Promoting Covid jabs on dating apps is both preposterous and proof that govt & Big Tech are a match made in hell

Forget the accidental ‘super likes’, STDs & casual ghostings – online dating is set to get even worse, thanks to government meddling and virtue-signalling tech bosses. Clearly, there’s never been a better time to be single.

People on dating apps are looking for one of two things: romance or sex. Occasionally, they want both – ideally, from the same individual. Sometimes, they even want marriage and kids. But there’s one thing they never, ever want, and that’s a Covid-19 vaccine.

Nor do they want intervention from Big Tech and a meddling government, but that looks unavoidable for today’s modern singletons. President Joe Biden’s administration has already started pushing inoculations via the US industry’s most popular platforms Tinder, Hinge, OkCupid and Bumble. 

And now the UK government is reportedly set to follow suit. A Westminster source told the Telegraph: “All those apps will be approached to flag the importance of getting vaccinated. There are ongoing conversations. It would be a decision for platforms [if they wished] to be involved.”

If the plan is rolled out, the profiles of vaccinated users will get creepy ‘blue ticks’ to show they’ve been jabbed – not to mention access to premium content such as boosts, ‘super likes’ and ‘super swipes’ as an incentive. They’ll also be able to filter potential matches by vaccination status and even book an inoculation appointment through the app, which is already possible in the US.

Presumably, the non-vaccinated will be branded with a soldering iron or have a red cross daubed on their door, but this is yet to be confirmed. Either way, it’s absolutely bananas. 

From a commercial perspective, why on Earth would anyone want to alienate their customer base by creating a system that shames them? It’s a total romance killer, which surely negates the entire purpose of a dating app’s existence.

Meanwhile, the entire proposal makes even less sense from a health standpoint. Yes, Covid-19 is real and poses a serious risk. But not for young people without a pre-existing health condition – they are in the demographic most likely to recover from the virus without serious consequences. 

What’s more, they already display enthusiasm about receiving the vaccine. A recent study by the University of Michigan, in the US, published in the Journal of Adolescent Health, shows that 76% of teens and young adults are willing to get the jab.

Besides, is Covid-19 really the worst infection a person can get from a casual encounter? I’m no Alfred Kinsey, but I’m pretty sure the answer to that is no. 

According to Public Health England, there were 447,694 sexually transmitted infections in England during 2018. This included a 249% rise in cases of gonorrhea and a 165% increase in cases of syphilis since 2009. Unlike Covid, which affects older people most severely, singletons under 25 are the likeliest to get STIs – their diagnosis rates are roughly five times higher than those aged 25 to 59.  

And there’s an additional risk: HIV. A total of 4,139 people were diagnosed with HIV in the UK in 2019. Of these, 1,559 were heterosexual and almost all of them had contracted it through unsafe sex. Despite this, there are no government sexual-health initiatives on dating apps, which make millions from people bumping nasties. 

So, why are the powerful pushing Covid-19 vaccines on young people with such force? My theory is three-fold. First, there has been speculation, as yet unsubstantiated, that the vaccination of young people is actually being carried out to protect older people whose inoculation may, in some cases, be ineffective. 

Second, it’s big money. Big Pharma is making millions from the vaccines – and many politicians are in cahoots with them. They have shares in the pharmaceutical companies or receive donations from them, which means they have a vested interest to shift more batches of the drugs.

Third, it allows lawmakers to push vaccine passports, which will eventually usher in a social credit system and give the government even more power over the populace. Is that really what we want? 

There are many good reasons to be single. But the government’s infiltration of dating apps for their own gain might be the best one yet.

Like this story? Share it with a friend!

The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of RT.