Mmmmmmm, rubella.
As we
watch the
efforts of anti-vax
cultists bear fruit in
real time, I thought a
peek into
their world might be
worth while. I know many of us have heard the
anti-vax arguments before, but how many of us have
heard them from the equine encephalomyelitis-infected horses mouth?
Since all reliable sources lead to Facebook, I started there and found vactruth.com. From the awesome meme graphics to links for vanity books, vactruth was a gold mine of Very Urgent Information. I wasted no time jumping in the deep end. Here, take my hand and I'll drag you down with me...
You're entitled to your logic, I'm entitled to THE logic.
We'll start with the first blog link I encountered, because blogs are always a reliable source for factual opinion. This guy is really pissed at all the hoopla going on right now so it should be lots of fun.
Levi Quackenboss
Putting the boss in quack.
My Kid isn’t “Unprotected,” OK?
If I hear one more time that unvaccinated children are “unprotected” from common diseases I’m going to lose it. For crying out loud, how on Earth did the modern human race survive for 200,000 years with such a sissy immune system?
That was a trick question. Our immune systems are fine until something is injected to wreck them up. “But wait, Quack!” you say. “200,000 years ago the average lifespan was only 33! Right thurr is proof of how much we need vaccines!”
Vaccines for what? Drowning? Wooly mammoths? Falling out of trees? Here’s how it was in the caveman years: if you could make it to puberty, you’d live long enough to die of old age, and there ain’t no vaccine for that.
Do you know what my kid has protecting him from scary diseases?
The author living up to his name: “But QUACK!” you protest. “What about the immunocompromised! We must take care of our neighbors!” Look. First off, it’s a load of bull that immunocompromised kids can’t get vaccines because the CDC took them off that list a loooong time ago. They give them vaccines, then chemo, and then more vaccines when they’re out of the woods.
If you guessed "GOD" your answer is correct! Bet you never saw that coming.
He's pretty fed up, so let's get into comments before he loses it. And we all know comments are where online communities really shine! Let's try some samples:
Because the Bible:
-First, There is no evidence to conclude the earth 200,000 years old. A biblical
worldview would put it closer to 6,000. Also, We live in a fallen creation, why
should our immune system be perfect?
K, hang on lemme check:
And disease rates began to drop dramatically with the introduction of hygiene, sanitation and nutrition…. ergo, nothing to do with modern medicine. In addition, all diseases for which kids are vaccinated were in decline before vaccines appeared. Don’t believe me, check Government records around the world dating from the 1830′.
Hey, Kettle? You black:
But it doesn’t seem like history is your strong point, as you haven’t checked the facts about smallpox and whooping cough. These diseases were on their way out loooong before vaccines came in, same with measles. I’ve thought about the future, and I’d much rather the money spent on injecting immunocomprimised children in developing countries with a formula that will weaken them even more was spent on improving their sanitation and standards of living.
Crunchy reality check:
Maybe we are missing something altogether…maybe this is Mother Nature’s way of thinning out the herd. Survival of the fittest? Maybe the recurrence of the measles and other childhood diseases is because we interfered as “mankind” often does….
Oopsie:
My family eats grass fed meats, raw dairy, organic fruits and vegetables AND we vaccinate our child. I don’t expect my organic asparagus spear to protect her from these highly contagious diseases.
“Coincidence is God's way of being anonymous.”
― Laura Pedersen, Best Bet
Maybe that was a little too wordpress pedestrian, too
Antivaxivist. How about a more thoughtful
anti-vaxxer vaccine realist like founding member of the Canary Party
Julie Obradovic. Here she is posting on a "legitimate" website, with books for sale and everything!
Exactly Who Is “Anti-vaccine”?
... snip...
If you believe you have the right not to inject yourself with something made using aborted fetal cell lines because it goes against your faith, you are “anti-vaccine.”
... snip...
If you think it’s insane that you can go to a grocery store and get a vaccine from a person who doesn’t know you or your health history, and who doesn’t tell you your rights, what to do if something goes wrong, or that you can’t sue them, the store, or the pharmaceutical company if they maim or kill you, you are “anti-vaccine.”
...snip...
If you think it’s equally insane that if a Thimerosal-containing flu shot vial is dropped or spilled in that grocery store, the store has be evacuated and a Hazmat team has to come and clean it up because of the mercury in it, but that grandma should roll up her sleeve and inject it for 10% off her bill because it’s the “safe mercury,” you are “anti-vaccine.”
...snip...
I could go on and on and on.
ed.- And she does.
THESE are the people who successfully got Rob Schneider removed as a spokesperson for an insurance company, just like they successfully got Chili’s to stop a fundraiser aimed at helping families keep track of their kids who wander from home.
And now, they want to end you. And me. And anyone who thinks they are fear-mongering jackasses, the very thing they accuse others of being. And how are they doing it?
Ok, maybe not so reasonable.
Let's not be hasty, though. Perhaps comments are where true measure of this website can be taken.
Like a unicorn only measelier:
Add to the list: I am horrible to many because I don’t feel that it is my responsibility to risk my child’s life or health for the mythical herd immunity for those that can’t have vaccines.
That's so 1998:
Adam says :- “You should really google Andrew Wakefield, the progenitor of all this, and see how he actually conducted his study”.
Just to clarify: The 1998 Lancet Wakefield et al paper was a clinical report on 12 children, treated by clinicians at the Royal Free Hospital, London for a ‘novel’ syndrome, involving autism like neurological symptoms and a specific bowel syndrome. Dr Wakefield, whose research contract prohibited any patient clinical contact, was only ONE of 13 multidisciplinary authors.
All this was more than 16 years ago. Of more relevance today is the increased incidence of autism in the intervening years, and the recent official admission autistic persons DO suffer from an increased incidence of bowel disorders, one estimate put this at 90%.
Andrew Wakefield continues to be used as a convenient scapegoat. His book ‘Callous Disregard’ tells his side of the story.
What if the tenant is a dog with no shots?:
Let’s face it, if you dare to question any tenant or dogma from the pseudo scientific high priests you are called fallacious and illogical names as the rabid followers of the religion of scientism show.
Paging Dr. Goodwin
Amen. I posted a comment on a pro vaccine, supposedly pro science blog, questioning why none of the studies listed used a saline placebo for a control. I was called a nazi adherent by the blogger and told all future posts of mine would be deleted. It is insane.
Now with peanut oil!
Alright. Nazis, mythical creatures and Andrew Wakefield under the bus. Not as legit as I had hoped.
What about a site that's got real credentials, with an author whose gravitas can not be ignored? I know! Stanford MBA, self-employed financial analyst and guy-with-a-book-for-sale Michael Belkin. That he shares his name with a prominent surgeon makes him even harder to refute!
Where Vax Choice is Winning and Why it is a Basic Human Right
Washington State is a haven for informed parents who choose to opt-out of the CDC’s draconian one-size-fits-all and ever growing vaccine schedule.
Here's something we can all be proud of.
...snip...
I’m a contributing author to the book Vaccine Epidemic. The motto of our book (coined by NYU law scholar Mary Holland) is vaccination choice is a human right. That concept comes from the Nuremberg Trials following WW2, where Nazi doctors were tried and executed by the Allies for (among other things) killing prisoners with experimental vaccines that were administered without their permission.
...snip...
Our first child (born in NYC) died within hours of getting the hep B vaccine and the coroner found a swollen brain, the classic medical textbook definition of a vaccine adverse reaction. I’d have to be out of my mind to vaccinate my kids after what happened to our daughter. Besides the experience of a personal vaccine tragedy, I’m a graduate of the UC Berkeley Haas Business School and an expert in statistical analysis – I’ve examined the vaccine propaganda closely and the fact is, it just doesn’t add up.
...snip...
Public health officials obsess over clusters of unvaccinated kids, like they are a threat to the human race. That Neanderthal view of human immunity is not supported by facts or the historical record.
...snip...
Disease rates and mortality declined dramatically after toilets, sewers and clean drinking water were established – and BEFORE vaccines were introduced.
...snip...
Educated parents who research immunity and immunization will discover that their children can gain permanent immunity through exposure to normal childhood diseases. Ironically, disease eradication programs based on vaccination are eliminating natural herd immunity and replacing it with booster-dose immunity, because vaccines are ineffective and wear off.
...snip...
I have a rock band The Refusers. We have a message of health freedom. Our music and ideas are resonating with rock music fans, and we’re currently ranked #1 in Seattle Rock on reverbnation. Our first album and music video is entitled First Do No Harm (aka The Hippocratic Oath). WA State is also ground zero in the national GMO labeling fight – our latest youtube music video is entitled Right To Know. We’re trying to wake people up to the risks of vaccines and GMOs.
Hoy crap! A website by a
Very Serious Economist plus Nazis, hip music
and books for sale? It's a more awesome trifecta than the MMR!
What about comments, though? Will we find reason and enlightenment or a bunch of fucking crazy?
If you buy the books:
Medical students normally study vaccines for only a short time at university, doctors often don’t read package inserts...Vacc critics often spend years studying vaccines and know more than the doctor.
My son would take one with broccoli oil?:
Why are so many children developing allergies to peanut butter? It’s the peanut oil being directly injected via one of the vaccine ingredients.
No Seattle Freeze from Jesus:
I’m so thankful God lead our family to WA for other reasons, so that we can also feel protected and free in our vaccination choices for our children and ourselves.
Dear Disneyland patrons: you're welcome:
There is no “herd immunity” without natural immunity. One can not be immune without having the disease and getting through it. We are hurting our children desperately by not allowing simple childhood disease to take their course.
Bunch of fucking crazy.
Oh well. At least you have some super hip new music to play at the next Daily Kos meetup. All you folks up in PNW should make it to their next gig if you can. You'll find plenty of left wingers to hang out at the kool aide stand, though you'll probably want to leave the kids at home.
Now back to our regularly scheduled program of moral outrage. Don't forget to use the sanitizer on your way out.
...and the herd immunity you rode in on!