Yesterday morning, I mentioned that a group of California fundies is trying to derail a bill that would eliminate the "personal beliefs" exemption to the childhood vaccination requirement. Parents would only be able to opt out after participating in an information session which discusses the risks involved if kids don't get their shots.
Well, it turns out this effort was highlighted on Friday's 700 Club--or at the very least, Pat Robertson's Christian Broadcasting Network is highlighting it online. It makes one wonder--have Robertson and CBN embraced anti-vaccine hoakum?
CBN's writeup claims that this is nothing less than a threat to parents' right to raise their kids how they see fit. Um, Pat? What about the rights of other kids? And what about the rights of those with weak immune systems?
As long as CBN is publicizing this effort to derail what appears to be a common-sense bill protecting public health, you can only wonder if it's joined the anti-vaxxer bandwagon.
Now you're probably thinking that this wouldn't be too big of a leap for an outfit that has long supported "creation science" and "intelligent design." The difference here, though, is that supporting creationism doesn't risk causing innocent people to die.
Plus, this wouldn't be the first time that CBN is on the wrong side of an issue that could get people seriously hurt. After all, we are talking about a guy who told child-abuse victims from at least 1996 until this past spring that they can somehow "consent" to incest and "allow yourself to be molested.
If CBN has embraced the anti-vaccination movement--especially when several states are experiencing outbreaks of diseases completely preventable by vaccination--then it needs to be called out.