Jibber Jabber

Have you been vaccinated? (You don't have to answer that)

But what do I mean? Hepatitis? MMR? Polio? Of course not. I mean COVID. Whenever anyone talks of vaccination these days, it's always about COVID. That's what you think as soon as you hear the word, you don't have to ask

We hear it so often now, multiple times each day, that it's ingrained. Jabs too. get jabbed, take your jab, jabs in arms. Jab is a term I refuse to use as it's just so silly. I'll make the effort to say the longer word if I need to, just to avoid sounding like a total spaz. Jabbed, in this context, isn't even a thing as far as I'm concerned

So...

How to deal with unvaccinated family members at Christmas

This type of vile tosspottery is cropping up in the media on a daily basis now. That's why the word 'unvaccinated' does not make you ask the question of which vaccine the author is referring to. Not only that, but this kind of divisive nonsense makes the word sound dirty and the 'unvaccinated' sound like lepers who need to be 'dealt with'

As omicron cases continue to surge across the UK, Olivia Petter explains how to navigate the festive period if you’re spending it with unvaccinated family members

There is so much wrong with that byline, it's unbelievable

Omicron cases are not surging. That's another word that has lost all meaning since it was co-opted by the general media. Omicron cases have been rising quite a bit and are probably flatlining at the moment (Or replacing Delta)

Why should you need to 'navigate' the Christmas period if you're spending it with unvaccinated (COVID, not polio) family members? What difference does it make? Well in the eyes of detestable cretins like Olivia Petter, it makes a lot

recent reports claim that many people in the UK remain unvaccinated, with as many as one third of Londoners not having received any doses of the vaccine against coronavirus.

In light of this, it’s possible that when family members unite for Christmas - if none of them are self-isolating, that is - that some of them might well be unvaccinated.

Some of them might. Normal people would not see that as an issue or even something to waste time thinking about. I've been vaccinated against hepatitis. Nobody has ever asked me about it and I've never ventured to tell anyone unless it's come up in a relevant conversation. I got the Hep vaccine when I worked in the pubs, as it seemed like a sensible precaution. It never occurred to me to insist that all the pub staff also got vaccinated

This could be an anxiety inducing scenario for countless reasons...

Again, not for normal people. In fact I would suggest that anyone feeling anxious about this should be at home self isolating themselves and not coming into contact with anyone at Christmas, particularly normal people. Behind the couch would be my suggestion

...namely that mixing with unvaccinated people could mean you’re 20 times more likely to catch coronavirus, according to one study.

Assuming the unvaccinated person actually has Coronavirus. And isn't sick. And your vaccine isn't doing what it's supposed to

This 'one study' has a link

The link takes you to an article in The Conversation, an online rag in Australia; the same that rabid anti-smoker, Simon Chapman used to write balanced and thought provoking articles utter comedic dribble for. 

The article in The Conversation is written by a couple of apparently highly qualified professionals, but it reads as a whole heap of guesswork. They even hint at the fact there are so many variables at play, the 20 times conclusion is likely to be bollocks. In my uneducated opinion, it's worthy of Simon Chapman

Hence for this thought experiment

 it’s hard to estimate an absolute risk of exposure. So instead, we need to think about risks in a relative sense

If I were spending time with an unvaccinated person, then there’s some probability they’re infected and will infect me. However, if they were vaccinated, they’re ten times less likely to be infected and half as likely to infect me, following the numbers above.

Hence we arrive at a 20-fold reduction in risk when hanging out with a vaccinated person compared to someone who’s not vaccinated.

It's hardly a study and certainly not worth being quoted in an article designed to scare families into ostracising their unvaccinated members

But how do you broach the subject with your unvaccinated family members?

If you're not crazy, you don't

 And what if they’re asking to spend the night at your home over Christmas?

Let them

“Think about how you might approach this subject in advance of Christmas,” she suggests. “This will give you time to prepare your thoughts and feelings and help you free more able to manage emotionally if conflict arises.”

It might also be worth considering how you usually approach conflict, and how it affects you. What triggers you, for example, to get angry? “If you can identify these in advance, you are more likely to be able to hold your cool during a tricky conversation, at the same time as expressing yourself authentically,” says Roberts.

Most likely, you'll just come across as a paranoid bellend, your unvaccinated kin will fall out with you and make alternative arrangements with normal people, you will miss out and they will have dodged a bullet 

Most of the rest of the article is about how to have a discussion on the subject, but absolutely nothing about what you do if you are told to grow up and stop being a fucking moron. The gist is that you will read the article, have a 'conversation' and your family member will go right out and take the 'jab'

It does however, offer some helpful advice on what to do if you do end up accepting unvaccinated guests

“If you decide you have to invite unvaccinated relatives, have everyone wear masks,”

LOL! People will actually do this too. This is the level of sheep we've reached. I'd call it the boss level, but there's nothing boss about behaving in this pathetic, childish manner

 “Masks can be worn safely by children over two,” 

Maybe so, but any three year old worth their salt would scream the place down. And in my opinion, any parent who masks their children at a social gathering is guilty of some degree of child abuse

Ask guests to take a lateral flow test beforehand

It's repeated again. with no sense of irony, that one in three people can get it and not even know they have it. The disease so deadly, you have to get tested to know you have it (and coerced into being vaccinated against it)

 If possible, host events outdoors

Christmas Dinner

Out

Fucking

Doors!

I'm surprised these people manage to dress themselves