I think it's safe and effective, but it is different in meaningful ways. Saying all vaccines are universally equivalent is intellectually dishonest IMO.
For example, you could take a person who says "I won't get any vaccine that hasn't yet got 5 years of safety data". You may argue that person is taking a stupid stance, but if that is their stance, the COVID vaccine would be different.
That combined with the mechanism of action between it and most vaccines make them different.
IMO we do a lot better acknowledging the difference than pretending it's identical. When we lie and say 2 different things are identical, people can tell, and they instantly become more distrusting of those who are lying.
IMO the best bet is the truth, "It's new, it's different in some ways, but it's consistently shown to be safe and effective" and then point to the relevant data.
Yes I get it. People made the Covid a political issue when they shouldn't have. That is the difference. That alone. We should have all came together to end this pandemic as quickly as possible but instead people would saw taking the virus seriously as an attack on their political idology.
So yes it is different. But it shouldn't be.
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Occam's razor: The simplest solution (answer) is most likely the right one