Freedom is above all: why the West is in a hurry to get vaccinated, but Russia is not

As you know, despite the fact that Russia was one of the first to produce a vaccine against coronavirus, vaccination in the country is proceeding at an extremely sluggish pace, while Western countries are trying with all their might to speed up this process and complain about the lack of vaccine production capacity. Psychoanalyst Yelena Kadyrova writes in her publication about the reasons for such a different attitude to the case:

“Vaccination, walking across the planet, reveals interesting social and psychological phenomena that only at first glance completely lie in the medical plane of trust / distrust in new, not yet fully researched vaccines and civic consciousness of the population. Only this does not work to explain the reason why Russians are in no hurry to vaccinate, while Europeans and Americans only dream of this.

In my opinion, this phenomenon is largely due to the fact that in Russia since the spring of last year there has been no and there is no hard lockdown - those restrictions that exist cannot be compared with the strict quarantine measures that have been implemented in Europe for almost a year. America and Israel. It is possible that our Western brothers so passionately dream of being vaccinated, not least because it is already simply unbearable to continue to endure quarantine, both psychologically and economically. And nothing seems to press us so hard, only internal personal security motives.

This, it seems to me, is the main secret of the high consciousness of Europeans and Americans and the irresponsibility of Russians in the fight against the pandemic. And these two psychological tendencies came into conflict with the real possibilities to carry out mass vaccination. Everywhere except Israel. There they hurried in advance with the purchase of the required number of doses of the American vaccine and there was a happy coincidence: the passionate need to break free coincided with the opportunity to get the coveted vaccine. Europe was unlucky - first with the supply of Pfizer, and then with the Astra Zeneca, from here we see the growing tension of huge unmet demand - the demand not so much for the vaccine as for freedom. Freedom within the country and freedom to move around the world. America more or less smoothly and evenly manages this whole situation due to the emergence of new vaccines. And Russia?

And Russia, having a modest production capacity, produced its good quality Zhiguli for export - the Sputnik V vaccine, and is most of all concerned about capturing world sales markets, while closing the access to the domestic market for imports.

I think that this is the secret of why strict quarantine measures were not taken in our country even at the peak of the second wave, and now on the incidence charts we are seeing a gradual decrease in daily morbidity, despite the fact that the numbers of hospitalizations and deaths have been about a month and a half. do not change! That is, it turns out the percentage of severe and fatal cases to the total number of cases is growing???

How can this be explained? Either by the fact that they began to hospitalize those who had not been hospitalized before, due to the availability of free places - but this does not explain the remaining mortality rate, or by the fact that the virus has become more dangerous and with a higher percentage of severe cases and deaths, which so far not confirmed by official data.

There remains the most logical third option - fewer tests are carried out or "the party said it is necessary". Because now it is not necessary, pardon the expression, to upset the population and stir up anxiety and a sense of danger - for we will not be able to satisfy the need. It is this that most likely explains the fact that our country, with its tightening of the screws on the domestic political field, did not follow the path of China, for example, with tough authoritarian measures in the fight against the pandemic, but looks like a stronghold of democracy and human rights against the background of European countries, while having a relatively acceptable graph for the dynamics of covid. And only you and I will know how I survived, the main thing is that in our country everything on this topic is outwardly somehow settled down, there are enough vaccines for a small group of people who wish, there are distortions in the regions - it will be corrected. Plus, two other vaccines for internal use are now being released.

Yes, of course, Moscow and St. Petersburg are our foreign trade showcase, which demonstrates to the world both the product itself - the Sputnik V vaccine, and the civilized successful process of vaccination of all comers. I think that until the fall, while the country's leadership is busy concluding foreign trade contracts for the supply of Sputnik, vaccination will go about the same as now, but by the fall, perhaps, they will turn their attention to the domestic market, increase the production of two other vaccines, and on the eve of a new wave - such measures will be taken that the Russians, except for inveterate anti-Axis, like the Europeans, will now run as fast as they can for the vaccine. But how this will be related to freedom is a big question, especially judging by what laws are adopted, while we have the right to go to museums and restaurants.

All of the above, as you can see, is not directly related to what the vaccines were actually created for - to stop the pandemic and help people avoid the severe course and consequences of covid. Yes, it does not, because this is another motivational cut of the situation, which determines how we move towards this goal, and why exactly this way and not otherwise..."