The best argument for treating COVID more seriously is that we have a better understanding of influenza’s long-term effects. In both cases, however, I’d argue that it makes sense to require vaccination simply to reduce the impact on childcare and education: even if dying from the flu is relatively low-risk, it’s stressful and disruptive when it rips through a class and vaccination is quite cheap in comparison.

A more apt comparison is Covid to Influenza. You don't need flu shots to attend school.

You mean other than that?

The answer, of course, is no because living in a society requires moderating your behavior when it affects other people. Those real examples also notably did not turn into the slippery slopes you’re trying to scare people with because public support isn’t unconditional – as we’ve seen, there are very real limits to what they can require and it involves significant public debate. Where real authoritarians do cause problems, it’s a misattribution error to say those problems are because they have health codes rather than correctly recognizing that an authoritarian government will manifest in all kinds of areas.

If you want to drink and drive, go for it, just don't do it anywhere public. If you want to be unvaxxed, fine, just don't go anywhere public.

So they're not even all that good at providing the one thing companies may argue is necessary to go back-to-work; stopping spread. Similar with cruise lines and airplanes requiring it. Yes, the vaccines are very good at saving peoples' lives, but industry doesn't care about that, and it alone is not a good enough reason to mandate it.

You say everyone needs to get vaccinated so we can protect the people who can't get the vaccine or for whom it doesn't work. I have very bad news for you; the vaccine won't help. You can still get COVID, and you can still spread it to your four year old. I can still get it and spread it to my immunocompromised sister. It sucks. That's the reality we live in.