Beefcake World Leaders Use COVID-19 Photo Ops to Take Their Shirts Off

As the COVID-19 vaccine rolls out I have two major questions: when will I get it, and why do European politicians  have to take off their entire shirt to get a shot they know will be photographed and shared widely?

As a New Yorker, I basically have no idea when my shot is coming. The closest I have right now is looking at other pictures of people getting shots, which feels nice. While you might not think this is a very fun activity, I've noticed a huge discrepancy between how I have historically gotten vaccinated in the past, and how many European politicians are getting vaccinated. These dudes are all stripping down to get a teeny tiny pinprick in their arm.

Of particular note is the Greek Prime Minister, who had his vaccine administered during a video call in January. With his shirt unbuttoned to his navel, I feel like the entire procedure has become unnecessarily horny. It caused a minor stir on British social media at the time, but it appears that other vaccinated European politicians have followed suit by taking off their clothes to get one shot.

French Minister for Solidarity and Health Olivier Véran made an interesting choice. He pulled off half his buttoned up shirt, perhaps because it was too tight to roll the sleeve high up enough, but is notably pulling a part of the shirt up to cover his nipple, indicating he is perhaps more chaste than his European counterparts.

People seem to be particularly thirsty for the Croatian finance minister Zdravko Maric, who did not take off his shirt but instead wore the tightest t-shirt imaginable, the kind of tight shirt men wear to let you know they've been working out, which he appears to be. Looking good, Maric, but I want to stress this is simply not necessary; getting a shot does not require any special clothing.

How are we doing in America, you ask? According to The New York Times, we have reached over 468,000 deaths from COVID-19, which seems not great. We have also begun rolling out the vaccine across the United States, and as such seen a few photos of our politicians getting vaccinated. 

For the large part, they're keeping their clothes on. Senator Bernie Sanders managed to figure out how to roll up his sleeve; Nancy Pelosi wore a short sleeved dress when she was vaccinated. Former Vice President Mike Pence unsurprisingly remained fully clothed as he was vaccinated, wearing a slightly wrinkled short sleeve button down shirt. Despite not even being touched by another human being—the doctor's hands were gloved—he looks much less comfortable than the shirtless Greek Prime Minister.