Read on Twitter
Threading a few thoughts on the apparent gap between Ford's statements and the numbers, why it matters, why it doesn't matter. https://twitter.com/kateheartfield/status/1347320522275635201
First of all, I see a lot of people saying that the reason we are ostensibly "running out" halfway through is that we're holding the second doses in reserve. Nope! Ontario is not doing that. https://www.macleans.ca/news/why-arent-governments-reserving-second-doses-of-the-covid-19-vaccine-anymore/
So, the next question is, if everyone can see the publicly posted numbers, why is Ford insisting that the sky is green? I can think of a few possible explanations for this.
1. It's possible that the publicly posted numbers are way behind, to a large degree. If this is true, it raises questions about why the public doesn't have access to the same numbers the premier does, and why our tracking system sucks so bad. https://twitter.com/bruce_arthur/status/1347565477153959943
This would also explain why a large hospital is reportedly nearly out: https://twitter.com/KevinSmithUHN/status/1347339304285167616
2. It's possible that the premier means that all the vaccine has been allocated to the vaccinating sites, and so we're running out only in the sense that we have no more extra to dole out to those sites. But if those sites have not yet administered ~100,000 doses… who cares?
3. It's possible that we are about to ramp up by such a huge factor that we'll go from vaccinating ~15,000 per day now (already a huge improvement over a week ago) to administering ~50,000 per day, like, this weekend. Great! Why not tell us that?
4. The most disturbing possibility is that Doug Ford sees nothing wrong with repeatedly say something easily falsifiable, given the political times. In fact, he may think that the more people focus on fact-checking him, the more he gets away with presiding over this disaster.
5. Maybe all of the above to some degree?
Why it matters what the premier says about whether we're running out: Truth and facts, I dunno, call me old-fashioned. Also, if the answer is #4, and he's intentionally lying to confuse and distract from people dying, that makes me very angry.
Why it doesn't matter: If Ontario were to administer all doses instantly, it would then "run out" between shipments, but that would be preferable to the status quo. It only does good in people's arms. We don't need a steady supply in freezers. We're not saving for a rainy day.
So if we do run out next week? Great! Job done. More's on the way, and yes, the more supply, the better. The questions will remain about why Ontario's vaccine progress is so, how shall I put it... difficult to parse.
