Feelings of ‘Expendability’ Are Causing Many Minnesotans To Refuse Covid Vaccines

EXPENDABLE

Feelings of being "expendable" have caused many people to refuse vaccinations. That's something no one is talking about. It's hard to believe right? Why would you continue to risk your life now, if you wanted to be vaccinated before?  Hello?

It's not because they don't think they shouldn't get vaccinated. Some do...Some don't. It's not because they realize it is saving thousands of lives. It's not because they think it is unsafe. It's not because they aren't afraid to die.

Even though it seems to defy logic, the reason they aren't getting vaccinated, is because they feel like we left them behind. They didn't matter. No one cared about them. We let them work in unsafe conditions from day one, and we put them through hell. We visited their stores without masks; or we scorned THEM for not wearing masks. There was no way to satisfy the people that were walking through the doors of these establishments. I know there are many people that DIDN'T act this way towards them; but you know how it goes. One BAD comment or experience, can wipe out 100 kind comments in a heartbeat.  Heck! I was scorned at a gas station pumping gas on MY SIDE even though I was at least 8 feet away from the person on the other side of the pump.

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I'm sharing this information because I KNOW people that feel this way. I know them as close friends. They are kind hearted people in most situations. But hate can take a toll on a person. They are mad that they, along with their fellow employees, were also not considered important enough to get a vaccine early on. Even though vaccines have been available for months now, and don't cost anything to get, the attitude is- I didn't matter before, and I don't matter now.

SPITE

Spite is a weird thing. Many people are incredibly angry that they continued to work in dire and frightening situations and no one cared if they existed.

I understand that there are people that truly don't want to be vaccinated for other reasons. I'm just shocked that no one is wiling to talk about this one; because it's out there.

So what can you say to someone who feels this way? How do you make them feel better? How do you tell them now, after the fact, that their lives DO matter? How do you not get angry at them?

I try to put myself in their situation. I try to understand. I am a hopeful person, and rather than give up, all I can do is try to treat people the way I would like to be treated. Isn't that what our parents taught us?  You can't beat spite with spite. It leaves us in a state of misery.

YOU MATTER

But...If YOU are one of those people, I would just like to say that you DO matter. I appreciate that you were working so our communities could get things that we needed, to live as normal as possible in a time that no one new what was going on. And in saying that, I mean it. Without people like you, where would we all be? Find your self worth, and make a decision based on what you believe to be true. Whether or not you should get vaccinated shouldn't be dependent on what other people think about you. Make your decision based on knowing that you matter.