My vote for current most out-of-touch professional athlete

My vote for current most out-of-touch professional athlete — Bryson DeChambeau in a landslide.

It’s one thing to be a vaccine denier, which he certainly is. It’s another to say nonsensical  things about the vaccine and expect anyone but the naive to believe them.

“I’m young enough, I’d rather give it [the vaccine] to people who need it. I don’t need it. I’m a healthy, young individual that will continue to work on my health.

“I don’t think taking the vaccine away from someone who needs it is a good thing. My dad is a perfect example. He got it [the vaccine] early on because he’s a diabetic. People like that need to get it. My mom got it. I don’t want to take away that ability.”

Really? Is DeChambeau so out-of-touch that he doesn’t realize that more than 80 percent of adults 65 and older are fully vaccinated; that 58 percent have had at least one, and that 50 percent of those 12-and-older are fully vaccinated?

Is he not aware that the vaccine is readily available at no cost to ANY individual 12-and-older that wants it? And how about all the vaccines that have been discarded because those eligible decided that their beliefs were superior to the scientists and medical folks?

C’mon, Bryson! You have taken talking nonsense to a new level. And he wasn’t finished. There was the following gem as well:

“As time goes on, if it’s mainstream – like, really, really mainstream – and everything is vetted out, yeah. I don’t have an issue (getting vaccinated).”

Is that so? Either he failed math or common sense, or simply believes the gibberish he spouts. How is the vaccine not mainstream when more than 350 million doses have been issued since the vaccines became available?

At least, he has the “sense” to live in a state (Texas) with a governor who is as much a denier as he is. “Bud” Abbott has banned Covid mandates to appeal to those on the far right who think only of themselves and nobody else.

What happened to Scott Appley last week could best be explained as “karma.” The Texas GOP community leader who questioned mask-wearing and vaccines, died five days after making his views public. Appley had expressed support for a mask-burning party in Ohio and responded to a doctor who tweeted about the Pfizer vaccine’s effectiveness by calling her an “absolute enemy of a free people.” Now he’s free and dead.

There are those with legitimate health concerns for NOT getting a Covid vaccine, such as those with rare blood clots. Those with severe allergies to any ingredient in the vaccines are better off without them. We should empathize with them.

More common are those in the public eye who spout nonsense. And, it is not just DeChambeau. Another who thinks he is smarter than the scientists and doctors is Cole Beasley of the Buffalo Bills. This is my “favorite” tweet:

“Everyone is so all in on science now more than I have ever seen. What happened to God’s will?”

Since he wants to make it religious, how about this fact: 95 percent of those that have died from Covid are unvaccinated. Is that “God’s will?” Not sure whether anyone who makes ridiculous statements like Beasley would even give a straight answer.

Incidentally, as of the last week of July, 85 percent of NFL players had received at least one dose of the vaccine. Perhaps some of that had to do with NFL declaring that virus-hit teams unable to field enough players will automatically forfeit games, and go unpaid.

Bravo! It’s a team game. Hitting ’em in the wallet is great incentive. Other deniers will find out when their employers tell them not to bother showing up for work.

It helps when an outspoken former athlete and current announcer makes this statement: “The only people who are not vaccinated are just a–holes.” A little harsh, yes, but bravo to NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley. Cleveland Browns’ star defensive end Myles Garrett made an impassioned plea to folks to get the vaccine.

Why Covid-19 vaccines became a political hot potato can be traced to those that denied it was even an issue and then were unwilling to admit their mistake when hundreds of thousands died.

It’s called “politics over people” and it has infected way too many that believe being (on the) right means never saying you’re sorry.

August 11, 2021