A writer at The Atlantic canceled his 40th birthday party over Omicron and has thoughts.
Despite all of the guests being vaccinated and mostly boosted, and despite the fact that Omicron seems mild, Ed Yong frets:
My friends, of course, are adults who can make informed decisions about their own risks and their own loved ones’ risks. But the logic of personal responsibility goes only so far. Omicron is spreading so rapidly that if someone got infected at my party, my decision to host it could easily affect people who don’t know me, and who had no say in the risks that I unwittingly imposed upon them. Omicron is unlikely to land me in the hospital, but it could send my guests’ grandparents or parents to one.
The above logic can be used to never have birthday parties ever again. We know that Delta followed earlier variants, and that Omicron followed Delta. It only stands to reason that there will be future variants that will follow Omicron. Not to mention the regular flu season, which always carries the risk of unwittingly transmitting a potentially fatal virus to more vulnerable populations.
As I’ve said time and again, we must recalibrate to the understanding that Covid is now with us forever. Before taking any actions, we should ask ourselves whether we are prepared to live in such a manner indefinitely.