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Health Dept. Finds Omicron in SD, Says Vaccines “Best Way to Protect Yourself from Severe Disease”

The first verified detection of the omicron variant of covid-19 in South Dakota, in a 20-something male, prompts straight talk from the state on how vaccines save lives:

“The best way to protect yourself from severe disease with this variant is to get vaccinated,” said Joshua Clayton, State Epidemiologist. “We urge South Dakotans to monitor for symptoms and get tested as soon as they experience symptoms.”

Concerns of the ‘Omicron’ variant include a greater rate of transmission from person to person, reduced effectiveness of existing treatments, and reduced protection of the COVID-19 vaccine. However, currently available vaccines have so far proven effective to protect people against hospitalization and death from COVID-19 [South Dakota Department of Health, press release, 2021.12.22].

While the Governor tweets defenses of reckless, antisocial vaccine resisters, her Department of Health give sus simple, straightforward advice for protecting ourselves, our neighbors, our hospitals, and our economy from further pandemic damage. Do your civic duty: get your shots.

16 Comments

  1. grudznick

    If the RFDI chips in the vaccine could be read by the common readers all over, then we could just have force fields that would bounce the unvaccinated amongst us back from our favorite restaurants, while the vaccinated could pass through the invisible barrier.

    This is one of my friend Mr. Dale’s nightmares.

  2. Porter Lansing

    Unvaccinated Trump supporters have adopted a paleolithic “culture of refusal”.
    – A refusal to embrace, tolerate, or abide by anything a neighboring group accepts as normal.
    – It’s how they set themselves apart and define their lives.
    – Even if it kills ‘em.

    Prehistoricly this is why some cultures flourished and some cultures perished.
    * sounds like you, South Dakota. You’ll say and do anything that’s opposite of Minnesota and it’s held you back for two centuries.

  3. Arlo Blundt

    Well…resistance to vaccines is a Neanderthal type tribal response and deadly to the Neanderthal. The chaos the Neanderthals are causing the health care system is a tragedy we are all paying for. The Neanderthals are prolonging the pandemic, killing themselves, and the innocent with suppressed immune systems. Continued Neanderthal citizenship in our Republic should be considered “at risk”.

  4. sx123

    I believe we were the last state to find omicron. How hard were we looking?

  5. M

    AGAIN

    Goodie, can’t wait for the fishing tournament in a few weeks to bring anglers from all around. The Chamber of Commerce puts the residents of this town at risk AGAIN so the boys can have their fun.

    We’ve had business owners sick over the past month with half the town unvaccinated. I’ve gotten to the point where I only go to stores where the workers etc are vaccinated. I’m getting really good at ordering online like everyone else. At this point, I don’t care if they go out of business, it’s their own fault for not making shoppers safe. Funny thing is, I’m saving a great deal of money so I’m not changing my behaviors.

  6. Porter Lansing

    Happy Birthday and rest in peace ~ Roger Cornelius ♛

  7. Jake

    Amen, Porter! Miss him.

  8. Porter Lansing

    Roger would be pleased with what you post, Jake. Keep up the battle, amigo.

  9. Bonnie B Fairbank

    That’s a brilliantly snarky post, Mark. Wish I’d thought of it.
    Residents of Hot Springs and Fall River County are emboldened (f*ucking rude) enough to accost me in public for double masking, and I purposely enrage them more by telling them I just received my booster shot on December 15. Then I wish them and their loved ones nasty and painful deaths and a Merry Christmas.

  10. DaveFN

    Joshua Clayton follows on the heels of Noem’s Twitter feed:

    “Governor Kristi Noem
    @govkristinoem
    ·
    Dec 21
    Instead of dividing America into 2 classes, President Biden should remember that unvaccinated Americans are still AMERICANS.
    That’s what it means to live in a Free Country. Freedom exists to protect your rights… even decisions the government DOESN’T agree with.”

    Whoever wrote this for Noem—presuming she didn’t write it herself—makes her look like a total idiot.

  11. jerry

    Ms. Fairbank, I was approached by a weird looking feller (for sure needed a mask to cover that butt ugliness) about how effective my mask was. I told him that it now wasn’t worth a damn as it used to keep covid and arseholes away, now, it’s just the covid that it seems to work on and went about my business.

  12. mike from iowa

    ELO Bob Mercer Retweeted

    KELOLAND News

    @keloland
    The death toll from COVID-19 in South Dakota is now at 2,456. The new deaths were three men and three woman in the following age ranges: 40-49 (1), 50-59 (1), 60-69 (2), 70-79 (1) and 80+ (1). https://bit.ly/3EkEf57

    Merry Khristmas from sometime guv Noem nothing. Wish you were here enjoying family but yer deaths serve a far higher purpose in the overall Noem scheme of all things political.

  13. Lottie

    Its hard to believe some families can’t afford cable or TV news, they rarely listen to radio news. No one preaches to them about the Covid virus or vaccines. My heart goes out because all around them they are surrounded by non believers-This is in Fall River too! Kudos to the mask wearers but i wish some family or groups could somehow hear the concerns over Covid and get vaccinated.

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