenario, would take a long time for most people.

[CryptoPunk]

People should definitely be encouraged to get vaccinated too, I agree. But there should be no institutionalized discrimination against the unvaccinated, just as we shouldn't discriminate against the obese to encourage them to eat less.

[mbfg]

if i'm fat, my fat won't jump onto you and kill you.

[CryptoPunk]

COVID vaccines don't stop transmission, so don't protect other people.

[mbfg]

For individuals this is true, for populations this is false.

[CryptoPunk]

No, it is true for populations as well. Herd immunity via vaccination is not possible:

https://twitter.com/eliaseythorsson/status/14240115421950238...

[jasonlaramburu]

This is a misleading interpretation of the data in Iceland. According to the parent link, 18 people are hospitalized there, compared to ~80,000 in the US. Adjusted for population, that is a >75% lower overall hospitalization rate. Infection rates in unvaccinated are also more than 2x vaccinated in Iceland. Unless you misinterpret the data, it is undeniable that vaccines reduce transmission and incidence of severe disease.

https://apnews.com/article/fact-checking-954838214391

[jasonlaramburu]

> COVID vaccines don't stop transmission, so don't protect other people.

They reduce transmission.

[CryptoPunk]

Not enough for herd immunity:

https://twitter.com/eliaseythorsson/status/14240115421950238...

So with or without full vaccination, it's inevitable that eventually every one is exposed to COVID.

[jasonlaramburu]

>Not enough for herd immunity

The tweet you cite notes that only 18 people are hospitalized in Iceland. Adjusted for population, the US has over 4x as many hospitalizations. This is a huge success and 100% due to the high vaccination rates. Iceland was able to achieve this voluntarily. The US cannot.