That Aud Smell

Updated to say: Just saw the Tweets about Met Life Stadium going back to full capacity. No mention of whether vax status will play a role in gaining admission. Sooner than later, looks like I may need to trust my vax'd status and accept whatever (undoubtedly modest) risks come from being exposed to variants.

I don't know enough to have an opinion on that. I think I heard it said that the immunity conferred by the vaccination is substantially better than what will arise naturally from having warded off the virus. If true, then no leeway AFAIC. How so? The Blue Jays game is going to have vaccinated sections and unvaccinated sections. I am expecting some (most?) state governments to require a COVID-19 vaccination in order for kids to return to in-school learning (in much the same way as those kids must have a variety of other vaccinations in order to enroll). OTOH: There was a concert out west that I had planned to attend this summer, but I've opted out once I learned that the venue would be at full capacity, but that there would be no screening for vax'd status and that masking would be done on the honour system. (So, I'm not getting what I want there, but at least I can make the choice to avoid it.)

I didn't quite follow this, and, tbh, I'm not aware of what you've posted elsewhere on the topic. As for the piece above, I agree that whether people wear a mask is up to them. I'll add that, if a person is not vaccinated, I expect them to mask and maintain social-distance, and I also expect that they be excluded from things like schools and sporting events/concerts (or, at least as to the latter, if they are admitted, that they be required to attend masked and sit in a designated section).

Sheesh - I sure hope Jones knew he was live on-air.

Not me hate-reading @SDS’s elitist pizza takes. Nope. Not me.

Interesting about Macy’s: My last 2 experiences were uneven. I think their social media content is more consistently excellent than their pie? Maybe they started reading their own press clippings too much. Or maybe I had 2 outliers.

the who now?

It's a bit out of the way, but Lovejoy Pizza is an absolute gem. That's my favourite Buffalo pie. Muscarella's on Main Street in Williamsville is excellent - they do something unique with their dough, imo. They cook it longer than most places, and it has this wonderful fluffiness to it. DiPaulo's in the Town of Tonawanda is often our go-to. Consistently good. Finally, it's not really a Buffalo style, but Olisi's on Sheridan Drive is excellent. We get that when we're wanting a thinner crust.

the combined speed, agility, and lack of visible propulsion are confounding in that regard, though.

When I read about the Yankees, the details seemed unresolved in terms of how many of the cases were true “break through” cases. As for masking: I recall the initial mantra that masks are intended to protect others. I think subsequent data suggested that masks protect the wearer as well. And as @JujuFish suggests, the policy may partly be intended to encourage vaccination.

Not entirely. And, the thing is: Viruses are tricky buggers. With every transmission, they (can) change. Sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse.

We need only imagine a scenario in which the young, healthy portion of society can (most likely) endure their thirst and therefore take a pass on available water, but, in so doing, will imperil more vulnerable populations through that individual choice.

@Eleven's point is well taken. We just don't have the luxury of time. And again, the risks associated with the known disease itself - both to individuals and to societies more generally - are known and, with scientific certainty, far worse than any risks associated with the vaccines. In addition to which: The history of vaccines teaches that side effects, including severe adverse reactions, are seen in the near-term. The long-term risk issue is, once again, a bogeyman for the vax-skeptical, vax-resistant, and anti-vax crowds. To the extent they can be reached, those folks are just gonna need to be persuaded.

That concern is a bogeyman. The mRNA vaccines being used stand on the shoulders of, proceed from incredible scientific advances that date back at least as early as the 1980s (when scientists tried and failed to come up with a vaccine for HIV (by using mRNA concepts)). Both our federal government (maybe other centralized governments (idk)) and private industry devoted unparalleled resources to developing these vaccines -- and proving they are safe (shoutout to the 10s of 1000s of people who volunteered for those trials) -- in what has become an unprecedented accomplishment in modern human history. It's breathtaking.

There's almost certainly some individual risk involved in this vaccination program. It is certain to be a very, very low risk - essentially infinitesimal for a given individual. There are much larger risks to individuals and societies if we don't get a super majority of people vax'd asap. Like I said upthread: This is a war. Billions of volunteers are needed in order to win it. And if people won't volunteer -- well, I don't imagine there would be actual conscriptions (at least in the western world) --but I am confident that many carrot-stick incentives will be created that will make it difficult to continue to avoid (up to an including substantial cash payments ($100? $250?)) and many, many barriers to entry will be created in order to make vax avoidance a huge problem for people (no live sporting events, no concerts, no on-campus college).

God dammit, Beasley.

Cole Beasley is apparently looking to take some heat off of his QB

Let's F**king Go!

LFG.

Welp.