Dolly Parton's Halftime Show Comes Under Fire
By: Ryan Smith (Newsweek)
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
By Ryan Smith Senior Pop Culture & Entertainment ReporterFOLLOW
Dolly Parton's halftime performance during the Dallas Cowboys' Thanksgiving game against the Washington Commanders sparked criticism on social media, over her donation that aided COVID-19 vaccine research three years ago.
The country music legend, 77, donned a Cowboys' cheerleader outfit—including a crop top and shorts—as she performed at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, for The Salvation Army's Red Kettle Kickoff Halftime Show.
Parton's set included some of her biggest hits, such as "Jolene" and "9 to 5," before she treated audiences to a cover of Queen's classic track "We Are the Champions."
However, the singer-song-writer's presence on the stage drew objections from a number of social media users, who criticized Parton for helping to fund the development of a COVID vaccine at the height of the pandemic in 2020.
Dolly Parton performing during halftime in the game between the Washington Commanders and the Dallas Cowboys on November 23, 2023 in Arlington, Texas. As the performance aired, a host of social media users criticized the star for having donated money that led to the development of the COVID-19 vaccine.Ron Jenkins/Getty Images
The star donated $1 million to the Vanderbilt University Medical Center, leading to the creation of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine. She has since donated another $1 million to Vanderbilt for pediatric infectious disease research.
Claims that COVID-19 vaccines cause health problems or increase the chance of death are often made by groups opposed to vaccination and used in conspiracy theories concerning supposed population control.
Many anti-vaccination activists have attempted to link deaths among athletes and other notable figures to being vaccinated—especially those who otherwise appeared healthy before having a cardiac arrest. The phrase "died suddenly" has become a dog-whistle for such assertions.
With the vaccines continuing to be a divisive subject, Five Times August singer Brad Skistimas wrote on X, formerly Twitter, after Parton's performance: "Reminder @DollyParton helped fund the @moderna_tx shot, changed her famous song Jolene to 'Vaccine' and called those who wouldn't get it cowards and 'chicken squat.'"
"I get a lot of people have a soft spot for her but she's no better than the rest of the big pharma shills," the musician added.
Reminder @DollyParton helped fund the @moderna_tx shot, changed her famous song Jolene to "Vaccine" and called those who wouldn't get it cowards and "chicken squat" - I get a lot of people have a soft spot for her but she's no better than the rest of the big pharma shills. pic.twitter.com/i97s1Ys2p8
— Five Times August (@FiveTimesAugust) November 24, 2023
Skistimas also shared an open letter to Parton, in which he claimed that since her donation, "a lot of people have tragically ended up severely injured from the Moderna COVID shot you helped make happen.
"Maybe you're aware of their stories, maybe you're not... but there are countless individuals worldwide [whose] lives have been ruined and will never be the same because of a misguided trust in government, big pharma companies, and influencers like you who encouraged them to get it."
"Such a disappointment," wrote one X user in response to the posts, while another said: "Did not know this but knowing she's an immoral shill obviously shifts my opinion of her."
"Dammit!" another exclaimed. "I have one of those soft spots for Dolly, and I'll still love her music (the songs!), but she now moves toward the 'don't respect' column. It's a pretty big column... but we need to know. This is cultural warfare, and silence is not an option."
"She's a Propaganda puppet. Doing what she's programmed to do. That's what she does," another charged. "Today during halftime at the circus she was tasked with invoking feelings of nationalism and 'patriotism' that is needed when your leaders are beating the ww3 war drums."
"Old Dolly, the original, would never have bought into the government sponsored mess," another chimed in. "She's just one of many paid propagandist shills now."
Newsweek has contacted a representative of Parton via email for comment.
Amid the wave of criticism, a number of X users spoke out in Parton's defense, including one who wrote: "At least Dolly Parton has done something with her life for the betterment of others. That's better than what anti-vaxxers can say."
At least Dolly Parton has done something with her life for the betterment of others. That's better than what anti-vaxxers can say.
— David Young M.D. (@davideyoungmd) November 24, 2023
"She can have an opinion just as you can," another fan commented in response to the detractors. "The difference is she's an amazing American that's spent countless hours and dollars helping others."
One fan called Parton a "force of kindness" for her donation, while another said: "Dolly is one of the world's most amazing humans. She's a humanitarian first & an entertainer second. She's authentic, humble, kind, smart, & very talented. In a world of [critics], be a Dolly Parton. She gave $1M to Vanderbilt for Moderna C-19 vaccine development. My Shero!"
In response to an X user calling Parton a "right-wing Madonna," a fan responded in her defense: "Dolly Parton champions LBGTQ causes, funded COVID vaccine research, her Imagination Library program—which provides monthly free books for children ages 0-5—includes books that makes the alt-right livid. Dolly Parton lives her faith daily. Nothing right wing about her."
As of this past April, approximately 366,905,365 Pfizer vaccines had been administered in the U.S., according to Statista. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) describes the two mRNA vaccines—Pfizer and Moderna—as "safe and effective." The mRNA technology used to create the vaccines had been in development for more than 15 years before the outbreak of the coronavirus epidemic, and both the Pfizer and Moderna versions received full Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval.
FactCheck.org, a nonprofit website that identifies misinformation in American politics, debunked the claims that COVID-19 vaccines have caused excessive deaths, as alleged by an anti-vaccine group, the Vaccine Damage Project.
Although there were "excess deaths"—a higher than expected number of mortalities across the population during a specific time period—in the U.S. in 2021 and 2022, these were linked to cases of COVID-19, along with increased deaths by drug overdose, alcohol and motor vehicle accidents. Many of the 1.3 million excess deaths from February 2021 to April 2023 were due to COVID-19, according to the CDC.
In May 2022, Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Georgia Republican posted a screenshot on X from an FDA document that discussed adverse reactions to the Pfizer vaccine. She misinterpreted the page, suggesting that 1,223 people died after receiving the Pfizer vaccine.
Although the reports confirm that 1,223 people died after vaccination, the cause of the death was not verified as being linked to the vaccine and was due to a number of reasons, with no "novel safety concerns or risks requiring label changes" found, according to the document.
On November 3, the FDA defended Pfizer against accusations that the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine was "contaminated."
A representative told Newsweek: "With over a billion doses of the mRNA vaccines administered, no safety concerns related to the sequence of, or amount of, residual DNA have been identified."
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The stank of extremist MAGA is out of the bottle, and good luck to us trying to put it back in.
Dolly Parton is a humanitarian and should be applauded, not berated for trying to help.
And for the record, I dont really care for her music.
All I can say is if you are mad to the point of trashing Dolly Parton you have a few screws loose.
Go, Dolly! Keep doing what you are doing because it shows up all of the deranged people.
MAGA hate Dolly for being accepting and tolerate and generous. MAGAs hate that...
There has to be a point, one would certainly hope anyway, where the truly incorrect people will realize that they are incorrect.
Or things go to shit and we live in a societal dystopia. It is up in the air, imo.
Not so, according to the reliable reporting in this article...
MAGA and patriotic do not belong in the same sentence. MAGA stands for the dissolution of democracy as we know it.
The MAGA subset of the right wingers and Republicans is not as extensive as would like to believe.
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You do realize the source is Newsweek, a FAR left rag that spews any and all things anti American.
Of course you don't realize the irony of your post.
If one intends to vote for Trump, then one is not patriotic, because Trump has stated his desire to do many things that would be unconstitutional by definition.
Name some.
That's a trolling opinion, Newsweek is one of the few center sources.
And SILENCE as always
Extrajudicial killings.
Suspending the Constitution.
Ya know, little stuff like that.
You have a problem doing that? I frankly think that is an excellent idea. I think the only ones that would be against it would be drug dealers and human traffickers.
I am opposed to the death penalty. I think that the apparatus used to define, convict, and carry out sentences is far too fallible to be entrusted with such decisions.
What about the rest of my post where I proved my point?
To answer your question, it does not prove your point. You stated that he said he would do somethings. What you said was talking about what happened in the past and has no relevance to future activities.
Back to your first "example", show where he said the executions were to be extrajudicial. I don't recall many of you complaining about Obama engaging in extrajudicial killing when he did it even when it involved innocent's as collateral damage. (BTW I had no issue with them at the time. )
It most certainly does. Trump is always outraged by something and encourages his followers to be outraged likewise. If he is willing to abrogate his oath of office (i.e., to defend the Constitution) over a made-up lie about an election, he has shown that if " all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitutio n" get in his way, he will do anything he can to go around or through the Constitution and the rules it engendered. That is a character flaw, IMHO.
How can you see right through the logical part of an argument (as if it were not there at all) to the weeds on the other side and start picking them apart as if they had something to do with the argument at hand?
These are examples of extrajudicial killing. Domestic, extrajudicial killing.
You said," ... what happened in the past and has no relevance to future activities ." This comment displays a special level of naivete. He has shown the world his true intentions. Those who cannot see this are blind to reality and living in some kind of fantasy land.
Show where he meant either of those to be extrajudicial.
Ah yes he abrogated his oath of office. I guess that is why he is still president today.
Oh wait ! He's not!
[Deleted]
Yeah...none of that is treasonous....INSERT HUGE EYE ROLL HERE
"She's authentic, humble, kind, smart, & very talented"
That she is, and her efforts to help others in various causes over the years is well known. I doubt that all the anti-vaxxers are right wingers, since Trump was instrumental in getting the vaccine program up and running. I've had a total of 5 Moderna shots with another coming up shortly along with the flu shot.
She truly is a national treasure, and I admire her for getting up and performing at 77 years young! It's OK to admit that you like country music
I like some country music. Most of the stuff I like is old. Ray Price, Mickey Gilley etc. I tend to like individual songs more than the particular performers.
Even though I am a lifetime rocker, was always a fan of Johnny Cash and Willie Nelson.
Now that I know about Dolly's efforts in regard to COVID and reading, am a fan of hers as well.
Attended Dolly Parton's Stampede in Branson years ago and was impressed. It was quite a show.
Social media users voiced an opinion on something unusual?
I guess I missed that. As I recall from the protestors of the late 60's: PEOPLE HAVE A RIGHT TO EXPRESS THEIR OPINIONS.
No matter how ignorant and bigoted they are.
Exactly why the left is regularly called out.
Dolly Parton is a true humanitarian and a national treasure. Her charitable program, Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, has donated over 200 million books to children world-wide and continues to donate 2.4 million free, high quality, age-appropriate books each month.
In addition to her brilliant songwriting, she plays guitar beautifully, and, of course, has the voice of an angel.
I love Dolly Parton.
She is truly a Great American and wonderful human being
Good! Now it is Dolly versus The MAGA. Go Dolly!
My money is on Dolly...
Dolly is a national treasure, and those folks are just jealous that everybody loves her.
Hollywood was going to produce an Idiocracy 2 but they could make up shit dumber than MAGA so they gave up.
I’d like to know how many actual people were so critical of her. In stories like this, we see these phrases describing the alleged outrage:
What is the number? How big is the host? Is it 10? Or is it 10 million? Whatever the number is, they’re morons, but these Twitter stories are usually a handful of ignorant pinheads who get covered as if they were legion.
You missed the point, this was posted for one reason, to promote the talking point that MAGA hates Dolly, [Deleted]
I don't know anyone who dislikes Dolly Parton. I think you called them out on it.
Me either. I've known women who are jealous of her assets and men jealous of her husband. LOL!
In the article below, here were some trolls commenting on her Dallas cheerleader outfit, but the majority of comments seem to be positive.
When you think about it was amazing for her to go out there at that age and pull that off.
[deleted]
Yeah, I would love to see some detail behind this reporting. The only place where I can find anything about this "anger" is from the Newsweek article itself. The only other "complaints" I can find are around a 77 year old wearing the cheerleader outfit and some people felt that her voice was not up to standards which at her age is very understandable.
So you have never heard about far-right wing fascists trashing folk who care about covid and children being able to access reading material?
Maybe you should woke up.
Like a rational adult I choose to not search out trash to listen to it. I take the adult choice to change the channel as an example.
If your rambling partisan way of speaking is an example of being woke up, no thanks.
Yep. I always wonder what comments like "drew objections from a number of social media users" mean in terms of numbers. I almost feel sorry for the people that have to write about internet "outrage" and try to make it sound like a bigger deal than the 50 or so people it is actually about.
Yep. Far right-wing fascists are actually a minority no matter how loud they scream and rant against folk who actually care about folk.
Yep, unlike far left wing antisemites which seem to number in the millions
Dolly is the real deal and an American treasure. She is multitalented, hardworking and very generous. She obviously loves people and her authenticity is very attractive. Regardless of your politics, I can’t understand anyone not liking her.
I agree.
I have my doubts that the people criticizing Dolly about her lack of scientific knowledge were ever fans in the first place.
Dolly's fans love her because she is a kind and caring person. Even if they didn't back being forced to take an experimental shot, they wouldn't have blamed Dolly for using her money to try to save lives.
Seems she has a surplus of scientific knowledge.
Always figured she was a very smart person.
You don't get to where she is without uber smarts.
Scoail media will be our end.
For real though, Skynet (or whatever it ends up being) is going to use social media to infiltrate every aspect of our lives.
AI scares the shit out of most smart folk.
Stephen Hawking has warned us over and over.
Agree, along with the media that keeps focusing on social media "outrages" which may very well mean 100 lonely people with nothing better to do than see if anyone will write an article about their pathetic outrage.
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For some really good listening fun, check out the videos of her teaming with Emmylou Harris and Linda Ronstadt on YouTube as the "Trio" I can binge listen to music like this all day.
I love Dolly, she is not only talented but also a humanitarian. An American Icon.
I saw her in concert with Kenny Rodgers in the mid-80s at the Forum in Los Angeles.
This song is wonderful.
A Bee Gees cover that was superior to the original.
Dolly Parton is great. I am sorry I missed the halftime show, would have been one of few I would have liked. I was finishing up stuff and didn't watch until 3rd quarter.
Criticizing anybody that gives to find a cure for any disease is crazy.
Her halftime show can be found online.
And unlike many my of the recent stars of half time shows, their were no costume "malfunctions".
I won't death wish from a respiratory disease those assholes who criticize the wonderful thing that Dolly has done, but I hope they catch it and suffer, REALLY suffer with it. Where sympathy DOES belong is for those innocent persons who suffer or die due to having been infected by those assholes.
I am confused about this comment.
The Covid vaccine does not prevent infection or transmission. It works like the flu shot from what I have read. The purpose of the Covid shot is to boost the person's immune system, not to prevent infection or transmission of Covid. It's protection wanes after just a few weeks just like the flu shot.
The confusion could have been avoided if this shot had been properly marketed as a Covid shot instead of improperly implying it was a vaccine like a smallpox vaccine, polio vaccine, whooping cough vaccine, etc.
There have been recent court hearings in England because of the misinformation of the purpose and effectiveness of the Covid vaccine by England government officials.
It was called a vaccine because it IS a vaccine. It is not the only vaccine that does not prevent all transmission. In your list, specifically, pertussis acellular vaccine, which is the "aP" portion of the DTaP vaccine we routinely give, prevents 85% of cases.
How much transmission does it prevent is the question that should have been answered before it was promoted as preventing transmission in the first place. Still don't know how much transmission it prevents even today with today's variant.
Which vaccines lose their effectiveness in a matter of weeks and require booster after booster?
It has left some people very angry at anyone who did not take the vaccine because they thought it was a way of eradicating Covid and they would be "safe".
I, personally, have had to deal with the anger from people who thought I should have jumped to be first in line because of my age.
Because I can limit my shopping to one trip a month and am completely satisfied with limited human contact and have a decent immune system, I felt safer taking a wait and learn approach for me personally. I was not putting anyone in danger unless they forced themselves into my home and gave me their Covid so I could pass it on to anyone else.
I have neighbors that are nurses or have children that are nurses. I kept up to date with what was happening in my area through what they were seeing and dealing with. I was concerned for others, but there was really nothing I could do but stay at home and wait for more information as the disease evolved to either be more or less lethal and vaccines/drugs became more or less effective.
Multiple vaccines lose efficacy over time. The Covid vaccine does not like effectiveness in weeks. It was given initially as a series with doses spaced weeks apart, which is not uncommon. The hepatitis B vaccine is administered as a series several months apart to confer full immunity. I personally never seroconverted to that vaccine, but I don't call it "not a vaccine" based on my anecdotal experience.
People are angry because they have a limited understanding of what vaccines can accomplish. They expect 100% effectiveness, which is unrealistic. That's a "them" problem.
Realize that.
I have wandered off my own topic which was where are the numbers of how effective the Covid vaccine was at preventing infection or transmitting of Covid infection?
No, but it does reduce both.
Flu shots are also vaccines.
That's how vaccines work.
Define "few". It's also important to understand that the virus morphs, just like flu viruses do.
So essentially, the Covid vaccine works like a flu shot and will never give herd immunity.
Which means, the people at risk due to health and/or age, need to limit their exposure to groups regardless of anyone's vaccination status.
Okay, allow me to elaborate. An anti-vaxxer is most likely also a person who refuses all the guidelines for prevention of acquiring and/or spreading the infection, and that includes masking, keeping one's distance from others and necessary lockdowns. Personally, I STILL wear a N95 mask whenever I leave my home even if it might only have a small percentage of effectiveness for preventing acquiring the virus.
Maybe. I think of people as individuals who do the best they can with whatever brain cells and education they have. This is why I know that people choose the government and news media "experts" that agree with them most of the time.
I don't personally have a doctor because I haven't needed to see one in over 20 years. Therefore, I don't have a trusted professional to determine if my body chemistry would be helped or hampered by an experimental vaccine.
I am not anti-vaxx. I was in a position to see if the vaccine could be beneficial to me. My kids and grandkid were vaxxed ASAP because they were in a different social situation than I am. At some point, they caught Covid and were very ill for a few days. My husband and I may have had a mild dose of Covid that consisted of mild fever, lethargy and a raging headache for 2 or 3 days.
That is what I support. People taking accountability for their own health in every way possible.
I wore a mask whenever I grocery shopped. My husband stayed in the vehicle in the parking lot. This seemed to last forever for him. I only wished I had still been employed in transportation and allowed to work from home. It would have been the best working years of my life.
Quite correct. Have had 6 vaccinations so far and still follow most of the guidelines. Am a long covid sufferer. Have been suffering from it for three years now. Wouldn't wish this shit on my worst enemy.
The bottom line is that those of us who were vaccinated didn't develop severe cases.
Link?
You have my sincere condolences for what Covid is doing to you. Hopefully, medications will be formulated (or used off-label) that will mitigate some of the ongoing issues.
That is why I felt extremely grateful that I was in a situation where I could isolate for an extended period of time.
Vaccination is easy.
Fucking it off is dumb.
I rarely want to leave home. I have 10 acres and am surrounded by pasture and farmland. I can enjoy watching the birds, bees and cows....and the occasional raccoon, skunk, possum, coyote, deer, etc.
I used to work on a farm/ranch and rarely interacted with more than 3 or 4 people during the day.
I naturally isolate regardless of what is going on in the world so I am rarely exposed to any virus or flu bug.
I am not your research assistant.
Keep in mind, there are multiple variants of Covid 19. The vaccines have demonstrated varying but high levels of effectiveness against most of them so far.
Among vaccinated people, COVID-19 becomes statistically less dangerous than a standard strain of influenza. So whatever precautions those people take against the flu should be adequate for COVID-19, assuming they're vaccinated.
During the height of the outbreak, a lot of people were in full panic mode. They either could not understand or chose to ignore much of the statistical data.
Early in the vaccination process, we started to see very, very, steep drops in both hospitalization and mortality among vaccinated people... which was great. But that also demonstrated that vaccinated people didn't really need to worry about whether or not anybody else was vaccinated.
Sadly, many of these people were still very committed emotionally to the state of fear they had become used to, so they remained steadfast in their belief that they could not be safe until everybody else got vaccinated, despite the data clearly suggesting otherwise.
Some of us simply held that it was in the best interest of this nation (and other nations) as a whole for all people medically suited for vaccination to get vaccinated. It is better for the individuals, better for the economy, lowers the stress of the medical system, and lessens the 'need' for government to spend more money due to COVID. In addition, it is the most direct route to (effectively) eliminating the virus from the population.
And some people thought it acceptable to deny Constitutional rights on the basis of vaccination status. Others believed vax status was sufficient reason to ostracize people from social gatherings, terminate their employment, or refuse service in restaurants or other businesses. None of which kept vaccinated people measurably safer.
Yes and, in this case, Dolly Parton is "Some People"...
Link?
Dolly simply wanted to help as many people as wanted to get access to the vaccine. That's very different than the Vax Nazis we saw during 2021.
What Constitutional rights, Jack? Vaccination has been an employment requirement in many fields for years. Restaurants and stores have always been allowed to deny service.
Access to public places, for one.
But not most fields. Yet we required all employers over 100 employees to enforce a vax mandate.
On what basis? Not race. Not gender. Not nationality. Not sexual preference. Never before in our history have Americans been forced to supply medical records to get a cup of coffee.
Sandy, you're overly defensive on this issue. There was absolutely a ton of shady, completely unscientific and mathematically indefensible bullshit that went on during that push to get everybody to comply. Pretending there wasn't is as much absolute nonsense as pretending the vaccines don't work or Covid wasn't more dangerous than the flu. Just stop.
As a long term agoraphobic it is easy for me to isolate. It gets easier every day.
Do you think that this rebellion against vaccines has anything to do with the increase in exemptions for some vaccines for kids?
Before everyone gets carried away with their personal freedom they might want to take a look at what happened in American Samoa, when parents decided the kids didn't need the measles vaccine. Not pretty.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10182596/#:~:text=In%202019%2C%20a%20significant%20measles,of%20the%20global%20measles%20resurgence.
There are always 'some people' who seek 'something'.
My point is that of those who encouraged others to get vaccinated, I do not think one can confidently claim without supporting evidence that most were doing so merely because they were afraid for their own safety. There are plenty of very sound reasons based on common knowledge (I offered several examples) for encouraging others to get vaccinated.
Such as?
No, we didn't.
On the basis of choices made. "No shirt, no shoes, no service." Some restaurants have a dress code. If one chooses not to abide by that dress code, service can be denied.
No, just setting the record straight, without getting personal, BTW.
I pretty much live on diphenhydramine and Ibuprofen these days.
I think it's all related.
I think a lot of that centers around the rumors that vaccines cause autism combined with no alternate explanation for the massive increase in autism diagnosis. There isn't much (if any) science to connect autism to vaccines, but there also isn't much to explain the autism spike, so people believe what they want.
As a result, we have ever increasing distrust of government, so it doesn't go well when govt officials start demanding everybody get injected.
There was all kinds of bad science, worse math, and even worse politics going on during Covid, and lots of people were uninterested in that bandwagon.
Restaurants, concerts, entertainment venues, movie theaters, health clubs, night clubs, football games, public libraries, etc. Unfamiliar with NYC Pass, are we? In Philadelphia a mandate required all patrons over age 5 to show proof of vaccination for entry to any indoor establishment serving food or drink, including bars, restaurants, movie theaters, sports venues, and bowling alleys. The LA County mandate required vaccination to enter indoor bars and nightclubs, and outdoor events with more than 10,000 people. There were similar restrictions in San Fransisco, Chicago, New Orleans, and several other places.
That's disingenuous to the point of asinine. Yes, we did. You could either get the shot, have a swab jabbed up your nose every week, or lose your job. Try offering those "choices" with literally anything else and see how hard the DOL comes down on you.
Choices protected by federal privacy laws. (You remember HIPAA, don't you?) Or at least until we decided those didn't matter anymore because we were scared.
You may have missed that dress codes deal with what you wear ON your body, not what you have to inject into it.
Not by a long shot. You just continue to make excuses for indefensible policy and government-sponsored misinformation.
The worst part about all of that nonsense was that we knew better. We knew without a doubt that unvaccinated people were no threat to vaccinated people. The data was overwhelming. We knew that kids were not dying of Covid. We knew that outdoor transmission chances were exceedingly low.
We knew that once you got your happy ass vaccinated, you were more likely to die falling down your stairs, no matter who you worked with, drank with, or sat next to at a UCLA game. No matter how obvious that became, we lived with government denial of it.
We "followed the science" until liberals didn't like the science, at which point we ignored the science and continued that lovely liberal tradition of trying to bully everybody who doesn't do what they want.
Ah, so, privately-owned places, primarily. And also not unconstitutional, according to, you know, SCOTUS in Jacobson v. Massachussetts.
It's asinine to ignore that there was a loophole. You said they had to vaccinate or lose their job, but then agree there's a loophole. Dishonest and asinine.
Oh, sure I do. Show me the Constitutional right to privacy. Conservatives assert we have it, until they don't.
Irrelevant. Objectively, an unvaccinated person is much more of a problem than a guy without a tie.
Except that I did. You even agreed that employees who didn't vaccinate could mask and test, and keep their jobs. You made a false statement, Jack, and engaged in condescension to cover for it. It's ok to be wrong. It's not ok to persist in saying you were right after being proven wrong, and even agreeing you were wrong. The latter is, well, disingenuous and asinine.
The measles epidemic was in 2019 before COVID and resulted in over 5,000 cases and 81 deaths. The vaccine against measles is time-proven and very effective. To avoid the vaccine based on whatever one's thinking happens to be at that moment to me is well beyond foolish, it's deadly.
The objection is not so much about Covid as it is about immunizations in general and objection to what people see as governmental overreach.
The science was good.
The far-right wing fascism and denial was bad.
Fuck all science deniers!
It's convenient how you think they're "public" enough when they try to refuse service and you don't agree.
Which dealt with the ability of the state to fine residents, not restrict their movements. It also dealt with a situation where the state did not have the means of knowing that unvaccinated people represented no threat to vaccinated people.
That's not how loopholes work. It's not a loophole when the alternative is a physically worse consequence. That's just another punishment. "You can either have a foreign substance injected into your body OR you can have a foreign object inserted into your body weekly until we're more scared of something other than your completely symptomless ass." That's not a loophole.
Show me where I said there was one. Then show me how city ordinance is allowed to override federal law.
Incredibly relevant. Try making a Muslim guy wear a tie. Then try making him eat a pulled pork sandwich and play beer pong at the company picnic. See how quickly the US Govt will explain the difference.
If you got really clever you could offer him a "loophole" where he could choose to miss out on the BBQ if he agreed to let you stick something up his nose once a week for a year. I'm sure the DOL would agree that makes it aaaaaall OK.
No, you just continue to make excuses for liberal double standards, their willful disregard for math and science, and their enthusiasm for forcing anyone and everyone to do whatever is going to make them "feel better" in the moment.
The truly batshit part of this whole nonsense was their mule-headed unwillingness to admit how effective the vaccines actually are, despite the absolute mountains of data, press coverage and countless public health officials proclaiming it 24/7.
You're talking about a vast majority of Americans from every point on the political spectrum.
The communication was terrible. Which was frankly true during most of Coivd, also.
It was eventually overtaken by left-wing dictatorship denial, which isn't better.
Constitutional, Jack. According to SCOTUS.
That absolutely is how loopholes work. You made a false statement. Now you're just doubling down.
And the pulled pork stuff? Now you're just veering off into irrational hyperbole. Well done.
Yes. According to the Constitution, federal law supersedes state and local laws. Article 6.
Only when one suspends reason to preserve political tribalism.
That's a wonderfully easy way to avoid having to face facts one finds inconvenient.
Speaking of convenience, I notice you conveniently don't have any explanation for ignoring all the data. Data that calls into question the reasonableness (or lack thereof) of the local ordinances (which was a key element in the majority opinion on the Jacobsen case).
I guess "follow the science" really only does apply selectively.
I guess you never considered that among the vaccinated were the immunocompromised, who WERE still at risk from infection from those around them. Vaccination protects more than just the vaccinated individual.
Once again, you agree that vaccine mandates are Constitutional, after having complained that they weren't. Glad you agree with the truth. Same as you agreed that all employees of companies with over 100 workers were NOT mandated to vaccinate, despite you having earlier said they were. Talk about not facing facts one finds inconvenient.
When you can show me where anybody is trying to force Muslims to eat pork, I'll recognize that you weren't engaging in hyperbole. But you were, so that won't happen.
If it isn't about Covid and it is about immunizations in general and governmental overreach that simply doesn't make sense. The measles vaccine if time proven and effective as are many others including one that paralized the US with fear for decades, polio.
If these people get their kids exempted and send they to school and they are carriers and spread a pandamic who is responsible the parents and kids that had the common sense to immunize or the dumbasses that are concerned about government overreach?
Married to one of those, actually. Interestingly, she never felt the need to try to force other people to get vaccinated.
Never said they weren't. Please read carefully.
Did not agree to that. Please read carefully. Your "loophole" premise is complete bullshit and would never have withstood any meaningful challenge. [deleted]
Still using that to describe you, yes. Notice you still have nothing to say about bad science and worse math driving liberal policy decisions.
Buddy I never said it made sense. I'm just reporting it as it's told to me.
My kids are immunized, I'm immunized, my wife is immunized. If there is a vaccine that reduces my chance of an unpleasant disease, sign me up.
Well... those exemption parents say.... and there is some truth to this... that if the vaccines are effective, they'll protect the kids who took them. In large part, that's true. It's still a stupid decision, IMO, but they're not entirely wrong about that.
Even if everyone was vaccinated, it would still not keep people from getting Covid and spreading Covid. This vaccine was not capable of eradicating Covid. According to the article I cited below, the experts don't know if new vaccines will be effective or even necessary depending on how Covid continues to mutate.
If a person was immunocompromised, then if the Covid vaccine was not enough boost to their immune system to allow them to safely move in society, then they were not safe to move freely in society. It was the responsibility of the individual to do what was best for them. Herd immunity was never a likely scenario with the Covid vaccine. This is why we needed accurate data so people didn't unwisely risk their lives thinking they were safe from Covid after immunization. They weren't and still aren't. Hopefully, they have a personal physician who can give guidance on their best course of action.
Initially, it did. As the virus mutated and new strains emerged, it was less effective.
Do you acknowledge that the government never required all employers with 100 or more employees to enforce a mandate that their employees be vaccinated?
This ...
... is a vague claim that needed qualification. Sandy provided the qualification. You seemed to agree with the qualification yet then argued about labeling it a 'loophole'.
Employees, as you did note (and as Sandy illustrated), have the option to be vaccinated or remain unvaccinated. If they remain unvaccinated, they must undergo weekly COVID-19 testing and wear a face covering when they are at the workplace. (Also, implicitly, those who worked offsite would not have those restrictions.)
Sandy did not deny the government requirement; rather, she clarified the requirement and illustrated that it was not a government mandate forcing vaccination.
So, as you say, just stop with the protest. Sometimes it is better to just agree when you actually agree.
As the old saying goes, "If you got it, flaunt it." And Dolly definitely still has it! Anybody that says otherwise is blind, stupid, jealous, or all the above.
How can people be mean to Dolly Parton?
MAGA...
I've always liked and admire her myself. My late wife was a huge fan of hers. She was great in "9 to 5" and "The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas".
I never saw Whorehouse but I loved her in 9 to 5 and Steel Magnolias
My dad was a great fan because...well...you know. He never missed the Porter Wagner Show
I searched for what is happening with Covid boosters in the US currently.
Some highlights from current attitudes about Covid shots.
It appears that less than 25 percent of US citizens will be taking the current Covid vaccine.
MORE....
I got the Moderna vaccine and two boosters and still caught COVID 6 months later. It was no worse than a moderate head and chest cold. Did the vaccine did keep me from getting a worse case than I might have or did it really do any good at all? I have no idea, but better safe than sorry.
So it could have been the same as all of the people who had no symptoms and is still happening.
That is why I had a wait and see approach because I normally isolate. Covid just gave me a more acceptable excuse not to do things that I did not want to do.
I knew people (in their 60s/70s & pre vaccine availability) who had symptoms that ranged from none to severe, but no deaths and no hospitalizations. All have recovered to pre-Covid health to the best of my knowledge.
I suspect that my husband and I had a mild case in Feb 2020. Haven't been sick since then and haven't had the vaccine because I isolate normally. The only times I have been sick were when I had to attend school or work in an office. Being in enclosed spaces with people who did not stay home when they were sick. Our government should be making employers guarantee enough sick time and/or vacation time that people are made to stay home when them or their children are sick for the well-being of us all.