This post conflates a lot of errors. But specifically, I remember the uk chief medical officer being fairly open that the effect of vaccines was stochastic and would only reduce spread on the average, and this was uncertain. The emphasis at the time was very much that vaccines would prevent serious disease and death. Specifically, they wanted to keep people out of hospitals to avoid them being overwhelmed. There was much better evidence for that, and in retrospect vaccination was successful in that.

Here is a montage of various vaccine "leaders" making statements ranging from the vaccines completely stopping the spread, to you being unable to catch COVID with the vaccine. [1] Some people, sometimes, made accurate statements. But by and large misinformation and hyperbole were the rule rather than the exception.

Accepting and approaching this is very important, because while some may simply want to forget many of the things that happened, others never will. And so it will only further galvanize the differences and divides between people. What should be done instead is to consider why such statements were not only made, and not only left unchallenged, but in most cases - actively encouraged. And what we could do to help have a better outcome next time.

There's relatively little doubt that the past years have shattered confidence in many US institutions (public and private...), and that's not really good for anybody. Repairing that damage can only happen once the past is reconciled in a way that everybody can feel generally positive about.

[1] - https://twitter.com/ITGuy1959/status/1581034815700488192

CMO liked to say that up until UK data started showing the vaccinated getting sick (and therefore spreading it) more often than the unvaccinated. That data got worse with time until the vaccinated had a >3x case rate.

2022 meanwhile had record-breaking case levels. Vaccines didn't reduce the spread even on average. But the UK still treated the unvaccinated horribly, justified by these lies about spread.

The correct response to all this is to realize that governments employ a lot of people who are fanatical about vaccines and will lie to any extent necessary to get people to take them.