again, it’s a personal decision, and complicated by the fact that the government makes mistakes. but to me it’s partially a moral question, the idea of letting other people take a risk so that I can enjoy our modern freedom from polio, smallpox and (hopefully) the flu epidemics that killed millions of people in the past century. not clear cut, but worthy of considering both sides. for what it’s worth, in the Army I declined the anthrax shots, and dont get flu shots. if we had older relatives in the home or somebody otherwise susceptible that would change. kids aren’t likely to die from flu, but they get shots because they are little disease vectors – they touch each other, play with animals, eat dirty things, then bring it all home.

I definitely want to control what’s injected in my kids and would hope schools can’t give shots without consent? but you’ve got me worried and I’m checking on it.

Jon, I agree with Jen that that those who are leery of the government’s vaccination advice should not be lumped together with those who believe that “9/11 was an inside job” or that “aliens are living among us”.

Have you read through these other 4 posts I’ve written about vaccines? (http://kellythekitchenkop.com/category/vaccines) Take a look if you have a chance.

Keep in mind we had our youngest get SOME shots, but not ALL. (It still made me very nervous though, I wrote about it in one of those posts.) The rest of our kids got them all, because I didn’t know any better then. Also in one of the above posts is a link to a comparison of the number of vaccines required 20 years ago and the number required today – a HUGE difference, and one that is making drug companies millions.

Kelly

jon w: I didn’t see anything in this post, the video, or in the comments here about 9/11 being an inside job, or that aliens are living among us. I’m pretty sure no one said vaccinations are a conspiracy theory either. I didn’t read the comments on the video website, so maybe you saw those things there.

The video contains FACTS, not fiction. Many more people were injured and killed from the 1976 swine flu vaccination than were sickened or died from the disease. I don’t believe for a nanosecond that much has changed since then!

I trained and worked in scientific research for many years. I agree that most people working in infectious disease epidemiology are good people, who care about others. I even think the majority of laboratory scientists who work for pharmaceutical companies are good people, who think they’re doing the right thing. It is people in the upper levels of government agencies and Big Pharma who could care less about anything (not even the American people) except making money… and lots of it.

Do a little research about vaccinations and their history. Read some of the heartbreaking stories of the thousands of people with loved ones (mostly infants and children) who have been injured or killed from vaccinations, with no government response to their loss. These are only the people who actually filed a complaint. Most don’t, so the numbers are even higher. See how many upper level people have gone through the revolving door of working in the pharmaceutical industry, then into government agencies, then back into pharmaceutics. Or vice versa. Can you say MAJOR conflict of interest? Follow the money.

Here is a good example of this conflict of interest, and note the author.

http://thinktwice.com/Kennedy.pdf

The example you use to support vaccination is compelling, but not realistic. Did you notice that the head of the CDC back in 1976 admitted that they did not have even ONE confirmed case of swine flu before they started vaccinating the American people using that fear campaign? Once you research vaccinations, you will find that with every disease (I believe. There may be an exception.) death rates were way down from the peak BEFORE the vaccination was put into practice. Some vaccinations, like Hep B, are completely ridiculous to give to one day old infants or children. So why is it recommended for every American baby? The money.

There is simply no way I will allow my child to be vaccinated. Not because I think they are scams, or because I think it’s all a conspiracy. The evidence is simply not there to support it as a benefit to him. The risk is too high. There is no way a swine flu vaccination can be developed, adequately tested for safety, and mass produced by fall or winter of this year. It will be a huge experiment on Americans, and my family will not be volunteering for that study. There is plenty of evidence to support the fact that the more vaccinations the CDC recommends, the more money pharmaceutical companies will make.

Finally, if you care about traditional real food and think dietary science is horrible, then I REALLY hope you don’t eat CAFO meat and support that model of agriculture. Animal vaccination, in order to sustain the horrible abuse of animals, workers, and cheap meat should be a crime.

imagine an extreme example: a disease is going around that kills 50% of people who get it, and we have a vaccine that prevents the disease but also poses 1% risk of death. if enough people are vaccinated, the disease will not spread, and lives will be saved, though we will never know who they were. on the other hand, there will be victims. they are truly victims of the disease, not victims of poor government policy, or of some conspiracy. in that situation, it is sound public health policy to get as many people vaccinated as possible, to save lives. the numbers I gave are extreme to make a point. if such a situation existed, it would be pretty obvious that the vaccine is a good choice. but in reality it’s never that clear, since new diseases are unknown, and they change as they spread in a population. we don’t know the risks of the next epidemic. we just know that in some years, 10,000 extra people die during flu season, and some years just a few hundred.

knowing that the government’s job is to err on the side of caution and avoid an epidemic, it may be sound INDIVIDUAL policy to avoid the shot, in hopes that the government overestimated the risk, or even if they didnt, that other people’s shots will be enough to protect you. just be aware that you are a “free rider” letting other people take a risk so that you can be a little more safe. it’s fine to make an individual decision for your family’s health, but wild conspiracy theories arent necessary.

I do homeschool my kids, and one of the many reasons is to avoid forced vaccination. Gardasil is now required in Texas, I’m told. No way on earth anyone is getting THAT needle anywhere near my daughter. She’s already damaged by the first three rounds of baby shots I allowed. Grrrrr….

Just last week on the local news, the anchor was speaking of how now in LA kids have to have two rounds of Chickenpox by 4 and the Meningitis vaccine by 11 or they couldn’t go to school, would not be allowed to attend classes is how it was stated. I was so annoyed because that’s not the law, but yet, hardly anyone knows the law. Why don’t people learn things for themselves rather than letting the media and the government tell them what to do all the time???

Motherhen68’s last blog post..

We have an anti-vaccination letter on file at our (home) school that clearly states our position. It’s best to think about these things before the official asks the question. I agree, proactivity is important!

Local Nourishment’s last blog post..Cold stuff for hot days