Big Bird may be vaccinated, but as the pandemic rages across Europe, kids of all ages still think it’s cool to doff their masks and share Covid-19.

(Originally published Nov. 8 in “What in the World“) It’s always nice to see celebrities publicizing their support for vaccination against Covid-19. So it’s heartening that this weekend Big Bird announced his own vaccination over Twitter. It might seem late in coming, but remember that Big Bird is permanently six years old and thus only just became eligible for vaccines after U.S. government approval. While the FDA/CDC endorsement of vaccines for 5-12 year-olds didn’t specifically mention anthropomorphic birds, Bird is clearly taking a healthy “better safe than sorry” position on the issue.

Some U.S. schools are already preparing to require students to get vaccinated, a move bound to generate legal challenges from anti-vax parents as the Biden Administration fights a federal court’s rejection of its own vaccine mandate for large employers. Biden had set a Jan. 4 deadline for companies to impose those mandates.

We can only hope that other nations start offering jabs to their own kids, since anecdotal evidence continues to demonstrate that they cannot be counted on to observe social-distancing or to wear masks in public spaces. It’s not their fault: adults continue to set a poor example, as this apparent adult on a Swiss train demonstrated this morning.

With so much of humanity still unvaccinated and determined to resume full contact with each other, the pandemic continues to rage, led by a resurgence in Eastern and Central Europe.

Despite the resurgence, nations continue to dismantle rules designed to reduce transmission. Today, for example, marked the reopening of U.S. borders to vaccinated travelers from Europe. When this newsletter first wrote about the U.S. decision to lift the restriction back in late-September, the U.S. infection rate was worse than Europe. Now it’s the other way around.

What’s alarming about the European surge is that it’s take place not only in countries with low vaccination rates, but also in nations with relatively high ones. All eyes are on Germany, which is seeing record daily infections, but its infection rate pales next to those being racked up in Eastern Europe. Estonia and Latvia lead the world, but most frightening is Belgium, which has a 74% vaccination rate.

U.S. cases are slowly nudging lower, but not as quickly as they soared.

With 43% of Americans still unvaccinated, it’s time we call on the rest of the Sesame Street gang to roll up for the jab. Oscar the Grouch has already been vaccinated. But what about Kermit?