Episode 50 –"Grassroots" Anti-Vax “Sentiment” Creates Political Cannon-fodder for Sociopathic GOP

This video reframes the idea that the current resistance to engaging in a full-scale public health effort against COVID-19 is due to some "grassroots" or inherent anti-vaccine sentiment in the population. Instead I highlight how this is an organized political campaign by the GOP leadership and right-wing media operatives to offer GOP viewers and voters as unwitting cannon-fodder for their political ambitions. Anti-vax "believers" are dying in greater numbers to support political ambitions of politicians that they are not necessarily 100% behind. The are contained within an information bubble that convinces them to take steps that endanger their lives.

This observation is a response to the recent studies that the reddest (most pro-GOP, most-pro-Trump) 10 counties in this study had a 7 times higher COVID death rate in the period of May 2021 to the present over the 10 bluest counties

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/red...

The idea that GOP leaders and their media allies are morally deficient and acting with reckless disregard for the welfare of others is abundantly clear, supporting Altemeyer's hypothesis that right-wing authoritarian leaders tend towards sociopathy.

It is my belief that this observation in all it's permutations needs to be more widely discussed in the media and spearheaded by concerned politicians (of both parties, really).