Pacific Rim leaders agree to step up COVID vaccine sharing

And so what? Not like vaccines have changed much. And now we see that they are not foolproof.

Does that mean that those that received a bunch from japan will send them back now that we have a severe shortage?

“There were two things that came through very strongly from the leaders. One was that this pandemic has a while to run and that there is significant work by all of us to be done, and it needs to look beyond our domestic borders,” said New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who hosted the informal retreat.

And what is this all significant work that will be done?

Let's hope it doesn't further add to the damage already inflicted.

And what is this all significant work that will be done?

Getting as many people as possible vaccinated. That really is the only way out of this pandemic other than allowing mass deaths like the black plague or similar pandemics of the past. Governments also need to make plans and prepare for the next big pandemic and pass legislation before the next pandemic that will speed dealing with the next one. Instead of mayors, governors and prime ministers having to make rules up on the fly, put them in publicly debated laws passed by their respective legislative bodies that can be activated in an emergency.

The problem in most of the world is that there are not yet enough vaccine doses to go around. It is reassuring that the major countries are actively working to ship out vaccines, as they can.

In the developed countries, where vaccine hesitancy is now a major driver of Covid infections, the issue of fake news needs to be addressed. Companies like Facebook have a business model which makes them rich, as they allow lies about the vaccines to become click-bait. The more clicks on the fake news articles, the more money that Facebook makes. Hence, Pres. Biden's comment that Facebook is contributing to the deaths of pandemic sufferers.

In the US, about a dozen makers of fake news about the vaccines are responsible for nearly all the click-bait. These shameless purveyors of lies make millions from posting fake news.