Anti-Vaccine ExplosionFollow

Lately there seems to be a great deal of anti-vaccination propaganda going around on the internet through various social network sites and forums. It struck home the other day when I learned my younger sister, a so-called "crunchy mom" who refuses to use formula and disposable diapers, among other things, will not be vaccinating my newborn nephew-- if she can help it. My wife and I put in our two cents, but we are not in any position to try and force my sister to raise her children in any particular way.

You are part of the problem. You're normalizing crazy bullsh*t behavior and making it a viable "choice". There's no "put our two cents in". Her not vaccinating her kid puts MY kids at risk. That's not ok. If people started making this clearer instead of being "nice" there would be less dead children. That is in no way hyperbole.

Edited, Jun 15th 2014 5:53pm by Smasharoo

People are selfish and stupid. This is not news.

As far as holding them accountable in a legal sense, you'd have to prove they knew the information was false. You can't prosecute stupidity.

So, what Smash said. Tell her that her selfishness is putting her kid, other peoples' kids, the elderly, and people with compromised immune systems at risk. MANY communicable diseases are contagious before symptoms appear, so "I'll keep him home if he gets sick" doesn't cut it.

During the American Civil War, nearly twice as many soldiers died of disease as were killed in battle. Many of those diseases are preventable today: measles, mumps, pertussis, rubella. The fact that these "childhood" diseases killed so many otherwise healthy young men - more than cannon balls and bullets killed - should give one pause.

Then you can slap her around about flu.


Edit: eh, verb tenses, what are ya gonna do.

Edited, Jun 15th 2014 3:06pm by Samira

Nuke it from orbit. It's the only way to be sure.

Also, you might point out that mumps can make her kid sterile. While that's not the worst possible outcome, it's not necessarily a conversation she's going to want to have with her kid later. "Well, an actress said it was bad to vaccinate you, so...."

Ask her why she believes what she does. Whatever her reason; It is wrong & demonstrably so. Show her the information proving her wrongness

That doesn't work at all. Just tell her you won't have any contact with her if she refuses to vaccinate her kids. Sounds harsh, I realize, and I realize you aren't going to and she won't vaccinate her kids because people suck and everything is awful, but that's what you should do. If my brother had a kid and decided not to vaccinate him, I wouldn't see him any more. It's an idiotic decision, and harmful to that child and other children. It'd be less offensive if she were putting cigarettes out on his arms. What it's become in society, though, is a "choice" parents make. It should be legally mandated without exceptions, as a risk to public health. Because it's a risk to public health.

Have her watch this?

I seriously don't understand how it puts your kids at risk? If they are vaccinated, what is the worry? If the vaccine won't protect them from direct exposure, what is the point then?

Disclosure: I have a general distrust of what I feel is over-vaccination and over-medication of people today. It just seems that people aren't developing strong immune systems, and I also wonder why it seems the number of kids with allergies is on the rise in number and severity.

The vaccinations are not 100% effective for 100% of those vaccinated. An unvaccinated person puts everyone at risk from getting the disease. Don't be stupid. Look at the data. It's pretty indisputable. Measles, pertussis - they were pretty much eliminated in this country until vaccinations 'exemptions' became hip.

Vaccinations are not medication. Get the information you need to trust or not to trust. A 'general distrust' because of 'whatever' is not only irrational but ignorant and dangerous.

Opting out of vaccines only has a chance of working if you convince everyone else to get the vaccine. That minimizes the chance that something like measles or whatever will be circulating in the population to a degree that threatens your child. Encouraging others not to get vaccinated, or worse yet getting together at some rally and hanging out with other unvaccinated is about the dumbest thing you could do.

I hear plastic bubbles are all the rage though.

Then it'll be something else like fluoride lowering their kids' immune systems so the measles could get them. This isn't a set looking to take strong personal responsibility.

During 2012, 48,277 cases of pertussis were reported to CDC, including 20 pertussis-related deaths. The majority of deaths occurred among infants younger than 3 months of age.

http://www.cdc.gov/pertussis/outbreaks/trends.html

http://www.cdc.gov/pertussis/images/incidence-graph-age.jpg


The earliest you can be vaccinated is 2 months, so no, ***hole "you're kids are vaccinated what's the problem?" doesn't work. I know pediatricians that had literally never seen a case of pertussis until about 10 years ago. Now, about a dozen children a year who can't be vaccinated because they are too young die from it. The good news is that's a small number, when you look at all infant deaths likely attributable to incomplete "heard immunity" it gets to be hundreds. That's hundreds of dead infants too young to have been vaccinated.

That completely sets aside kids who were vaccinated and for whatever reason the vaccine didn't "work". It happens. The idea is that since it happens rarely, if everyone is vaccinated there will be no vector for the outlying failed vaccinations to get infected. Unless your sister is in town, obviously. Those people die, too. Flu is a thing, by the way. People need to stop thinking "no big deal just flu" because it's common. A lot of people die from flu. Most years hundreds of kids die from flu, fortunately, about 90% of them aren't vaccinated, the other 10% probably just live near your sister.

It's a problem. For me, not for your sister. She's adding to my child's risk, just as she would be if she was driving drunk. "You're driving sober, what's the problem" isn't a compelling argument, either.

Edited, Jun 17th 2014 12:51pm by Smasharoo

On the other hand, if you get it while you're in middle/high school, you just get a mandatory week out of classes.

Funny thing was that I'm certain I was up to date on all my vaccinations. I almost died from an infection later that year, so it could have been something screwy with my immune system.

Edit: Apparently it's milder in teens/adults and the protection fades without a booster.

Edited, Jun 16th 2014 1:21pm by Poldaran

Don't forget, there's lots of people that can't be vaccinated for various reasons (week immune systems. other treatments, etc.). They have to rely on "herd" immunity. They can't rely on it if stupid people aren't immunizing their kids.