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Mental Health & Human Resilience International Journal
ISSN: 2578-5095
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Vaccines Mandates, Covid Tests, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s Book on Fauci, and Resolving Related Family
Issues
Ment Health Hum Resilience Int J
Vaccines Mandates, Covid Tests, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s Book on
Fauci, and Resolving Related Family Issues
Benjamin E*
Psychology Department, Capella University, USA
*Corresponding author: Elliot Benjamin, Psychology Department, Capella University,
Minneapolis, MN, USA, Email: ben496@prexar.com
Review Article
Volume 6 Issue 1
Received Date: January 10, 2022
Published Date: March 01, 2022
DOI: 10.23880/mhrij-16000165
Abstract
In this article the author discusses the efforts he has made to preserve his important relationship with a family member,
working through issues related to vaccine mandates, Covid tests, and the reading of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s book The Real
give-and-take with his family member with openness to communication and compromise on both of their parts, facilitated by
the author’s willingness to engage in reading Kennedy’s book on Fauci that challenged many of his initial beliefs. However,
the author was also able to convey concerns that he had about Kennedy’s book to his family member, resulting in an authentic
communication between them and a preservation of their relationship. Finally, the author relates his experiences to the
empathy and authenticity core principles of humanistic psychology, with a focus on Kirk Schneider’s experiential democracy
work to try to heal the political polarization divide in the United States.
Keywords: Vaccine Mandates; Covid Tests; Fauci; Humanistic Psychology; Experiential Democracy
Introduction
I have previously described my efforts to maintain a
family relationship that is very important to me, and that was
in danger of falling apart due to our opposing views about
vaccines. The way that I was able to resolve the impasse of
getting together in person with this family member was by
means of a compromise whereby my unvaccinated family
member agreed to get Covid tests as a condition for us seeing
each other, and promised that he would be cooperative about
wearing masks and social distancing as much as I ask him
[1,2]. Since then, my family member had also agreed to get
an antibodies test, as I said that it would be helpful to me
to know if he had built up antibodies to the virus by means
of having had a symptomless case of Covid (1). These are
all good things that I am very thankful for, and the plan
is for us to work out the logistics for seeing each other
sometime in the spring or summer of 2022, after I get my
next booster shot (2). Furthermore, this resolution led to me
stretching myself more than I thought I would be able to do,
which involved my reading the book he asked me to read:
a massively referenced book by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. [3]
entitled The Real Anthony Fauci: Bill Gates, Big Pharma, and
the Global War on Democracy and Public Health.
Anthony Fauci was something of a hero to me, as he has
been to many Americans. He represented a degree of sanity
ordeal of the 4 years of President Trump [4]. Thus reading
nearly 500 pages with over 2,000 references of a book by a
prominent anti-vaxxer who was wholly dedicated to tearing
down Fauci’s reputation was not something that I wanted
to engage in. However, my family member was passionate
in his anger towards Fauci, and I knew that I had to honor
his request in order to keep the lines of communication open
between us. I therefore ordered the book and braced myself
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Benjamin E. Vaccines Mandates, Covid Tests, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s Book on Fauci, and Resolving
Related Family Issues. Ment Health Hum Resilience Int J 2022, 6(1): 000165.
Copyright© Benjamin E.
for the unpleasant undertaking. But to my great surprise, I
found that I actually liked the book. Kennedy RF [3] has made
a tour de force case for his substantial criticism of the 50 year
career of Anthony Fauci, and has given harrowing descriptions
of historical events surrounding Fauci in his role as director
of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
(NIAID) for the past 37 years. This included, according to
Kennedy RF [3], Fauci’s suppression of promising low cost
therapeutic treatments for AIDS and Covid, his promotion
of expensive detrimental treatments for these diseases, his
unethical manipulation of what was funded and not funded
in regard to various potential anti-virus drugs, his promotion
of vaccines at the expense of alternative or additional
community-based inexpensive therapeutic treatments,
his collusion with big pharmaceutical companies (which
has commonly been referred to as Big Pharma) to control
their publications and results, and his overseeing a very
harmful AIDS drug treatment project in Africa, which was
subsequently extended to multiple countries all over the
world. Although I will give some brief descriptions below of
Kennedy Jr.’s [3] book, my purpose in this article is not to give
a detailed description of the book, as my present article is
focused on the relationship of my reading this book to resolve
the issues between myself and my family member regarding
vaccine mandates and Covid tests (3). Perhaps others may
own similar challenges with family members.
Reading Kennedy’s Book and Resolving My
Related Family Issues
If I had heard someone state my long sentence above
about Fauci’s various promotions, suppressions, unethical
manipulations, and collusions from Kennedy Jr.’s [3]
perspective, I may have labelled this person as having
been indoctrinated into the anti-vaccine/anti-Fauci/anti-
government conspiracy, and I may have even associated this
person with the notorious January 6th insurrectionists. But
lo and behold, this person is me! I am the one who promoted
this statement denouncing Fauci, so what does this mean?
Have I lost my mind, or capitulated my rational thinking to
preserve the relationship with my family member? Again, it
is not my purpose in this article to give detailed explanations
of what Kennedy RF [3] has described in relation to Fauci
(3). However, I will say clearly here that I think my above
statement that describes Kennedy Jr.’s [3] perspective on
Fauci may be essentially accurate, and I say this in spite of
vaccines, masks, and social distancing, as I describe below.
Readers would have to judge for themselves the merit of
Kennedy Jr.’s [3] take-down of Fauci, but I must admit that
my own hero perspective of Fauci no longer applies. I have
learned things about Fauci that I did not want to learn,
and that I wish were not true. I have searched for defences
in support of Fauci against Kennedy Jr.’s [3] accusations,
but I have not found anything substantial to refute most
Kennedy Jr.’s [3] depictions about vaccines, masks, and social
distancing, and his inclusion of faulty research to promote
I cannot argue with the bulk of his devastating portrayal of
Fauci’s destructive impact upon public health over the course
of many years [3,4].
Be that as it may, what my focus is on in this present
article is the following question: What impact has my reading
in the relationship with my family member? To begin with,
given my family member’s openness to my requests about
his getting tested for both Covid and antibodies (1), and his
willingness to wear masks and practice social distancing
as much as I ask him to, I felt that it was only fair that I
reciprocated by, in addition to agreeing to get together in
person with him, reading the book that he asked me to read.
And as it turned out, I was able to genuinely share with my
family member the repulsion that I felt from reading about
all the horrors that Fauci purportedly committed to promote
his vaccines and drug treatments for AIDS for almost 4
decades. Of course these horrors, in particular untold
numbers of unnecessary deaths and serious illnesses, should
be investigated in a fair and impartial way, preferably by a
United States Congressional hearing. But I must say that
the historical data appears to me be to be factual and easily
in my mind about the high level of praise and ethical virtues
that have been bestowed upon Anthony Fauci [3,5], and this
naturally leads me to question both the ethics and safety
of Fauci’s current leadership in regard to his decisions and
actions regarding our present coronavirus pandemic. I
getting vaccinated against Covid [6,7] but it also makes me
more sympathetic to why someone may not trust what the
government says about vaccine safety and adverse reactions,
and various related matters.
At any rate, my reading this book turned out to be
an enormous bridge to overcome the threat of alienation
between me and my family member, although this could
different. I stretched myself enormously in this undertaking,
knowing that there was a big risk that I could end up feeling
even more alienated from my family member after reading
a bunch of unfounded ad hominem “anti-vaxxer” attacks on
someone whom I considered to be a courageous, intelligent,
ethical, renowned, and dedicated scientist. I took the leap of
faith in the interest of being genuine and letting the chips fall
where they may, and now I am faced with a miniature version
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Benjamin E. Vaccines Mandates, Covid Tests, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s Book on Fauci, and Resolving
Related Family Issues. Ment Health Hum Resilience Int J 2022, 6(1): 000165.
Copyright© Benjamin E.
of what my family member is overwhelmingly experiencing,
which is how to navigate my new awareness and concerns
when relating to people who put Fauci on a pedestal as the
most respected medical doctor in the United States.
But at the same time, as I mentioned above, I found a
concerning to me (3,4) and it was essential that I was able
to communicate my concerns to my family member and feel
that I was listened to and understood and taken seriously, at
least to some extent. This essentially happened, though with
a good deal of give-and-take back and forth communications
between us, and I had to accept that although my concerns
were acknowledged as at least somewhat legitimate, they
relatively minor and that Kennedy RF [3] understandingly
went a bit too far in some of his statements and research,
due to the immensity of the corruption and tragedies that
he was writing about in such enormous scope. However,
I will state here that I don’t think my concerns were at all
minimal, as they included Kennedy Jr.’s [3] biased portrayal
of death spikes being caused by vaccines in a number of
different countries, his ignoring a complete lack of statistical
Covid trial that was used for full FDA approval, his unfounded
statements that neither wearing masks nor social distancing
deaths, and his use of faulty research to promote his belief
Nevertheless, what is most important to me is that my family
member and I were able to have these communications,
and that we were able to speak our minds and agree on the
essence of what the book has conveyed, though disagreeing
And I believe that these communications with my family
member that I have engaged in, inclusive of our agreement
about allowing for Covid tests as an alternative to vaccine
mandates, and utilizing, Covid tests, wearing masks, and
social distancing as requirements for us to see each other,
as well as my openness to read a book he asked me to read
that I very much did not want to read but ended up reading
both the core principles of humanistic psychology and Kirk
Schneider’s experiential democracy work, that I will describe
next.
Humanistic Psychology, Experiential
Issues
The core principles of humanistic psychology are
based on empathy and authenticity in human relationships
[8,9]. These core principles have been put into practice in
the midst of the current extensive political polarization
in the United States through Schneider’s [10] experiential
democracy work, in which people who have polarized
opposite political perspectives sit with each other and
respectfully listen to and acknowledge each other’s feelings
and viewpoints. I believe that what I am experiencing and
is directly related to Schneider’s experiential democracy
work. The people involved are family members and the
communication may not be in-person, but the aspect of
“respectfully listening to and acknowledging each other’s
feelings and viewpoints” is very much what I am currently
experiencing in the communications with my family member
in regard to vaccine mandates and Covid testing, as I have
described above. My family member has respectfully listened
to and acknowledged my safety needs with the result that he
has agreed to get Covid tests as a condition for us seeing each
other. And I have respectfully listened to and acknowledged
my family member’s existential need to not be forced
into getting the Covid vaccine, for any reason whatsoever.
Furthermore, I have stretched myself to read the book that
my family member asked me to read: Kennedy Jr.’s [3] book on
Fauci. And I must say that reading this book has increased my
understanding of my family member’s decision to not get the
Covid vaccine. I have previously written about the legitimate
concerns that a number of authors have conveyed about
various disturbing factors in regard to vaccines, inclusive of
the biased vaccine approval process, the unethical practices
of the big pharmaceutical companies that make the vaccines,
the occurrence of possible detrimental physiological
consequences from being injected with vaccines, and the
various environmental hazards that have been ignored for
the purpose of promoting vaccines [5,14]. However, in spite
outweighed the detriments for getting vaccinated against
Covid [5,14]. Reading Kennedy Jr.’s [3] book has not caused
me to change my mind about this, but I must admit that it has
Kennedy Jr.’s [3] book was an eye-opener for me in
regard to the checkered 50 year career of questionable ethics
and deadly consequences of Anthony Fauci’s tremendous
vaccine for AIDS that Kennedy RF [3] has argued has resulted
in catastrophic consequences. Furthermore, I have learned
billionaire Bill Gates as he teamed up with Fauci to make
vaccines the “one and only” health initiative to solve the
world’s health problems, ignoring more natural therapeutic
alternatives and any kind of environmental project that could
increase people’s living conditions. I have also become more
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Benjamin E. Vaccines Mandates, Covid Tests, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s Book on Fauci, and Resolving
Related Family Issues. Ment Health Hum Resilience Int J 2022, 6(1): 000165.
Copyright© Benjamin E.
integrity and lack of compassion in hiding disastrous and
deadly results of adverse vaccine consequences, as well as
United States presidents to fund and promote questionable
vaccines in third world countries. Of course all of Kennedy
Jr.’s [3] claims should be carefully examined and not taken at
face value, but his historical use of public data and statements
government operations is certainly something that should
not be ignored, and I believe it warrants a Congressional
hearing.
Kennedy RF [3] conveyed the transition from unethical
AIDS testing of vaccines over many years to our current
testing of the Covid vaccine, which followed extensive
“germ games” simulations, with the same high level
governmental administrators involved whom he described
in terms that are very alarming, with Fauci at the top of
the list, promoted big time by Bill Gates. Thus, although I
getting the Covid vaccine, reading Kennedy Jr.’s [3] book has
member’s perspective and his reasons for deciding not to get
vaccinated. And my understanding of this is going a long way
in healing the divide between us, even if we still do not agree
about the actual vaccination issue itself. It is experiential
democracy played out on the family turf, and I think it is a
tremendously important and timely way to put into practice
the core principles of humanistic psychology.
Conclusion
In conclusion, I am very thankful that I have been able to
that was threatening the relationship between me and my
family member. This bridging the gap required both of us to
stretch ourselves beyond what we felt comfortable with in
order to see each other again, but we agreed to do so out of
our caring for each other, to preserve our relationship. This
subsequently led me to stretch myself even further, to read
a book that my family member asked me to read that was
completely antithetical to everything I believed in regarding
vaccines and the trustworthy and respectful image that I had
of Anthony Fauci. But much to my surprise, I resonated with
a great deal of what the book conveyed, in spite of what I
been that it enabled the relationship between myself and
my family member to become closer and less threatened
by the polarization that many people are concerned may
destroy our country [11,12]. The efforts that I have put into
this process of engagement are related to Schneider’s [10]
experiential democracy project, but with a focus upon the
relationship between family members. It may be worthwhile
polarized family relationship to explore some of the ideas
that I have described here, for the purpose of regaining the
closeness in their family relationship through reducing the
alienation between themselves and their family members.
Notes
1. I subsequently decided to drop my antibodies test
requirement, based upon the information that my family
member conveyed to me about antibodies testing not
being a reliable indication of possible immunity from
Covid.
2. Based upon recent research that conveys only a minimal
increase in immunity to the Omicron Covid variant from
a second booster shot, I may not wait until I receive a
second booster shot before getting together in person
with my family member [13].
3. See Benjamin E [6,7] for my more extensive reviews of
Kennedy Jr.’s [3] book.
4.
Kennedy RF [3] presented graphs for a number of
countries that displayed a sharp increase in deaths
after vaccination, implying that the vaccines caused
the deaths. However, some of these countries received
their vaccination around Christmastime or during the
winter, such as in Ireland, which would certainly explain
the sudden increase in deaths. There is also the factor
of more time passing leading to more people getting
infected and more deaths, and the sharp decrease in
deaths that soon followed could very well be attributed
to the vaccine.
Kennedy RF [3] considered it to be a major concern that
approval there were 14 deaths in the unvaccinated group
and 20 deaths in the vaccinated group, stating that there
were nearly 150% as many deaths in the vaccinated
group compared to the unvaccinated group. However,
the difference in these deaths numbers is not statistically
research studies. Thus Kennedy Jr.’s [3] portrayal of
this is both unsubstantial and misleading. Kennedy
RF [3] claimed that neither wearing masks nor social
distancing has been effective against getting infected
by Covid, but he gave very little evidence to back up
these claims, and he never included any of the extensive
social distancing. Similarly, Kennedy RF [3] stated that
the number of deaths from Covid may be less than what
has been reported, but he did not give evidence to back
up his claim, and focused on the fact that the prediction
occur. However, Kennedy RF [3] did not acknowledge the
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Benjamin E. Vaccines Mandates, Covid Tests, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s Book on Fauci, and Resolving
Related Family Issues. Ment Health Hum Resilience Int J 2022, 6(1): 000165.
Copyright© Benjamin E.
fact that unlike the other pandemics thus far in the 21st
century that were expected to have far more deaths than
occurred, there have been an enormous number of Covid
deaths, currently over 900,000.
Kennedy RF [3] ended his book by emphasizing how
difference in transmission of Covid between vaccinated
and unvaccinated people, but neglected to include
research that shows unvaccinated people or more likely
to get infected with Covid than vaccinated people to
begin with, thereby demonstrating that vaccination may
very well reduce the likelihood of infecting others when
this is taken into account. Kennedy RF [3] also made no
mention of the solidly established research which shows
that Covid symptoms, hospitalizations, and deaths are
much more prominent in unvaccinated people compared
a major point to end his book by citing the September,
2021 data in Israel that conveys 60% of people in
severe and critical condition, and 45% of people who
died, were doubly vaccinated. However, Kennedy RF [3]
did not include the fact that at that time, nearly 80%
of Israeli adults were doubly vaccinated, which when
taken into account actually may very well demonstrate
the effectiveness of the vaccine since the percentages of
people in severe and critical condition, and who died,
were doubly vaccinated.
To forcefully convey his belief that ivermectin is a
promoted faulty research. See Benjamin E [7] for a
description of the related issues and Kennedy Jr.’s [3]
problematic ivermectin promotion.
5. Some of the concerns about Fauci that stand out
for me are as follows: According to Kennedy RF [3],
Fauci’s suppression and mis-characterization of two
and hydroxychlororoquine, along with his promotion
of a detrimental Covid treatment drug: remdesivir.
However, although I have concerns about this, I have not
yet investigated Kennedy Jr.’s [3] references to support
his claims about hydroxychloroquine and remdesivir,
and there are problematic issues in regard to Kennedy
Jr.’s [3] use of faulty research to promote his claims
about ivermectin. But Kennedy RF [3] made a very
strong case to show a strong unethical connection of
Fauci, supported by Bill Gates, to Big Pharma, with the
disastrous consequence of numerous deaths in Africa,
inclusive of many children, that apparently were caused
by unexpected negative consequences of the AIDS
vaccines used as trials.
According to Kennedy RF [3], Fauci’s continued promotion
of vaccines that had detrimental consequences, inclusive
of numerous deaths, while taking punitive actions
towards reputable researchers who criticized these
vaccines, and not addressing the dangers to the health
of millions of people in third world countries who were
used in these vaccine drug trials.
According to Kennedy RF [3], Fauci’s complete focus
upon vaccines in Africa and other third world countries,
support of Bill Gates, at the expense of actions to improve
the day-to-day health and living conditions of people in
these countries.
6. See Benjamin E [5,14] for my previous critiques of a
number of anti-vaccination and germ theory denial
authors, along with my rationale for why I concluded
the Covid vaccine. However, although I acknowledged
the possible negative consequences of vaccines in
these articles, I must admit that Kennedy Jr.’s [3] book
has brought these possible negative consequences to a
outweigh the detriments for receiving the Covid vaccine,
but reading Kennedy Jr.’s [3] book has given me more of
an understanding and appreciation of why my family
member has been so adamant in refusing to get vaccinated
against Covid. As my family member has conveyed to me,
various research studies have demonstrated that factors
such as living an active and healthy lifestyle, inclusive of
variables to take into account when determining the
danger of getting infected by Covid.
7.
Vaccinated or Not to Get Vaccinated includes links to the
other three parts of this article series.
References
1. Benjamin E (2021) On vaccine mandates: A personal
integrative perspective.
2. Benjamin E (2021) Vaccine mandates, Covid tests, and
humanistic psychology. Integral World.
3. Kennedy RF (2021) The real Anthony Fauci: Bill Gates,
Big Pharma, and the global war on democracy and public
health. Children’s Health Defense.
4. Benjamin E (2020) Studies of social media addiction,
cult indoctrination, and the coronavirus pandemic;
all in relation to the Trump presidency. In: Kahlde BK,
et al. (Eds.), Selected Topics in Humanities and Social
Sciences, BP International 5: 135-147.
Mental Health & Human Resilience International Journal
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Benjamin E. Vaccines Mandates, Covid Tests, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s Book on Fauci, and Resolving
Related Family Issues. Ment Health Hum Resilience Int J 2022, 6(1): 000165.
Copyright© Benjamin E.
5. Benjamin E (2021) Germ theory denial, anti-vaccination,
and Covid-19. Integral World.
6. Benjamin E (2022) Anthony Fauci: Hero or villain?.
Integral World.
7. Benjamin E (2022) Is Ivermectin an efective treatment
for Covid? Integral World.
8. Rogers CR (1961) On becoming a person: A therapist’s
9. Schneider KJ (2015) Rediscovering awe: A new front in
humanistic psychology, psychotherapy, and society. In:
Schneider KJ, et al. (Eds.), The Handbook of Humanistic
Psychology: Theory, Research, and Practice, Sage
Publications, pp: 73-81.
10. Schneider KJ (2020) The depolarizing of America: A
guidebook for social healing. University Professors
Press.
11. Kagan R (2021) Opinion: Our constitutional crisis is
already here. The Washington Post.
12. Tribe LH (2021) The risk of a coup in the next US
election is greater now than it ever was under Trump.
The Guardian.
13. Federman J (2022) 4th COVID-19 vaccine dose less
effective against Omicron, Israel study shows. Global
News.
14. Benjamin E (2021) COVID: To get vaccinated or not to
get vaccinated: Stimulated by a sociologist’s scholarly
anti-vaccination book.
