05-23-2021, 08:44 AM
I think in the fullness of time we will have a better picture as to the relative risks / merits of the Pfizer and AstraZ vaccines. Certainly the situation on all fronts is changing, sometimes quite quickly. For now, the Pfizer is thought of as "better" because there are a small number of cases concerning the AstraZ, chiefly of course centred around blood clotting. But the numbers need to be understood and need to be put into a human context. In numerical, mathematical terms, a 0.0004% chance is worse than 0% chance, but the difference is so small that in real world usage the risks are pretty much the same IMO. There also seem to be issues around the accuracy and completeness of record keeping and data collection, which will hopefully improve in the future.
If you're starving and walking down the road, you don't walk past 1000 2 Michelin star restaurants in the hope of finding a 3 Michelin star, even though the latter may be "better." So whilst we may all prefer the Pfizer (for peace of mind etc.) the difference between the two is not nearly as big as is made out to be, and IMO is being blown out of all proportion.
If you're starving and walking down the road, you don't walk past 1000 2 Michelin star restaurants in the hope of finding a 3 Michelin star, even though the latter may be "better." So whilst we may all prefer the Pfizer (for peace of mind etc.) the difference between the two is not nearly as big as is made out to be, and IMO is being blown out of all proportion.