I am a bit tired and disappointed by the attitude of many in our industry, people supposedly eager to test new technologies and “move the human race forward”. Yes, just like the Apple ads of the 90s campaign “Think different” used to say.
Many (not all, thankfully) of those same people, eager to quote Steve Jobs and to test every single JavaScript framework under the Sun, are very quick to write me (in private, of course) about how me telling people to get vaccinated is an act of politics that has no place in Switzerland.
These are Swiss people, if you need to know. Switzerland has chosen not to make vaccination mandatory, and as a result lots of people are actually campaigning to discredit the vaccine campaign, or the vaccines themselves, in any possible way. Yes, here in Switzerland.
Let me be very clear. Choosing not to be vaccinated in Switzerland is legal, yes; but it is an immoral, repugnant, idiotic, and utterly disgusting act.
For context, many in the country where I was born would give all their possessions to have a single shot of a Pfizer or Moderna jabs, instead of the Russian or Chinese vaccines they can only afford to have, and even so, only if you’re a well-placed politician or a celebrity.
But no, of course not, there are Swiss people who have the choice to get vaccinated and help the whole community to get better, not only for themselves, but for all of us, because vaccinated people prevent the virus from reproducing further, moving along chains of infection. But no, they won’t, because freedom.
What a twisted, sick sense of freedom, indeed. While at the same time climate activists are arrested and interrogated in ways that aren’t worthy of a country where the Red Cross has its headquarters.
Those who campaign against the vaccine are the same people (in many cases SVP/UDC activists, who are the cancer of this country) silencing voices who dare speak against the untouchable Swiss Army or some other Swiss “value” – clearly, freedom of expression ain’t one.
Thankfully, the numbers confirm that already 40% of the population has chosen to be vaccinated, and have received at least one dosis; and that the rate of vaccination is slightly growing week after week, reaching now an impressive number of 42'000 people fully vaccinated per day – that is, with two doses.
Even better: more than 70% of all people above 70 years old have already received both dosis. This is outstanding news, no matter how you look at them.
So I trust that the wisdom of the majority of the Swiss people will bring in more volunteers to the vaccination centers in weeks to come.
Getting vaccinated is a duty. If you think otherwise, please keep your thoughts to yourself and don’t waste anyone’s time.
I call all software developers, all DevOps engineers, all database administrators, all Agile coaches in this country, all software industry workers, to not only get vaccinated, but to make your voices heard, and to tell people to get vaccinated.
It is only by making our voices louder than we can block that outrageous noise caused by the ignorant mob of antivaxxers polluting this country.
This includes the most common and inane of criticism, which is the one stating that this vaccine could have never be developed so quickly. It is 2021 people. Vaccines are developed in months, yet your shitty full-stack application still doesn’t run properly after years of work.
Software workers could learn a thing or two from vaccine engineers, if you ask me.