If you've been vaccinated, your card is your ticket to summer pleasures

It's been almost two months since I received my 2nd dose of the Pfizer vaccine, with no side effects. In light of the Center for Disease Control's amended guidelines, I still carry a mask when I travel, just to be safe. Have to have it when you're riding on a bus, for example. It's called erring on the side of caution. The vaccination card that was issued after the first shot now serves as a golden ticket, if you will, for dining at certain restaurants and attending sporting events or other activities this summer and forward.

All I need, really, is to get a plastic case big enough to hold the card so I can carry it.

Personal feelings aside, there are still some unfortunate pockets of resistance to the vaccine that actually will slow the healing process.

The biggest line of resistance consists of anti-vaxxers, people who have a problem with vaccines in general because of some misinformation that spread online a ways back. I'd not be surprised if some of these people are also members of Donald Trump's Legion of The Brainwashed, because they're gullible enough to believe any lie that comes along. In my mind, I think some of these folks have never gotten past the stage when they were children of fearing the needles that the vaccines are carried in.

Unfortunately, some of these anti-vax knuckleheads have a problem with businesses that are requiring proof of vaccination, including one in the home district.

Matt Baumgartner owns the Troy Beer Garden, formerly Wolfe's Biergarten, on the corner of King & 4th streets. He has a cocktail lounge, the Berlin, on the 2nd floor, set to open later this month, where he's politely asking for people to show proof of vaccination.

Photo courtesy of Bill Dowd, via the Albany Times-Union.

After Baumgartner made his announcement on Thursday, he's been flooded with threats from anti-vax clowns, most of them from out of state, and Troy police are looking into these threats. Baumgartner is doing the right thing, looking out for the safety of his clientele and employees, but the anti-vax tin-heads don't see it. According to the Albany Times-Union, Baumgartner has said that some of the threats come from Florida, which is run by a deranged governor in Ron DeSantis, one of the biggest Trump apologists and sycophants there is, putting politics and state revenue ahead of public safety while bowing at the altar of Citizen Pampers.

And if these anti-vax morons have a problem with just dining out in our fair city, they most likely will have a collective cow over the return of live sports and theatre productions. The Tri-City Valleycats are setting aside certain sections at Bruno Stadium for vaccinated fans, starting with the home opener on June 4. Again, it would be a good idea to bring your vaccination card with you when you're buying advance tickets. The Bruno Stadium box office is open Monday-Friday from 9 am-5 pm. I would imagine the Troy Fighting Irish semi-pro football team will follow suit. Troy Foundry Theatre has a production debuting outdoors (weather permitting, of course) on Wednesday, running through May 30, and vax cards are likely to be required.

To the anti-vaxxers, I have to ask. Why would you risk your health believing a lie?