Tag Archives: vaccine

Donald Trump

What? Trump does the right thing?

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By JOHN KANELIS / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

Hey, did hell just freeze over or what?

Donald J. Trump, the one-time pandemic denier in chief, has issued a statement that urges Americans to get vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus. I know what some of you are thinking. This can’t be true. Can it? I thought the same thing when I first heard it.

However, the ex-president has gone on the record in a Fox News interview that the vaccines out there are safe and are effective against the pandemic. Trump and his wife got vaccinated in the final days of the Trump presidency, only they didn’t tell anyone about it.

Trump’s suggestion for Americans to get vaccinated comes after Dr. Anthony Fauci — who needs no introduction — urged him to do what he did. “I think it would make all the difference in the world,” Fauci said on Fox News Sunday. “He’s a very widely popular person among Republicans. If he came out and said, ‘Go and get vaccinated; it’s really important for your health, the health of your family and the health of the country,’ it seems absolutely inevitable that the vast majority of people who are his close followers would listen to him.”

Well, the former president did it.

Trump encourages Americans to get the Covid vaccine (msn.com)

It remains to be seen if his followers, many of whom remain skeptical about the vaccine and its efficacy, will follow suit. If they don’t and get sick, well … you know.

I am going to do something I didn’t think I would do, which is to thank Donald Trump for doing what, admittedly, he should have done a long time ago.

medical news

Cheering is contagious

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By JOHN KANELIS / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

All this back and forth among friends, acquaintances and even total strangers is amazing in the extreme.

I am referring to those who are using social media to proclaim that they have gotten vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus. Hey, I share their joy. I am vaccinated, too. So is my wife. Same for one of my sons; my other son has “antibodies” in his system, which tells me he must’ve caught the virus but didn’t show any symptoms.

This is a peculiar side effect of the pandemic response.

The vaccines are rolling out, tens of millions of doses at a time. Three big pharma companies have yanked out all the stops to deliver the vaccines in virtually no time. Operation Warp Speed kicked in and the drug makers delivered the goods.

I am just astonished at the enthusiasm we are expressing when we are able to obtain a vaccine. I cannot remember any time when public response to a crisis has reached this kind of level.

We are hearing the occasional grumbling, too. A member of my family had two vaccine appointments canceled when she was informed that she didn’t qualify under one of the two initial groups that were getting the shots. That changed today. She went to her local pharmacy and received her first dose of the Pfizer vaccine. What did she do? She called me to share the good news!

We’re getting giddy about the vaccine. I am going to wait anxiously for the time when we get word that we have reached the threshold of “herd immunity,” which is when a significant majority of Americans are inoculated.

If this initial reaction to the arrival of the vaccine is going to produce the kind of response I sense that we’re getting, well, then it’ll be Katie-bar-the-door when enough of us get inoculated against a disease that is still causing too much misery for us to cheer too loudly.

But I welcome the reaction. It’s as if we’re all having babies.

national news

Where was No. 45?

By JOHN KANELIS / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

Just a few moments this evening before President Biden began speaking to the nation about the fight against the COVID pandemic, I watched a brief public service announcement.

It featured four of the five living former presidents of the United States urging Americans to get vaccinated against the virus. There they were: Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, George W. (and Laura) Bush and Jimmy (and Rosalyn) Carter. They told us of their dedication to protect themselves and urged us to protect ourselves and those with whom we come in contact.

But …

Where in the world was Donald J. Trump? He doesn’t belong — or so it appears — to the exclusive Former Presidents Club.

The pandemic took the nation by the throat on Trump’s watch. And yet he was the president who downplayed its impact, he lied to us repeatedly about its seriousness, he mused aloud about injecting ourselves with cleaning agents to rid us of the virus. In short, he fluffed the nation’s response to a virus that has killed more than 500,000 Americans. Now we learn that he and the former first lady got vaccinated in private before leaving the White House; they never bothered to set the kind of example they should have set.

Now that I think more deeply about it, hearing Donald Trump talk to us about getting vaccinated would have been as insincere and inauthentic as every single thing that has flowed from his mouth.

media news

We all scream for ‘vaccine’

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By JOHN KANELIS / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

There is this weird phenomenon occurring on social media.

Well, at least I consider it weird. It is that folks around the nation are proclaiming their individual triumph at getting the COVID-19 vaccine. Hey, I did the same thing when my wife and I received our second and final vaccine doses.

I’m not yet sure what to think of this recurring phenomenon. It does seem strange to me.

The last time the nation received a breakthrough vaccine, I suppose, occurred in the 1950s with the polio vaccine developed by Dr. Jonas Salk. Then came the “sugar cube” vaccine developed later by Dr. Albert Sabin, which we consumed by swallowing it.

Was the nation overwhelmed by either vaccine? Did Americans get on the phone and call each other to boast about getting it? That was a long time ago and I do not remember it happening. Then again, I was just a kid when the Salk vaccine was injected into my arm.

We didn’t have “social media” in those days. Social media these days have become the messaging forum of choice for billions of human beings around the world. And a lot of us are using various social media platforms to declare a form of victory in the fight against the COVID pandemic.

I am interested only in knowing whether my actual friends on Facebook — which appears to be the primary social media platform folks are using — are obtaining the vaccine. The rest of my alleged “friends” on Facebook? I’ll be honest, I don’t much care on any sort of a personal level.

However, there is something worthwhile about knowing that more Americans are getting inoculated against this killer virus. Maybe it’s not as “weird” as I implied when I began this blog post.

medical news

Human rights, (cont.) …

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By JOHN KANELIS / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

Human rights ought to extend to those who reside in a country without proper documentation … and that certainly includes those living in the United States of America.

Therefore, I endorse President Biden’s view that undocumented immigrants are entitled to receive COVID-19 vaccines without fear of being arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers.

It’s a matter of public health, Biden told Univision television interviewers. Thus, a danger to undocumented immigrants is a danger to all with whom they come into contact while going about living in the United States.

“I want to make sure they are able to get vaccinated and so they’re protected from COVID without the ICE or anyone interfering,” Biden said. “They should… not be arrested for being able to get a vaccination.”

Spare me the criticism that Biden is pandering. The president vows to protect all Americans and, indeed, all residents of this nation.

According to The Hill: The comments follow an announcement from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) earlier this month that said ICE was not conducting enforcement activities at or near COVID-19 vaccination sites.

“It is a moral and public health imperative to ensure that all individuals residing in the United States have access to the vaccine,” the agency said in a statement at the time. “DHS is committed to ensuring that every individual who needs a vaccine can get one, regardless of their immigration status.”

Biden: Undocumented immigrants should get vaccine without ICE targeting them (msn.com)

These individuals’ immigration status can be handled separately, apart from the need to get them vaccinated against a virus that continues to sicken and kill U.S. residents — regardless of whether they are citizens, are here legally or illegally.

It is a human right to be protected against this pandemic.

local news

Beyond ‘professional’

By JOHN KANELIS / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

PLANO, Texas — It is time for a shout out to some folks who face a relentless crush of citizens, many of whom might be getting anxious and perhaps agitated as they await a valuable public service.

My bride and I just returned from John Clark Stadium, about 20 or so miles from our home in Princeton. My wife’s reason for going was to receive her second vaccine for COVID-19. We arrived and stopped at the end of a lengthy line of vehicles waiting to enter the parking lot.

What this brief post is about, though, is to commend the staff of employees that greeted us when we inched our way onto the parking lot and moved toward the processing stations.

These individuals could not possibly have been nicer, more courteous and downright friendly as they greeted us and then waved us on to the next stop along the way.

Think about something for a minute. They could have been coolly professional. Or, they could have been rude. The cool professional behavior is acceptable; rudeness, of course, is not. However, given the strain they might be feeling having to process thousands of North Texas residents through this line during a medical emergency, I can understand how someone might get a bit short-tempered.

Perhaps most astonishing was the greeting my wife got from the nurse who actually administered the Pfizer vaccine. “Is this your second shot?” the nurse asked. My bride said yes, it is. The nurse then all but gave her a high-five to congratulate her and to suggest we might want to “celebrate” the occasion. We all chuckled at the thought, but I remain amazed that a nurse who is replaying this drill thousands of times each week would take the time for a little — but much appreciated — levity.

If I had come equipped with gold stars to hand out, I would have done so in the John Clark Stadium parking lot. Absent that, this blog post congratulating and thanking them for their kindness will have to suffice.

Well done. Stay the course.

Uncategorized

Vaccine effects vary widely

By JOHN KANELIS / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

There is something I have learned about the COVID vaccine’s after effects.

It is that one cannot predict what they will be.

Friends of mine who are preparing to get their vaccine are asking: What can I expect? My answer: I haven’t the foggiest notion.

I had expected some side effects from my first vaccine. I had a sore arm and a little bit of flu-like aches and pains. Then they vanished after a half-day of mild discomfort. Then I was told the second shot would make me feel like dookey. I got the second shot this past Friday. Symptoms? Nothing, man.

A member of my family received both of his vaccines and reported the second dose laid him low for a whole day. He said he felt like crap all day. Then he was fine.

The lesson I have learned from all of this?

One cannot predict with any certainty how one will react to this vaccine. Next time someone asks what they can expect, I’ll just tell ’em: Just receive the vaccine and hope for the best.

medical news

Halfway to immunization

By JOHN KANELIS / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

We’re halfway to being fully immunized in our house.

I got my first Pfizer vaccine a little more than a week ago. My much better half, aka my bride, got her Pfizer shot this past week.

In two weeks I will return to the VA Medical Center in south Dallas for my second dose; my bride returns to John Clark Stadium in nearby Plano for hers.

What does that mean in terms of our lifestyle? Nothing, man. We’re going to keep doing what we’ve been doing since, oh, this past summer. Which is that we’re going to stay mostly away from restaurants, we will keep wearing masks, we’ll be washing our hands frequently and feverishly, we’ll splash sanitizer on our hands as well, we will maintain appropriate “social distance” from everyone we see.

That’s how we intend to live for the foreseeable future.

I highly recommend that all Americans follow our lead. We have to get through this pandemic together … right? Right!

local news, medical news, military news

VA comes through once again

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By JOHN KANELIS / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

I consider it a “pre-paid benefit,” and I use it whenever and wherever possible.

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs stands ready to assist 18 million American veterans for whatever needs arise. So with that, I will tell you that I got a phone call the other day from the VA. The automated voice informed me that I could call a number and make an appointment to receive a COVID-19 vaccine at the VA North Texas Medical Center in Dallas. I jumped all over it.

I ended the call, then phoned the number the “voice” gave me. After a lengthy wait, a human being picked up on the other end and she set up an appointment. I could come in the very next day!

And so … the demystifying of this process kicked in.

I received the Pfizer vaccine the next day. My wife and I drove from Princeton all the way through McKinney, Allen, Plano, Richardson and then through Dallas. We navigated our way through the Interstate 30/35E/45 interchange next to downtown Dallas and then arrived at the VA medical center.

We parked in a garage close to the building where I needed to wait for my shot.

I walked in, got my temperature taken and then trekked down the hall to check in with the clerks who were running the inoculation entry station. Here is where my heart began to sink. Why?

Well, when I talked to the lady on the phone the previous day, she told me that a mid-afternoon appointment was likely to mean sparse attendance at the clinic where we reported for our vaccination. What I saw upon arrival, though, was, um, vastly different from what the lady on the phone led me to believe would occur.

I walked down the hall past a long, seemingly interminable line of masked-up veterans. I turned down three more halls and found the end of the line.

My first thought when I got there – which I believe I muttered out loud under my own mask – was “holy crap! I am going to be here forever!” I phoned my wife, who was waiting outside and informed her that I was at the end of a line with at least 300 people in front of me. “I’m going to be here a while,” I told her.

Then a bloody miracle happened! At least it seemed like a miracle. It seemed as though I had been waiting for less than 30 minutes when I found myself suddenly at the desk where I had checked in. I was about to enter the room where 24 inoculation stations were set up.

Jeff Clapper, public affairs officer for the North Texas VA Health Care System, suggests it’s all according to plan. The system, he said in a statement, “has been remarkably effective at immunizing VA North Texas staff and patients, successfully delivering 11,600 doses of the Pfizer vaccine to date, with wait times consistently below 45 minutes.”

Clapper added, “The Dallas (point of distribution) is currently vaccinating both eligible veterans and VA North Texas employees by appointment only; no walk-ins allowed.” He said the North Texas VA office “contacted over 25,000 priority eligible enrolled outpatients via phone call.” He said the Dallas POD is now booking new vaccination appointments for not earlier than the first week of March.”

I have been enrolled in the Department of Veterans Affairs medical program for just a few years. I signed up when I was living in Amarillo and have found the VA level of service to be exemplary. I had nothing but smooth sailing at the Thomas Creek VA Medical Center in Amarillo. The level of service remains high at the Sam Rayburn Medical Center in Bonham, where I go these days for my regular wellness visits. That brings me to another point: I have suffered no medical emergencies, but at my age I am aware that my luck is likely to run out … eventually.

The Dallas visit to obtain my first Pfizer vaccine shot to prevent me from catching the COVID virus only enhances my good feelings toward the Department of Veterans Affairs.

I am sure I can speak for many veterans who appreciate the care they get. I understand that no massive government system is perfect. For me, though, it’s been pretty close to perfection.

For now, at least.

NOTE: This blog post was published initially on KETR-FM’s website.

medical news, science news

And now … a good word about Operation Warp Speed

By JOHN KANELIS / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

Admittedly, this blog has spent a great deal of time, emotional energy and cyberspace over the past four years bashing, slashing and smashing at the Donald J. Trump administration.

Trump is about to exit the political stage in less than 30 days. I now want to say a good word about what — in a normal world — should stand as an enduring legacy to his term in office.

This isn’t a normal world. Operation Warp Speed is a creation of someone within the White House to define the mission of finding a vaccine for the coronavirus that has killed more than 300,000 Americans and nearly 2 million people around the world.

The COVID-19 virus arrived early this year. Trump dragged his feet in recognizing publicly the peril it posed. Then he owned up to its consequence. He also announced the strategy he said would expedite the research and development of a vaccine that could cure the world of the pandemic.

Trump predicted during his failed re-election campaign that we could have a vaccine by the end of the year. Skeptics scoffed. I don’t recall speaking directly to Trump’s boast, but it did ring a bit hollow. Others in the White House task force formed to come up with a response strategy said it would take longer.

Well, guess what. Donald Trump was right. Pfizer and Moderna have produced highly efficient vaccines that are now being administered around the world. A third pharmaceutical firm, AstraZeneca, is about to bring a vaccine on line.

There is plenty of debate about the impact that Operation Warp Speed had in delivering these vaccines. Some experts say the drug firms were well on the way to producing it already; others give Warp Speed a ton of credit for goosing the companies to delivering the goods in a timely fashion.

I am willing to dole out praise to Donald Trump for providing some of the impetus to get this vaccine developed and approved. But not all of it. Indeed, I am weary beyond belief of hearing Trump take undue credit for work that others did.

Drug company researchers and scientists worked their butts off to produce a vaccine with an efficacy level that experts have called “extraordinary.” Yet there was Trump the other day stepping into the limelight to say that no other politician in human history could have produced those kinds of results.

Mr. President, the program that came to be under your watch has done well. Accept the congratulations that belong mostly to the researchers … and then get the hell out of the way.