" Every year again "—I certainly hope that's not the case for us this time, because it doesn't refer to Christmas, but to the current Corona situation, which is once again bringing almost everything, or rather, everything in my professional field, to a standstill. I'm starting to wonder if we've learned anything at all from 2020. Are our systems so broken and geared solely towards profit and superficiality that we, in our adolescent naivety, thought, "Okay, now we get vaccinated and that's the end of the virus"? Is our society, already divided before the pandemic, incapable of recognizing the bigger picture and dedicating all its energy to defeating the virus?

Unfortunately, in the current climate, the answer to both questions is YES...

Nothing learned and time wasted...

For weeks, infection rates have been rising again, and at such a pace that one might think vaccinations haven't even started yet. Not only are the infection numbers increasing, but also the number of severe cases. This, in turn, is leading to a renewed shortage of intensive care beds. (Didn't we already experience this in 2020?) So much so, in fact, that the terms "triad" and "cloverleaf principle" are once again being bandied about.

Fortunately, South African researchers have now identified a new coronavirus variant, which, due to its exceptionally high number of mutations, is significantly more contagious than the previous Delta variant. At the moment, once again, little is known about this new variant, so we can only be grateful that the researchers in South Africa have shared their knowledge with us and the world. Europe, and Germany in particular, does not share any data with vaccine manufacturers regarding potential side effects (which could then be addressed or more closely monitored by the manufacturer) or vaccine reactions. Even the data on breakthrough infections is kept largely secret. This raises the question: WHY...? And when exactly did we in Germany stop sequencing to detect virus mutations...?

So many things are going wrong, many scenarios haven't been fully thought through, and one gets the feeling that uncomfortable decisions that would allow a return to some semblance of normality aren't being made. Again, a big WHY...?

self-inflicted

If the Corona pandemic were an accident where, after the crash (outbreak), you submit a damage report to your insurance company, you would receive the response that no insurance coverage could be granted because the accident and its long-term consequences were your own fault...

Let's be honest, and my observations in the second year of the pandemic as a mobile DJ in various locations unfortunately clearly show that only a few people are aware of how serious the situation is.

Areas where things could be better...

Let's start with the restaurant industry. First off, there are some restaurateurs who are really putting thought into this and working their butts off to implement all the regulations, and to these restaurateurs, a heartfelt thank you. BUT, unfortunately, there are also many restaurateurs who couldn't care less about Corona, and sadly, I've observed that this is rooted in a rural divide. The further you drive from the city, the less Corona seems to matter to them. It starts with all the disinfectant dispensers being empty, you being told "you don't need a face covering here," and I won't even begin to talk about the DEHOGA guidelines that aren't being followed. It's sad how you can undermine your own business like that. I'm kind of doing that with this blog post, but after two Corona infections, I'm so fed up, you can't imagine, and both times it was in places that didn't really adhere to the regulations. How do I know this...? Quite simply, because despite being vaccinated, I always got tested before DJ gigs, and since the pandemic I've limited my social contacts and activities to the bare minimum...

Had the hospitality industry conscientiously followed the regulations (some establishments do require additional staff), we would have been able to hold a few Christmas parties again this Advent season and wouldn't have to deal with a 10 pm curfew in Bavaria. Thank you for that...

Schools are supposed to be places for teaching knowledge...

The next area would be schools and daycare centers. I'm excluding daycare centers here because I have no insight into their funding programs for air purifiers. But they could have acted much more decisively in schools, and what happened during the two summer holidays? NOTHING, absolutely nothing, and now everyone is afraid of school closures again...

It's always easy to be angry at politicians, but let's be honest, schools preferred to close over the holidays rather than make adjustments to their IT infrastructure or even install air purifiers. You can quickly piece together the reasons for this by reading various articles on the subject. Responsibilities are passed around until it's too late, and this starts at the very top, at the federal and state levels, and extends all the way down to the janitor.

It's well known that teachers in Germany have mostly had to take care of digitalization themselves, and many, especially older teachers, aren't very motivated to learn new tricks. (As long as the fax machine works, why bother...) And among the new teachers who come through the second-chance education route, interest in digitalization is usually limited to their own cell phones or teacher ratings on various social media platforms...

This won't work at all, or rather, we'll definitely need another 20 years to be able to use today's technological standards in schools in 20 years' time...

Mandatory vaccination, yes please...

I myself have now been vaccinated three times, and I can report that I haven't grown a third testicle, I don't urinate with phosphorus, and I can still see straight. So far, so good, and the current mess in the intensive care units is the fault of those who haven't been vaccinated. Because if our vaccination rate were higher, perhaps just as many people would become infected with COVID, but there would be fewer severe cases requiring intensive care. It's a mystery to me why people don't understand this, because we in Germany have already reached the point where intensive care patients are being flown around so they can still receive treatment.

The fact that our healthcare system has been crippled by budget cuts is now coming back to haunt us during a pandemic. Instead of quickly boosting intensive care and ensuring adequate staffing (through better pay), it seems the only thing on the political agenda is "making deals on masks with commissions." We have plenty of intensive care furniture and equipment; what we lack is the staff...

People who refuse vaccination but still want to be part of society...

Have you ever noticed that many stupid, useless, and idiotic things very often begin with the letter I? Anti-vaxxer, idiot, vaccine refuser, influencer, etc...

That's why I no longer really understand the vaccine refusers with their "my body, my decision" drivel. If we had free intensive care beds right now that could accommodate stroke and heart attack patients, I would also say "okay, your decision." But this selfish, childish behavior harms society and deprives other intensive care patients who desperately need it of the chance to recover or even survive.

The currently administered vaccines are all mRNA vaccines (anyone wanting to read up on what exactly that is, what it does in the body, and how safe it is can find information HERE ). These vaccines "only" prepare our immune system for the Covid virus, just like the annual flu shot. This means you can still get infected, transmit it, and become ill, but you won't end up in intensive care. Of course, there are exceptions, but they are much fewer, and usually, those patients who end up in intensive care despite vaccination have pre-existing conditions and are often over 60. In times of a pandemic, it helps to be able to read statistics, and not just question the entire statistic or even the entire pandemic when one metric seems illogical.

This pseudo-intellectual drivel, "I can't get vaccinated because...", is really starting to get on my nerves. There's no medical reason not to get vaccinated. Even cancer or HIV patients can get vaccinated despite the medication they're on, and they should, because they're high-risk patients. But of course, if you're being treated by some country doctor like Dr. Mengele, then this kind of thing is just factual nonsense...

"No, I won't vaccinate my child" - then take a look at the vaccination record for newborns...

I also support mandatory vaccinations for children, because they are the virus carriers, as they usually don't experience severe illness if infected. Unfortunately, since many parents raise their children according to a laissez-faire approach, it's not guaranteed that social distancing and other rules are followed, or that the child has even been made aware of them. With my daughter, not getting vaccinated was never an issue, because anyone who wants to be part of society has to play by its rules. And let's be honest, what will these parents do when their child starts school? Refuse the mandatory measles vaccination and homeschool them, or move to Rosenheim? Well, for some of these "already" parents, contraception would have been the better choice, for the child's sake too...

Get vaccinated, that's my appeal here, and yes, I'm already familiar with all the rhetoric that's trotted out again with this appeal. I also know that until we get an "immunizing vaccine" (if ever), this is the only way to a somewhat normal life without major bans, lockdowns, or the like. But I'm also sure that in 2022, the issue of mandatory vaccinations and childhood vaccinations will be the main topics that concern us, and I hope that these two issues won't be the trigger for us having to discuss lockdowns or restrictions again in the winter of 2022...

And so, every year, the Corona groundhog day returns...

Since the outbreak of the pandemic, many things have gone wrong and haven't been thought through to the end. I also understand that many people are losing their willingness to support the government's decisions and would like to indulge their own egos again. But with such an attitude, during an ongoing pandemic, we're entering a vicious cycle that will cause more damage than COVID itself. It's still a case of humans versus viruses, and the unvaccinated versus the unvaccinated, and everyone needs to finally understand that...

In that spirit, "Hakuna Matata" and stay healthy...