I agree, this is an ethical nightmare precisely because of weighing the risks of anaphylactic reactions versus saving lives when our country is so ineffective at insuring the health of its nation. Is it ethical to let your mother die of SARS-COV2 if you have the means to be Robin Hood even if cost you your in-laws' life by going Bio-Rogue?
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Necessity is the mother of all inventions. Bio-Rogue vaccine makers are no different than rebel soldiers bc of the Empire, the Taliban bc their right to sovereignty was denied, the American Revolutionaries who threw English Tea in2 the Harbor. Acts of rebellion do not sprout randomly as Batement might suggest. They sprout in response to need and weakness in the System. As soon as the internet was born, there were hackers. As soon as the computer was born by rogue garage-band-with-I.T. guys in NM, there was the creation of the computer virus and firewalls in response.
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I totally disagree with Dr. Batement. He said that news rogue experiments can also undermine public trust. Duh, that is precisely why we have rogue vaccine makers. If there was trust in our gov’t & health orgs, we would have flatlined the curve by now in America. We would be patiently waiting for the vaccine not as a magic bullet but as a prophylactic measure for a pandemic already under control with supplies aplenty rather than hoarding and calling it Vaccine Nationalism like we were safeguarded by FDR.
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Caplan and Bateman-House wrote. “They are not selling their vaccine but stand to benefit from attention in the media and any resulting philanthropic support.”
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How is this any different than bidding for the cheapest vaccine contract with the Trump Administration? If Bio-Rogues doesn’t have the backing of Wall Street & the Oval Office, isn’t this another way to Go Fund Me large scale if it goes viral? (pun intended) The media was intended to bring small minds to center stage. This is exactly what the Bio-Rogues are doing. Some as good samaritans and others for Likes & Followers.
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If these R rogue vaccine makers, unlike FDA approved vaccines, they will have many motives than just profit as C&B wrote with myopic vision. Does Bateman seriously think the Bio-Rogues as a collective are in it for the fame when American has failed their friends and families?
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The FDA's goals are a safe & effective vaccine, but also the most bang for the buck which is counter to safety & efficacy. You can’t have both without cutting corners in either camp whether it is safety or Bucks.
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Finally, I agree also in a pandemic trust is currency. It's like knowing your gov't has your kids' backs. It's like believing the CDC when they wanly suggest masks work. Yes, these are potentially dangerous message on both sides, the Bio-Rogues & White-Big Brother in the dis-U.S. Grade C- Animal Farm in 1984.
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If trust is currency, how much R the CDC’s words valued at now on the dis-U.S. Trust Market? What about the messages from the WHO, the American Academy of Pediatricians, our Executive Branch? How do they compare with the patriotism these Bio-Rogues have to endure from their own scientific community like Jesus to Jews.
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Can you trust them if the Oval Office leaks bleach may fight a pandemic? Or take hydroxychloroquine to cause a supply shortage for no good reason or evidence? Or, it's safe to re-open schools or the country or not? I’m still waiting for a reply from any trusted public servant besides Senator Harris.
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If I had COVID-19, I would take it from a Rogue friend. I would take it with Green Eggs and Ham. Yes, Uncle Sam, I am. I am after all a drug maker and pharmacist by profession. You can trust me.
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Your choices got us into this pandemic. Your wise choices will get U.S. out.