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I don't doubt the vaccines are effective at reducing negative effects on the vaccinated individual. Nothing in my comment above was intended to imply that. The

I don't doubt the vaccines are effective at reducing negative effects on the vaccinated individual. Nothing in my comment above was intended to imply that. The specific point I was trying to make is that there is conflicting evidence that the vaccines reduce transmission. Since governments around the world pushed vaccines for everyone partly on the hypothesis that it should reduce spread, this is a big problem. The truth about transmission reduction from vaccination is therefore in my mind critical. And so far from what I've read, there is not yet a clear scientific consensus on whether vaccines do indeed significantly reduce transmission. And for the record, in case anyone is wondering, I'm not a tunnel-visioned troll. I welcome being shown studies that do (or don't!) demonstrate reduction in transmission, which I will read and digest before the next HN debate on this topic. It's only by scientific inquiry and debate that we will get to the truth here.

jollybean 5y ago
The consensus has shifted to the point wherein the preponderance of evidence points to reduced transmission. Here is Nature in Feb [1] Here is Nature now [2] [1] https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-00450-z https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-00450-z [2] https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-02054-z https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-02054-z
- sleavey 5y ago
  Thanks, [2] is interesting. Sadly lacking much information on the transmissibility of the delta variant, which is the dominant strain in most (?) western countries. Such information would tell us whether achieving herd immunity without direct infection from SARS-CoV-2 requires continual application of boosters forever (i.e. for each seasonal variant). I say this because there is evidence from other respiratory viruses that, after having transitioned from animal to human, they typically mutate to become more transmissible but less deadly, which we normally deal with by letting sweep through the country without mass vaccination (only for the vulnerable).

jollybean 5y ago

The consensus has shifted to the point wherein the preponderance of evidence points to reduced transmission. Here is Nature in Feb [1] Here is Nature now [2] [1] https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-00450-z https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-00450-z [2] https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-02054-z https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-02054-z

sleavey 5y ago
Thanks, [2] is interesting. Sadly lacking much information on the transmissibility of the delta variant, which is the dominant strain in most (?) western countries. Such information would tell us whether achieving herd immunity without direct infection from SARS-CoV-2 requires continual application of boosters forever (i.e. for each seasonal variant). I say this because there is evidence from other respiratory viruses that, after having transitioned from animal to human, they typically mutate to become more transmissible but less deadly, which we normally deal with by letting sweep through the country without mass vaccination (only for the vulnerable).