Following on from a discussion on conscription and the comments to that referring to vaccination and herd immunisation, this is relevant.
As a measles epidemic in south Wales continues to spread at an “alarming rate” an expert has said mandatory vaccinations should be considered.
Dr Paul Offit, a US-based measles expert, told the BBC that mandatory vaccinations in America had prevented similar outbreaks.
His comments came as measles cases in the Swansea area rose to 620.
The Welsh government said it believed the “hard won trust” in MMR would be damaged if vaccination was compulsory.
The “expert” is wrong, the Welsh government – for once – is right. It is not the place of the state to dictate what is put into people’s bodies – even if it is believed to be for their own good. The vaccine is available. The knowledge of the risks is open to all. We then make our decisions – in the case of minors, parents do this on their behalf. Not the state!
Herd immunity is not a sufficient argument to justify the enforced medication of the individual. If, as a consequence of refusal, the individual falls ill and even dies, that is their risk to take. It is not for anyone else to make that decision for them. That way lies totalitarianism. In the previous discussion, I somewhat flippantly referred to it as being “so USSR”, but there is a serious point to be made here, it is the kind of behaviour we could expect from such a regime. It has no place in a liberal democracy. As for placing others at risk of infection – well, only those who have, likewise, chosen to take the risk. Those who opted for vaccination will be protected by it. It is a personal choice. It must always be a personal choice. Inform, educate, encourage by all means. But forcing a substance into someone else’s body without their express consent is wrong. It is always wrong. While I believe it is foolish to eschew the MMR vaccine based upon the corrupt and deeply flawed scare mongering of a couple of decades back, allowing forced vaccination would create a precedent when the next scare about an epidemic occurs and they force us all to take untested vaccines against our will. I refused the Flu vaccine when we were being regaled with doom, gloom death and destruction from swine flu a couple of years back and they had oodles of untried vaccines sitting on shelves that had been bought in to combat it. That is the reality of forced medication and we should always resist it.
Yes, even if some people die.
Absolutely agreed. As long as people are made aware that actions have consequences and they are made to reap what they sow, then I don’t see a problem. Compulsory vaccination would probably be, on balance, a good thing. It would still be wrong.
It would be a good idea right up until people started dying as a consequence of untried vaccines. We have clinical trials for a very good reason; to make sure that the cure isn’t worse than the disease. Our trigger-happy, know-it-all medial profession would see vaccination as a cure-all despite those trials not having taken place as happened with swine flu. At the moment, we can refuse. And a bloody good job, too.
All that apart, the whole concept is deeply immoral.
I refuse flu jabs despite being an old git and therefore “vulnerable”. When they develop one which will sort out the millions of flu varieties I might start to consider it. As it is, the needle jockeys themselves admit that the jab is only effective against a few.
Its effectively compulsory in this part of the world for kids. Try getting into a state school without a vaccination ‘certificate’
I have heard the argument that the non-vaccinated catch the viruscand allow it to mutate thereby puting everyone at ridk again but I suspect that is somewhat exaggerated.
I avoid immunization like the plague. There’s more sickness inside than out.
XX Dr Paul Offit, a US-based measles expert, told the BBC that mandatory vaccinations in America had prevented similar outbreaks.XX
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