Posted by alexandra_k on December 10, 2019, at 16:03:30
Samoa is a country (a kingdom) in the South Pacific. I recently learned this. I know that there are quite a few Pacific Islanders living in New Zealand and that Samoans probably have the largest presence here, numbers-wise. Particularly in South Auckland.
I think immigration used to be encouraged. Perhaps still is. For young men. Construction work. Things like that. People send money back home.
There is a King. Apparently you don't question the King. It isn't part of the culture...
It seems to me that the people are not free.
You look at the castle and so on that the King has and you consider how many of the people in Samoa live. The conditions. The poverty.
They are in the midst of a measles epidemic. The sort that the MMR vaccine is supposed to prevent. The rates of vaccination got very very low and now there is an epdemic. Many children have died.
The international response...
Apparently tourists are asked to be vaccinated, or somesuch. Not REQUIRED to be vaccinated. Not REQUIRED to provide evidence of vaccination before entry.
I suppose those tourist dollars just mean that much.
Residents / inhabitants are now being required to be vaccinated. Children first. Then elderly. It is a military thing. No informed consent. I don't know if there are people living in Samoa for whom the vaccination is contra-indicated. Let's see... It's a live attenuated vaccination. That is apparently okay to give to people who are HIV + with T cell counts of less than... I don't remember... Which suggests to me that risk of reversion is low? Actually, I don't know... Actually... I should shut up right now. I am still learning...
But I don't feel right at all about people being forced or required to be vaccinated.
It seems that the people of Samoa are not free. I don't know if the people in Samoa... The families.. Are held as hostages, rather. So the men send the money back home. I don't know how much of the money sent back home gets to the people back home vs how much is appropriated by officials to further the inequality.
The idea that it is culturally inappropriate to question the authority, somehow, appears to me to be nothing other than an excuse for lack of freedom and oppression.
I feel so very very sad about all the people who are signing up to be 'volunteers' to travel to Samoa and 'help' by immunising people and the like. It has basically resuled in a massive tourist bonanza. I don't know how many people have gone travelling to Samoa because of this. I wonder how business is doing in the casinos (whatever form that may take) and the brothels. I don't know how much disease will increase for all the unvaccinated arrivals looking to profiteer off of those who are presently being advertised as the most vulnerable.
And in the midst of this there will be Pacific Island Doctors. People who were picked out and trained. People who believe they are now required to go back home and vaccinate people against their will.
That's a horrible position to be in.
They shouldn't be required -- should they? There is no shortage of volunteers.
I suppose only treat the involuntary...
The natural extension of that would be only the involuntary should be forced to treat the involuntary.
Sigh.
Why have so many people invested in making things worse?
My heart goes out to the people of Samoa.
I can't imagine much of anything worse than having to interact with these awful leaders who blindly and stupidly lead their people to worse and worse and worse futures...
I simply don't understand why they aren't thinking 'somewhere in teh world there is an aged care institution with my name on it'. Only I suppose they don't have the cognitive capacity for that.
Someone has to work in that aged care institution.
It is like the prodigal son thing.
I don't know.
Tis a nasty business.
I guess you just decide what role you want to play and try and do that.
I don't know why people want to be head of the rubbish. It is so very very very very very sad.
poster:alexandra_k
thread:1107163
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/poli/20190413/msgs/1107163.html