Just get vaccinated

The word "vaccine" comes from the Latin word "vaccae" which means "cattle". I'm sure some anti-vaxxer will find a way to use that etymology compare people to livestock for wanting a COVID-19 shot. But during the 18th century Dr Edward Jenner noticed that people who worked with cows on dairy farms tended to not get smallpox. Instead, these folks were getting cowpox. Cowpox is a somewhat minor illness that is still around, but smallpox used to have fatality rates of 30%. So Dr Jenner intentionally injected pus from a cowpox patient into a young boy. The boy developed a mild fever but quickly recovered. A few weeks later, Dr Jenner injected the boy with pus from someone with smallpox. When the boy didn't get infected with smallpox, Dr Jenner concluded that cowpox could be used to protect people from smallpox. Today Dr Edward Jenner is praised as the inventor of the first vaccine.

Most modern vaccines do not rely on live viruses. A vaccinated person might experience an immune response or other symptoms. But that is a small trade-off compared to being vulnerable to a possibly lethal infection

Now here's some interesting facts:

1. Smallpox is now extinct, thanks in part to Dr Jenner's efforts. The last smallpox case happened during the 70's, so most people are too young to remember how deadly this disease was.

2. Medical ethics have improved greatly over the past couple centuries  so you don't have to worry about new vaccines being tested on your kids. Only after a vaccine has been proven safe for adults will children be allowed to participate in trials with their parents' consent.

3. Dr Jenner did not even know what a virus was. He simply made an observation (cowpox patients don't get smallpox) and formed a hypothesis (infecting people with cowpox can prevent smallpox).

I believe that the 3 COVID-19 vaccines that are being distributed in the US are safe and effective. They have passed months of rigorous and redundant testing. If these vaccines were dangerous, we would be hearing about what the vaccines are doing to the millions of healthcare workers and military personnel who have already received them. I am going to get the vaccine as soon as it is available to me. Should you get the shot? Since I'm not a doctor, you might have reason to be skeptical of any medical advice that I give out. You should also be skeptical of any medical advice that you get from YouTube videos. By all means, make an appointment with your doctor and ask directly if a COVID-19 shot is right for you in particular. Or you can do what actual doctors and nurses are doing and just get the shot.