A retired pastor in our church is part of a really wonderful ministry distributing wheelchairs in Nigeria. Most of those in need of the chairs are victims of polio.  As recently as thirty years ago, Nigeria had thousands of new polio cases every year. Thankfully, at that time, Rotary International stepped in and spread the vaccine throughout the country. Other organizations also played a part, so cases fell from 350,000 cases worldwide to 407 cases in 2013. I believe there were just 22 cases in 2019, but people who contracted polio decades ago still need wheelchairs. My friend was planning to make his annual trip to helo distribute wheelchairs last year, but, you know, the Covid. 

I understand why some people would have concerns about the vaccines for Covid-19. Through abrupt and often contradictory policy changes over the past year, the government and the medical establishment have done much to damage their credibility. The vaccine was made so quickly (thanks to the administration’s Warp Speed program), that it worries some. I can understand that those worries. Don’t agree the worries are sensible, but I can understand them.

But some people these days doubt the efficacy of vaccines in general — and if you don’t recognize the effectiveness of vaccines in battling polio and smallpox and measles and many other diseases, your opposition of the Covid-19 vaccine might be consistent, but your attitude doesn’t speak well for your intelligence (and possibly your sanity).