jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

I hope this doesn't get moved out of this section. Let's not make it political. In case you didn't know, Dolly Parton donated $1 million to Covid research, and that went to Moderna. I read that she is a millionaire, rather than a billionaire, because she has given so much money away.

From what I've been reading, the vaccines that have been developed seem to be good. I had my doubts at first, but when my time comes, I'll get the shot. There is no virus - dead or alive - in the vaccine. It simply trains your own immune system to recognize and fight the virus. It's not a miracle drug, and you might still get a mild case of Covid if you aren't careful, but it looks like a game changer.

Locally, our "Active" numbers have been rising by almost a hundred a day in my county. The infection rate for people being tested is also rising. Almost 5% of those tested are testing positive now. I'm staying home almost all the time, and my son has taken a leave of absence from work.

Good luck to all of you!

kodiac1062 Loc: Sarasota, Fl

Exactly right Jerry, thanks.

Delderby Loc: Derby UK

The three vaccines ok'd so far are the are best chance for all of us, including all those who did not follow the global guidelines shared by almost every country on the planet.

Bigmike1 Loc: I am from Gaffney, S.C. but live in Utah.

I tested positive but had no symptoms. My wife tested positive but had no symptoms other than tiredness. We have been lucky. I will just be glad when this pandemic is a thing of the past and we can all get back to normal.

Kmgw9v Loc: Miami, Florida

I will be line for the vaccine as soon as it is available--assuming I am not already sick, or dead.

Paul Diamond Loc: Atlanta, GA, USA

2020 has been a year to forget, mostly. Confined, no trips for vacation or photoshoots. I'm getting frustrated with the time that is slipping by.

My wife and I will get our shots as soon as they are available to us. Looking forward to a better 2021.

Curtis_Lowe Loc: Georgia

We can all be thankful that these (at least three) were developed so quickly. It should make a big difference in 6-9 months. Unleashed, focused and motivated the private sector of capitalism has offered this opportunity. I too will get mine as soon as made available to me.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

From what I've heard, a lot depends on how serious a dose you got. There's a difference between bumping into an infected person and spending all day working alongside someone who has Covid.

Bike guy Loc: Atlanta

Retired microbiologist who worked on vaccines, agrees with you.

pbearperry Loc: Massachusetts

pbearperry Loc: Massachusetts

Triple G

Glad to see when a scientist agrees. My PhD scientist daughter (t-cell and stem cell researcher) also agrees.

David Martin Loc: Cary, NC

The public needs to know that the vaccines from Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca are something entirely new: they are mRNA (messenger RNA) vaccines.

What is messenger RNA? mRNA is like a blueprint that tells a cell how to make a specific protein.

Why is this important? Traditional vaccines use dead or inactivated virus injected into a person, or they use a protein which has been isolated from the virus injected into a person, causing the immune system to form antibodies against the virus.

mRNA vaccines do not use a virus or a viral protein. Instead, they use a piece of laboratory-created messenger RNA, essentially a man-made synthetic copy of part of Covid-19's mRNA.

The mRNA vaccines "trick" the body's cells into making Covid-19's spike protein. The body then recognizes the spike protein as foreign, and makes antibodies against it. The mRNA vaccine may also stimulate other portions of our immune system (the innate immune system or the T cell immune system) in addition to the production of antibodies, potentially making them more effective than traditional vaccines.

mRNA vaccines are revolutionary because they let the recipient of the vaccine do the work of producing the viral protein that triggers the immune response. Time to develop such a vaccine, and cost to produce the vaccine, are significantly reduced.

There are unknowns: the true efficacy when given on a large scale, and the potential for undesirable side-effects. The Covid vaccines will be the first time mRNA vaccines have been approved for use. The population should understand that they are participating in something entirely new. Quite fitting for 2020.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

I’ll be standing in line to get a vaccine as soon as available. Here in N.C., our positive test rate has jumped fro 6.2% to 10.8% since Thanksgiving. We’ve gone from <2000 new cases/day to >4,000 in the same period. We’ve never seen numbers like these in the entire pandemic. The scary thing is that a sizable percentage of our population has decided not to take the vaccine or are not sure according to a recent survey. They are apparently the same people such as a local shop owner that has a sign in her store window telling customers NOT to wear masks in her store. Our local hospital has ~50 Covid cases in hospital and the ICU beds are almost full, and we could slow this scourge down if people would just do the simplest things. What is wrong with these people? Have they not read the details of the large scale studies showing very few and very mild side effects?

We have just had the sad duty to tell our grandchildren that we won’t be having a large Christmas party and gift opening this year for the first time in almost 60 years in this house. Why? Because as grandparents, we want to be around long enough to help pay for their college and weddings.

Bike guy Loc: Atlanta

I understand your feelings so well. There are places of business I will not visit after this over because of their behavior in this pandemic, if they are still alive.
I have a granddaughter who will be 3 in January, have not seen since last January.
But I plan on flying out this summer.