Tag: slogans

Who is Taylor Winterstein?

Some folks got an introduction to Taylor Winterstein when she planned to take her $200 a person anti-vax tour across Australia and New Zealand earlier this year.

Taylor Winterstein planned an anti-vax tour across Australia, New Zealand, and Samoa.

What’s wrong with that?

These are all places that are dealing with very large measles outbreaks…

Who is Taylor Winterstein?

And Samoa.

We shouldn’t forget that Samoa was on her International Tour.

What about the choice of those who are put at risk because they are too young to be vaccinated or who can't be vaccinated?
Catchy slogan, but what about the choice of those who are put at risk because they are too young to be vaccinated or who can’t be vaccinated?

You likely remember Samoa because of the vaccine tragedy that happened there. Two infants died after nurses mixed up the diluent for the MMR vaccine with a powerful anesthetic.

Vaccines were already halted in Samoa, but that didn’t keep Taylor Winterstein from planning to go and further scare folks away from vaccinating and protecting their kids.

And where are we now?

Taylor Winterstein was very excited to meet Andy Wakefield.
Winterstein actually went to the Truth About Cancer event, which is basically set up to film “free” seminars that push natural treatments for cancer that they later sell to folks for only $499.

While Taylor Winterstein and her family were in California, meeting Andy Wakefield, there has been an epidemic of measles in Samoa, where at least one unvaccinated infant has already died.

“From 1 January 2019 to 10 October 2019 there have been 1742 confirmed cases of measles notified across New Zealand. 1416 of these confirmed cases are in the Auckland region.”

2019 NZ measles outbreak information

There has also been an awful lot of measles in New Zealand, which was also on her little tour. Two unborn babies have died during these outbreaks, and there are also reports of at least three hospitalizations for encephalitis.

Measles cases are also on the rise in Australia.

Vaccines very rarely cause severe injuries or death.
Vaccines very rarely cause severe injuries or death.

There is a risk to listening to folks like Taylor Winterstein. You have a choice to ignore them and stop spreading their propaganda.

More on Taylor Winterstein

Decoding Anti-Vaccine Protests

Yes, even in this age of record–breaking measles cases, there are some anti-vaccine folks protesting because they want to keep their kids unvaccinated and unprotected.

Decoding Anti-Vaccine Protests

What reasons do they have to intentionally not vaccinate their kids?

Who's protecting us from the people protesting against vaccines?
Who’s protecting us from the people protesting against vaccines?

As many reasons as there are anti-vaccine talking points…

What is truly disturbing though, is that today’s anti-vaccine protestors are co-opting many symbols, language, and slogans and using them to get attention.

Del Bigtree wasn't the only one to wear a yellow star during anti-vaccine protests.
Del Bigtree wasn’t the only one to wear a yellow star during anti-vaccine protests.

Remember when anti-vaccine folks had to be called out for using Holocaust imagery to protest against vaccines.

How Did These Become Anti-Vaccine Slogans?

That’s not all they are doing though.

Did you know that they are also using:

If you do not consent, you won't get vaccinated and protected.
  • Me Too – a movement to support survivors and end sexual violence, anti-vaccine folks use it to when they talk about vaccine injuries.
  • I do not consent – typically about limiting searches when police don’t have a warrant, the anti-vaccine movement abuses it for something that they do have to consent for – getting vaccinated! If you do not consent, you won’t get vaccinated and protected.
  • Informed consent – again, this is something anti-vaccine folks abuse, as their decisions are being influenced by myths and misinformation, so it is not informed consent. It’s more like misinformed consent.

And then there are the anti-vaxxers who use “choice” as their argument.

If you weren't aware, this post makes it obvious where the choice argument comes from. No, it's not AoA, but from the pro-choice movement.
If you weren’t aware, this post makes it obvious where the choice argument comes from. No, it’s not AoA, but from the pro-choice movement.

Anti-vaxxers are only pro-choice for not vaccinating their kids though. They don’t care if we have a choice about wanting to be protected from being exposed to vaccine-preventable diseases.

Dog Whistles for Refusing Vaccines

What’s the big problem with choice as an argument for anti-vaccine folks?

Parents already have a choice to leave their kids unvaccinated and at risk for measles and other vaccine-preventable diseases.

They already have choices!

No one is forcing them to vaccinate their kids.

Of course, what they want is more choices. They want the option to send their intentionally unvaccinated kids to daycare and school, where they would pose a risk to others. They want to limit our choices for decreasing the risks of keeping our kids safe from vaccine-preventable diseases.

How? Their intentionally unvaccinated kids are at greater risk to get measles and other vaccine-preventable diseases, which they can then spread to others.

What does all of this really mean?

Just realize that all of these slogans are being co-opted and are being used as dog whistles for the anti-vaccine movement, diluting their original meaning.

More on Decoding Anti-Vaccine Protests

I Don’t Have a Cookie, But I Can Still Give You Measles

If you spend a little time trying to talk about vaccines with someone who has decided to intentionally leave their kids unvaccinated and unprotected, it soon becomes obvious that their decision isn’t based on sound reasoning.

Of course, that’s because anti-vaccine talking points are all based on myths and misinformation.

One idea that they have an especially hard time understanding is that children and adults who are intentionally unvaccinated are the ones who start most outbreaks.

How can they get others sick if they aren’t sick?

Well, they can’t, if they never get sick. But since they are unvaccinated and not immune, they are at increased risk to get sick.

I wouldn't take a cookie from someone who equates giving people cookies to getting measles...
Not having a cookie doesn’t make you immune to getting cookies…

It’s just like with the cookies… If you never, ever have or make cookies, then you can’t give us any cookies.

On the other hand, if you don’t have any cookies, but someone brings you all of the ingredients to make the best chocolate chip cookies ever, then you can bake up some cookies for us.

Just like measles.

More on Cookies and Measles

Should I Stop Calling Chickenpox and Measles Diseases?

Sherri Tenpenny wants us to stop calling chickenpox and measles diseases.

She thinks that we should call them infections instead…

Should I Stop Calling Chickenpox and Measles Diseases?

If you are like most people, you are probably thinking to yourself and maybe even shouting at your computer screen right now, “who cares what you call them, just get vaccinated and stop the outbreaks!”

When you vaccinate to avoid an infection, what you are potentially doing is preventing a death!
When you vaccinate to avoid an infection, what you are potentially doing is preventing a death!

Believe it or not, there is actually some precedent for changing the way we talk about diseases. While you may still refer to them as STDs, or sexually transmitted diseases out of habit, the prefererable term is actually STI, or sexually tranmistted infection.

Of course, this has nothing to do with Tenpenny’s reasoning.

“Why the change? The concept of ‘disease,’ as in STD, suggests a clear medical problem, usually some obvious signs or symptoms. But several of the most common STDs have no signs or symptoms in the majority of persons infected. Or they have mild signs and symptoms that can be easily overlooked. So the sexually transmitted virus or bacteria can be described as creating ‘infection,’ which may or may not result in ‘disease.’ This is true of chlamydia, gonorrhea, herpes, and human papillomavirus (HPV), to name a few.

For this reason, for some professionals and organizations the term ‘disease’ is being replaced by ‘infection.'”

ASHA on STDs/STIs

In fact, their definitions sound nothing like Tenpennys…

Unfortunately, many STIs, even if they aren’t causing symptoms and disease, can still be contagious.

Measles and chickenpox don’t do that. Although you can be contagious just before you start to have symptoms, you will very quickly develop symptoms.

It is true that some viruses and bacteria can lead to subclinical infections, in which you develop immunity without ever developing symptoms, but that doesn’t usually happen with measles and chicken pox.

Polio is one of the best examples of when it does happen. Remember, nearly 75% of kids who got polio never had any symptoms. Tragically, those symptoms could be severe in the small percentage who did.

So as usual, Sherri Tenpenny is wrong.

Chickenpox and measles are infections that cause disease. And while most people recover after 7 to 10 days of symptoms, including a high fever and rash, some don’t.

Both also put you at risk for long-term complications, namely shingles and SSPE.

Remember, if you listen to folks like her and skip or delay your child’s vaccines and they get chickenpox or measles, the only thing you are doing is causing more people to get sick. A catchy slogan won’t prevent that or keep your kids healthy.

More on Diseases vs Infections