The New New World (2)

The rules have been changed.

Just a couple of days ago, we were doing math to find out how long until herd immunity.  How naïve we were, back in those days.  Apparently, at least in the United States, herd immunity has become an unrealistic goal.

Due to vaccine hesitancy (or, probably more accurately, the polarizing effect of political tribalism), not enough Americans will choose to be vaccinated.  Vaccination rates are already falling off.  Also, new variants continue to brew, and they may (looking at you, India variant) be able to "evade antibodies in the immune system that can fight coronavirus based on experience from prior infection or a vaccine."  So - if a vaccine-resistant variant emerges, suddenly no one's vaccinated any more. 

So what does this mean?  Right now, seen through the mists of prediction and speculation, it seems that we'll have COVID-19 around pretty much forever.  We'll be vaccinated on a regular basis forever, and people will get sick and be hospitalized and die, although at a much lower rate than during the last year or so.

So the new world will include COVID-19, just like the old new world included smallpox.  There's something to think about.