Re: the letter to the editor Labelling is a plague.
Everyone is entitled to an opinion, but none of us is entitled to our own facts. Misinformation is not a different perspective, it is simply untrue.
If identifying and objecting to misinformation is a form of labelling, I accept my responsibility to label.
The letter you published which occasioned my letter contained not opinion but several falsehoods.
It is not true that the COVID vaccines do not prevent getting COVID. They are very effective vaccines, and would be even more effective were we all to understand this fact and be vaccinated.
It is not true that Omicron is equivalent to the common cold.COVID is a far more serious disease which can cause long-term vascular issues affecting all the major organs.
It is not true that public health officials never mention vaccine side effects. The side effects have been published often and the statistics have long been readily available.As of April 8, in Canada, 82,185,545 doses have been administered, with 9,119 serious adverse reactions reported.
Our society and democracy are threatened by the wilful and systematic spread of misinformation, which undermines our trust in our government and institutions, and in each other.
If we do not call out the publication of misinformation, we will fall victim to its corrosive effect.
I stand by my comments. The truth matters.
Patrick Godfrey
North Saanich
