Vax Mandates vs The Economy

Will vax mandates spur the demise of U.S. economy?

Patrice Lewis 

As you've no doubt heard, this week the Food and Drug Administration approved the Pfizer vaccine. Lest you mistakenly think this means all the clinical trials have been successfully passed, think again: All they did was extend the "emergency use authorization" (EUA).

Nonetheless, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy said we now can expect two major developments.

One, those who were "on the fence about getting vaccinated" may tip toward getting the shot (a laughable claim known as "wishful thinking"). And two, we can expect vaccine mandates from an increasing number of state and local governments, employers, businesses, schools and entertainment venues.

Forget the legitimate concerns about the safety and efficacy of these shots. The facts – repeat, facts – of "breakthrough" hospitalizations of fully vaccinated people as well as the massive numbers of serious injuries and deaths post-jab are being brutally suppressed. "The carnage [from the vaccine] is unimaginable," writes commentator Wayne Allyn Root. "Over 13,000 dead and about 600,000 injured in the USA. Another 20,000 dead and about 2 million injured from the vaccine in the EU. But those are just the reported numbers. History (and a Harvard study in 2010) proves only about 1% of vaccine deaths and injuries are reported. So the real number is anywhere from 10 times to 100 times higher."

No wonder so many people are "vaccine hesitant." But don't expect these numbers to be reported any time soon. After all, the surgeon general also says there's not nearly enough social media censorship.

But in today's column, I don't want to address either the medical aspects of the vaccine or the constitutional aspects of forcing unwanted shots on a reluctant populace. Instead I want to address the potential for economic repercussions.

By one recent poll, the number of "vaccine hesitant" in America is estimated to be 45% ["Americans were twice as likely to not have received a single dose of the COVID-19 vaccine (45%) than their U.K. counterparts (23%)"]. (It's worth noting this polling agency has an agenda to get more people vaccinated; therefore their data are likely to be questionable.) The number of "vaccine hesitant" Americans is likely higher, but let's go with 45%. Of the 250 million Americans over 19 years of age, that's approximately 112 million adults who, for whatever reason, refuse to comply. What are some of the consequences from creating a massive subgroup of pariahs?

Currently New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, New Orleans and probably some other major cities require proof of vaccination to enter bars, nightclubs, restaurants, gyms and retail stores. Same with concerts, conventions and stadiums. Endless other cities – and endless other venues – are poised to enact these mandates upon visitors and customers.

You can automatically slice their business revenues in half if nearly half of Americans won't be allowed to enter the facilities. Can a restaurant survive on half its customer base? How about theaters? Sporting events? Concerts? Airlines? The tourist industry?

Remember, these are the businesses and venues that managed to survive the lockdowns. (We're not counting the hundreds of thousands of small businesses that were forced to close over the last 18 months.) If mandates are imposed, these business and venues will be required to a) act as government goons and check everyone's vaccination status, and b) turn away half their paying customer base. How long will they stay in business under these conditions?

Next let's flip the tables and look at businesses that will be imposing vaccine mandates on their employees. Assuming the same figure – about 45% of the population refusing the vaccine – this means employers may potentially lose almost half their employees.

It is truly extraordinary how many highly skilled and qualified people will suddenly be excluded from the workforce. Doctors, nurses, firefighters, police officers, airline pilots, flight attendants, engineers, scientists, researchers – the list is endless. There is hardly an industry that won't be adversely affected by vaccine mandates. You think the service industry was facing a staffing shortage before? Just watch what happens going forward.

More...