Tango in the Time of Covid

[Alby]

i think this gentleman should decide for himself whether or not he wants to take that risk. if he's vaccinated then his own risks are much lower. if not, well, that's his choice too

As long as he knows the risk. He might well reasonably expect people attending an intimate and risky activity like a milonga to have taken the most effective and simple measure there is to reduce the risk to themselves, to others attending, and to him in particular. If he himself has taken the vaccine, he is probably likely to simply (and reasonably) assume that others have taken the precaution he took.

I agree with you, provided his decision to attend is based on full disclosure by others attending that they have not taken the precaution.

However, as the question was framed to demonstrate, my interest is less in how people who choose to vaccinate think about putting themselves in risky situations than in how people who choose not to vaccinate think (especially about the risk to others).

 

[sts7049]

we are a year and a half+ into a global pandemic. if someone doesn't know what is going on by now and whatever the risks are then they are a moron.

all of what you said is still his responsibility to check in order to look out for himself (if he cares to). if he is worried, he should ask others' status. other people are not obligated to disclose their status voluntarily, it's their own business.

 

[Alby]

As I said, I'm not interested in him. I am interested in the poster's perspective. We are now entering this new phase where widespread vaccination starts to make certain highly risky activities less risky than they have been for 16 months. Nobody really knows how to navigate in this new phase. The responsibilities are probably not as straightforward as you suggest. Regardless, it is important for the vaccinated to understand how the consciously unvaccinated think. And vice versa.

The poster answered my question. I will use her answer to help me decide how to approach this particularly risky type of activity, should I get to the point of wanting to take it up again. It is certainly useful to have it confirmed that some people are prepared to come to a milonga unvaccinated, that they feel no obligation to disclose that, and, additionally, that they feel instead that any obligation instead lies with the vaccinated to ask. I may not agree with that, but it is excellent information to have.

(I agree with the poster on one point: if you really are going to go to a milonga unvaccinated, relying only on your self-assessment of robust health as sufficient to protect you and others, there is really no point in wearing a mask. You might as well go all the way.)

 

[jantango]

Mario and I won't be going to Parque Chacabuco today at 4pm. There was a milonga on Thursday, so there isn't one scheduled for today.

I've danced with Mario on many occasions. I feel like I'm dancing with a man half his age.

 

[jantango]

Anyone who goes to a milonga unvaccinated is just an idiot.

Then you will resist the temptation to visit the milonga on Wednesday and Sunday, only a few blocks from your apartment.

 

[Alby]

There is no temptation whatsoever to go and perform an intimate and high-risk activity with others who proudly refuse to take the measure that, whilst not eliminating it completely, greatly reduces their risk of bringing the virus to the activity and of spreading the virus to others present.

But good luck to the organizers. Providing they are not breaching any health regulations, they are presumably within their rights. In time, as is happening in other countries, other organizers will present milongas where proof of vaccination will be a condition of entry. Good luck to them as well.

 

[Aztangogirl]

As I said, I'm not interested in him. I am interested in the poster's perspective. We are now entering this new phase where widespread vaccination starts to make certain highly risky activities less risky than they have been for 16 months. Nobody really knows how to navigate in this new phase. The responsibilities are probably not as straightforward as you suggest. Regardless, it is important for the vaccinated to understand how the consciously unvaccinated think. And vice versa.

The poster answered my question. I will use her answer to help me decide how to approach this particularly risky type of activity, should I get to the point of wanting to take it up again. It is certainly useful to have it confirmed that some people are prepared to come to a milonga unvaccinated, that they feel no obligation to disclose that, and, additionally, that they feel instead that any obligation instead lies with the vaccinated to ask. I may not agree with that, but it is excellent information to have.

(I agree with the poster on one point: if you really are going to go to a milonga unvaccinated, relying only on your self-assessment of robust health as sufficient to protect you and others, there is really no point in wearing a mask. You might as well go all the way.)

And take the possibility of spreading a variant you don't know you have. Anti vaxxers are the people who will make sure this scourge never goes away. I don't care what you eat, the virus doesn't either.

 

[jantango]

Fear and the lies that propagate it keeps us under control.

 

[Alby]

Fear and the lies that propagate it keeps us under control.

I agree with you. But it is irrelevant in this case. Vaccination reduces our likelihood of becoming infected, and of spreading the infection to others at the milonga.

In the future there will be a choice of milongas. Some open to people who choose not to reduce the risk, some open to people who do. It's fine. Enjoy yourself at the venues that cater to you.

 

[jantango]

Vaccination reduces our likelihood of becoming infected...

I rest my case.