Getting vaccinated means if you get sick, the worst that happens is you have mild flu symptoms. For all the nut jobs that said “it’s just the flu.” They’ll be right post vaccinations.
When do we stop wearing masks and socially distancing in your world?
What limited research so far has indicated is that the vaccines do in fact reduce transmissions in addition to personal protection.
Yes. getting the vaccine means if you do get infected, the worst that can happen is you get some flu symptoms. I am not disputing that at all. I understand your point. if everyone in the stadium is vaccinated, then even if someone gets infected while attending a game, the worst that could happen is you get flu symptoms, which is no different than before covid. If you are vaccinated and later infected, then logically, you should have less to zero virus in your body because your immune system has been doing its job thereby reducing spread.
My assertion that it's unnecessary to require vaccinations is based partly on lack of data that these vaccines reduce spread and partly on individual privacy. As we know, there are holdouts and while some are just antivaxxers or conspiracy theorists, there are some who are waiting because they don't trust the vaccine yet due to the speed of its testing, manufacturing, and rollout. While I will personally get the vaccine when I am eligible, I do think the concerns of the 2nd category of people are legitimate and reasonable. Requiring those people to get a vaccine, just so they can enjoy a sporting event seems unnecessary to me. Also, simply saying "ok, if you received the vaccine you don't have to wear a mask at games" would just make the unvaccinated people stick out and possibly seen in a negative way. Further, by mid April, there still may be individuals who still can't get the vaccine yet due to ineligibility or lack of supply. To ensure the most people can go to games to fill the limited capacity as soon as possible, simply enforcing a mask+social distancing policy would be the easiest, in my opinion.
When do we stop wearing masks and social distancing? I don't think there's a clear answer to that. In my world, I would say it's a combination of vaccination rollout and a significant drop in hospitalizations. If hospitalizations drop to early summer levels and vaccines continue to roll out, I think we can feel good about going maskless again.