Commentary
-
Our commentary partners will help you reach your own conclusions on complex topics.
Hey Everyone, Peter Zeihan here from Iceland where some places look like Minnesota, somethings like North Carolina, some like Wyoming, some like New Zealand. And, some like Mars.
When I was, I came in from the mountains yesterday I found out that the United States, the FDA, gave full approval to the Pfizer vaccine. So it’s no longer in emergency authorization. I just wanted to discuss very briefly what that means and what that doesn’t mean. Let’s start with what that doesn’t.
This does not mean that the COVID vaccine is no longer experimental because it hasn’t been experimental for a year.
The phase three trials that we did last year on Pfizer were the largest field trials of any medication ever in human history.
So it ceased to be an experimental drug a year ago.
What emergency use authorization means is that the medication is to be used only in a prescribed manner, in a very specific situation, as applied by a medical professional.
So in this case as a two shot regimen to be administered as a vaccine. Once it has full authorization that opens it up for others uses which it wasn’t necessarily designed. So we’re seeing some of that third shots are going to start next month, but to give you a really good idea of what it can mean, theoretically, when Botox was approved, it got an initial authorization kind of like the emergency authorization and it was to be used, you know, to smooth out your forehead. Well, once it got full approval could be used for other things. And since then it has been used in migraine treatments.
So it’s not like we’ve gone from experimental to non-experimental. We’ve gone from fully approved to approved in a much broader array of circumstances.
Okay. So that’s, what doesn’t mean? What it does mean is that we now have legal cover for any employer to allow mandates from places throughout their employee system.
The courts have already been very aggressive in approving mandates up to and including the Supreme Court, but now that there’s full authorization, and this has been indicated by the FDA to be safe in all circumstances for nearly all people, you should expect to see a cascade of mandates that are gonna effect probably the plurality of American workers by the end of the year and only accelerating after that because there’s now no absolutely no legal or safety reason to think otherwise.
For those of you who are curious about COVID and Iceland, remember that two thirds of the population lives in your Reykjavik and that’s where about 85% of COVID cases are, more concentrated the population, the more likely to have respiratory disease. It’s just how it works.
But I spoke to somebody at the hospital in Akureyri, which is the second largest town yesterday. And she indicated to me that the number of people who have been vaccinated, but who are hospitalized is two for the entire country.
So 97% of the cases that they have seen here in the recent surge are, are minor.
They have a very aggressive test and trace system here and nothing like the United States. So they’re turning up a lot of cases because of the Delta, but because the population is 90% vaccinated, the only people that are ending up in the hospital are this handful of people that for whatever reason, have not been able to get the vaccine yet. So it’s actually pretty well under control here.
The probably gonna fall off of the red list for the European Union tier four list for the United States very, very quickly because the virus spurting out here, there’s just not enough population to carry it forward.
Okay. That is everything from me. Hope you’re all enjoying the summer back home. And I will return to the states in a couple of weeks, take care.
-
What happens to China after Xi Jinping dies?
China is arguably the world’s second most powerful country, and its leader, General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Xi Jinping, plays a major role in many of its economic and military decisions. So, with no heir apparent, what happens to China when Xi dies? Watch the above video as Straight Arrow News contributor… -
Impact of Italy’s older, shrinking population
Births in Italy fell by 3.6% in 2023, reaching a record low and raising concerns for Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s efforts to address the country’s aging population. One senator from Meloni’s ruling party echoed Pope Francis’ call for Italians to have more children, stating that having children should be Italian women’s “main mission.” Watch the… -
Biden and Trump are both unfit to be president
According to a June pre-debate poll, a majority of Americans feel dissatisfied with having to choose between either Joe Biden or Donald Trump. The debate did little to address anxieties that voters have about these two candidates. Post-debate polls indicate that President Biden now trails former President Trump, yet many voters remain undecided. Watch the… -
Why the West can’t quit Russian oil
Oil and gas revenues have been Russia’s most important source of income, accounting for up to half of the total Russian budget over the last decade. Despite severe sanctions imposed by the West to curb Russian energy income following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Moscow’s oil revenues don’t seem to have been significantly affected. Watch… -
Why Israel’s Supreme Court ended draft exemptions
On Tuesday, June 25, Israel’s Supreme Court unanimously struck down a military draft exemption privilege for members of its ultra-Orthodox Jewish community. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu relies on the support of two ultra-Orthodox parties to maintain power, both of which oppose the court ruling. The court held, in essence, that these military draft exemptions…
Popular Opinions
-
In addition to the facts, we believe it’s vital to hear perspectives from all sides of the political spectrum.
Latest Opinions
In addition to the facts, we believe it’s vital to hear perspectives from all sides of the political spectrum. We hope these different voices will help you reach your own conclusions.
The opinions published in this section are solely those of the contributors and do not reflect the views of Straight Arrow News.
Latest Commentary
We know it is important to hear from a diverse range of observers on the complex topics we face and believe our commentary partners will help you reach your own conclusions.
The commentaries published in this section are solely those of the contributors and do not reflect the views of Straight Arrow News.
Peter Zeihan
Geopolitical StrategistImpact of Italy’s older, shrinking population
Biden and Trump are both unfit to be president
Why the West can’t quit Russian oil
Dr. Frank Luntz
Pollster and Political Analyst‘Two bad choices’: Undecided voters before Biden-Trump debate
‘Money doesn’t go as far’: Americans discuss financial hardships
‘I am shocked’: Americans react to the Trump guilty verdict
Pete Ricketts
U.S. Senator for Nebraska