Lest we despair too much, it's important to remember that vaccination reduces the severity, even if you end up infected.

I remember at the start of the year, when the vaccines first came out. A doctor shared some lung X-rays of infected, presumably hospitalised, patients. The vaccinated ones were far healthier.

Interesting data from Israel! https://datadashboard.health.gov.il/COVID-19/

For people that have received the vaccine in the last 6 months ("within date") the per-capita infection rate is an order of magnitude lower (per capita of ~1-4 vs ~15-30) than both the expired vaccinated and unvaccinated.

But when you look at ICU cases, the expired vaccinations are closer to the within-date vaccinations.

So keeping up to date on vaccine means you don't get infected at all. But having even an expired vaccine means you'll have a milder case.

Once the virus enters our body, we are infected. Having antibodies helped us fight the infection.

The efficacy of the vaccine indicates how well the vaccine has taught the body to make antibodies for the virus.

Thus, those vaccinated have a better chance of fighting the infection. That is why there are higher survival rates among those infected but vaccinated.

Since even vaccinated people can be infected, and since infection has a higher spread via inhalation and exhalation, wearing a mask keeps the virus out to a high extent, and helps keep the virus in as well (preventing the virus from spreading around via the infected person's exhalation).

I'm saying this potentially without base, but I interpret them as making the distinction of 'infected with Covid-19' vs 'having Sars-Cov-2 in your body'. They're not exactly equal, and that distinction potentially drives how asymptomatic spread happens.

I see where you're coming from, but I don't think this is quite the right distinction.

Asymptomatic infection, and presymptomatic infection, are both forms of infection. However, yes, they differ from symptomatic infection in terms of severity, no doubt due to lesser viral load.

The distinction I would personally make is exposed vs infected. Being exposed to a virus doesn't mean you'll get infected, where infection is quantifiable tested with a PCR test.

I have a grandparent who's in a very high-risk category for Covid. She's not a hardy person who can weather a complicated disease, and post-vaccination she caught Covid. But she's still alive.

It's impossible for me to know for certain, people who are that high risk do still die post-vaccination. And obviously not all of them die when catching Covid even if they haven't been vaccinated. But I do credit the vaccination for potentially saving her life. She was in intensive care for a single day and never had to be put on a ventilator. It was only briefly touch-and-go, within 24 hours we knew that she was going to live.

Not catching Covid is great, we're all hoping for that. But when my family got the news that she was stable, that felt really good. It's not even just about stabilizing; there was a brief period where she wasn't lucid, and then it became obvious that she was getting more lucid and was going to recover and that she was recognizing people again.

Reducing severity really matters. You're still playing a statistical game, nothing is certain, but... when someone you care about is in the hospital, statistics become important to you.

Glad she survived. As you say, these things are statistical, not guaranteed, but vaccination massively improves your odds.

I know of a few people who can't be older than their ?late fifties? or early sixties? that caught COVID. It was horrendous for them, despite them having the fortune to be double vaccinated.

> Not catching Covid is great, we're all hoping for that.

I don't think that's a long term option at this point, unless you continue to quarantine yourself for the rest of your life.

Eh, I don't think we can say that with certainty. We know that vaccination is driving down cases. It really feels borderline whether it's enough for herd immunity.

(Rich) countries are already rolling out third doses, at least for the most vulnerable. Longer term, we'll have revised vaccines, even more effective against Delta.

Maybe you're right, we can't avoid catching COVID long term. But if that's the case, hopefully its severity is (even further) attenuated by then, due to further vaccination.

Or wear a P100 elastomeric respirator when going in places.

Luckily, most people are persuaded easily.

Indeed they are, and they are about equally easily persuaded by either side.

The neutrality in my comment was intentional.

Consider me having missed the joke then.

I don't think it was a joke. But you are not alone.

We have a word for it in Greek, "τραγελαφικό", when something is so tragic you can't do anything but laugh.

:-) I studied ancient Greek for 5 years btw. Wasn't very good at it.

The concept you describe makes me think of Russians.

Trekkies will use the Talarian form:

Picard, his head down, his palm covering his face.

Just because I've had the vax doesn't mean it worked. I've had other vaxs not take. Probably because I'm immune compromised (bone marrow transplant).

Since I'm safely isolated, I haven't gotten any tests to confirm if my shots worked. I will eventually.