Got my high-dose "Old Geezer" flu shot today.

[MineralMan]

24. Yes, it did. I do wish the vaccines were more effective.

I think we're moving in a new direction with the flu vaccine, though. They're working hard on one that works in a different way and will be more effective in a broad-spectrum way. I hope their research pays off soon.

Some people, though, apparently feel that any positive information about vaccination is somehow coercive. I don't understand that, though. I related my own reasons for getting the shot, and they're good ones. I did not tell anyone that they must get vaccinated, because that's not my job.

I get the flu shot to protect myself and others I encounter. If I don't get the flu, I can't spread it. If others don't get the vaccine, my shot will help protect me from them. That's why I get it, and it has worked admirably well, now, for decades in my case.

Each year, thousands die from complications of the flu. Some years, its as many as died in the Vietnam war. Preventing any of those deaths is a good thing. Medicare and most health insurance plans cover the cost of the flu shot. That's a good thing. It helps make it available to anyone who wants it.

Those who don't want a flu shot don't have to get one, unless they are required to by their employer, typically in healthcare facilities.