The outbreak of measles traced to Disneyland in California is causing a bit of a ruckus. To vaccinate or not to vaccinate ... that is the latest media buzz. If possible, politicians (should) run away from this hot potato because it's a no-win situation. But, not aspiring to any political office, lets me offer a few comments:
First, there is the question of individual freedom. There are many groups who are exempt from the state forcing this medical procedure upon them ... I think the Amish sect for one. Therefore, it seems that the government has already conceded exemptions ... and, therefore, the barn door is already open.
Second, parents who decide against vaccinating their children should be made aware of the statistical trade offs in this choice. If vaccinating brings a one in a million risk of a serious side-effect versus a one in ten thousand risk of other onerous consequences from not getting vaccinated, then they can and should act rationally. However, if the odds are reversed then this also needs to be well communicated to them. Moreover these odds obviously change as the population of un-vaccinated children grows or shrinks. Parents should also be well informed of this changing dynamic. The public policy of forcing vaccinations presupposes that many parents will not take into account these trade offs ... possibly a realistic assumption in a country that elected Barack Obama twice.
Third, and I hate to bring global warming into this discussion ... but when our government makes claims about global warming as "proven science" and anyone with a half a brain can see that this is bull hockey, additional "scientific" claims by our government are then easily discounted. The government and media-trumpeted fallacies of the dangers of butter, salt, etc.also add to the public discrediting of all such governmental pronouncements.
Fourth, I do believe that the analogy that has been made between our government quarantining suspected Ebola carriers and forcing vaccinations is a false one ... because there is now no recourse for the general public against infection by Ebola. An educated public can easily protect itself to a significant degree against contracting measles.
And lastly, the tying of vaccinations to autism by some prominent media figures ... such as Jenny McCarthy, Deidre Imus, and Robert Kennedy Jr..... were all based on very feeble scientific evidence. This really is the genesis of much of the current anti-vaccination movement. I personally think the upsurge in autism could easily be being caused by the increased use of designer drugs by one or both parents ... see: Yes We Cannabis. Now, I wouldn't be that upset if the autism-anxious parents of America started a boycott of designer drugs.
