Tag: slogans

Getting Vaccinated to Protect Those Who Can’t Get the Vaccines

Most people get vaccinated because those vaccines have the direct benefit of reducing their risk of getting a life-threatening vaccine preventable disease. Protecting those who can’t get vaccines is a secondary benefit.

Should you get vaccinated to protect those who can't get the vaccines?
Does rationalizing your decision in anti-vax Facebook groups help you feel better that you are putting kids with cancer at greater risk to get sick?

A secondary benefit that anti-vax folks go to great lengths to convince themselves isn’t real and justify their decision to leave their kids unvaccinated and unprotected..

Getting Vaccinated to Protect Those Who Can’t Get the Vaccines

Of course, none of their explanations really hold water.

None of the vaccines that are routinely used on the CDC immunization schedule are a risk if you are around kids with cancer or other immunodeficiencies, except for FluMist and those with severe issues, like being in a bone marrow transplant unit.

One of the biggest misconceptions though, is that in getting vaccinated, parents are putting their own kids at great risk to protect someone else.

Don't set your kid on fire to keep mine warm!
Don’t set your kid on fire to keep mine warm!

Of course, that’s not true.

Remember, vaccines are safe, with few risks.

That why the analogy of setting their own kids on fire to keep others warm doesn’t make any sense.

After all, unlike vaccinating their own child, setting their child on fire offers them no benefit!

And they should understand that the one and only reason that their kids don’t get more vaccine-preventable diseases in this dog eat dog world is because the vast majority of us vaccinate and protect our kids.

Herd immunity is indeed real. In addition to protecting those who can’t be vaccinated, it protects the free-riders, those who just don’t want to get vaccinated.

What about the idea that it is unrealistic for folks who are immunocompromised to expect that they can lead normal lives and avoid infections?

You can't avoid all risks of infection, but why not avoid those that you can?

While it is true that there are other infections out there besides those that are vaccine-preventable, wouldn’t you want to at least reduce those risks that you can?

But could it be, as much as they seem to believe in shedding, that they think they are being altruistic in not vaccinating their kids?

Anti-vax folks are all about the shedding...
Anti-vax folks are all about the shedding…

They aren’t.

In most cases, there are no restrictions on vaccinating people who have contact with those with immune system problems.

What about the idea that vaccines cause cancer?

Vaccines prevent cancer!
Vaccines prevent cancer!

That isn’t true. In fact, there are several vaccines that prevent cancer!

What other misconceptions do they have?

Most of the reasons folks use to avoid vaccines have been refuted a thousand times.
Most of the reasons folks use to avoid vaccines have been refuted a thousand times.

Let’s look at those last few issues…

  • vaccines are not associated with autism
  • vaccines aren’t perfect, but they do work very well
  • vaccines do help those with immune system problems, sometimes directly and more often because of herd immunity
  • people who have cancer are often vaccinated before they have chemo, but that protection gets wiped out during treatment and they can’t get caught up until after they have completed all of their treatments
  • kids with cancer might get some vaccines, but typically don’t get live vaccines

What about the idea that your unvaccinated child isn’t sick, so can’t get anyone else sick?

While that is a very common argument among anti-vax parents, it is very important that if your child is unvaccinated, then they are at much greater risk to catch a vaccine-preventable disease. And since you are often contagious even before you show symptoms, they might unknowingly expose many other people before they even realize that they are sick.

Hopefully you now understand it was never really a question.

That's why you get vaccinated, to protect those who can't get the vaccines!

Vaccinate and protect your kids.

If you don’t, in addition to putting them at risk to get sick, you put everyone around them at risk, including some who are at very high risk for severe complications from vaccine preventable diseases.

More on Risks from Unvaccinated Kids

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