Arnold Warns Anti-Vaxxers About 'Getting Lost Down a Rabbit Hole of Misinformation'
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As the pandemic has made its way around the world, Arnold Schwarzenegger has been doing his part to keep people safe and informed. The 73-year-old star has frequently taken to social media encouraging people to follow social distancing guidelines, wear masks, and avoid spreading the virus. Yesterday, the star of The Terminator filmed himself getting the Covid-19 vaccination for his Instagram, turning it into a public service announcement in favor of vaccines. And when some people apparently challenged his choice, he set them straight with empathy and reasonable explanations.
When Schwarzenegger shared the vaccination video with his 25 million Facebook followers, some questioned his thinking, even sharing conspiracy theories about the vaccine, or questioning his sincerity in promoting it. In response, the world’s most famous Austrian carefully explained his reasoning.
“I always say you should know your strengths and listen to the experts,” he wrote. “If you want to learn about building biceps, listen to me, because I’ve spent my life studying how to get the perfect peak and I have been called the greatest bodybuilder of all time.”
That doesn’t make him an expert in everything, though. He went on: “Dr. Fauci and all of the virologists and epidemiologists and doctors have studied diseases and vaccines for their entire lives, so I listen to them and I urge you to do the same. None of us are going to learn more than them by watching a few hours of videos.”
Experts have confirmed the virus is safe, but some jamoke on Facebook is telling you it’s not: In that case, Arnold says, listen to the experts. Don’t be taken in by misinformation. “In general, I think if the circle of people you trust gets smaller and smaller and you find yourself more and more isolated,” he wrote, “it should be a warning sign that you’re going down a rabbit hole of misinformation.”
Finally, he confronted the idea that listening to people with more knowledge than you is somehow a failure. “Some people say it is weak to listen to experts,” Schwarzenegger wrote. “That’s bogus. It takes strength to admit you don’t know everything. Weakness is thinking you don’t need expert advice and only listening to sources that confirm what you want to believe.”
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