5.7.20: Vaccines, jokes & united we stand(?)
(maybe not)
May 7, 2020.
Good Thursday Morning. I’ll admit it’s getting harder to identify the genuine comments from the jokes in the feedback, but this one is particularly perplexing:
I'll ask again. Are you hiring-or taking interns/volunteers? And when are you coming in force to the middle of the country? STOP IGNORING ME TINA!!!!
Friend, consider yourself heard. If you’d actually like to be more involved on Tina, then in the immortal words of Carly Rae Jepsen:
Except, don’t actually call. Just respond to this email. We’ll talk. In the meantime, we’ve got some more questions today, so click on the Let’s Talk button to get started.
Subscribe!
Maybe you’re new here. Maybe a friend sent this to you. Who knows. Subscribe below to make sure you get our questions each morning and never miss your chance to be heard!
Results from May 6, 2020
Question 1: How often do you get the seasonal flu vaccine?
Compare these numbers…
Question 2: If a vaccine for COVID-19 were made available, how likely is it that you would get vaccinated?
…To these numbers.
Interest in getting a theoretical vaccine for COVID-19 was quite high amongst our users, though these comments illustrate some of the conflicts and considerations:
I said that I would definitely want to get a vaccine if it is available, but I would be happy to forgo my own vaccination if they were in limited supply so that those who are immunocompromised or elderly can have it. I will be interested to see how people approach this vaccination and how much eagerness there is to receive it vs. concerns of complications/side effects considering how quickly it is being pushed to market.
Regarding the vaccine, I said I was unsure only because it would depend on how safe it was truly safe or not, and if it would cause any health concerns in the long run. If it is truly safe and works I would absolutely get the vaccine.
Question 3: The United States crossed 70,000 deaths from COVID-19. Given the human suffering caused by the virus outbreak, do you think it's appropriate or inappropriate to make coronavirus-related jokes?
As overwhelming as these results appear, a lot of you expressed a lot of reservations and internal conflict about joking:
Humor/levity is a coping mechanism and has been used for all of human existence to get through tragedy (ex: creating a children's song about burning bodies during the plague - Ring-around-the-Rosie) so modern memes are really people trying to come to terms with what's going on around us. As always though, know your audience. It's most certainly not appropriate to joke about people dying when you're chatting with ICU nurses in NYC. But overall it's a healthy outlet.
Or…
I feel conflicted on the COVID jokes. I think it's silly to say you can't talk about a topic. That being said, the jokes should be well thought out and not lazy. It feels like a grey area where I'm confusing myself and not coming up with an answer to your question.
Or…
Re: the joke making, I think there could be a big range here. Jokingly calling it 'Rona or having a Corona beer for a laugh is fine. Joking that it's a hoax or other comments that diminish the severity of the situation are not, particularly on social media when these can be misinterpreted.
Finally…
The "to joke or not to joke" question is one that I really struggle with. I really feel both, I suppose it depends on my mood. Overall I think comedy is a tool to cope and should be ok, but sometimes I just can't get in that head-space and find myself mad at someone taking the situation lightly.
Question 4: Do you feel more or less united with other Americans, including those who do not share your political views, than you did prior to the quarantine?
Many of you shared that you want to be feel more, that you want this to be a moment of national comity, even if you don’t feel it.
I was hopeful that this crisis would be an external force to unite American politicians to find more common ground. Instead it has only seems to have polarized them. Disappointing. Both sides to blame.
I want to feel more united, but I have been so disappointed and, honestly, shocked by the response I am seeing across the nation. When someone cares more about money/economy than human lives, I don't see that as a political issue. I see it as a moral issue. You can't reason with people who do not know why they should care about others.
I wish we would come together as a nation. Adversity used to unite us. Now it seems we just invent “sides” and defend our own position.
Make it all the way through but forget to answer today’s questions?
Click on the Let’s Talk button below to get started.