Congress apparently shocked the troops don’t trust random, hastily approved vaccines

| February 18, 2021

It seems that Congressmen have no understanding of the history of the US government experimenting on the troops when it comes to vaccines. Military Times reports;

The Defense Department has been reluctant to publicly announce how many troops have received a COVID-19 vaccination and how many have refused to get it, but senior Pentagon officials came prepared for questions to a House Armed Services Committee hearing on Wednesday.

Of about 916,000 doses administered to DoD personnel, 359,000 have received at least one dose, and 147,000 are fully vaccinated, according to Bob Salesses, who is performing the duties of assistant defense secretary for homeland defense and global security.

About a third of those offered the vaccine have turned it down, according to Maj. Gen. Jeff Taliaferro, the Joint Staff’s vice director for operations.

That’s worrying to lawmakers.

“With new variants popping up across the globe, I’m not sure we can wait two years,” for full Food and Drug Administration approval, Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Ala., said. “It’s critical for our national security that every service member, as well as DoD civilian personnel and contractors, receive vaccines as soon as possible.”

More at the source. Thanks to Jeff LPH 3 for the tip.

Category: "The Floggings Will Continue Until Morale Improves", "Your Tax Dollars At Work", Big Pentagon

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David

I remember things a tad differently… for swine flu, it was “take your shirt off and get the shot”. No negotiation that I recall.

Andy11M

indeed, a number of years ago there was a Air National Guard unit in my area deploying and 3-4 members refused the small pox/anthrax vax. I believe they were all kicked out. Since then I believe there was a federal ruling that service members could refuse vaccinations.
When I was in from the late 90’s through 06 they stated then stopped, then restarted the anthrax vaccinations, it was so haphazard and poorly documented, I doubt it ever did me or anyone else any good.

Jay

I plan on doing the ol “Play mom against dad” card. I work for my county and they are pushing the vaccine. I will do like I do with the flu shot yearly: tell work I got it at the VA and tell the VA I got it at work. Problem solved, problem staying solved.

The Other Whitey

Our department is “strongly encouraging” us to get it. Quite a few, myself included, have answered with “Yeah, no thanks.”

The more they emphasize the “strongly” part, the more our polite refusal is turning into a “Go fuck yourself.”

ChipNASA

One word about the on again off again on again Anthrax shots in 1998-1999…I got 5 of 6 before they said no more….then….since Jan 2000…

“Tinnitus”

I’m somewhere in the 5800 “tuning fork in my skull” range.

https://www.audionotch.com/app/tune/

Bill R.

I ended up getting 5 of the 6 anthrax shots, too. I got the last one in March of 2000 right before I went on terminal leave for retirement. I also have tinnitus although it comes and goes. I always thought it was the jets that caused it.

Hack Stone

Hack Stone is now wondering if that ringing in his ears for the last twenty plus years may be a result of all of those shots.

Anyone remember that Marine at 3rd ELMACO whose mother was so upset about what shots that her son might receive (could’ve been Anthrax) that he received a hardship discharge? She should have been more worried about him catching something on BC Street.

Andy11M

I got one or two anthrax, then they stopped it, then we deployed for the invasion and I got one more and then never got another one for the remaining 3 years.

Andy11M

now you have me wondering about my EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE in my ears,

ChipNASA

I have a significant portion of my 170 pages of medical document and part of it is that the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) that besides migraines, suicidal iterations, depression, tinnitus, anxiety, and the standard fever, injection site blah blah, you can google it but you have to look at the reports from the 1999/2000 period, not the whitewashed shit from the more recent times.

KoB

Haven’t gotten one yet, not sure if I want it either. Read Rainbow Six. A number of our other miscreanted d’weeds and a few of the adorable deplorables have said they will not take the shots. I do remember the multitudes of shots we were all FORCED to take before the shipping off to exotic locations. Wish I still had that copy of my shot records.

Kinda a mute point for me anyway. My pill pusher is an authorized administer of the vaccine. I’m on his list, along with my Lady Friend, but he has no clue as to when he will see another shipment. Those of us out in the pucker brush are way down on the list of places to have it shipped in. The local health dprt has no clue when they will get any. Guess they got to get all of the voters in the big cities shot up FIRST (ht 2 Chip).

David

WalMart, CVS, and Walgreens are doing the shots in less urban areas. After three weeks of no response from VA, I got an appt at Walmart for one week out. Me, I’m not worried about mythical injectable chips, nor at my age, of having my life cut short by the vaccine. “Good die young”… I don’t qualify on at least two counts.

KoB

At least 30 miles in any direction to any of those stores. And I wouldn’t go to a Wal Mart for anything…even if it was free.

My only concern about NOT getting the shot is the restrictions being talked about imposing for those that don’t have “your papers, please”.

ChipNASA

FUCK. DAT. NOISE.
Kinda glad now my Ex is a bit of an ant-vaxer.
We didn’t NOT vaccinate our kids BUT we spread things out so they would have little or no reactions and they still had a couple, I remember my daughter having a fever in her leg at like 1.5/2.
Yeah, I’m in no rush to grow an appendage on my fucking forehead or grow additional internal organs.

CCO

My niece went 40 miles away from her college city to get hers. There was no line.

Jay

Chalk that up as another reason “Im Glad Im Retired.”

E4 Mafia '83-'87

On deployment, we got several shots depending on the port. They got us as we came out of the pay line, and anyone not getting the shot couldn’t go on liberty.
My son is in A-School now, and he said he take when offered.

OlafTheTanker

I don’t remember being *asked* or there being a choice in the 80’s when we were told to take off our shirts, walk through that curtain down the hall, and getting blasted in both arms with pneumatic injector guns full of deity-knows-what.

Martinjmpr

Yeah, I remember when the Army asked me if I wanted an anthrax vaccine before my deployment to the middle east in 2004.

Oh, wait, no they didn’t. They said “You’re getting the vaccine, period.” and threatened us with UCMJ if we didn’t get it.

The stupid thing is that the “vaccine” was either 6 or seven shots, spread out over a 2 year period. We were an ARNG unit and activated for a maximum of 18 months. In reality, our total deployment was just under a year (Mobilized 01/03/2004 and REFRAD 12/16/2004.) So there was no chance – ever – that we would get the entire series.

Fortunately, I never had any adverse reaction to the vaccine but at least one guy in my unit did, and ultimately ended up medically retired as a result with a life-long disability.

Personally, I’ll take the Covid vaccine when it becomes available to me but I can sort of understand why soldiers might be reluctant.

Forest Bondurant

“…I can sort of understand why soldiers might be reluctant.”

I can understand that, too.

The distinction, I believe, is that since the vaccine hasn’t been approved by the FDA, but okay’d for emergency use, is the reason folks are reluctant.

77 11C20

Showing my age I received, with no choice, the Swine Flu vaccine in the late seventies, most had no side effects but I had three days of hell which has me look at flu shots with their 30% effective rate with distaste. So I can understand where they are coming from.

penguinman000

I’ve elected to take the vaccine due to one of my jobs putting me in contact with the general public and having vulnerable family members at home.

I never understood those who refused the anthrax vaccine. It’s been around since the early/mid 70s and is very well understood. There were some manufacturing/storage issues in a few lots but overall its a fairly safe vaccine.

I do understand those who are hesitant to take the COVID vaccination though. I was on the fence. Time will tell if I was foolish or not.

Jay

I discussed it with my family. I also work around the general public/high vis area. I declined with full support of the family. I don’t buy the ‘its a CONSPIRACY!!!” aspect….but do believe the hysteria is overblown. I tend to let my immune system do its job. I also believe my entire family had this shit in Jan/Feb last year BEFORE it became the illness du jour. As with you, time will tell.

penguinman000

I agree completely the hysteria is way overblown. If my mother/father in law and wife weren’t at risk I probably would’ve passed.

rgr1480

Got mine (Moderna) last Friday with no after effects. I’ve heard a few people did have a reaction after the second shot, though. I’ll find out next month.

penguinman000

One of my buddies got Moderna and had zero side effects.

I’ve gotten my first one and it felt like Anthrax (delayed pain after injection and mild swelling/pain at the injection site). I’m guessing the 2nd one will probably make me feel like crap for a day or 2.

SFC D

I had shot #2 last Wednesday, had a fever and chills Thursday morning, tired all afternoon, I was good by 9pm. Well’ as good as I get anyway.

Stacy0311

I’m not going to get it as long as it voluntary. As soon as it’s mandatory, I’ll dodge it as long as possible.

Multiple reasons:
I already had COVID. I survived.

Other reasons include (but not limited to): botulinum toxoid has no side effects; pyridostigmine bromide has no side effects; anthrax vaccine has no side effects; malaria prophylaxis has no side effects; MMR, smallpox, polio vaccines 3 times in the last 10 years because the Army keeps screwing up my shot records have no side effects.
Individually all of these shots/drugs are probably(maybe) fine. Combined, who knows what they’ll do.

And when I retire, the VA will say none of my medical issues are service connected (except the tinitus, but not the hearing loss, here’s 10%) and they’ll probably claim that the lung scaring/COPD that showed up after COVID isn’t servive connected either

FuzeVT

Make sure you do your sleep study. Sleep apnea gets you 30ish %.

SFC D

It used to get you 50%. 😉

FuzeVT
OWB

Yes, many members of the military have heard the stories about the involuntary experimentation upon members of the military in decades past. Not just members of the military either. Dependents were also subject to experimentation. The ones I know about personally were either hidden completely from those being experimented upon or downplayed to the extreme.

Yes, I am the product of one of those experiments. Then, as a very young child, at least one additional experimental treatment. So, depending upon your perspective, you may either thank or damn the involuntary experimentation of the past.

At least it gets me a lot of free, noninvasive testing and an occasional biopsy. Hurrah. Ain’t life wonderful? Yes, it is. The alternatives REALLY suck!

Prior Service

I was planning to says that I didn’t think it was safe because Biden, Harris and Cuomo all publicly said it was unsafe (before the election, of course), but that will get me labeled as an extremist. I’m not throwing almost 32 years of service down that drain!

Penguinman000

Convenient how the press has completely forgotten that, isn’t it?

Prior Service

Yep. But not surprised.

JacktheJarhead

Speaking of using the Military as Guinea Pigs/=Test Subjects. I was in Communications School at 29 Stumps in 1976, right when the first Swine Flu rolled through. Some kid at Fort Campbell died so they decided to “Give” the military the vaccine first. Read that, if not too many of them die, we are good to go. So, they march us down to the dispensary, we all get our shots and by noon, 95% of my class was shivering, coughing and generally feeling like crap. We were told to go to the barracks and get in our rack. It sucked bad but by the next day we were, for the most part, fine. But it sucked. So, I do not blame the guys and gals in the military for saying no thanks.

USMC Steve

ANY time the military offers versus tells you to take something, THE ANSWER IS NO. I remember in the runup to First Gulf, our Chief Corpsman came to us and told us if asked if we wanted that abortion of a multipurpose shot for all the stuff they were going to supposedly hit us with, again, THE ANSWER IS NO. Many of the Marines who did get the shots are now all screwed up. We found out later that the FDA had a cow when they found out the military was injecting that crap into people, because it was not only highly experimental, it was not at all approved for use on humans.

FuzeVT

Sort of like those pills they gave you for nerve agents.

https://www.militarytimes.com/veterans/2015/01/27/study-links-genetics-anti-nerve-agent-pills-to-gulf-war-illness/

That was before my time but when I was in NBC school at Fort McClellan in 95, they were still talking about it.

Old sapper

I took the pills once, we got a net call at about 0200,took the pills woke up with a pounding headache and pitched them into the desert.

Stacy0311

pyridostigmine bromide. Low dose of nerve agent. Supposedly to build up tolerance for certain nerve agents.

Hey, that ALS is totally not connected to that however.

The bloody diarrhea seemed to stop after I buried mine in the sand.

USMC Steve

We never got those. I feel kind of left out. Who the hell came up with the idea that you could develop an immunity to lethal chemical agents? That is a special breed of stupid there.

MI Ranger

While I was not asked, as a contractor, our Active Duty folks were asked. Two out of eleven said yes. The senior did not, because he is scheduled to PCS to a remote tropical island with his family and he did not want to give the Military the opportunity to separate him from his family during the PCS/quarantine. I agree with USMC that most of the Soldiers are just happy to be given their choice, after always just being told to get in line.
I will probably get it once it is available to my family, just so we are all in it together. If we all turn in to Vampires (I am Legend) than I want to be a Vampire with my family not their first lunch!

Zulu02

Got mine, all done. First one gave me chills for three days. Got the second one last Tuesday. Made me really tired – slept most of Wednesday and late today. HH6 got her first one and went over and took care of the 2yr old grandkid for 4 days. No reaction to either shot. Go figure.

The Dead Man

I love that the media’s trying to lump in the anti-vax bullshit with people being hesitant on a rushed vaccine. One of which is using a technique that hasn’t worked in the past. And rushed with minimal testing. It’s black history month. Does anyone else remember the Tuskegee Experiments? Some of us do.

Thing has a higher chance of adverse effects than the coof itself.

Green Thumb

Kinda wondering what I have not been vaccinated against.

26Limabeans

How long does it take get off?
Asking for a friend.

Berliner

Got my second shot Valentines Day. Took Ibuprofen before (RN friend advised it) and have had no issues, although my wife insists I have always had “issues”.

QMC

Got asked when I was planning to take it two weeks ago. My answer was after 10 years of clinical testing as is the usual with everything else that has FDA approval.

Alan Cagle

I was XO of a BCT company at Ft Ord, Ca in 1970. We had a running fight with meningitis all year round. I had to get an experimental meningitis pill toward the end of that year. All the field cadre went and took the pill. Never knew if it worked, but none of us got the disease.

Dustoff

While assigned as a line medic for a Cav unit , we were giving our scout platoon gamma globulin shots prior to deploying to Egypt, so as to ward off Hepatitis A. After shooting up one of our troopers he ask “So what does this mean now Doc”?. I told him he could eat at the Waffle House with NO fear.