Damar Hamlin

 Last night saw one of those awful moments on live television, when Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest on the field. While everyone loves to play online doctor, several actual doctors say that it certainly looked like commotio cordis - a rare event when someone's heart is hit at the precise millisecond that interrupts a person's heart beat. The hit Hamlin took wasn't especially vicious, it was simply at the exact wrong time in the exact wrong place.

Needless to say, this inspired the worst and the best in people.

Noted Righist troll, Charlie Kirk, led a phalanx of anti-vax idiots to propose that Hamlin's cardiac arrest was because of vaccines. NFL players are screened by EKG as part of their physicals. There is no evidence that vaccines cause any sort of cardiac problems, though there is evidence that actual Covid does. Regardless of the evidence, the troll army storms full bore into any event, any circumstance with their axes ready to gring.

Meanwhile, among real people, Hamlin had a Go-Fund me for a charity he runs that gives toys to underprivileged kids. He had hoped to raise $2,500. Since last night, he has raised over $3,000,000 from ordinary people who just wanted to help. 

Hamlin is in stable but critical condition, as one would expect after having his heart stopped. Back in 2021, Christian Eriksen, one of the best soccer players in the world, suffered a cardiac arrest on the field at the Euros. Similarly to Hamlin, CPR was administered and AED was used to get his heart started again. Eriksen made a full recovery and with the help of a pacemaker played in the World Cup last month. Hopefully, Hamlin makes a full recovery and is able to decide for himself where his future lies.