Editor:

The April 8 cover story "Carrots, Sticks and Jabs" was notable for the science it did not contain. Nowhere does it explain the science behind these new and experimental drugs. It only quotes doctors and politicians who want us to get vaccinated. It also fails to mention that the World Health Organization (WHO) has warned us that there is no guarantee that the COVID-19 vaccines will prevent people from being infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus and transmitting it to others.

I personally know three people who experienced severe reactions and no one knows the long-term safety of these new drugs. If we choose to vaccinate, we are participating in a medical experiment, with little recourse or protection for our lives.

Worse yet is the dehumanization of those who question the efficacy and safety of these experimental drugs. It manipulates by portraying those who reject or resist as dangerous extremists. It goes on to discuss methods of coercion as though they are reasonable and potentially necessary.

Anyone versed in critical thinking, or familiar with the McCarthy Era or the War on Drugs, should recognize these tactics for what they are: propaganda. Clearly the aim is to increase public support for the implementation of coercive measures.

It is the use of coercion that is the extremist position. One that would violate human dignity as well as our democracy. Dictators and fascists use coercion.

I am deeply disgusted in our elected representatives for espousing this narrative, and in the NCJ for giving it a platform.

Amy Gustin, Ettersburg