There is nothing stranger in human relations than our proclivity to make fine distinctions of style and rank when none are needed. We do so for shirts, punk rock bands, kindergarten courses, and, now, vaccines. I've seen an increasing disparity in views of what is a banal science and medical device. As I resume my in-person social life, I've been struck by how often the question "So which vaccine did you receive?" emerges.

My ethnic vaccine environment study in the US contains the four primary vaccines from Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca, and Johnson & Johnson. The established vaccine is Pfizer, which is marketed by one of the major pharmaceutical companies in the US. Since it had a major “cold chain” demand at the time, it was distributed at well-established institutions such as large hospitals and community-health facilities with large freezers. It is abundant, highly efficient, and often uncontroversial.

Moderna, whose name implies something different, is the intellectual vaccine. Since the firm had no product or main sales stream before the vaccine, it is more difficult to associate Moderna with “Big Pharma,” giving it an anti-establishment vibe. It's also worth noting that the last three letters of Moderna are "rna," which refers to the mRNA technology that generates the vaccine.

Moderna was also the name of the American vaccine. It was largely available in the United States at a period when Pfizer was freely distributed in the United Kingdom and Israel. As a beneficiary of two Moderna doses, I feel a little unique for this occasion. To have my vaccine, you had to be an American. The European Union had authorized it, but it had neglected to obtain it promptly. The supply of Moderna represents the greater prosperity and productivity of the US.

For better or worse AstraZeneca has been the dreaded vaccine or at the very least the exotic vaccine. It has not been approved for emergency use by the US Food and Drug Administration, in part because it has been linked to certain cases of blood clotting in women. It is completely healthy and reliable for the vast majority of citizens. If you have it, you can pretend to be adventurous and cosmopolitan because you have lived and might even be living abroad.

That tends to leave Johnson & Johnson, whose position in the vaccine landscape is changing. Having the J&J shot initially demonstrated that you were both worried and unconcerned about the pandemic: one and finished. It was something you should do on your lunch break, similar to going to CVS for additional shampoo. Getting the J&J vaccine was just a matter of routine.

The name of the company, known for its baby powder, means something natural, not fearful. J&J eventually evolved into a more socially conscious variant of a nuanced kind of COVID denial. You weren't making a big deal out of it, so you were making sure you weren't putting at risk your loved ones.

Americans don't have a lot of say on which vaccine they want, whether they're able to delay or participate inexpensive travel, because it's not like anyone can choose which team they want.

The more religiously complex the vaccination choice, the better it is to find excuses not to get immunized. Vaccines should be regarded much like paper clips, as a convenient and often appropriate device devoid of cultural meaning. Few are unwilling to use paper clips because they want to "own the libs" or because they don't like the institution.

Many who are hesitant to get vaccinated bear the most of the blame in this situation. Behind any major error, there are several minor ones, and we vaccinated Americans, with our human propensity to build hierarchies over everything, are adding to the mess.