muffler dragon
Bien. Bien chiludo.
I figured I would start a thread regarding this lovely "hot button" topic for those who want to debate/discuss it.
I read the following article this morning, and here are some pertinent snippets:
Parents may be jailed over vaccinations - Yahoo! News
My thoughts on the matter are this:
I have researched the carrier agents used for immunizations/vaccinations. I have researched the potential health benefits and health dangers of immunizations/vaccinations.
My wife and I have decided to NOT immunize our children.
Needless to say, I feel that the opinions stated in the article regarding my decision are fallacious, but that can be discussed in subsequent posts.
Let me know your thoughts.
I read the following article this morning, and here are some pertinent snippets:
Parents may be jailed over vaccinations - Yahoo! News
LONDON - As doctors struggle to eradicate polio worldwide, one of their biggest problems is persuading parents to vaccinate their children. In Belgium, authorities are resorting to an extreme measure: prison sentences.
The polio vaccine is the only one required by Belgian law. Exceptions are granted only if parents can prove their children might have a bad physical reaction to the vaccine.
"Polio is a very serious disease and has caused great suffering in the past," said Dr. Victor Lusayu, head of Belgium's international vaccine centre. "The discovery of the vaccine has eliminated polio from Europe and it is simply the law in Belgium that you have to be vaccinated. ... At the end of the day, the law must be respected."
Some ethicists back the hardline Belgian stance.
"Nobody has the right to unfettered liberty, and people do not have a right to endanger their kids," said John Harris, a professor of bioethics at the University of Manchester.
"The parents in this case do not have any rights they can appeal to. They have obligations they are not fulfilling."
Ethicists argue that people who refuse vaccinations are taking advantage of everyone else who has been vaccinated. Once the majority of a population is vaccinated, there are few susceptible people the disease can infect, thus lowering the odds of an outbreak. People who refuse to be vaccinated are "free riders," Harris said. "They can only afford to refuse the vaccine because they are surrounded by people who have fulfilled their obligations to the community."
My thoughts on the matter are this:
I have researched the carrier agents used for immunizations/vaccinations. I have researched the potential health benefits and health dangers of immunizations/vaccinations.
My wife and I have decided to NOT immunize our children.
Needless to say, I feel that the opinions stated in the article regarding my decision are fallacious, but that can be discussed in subsequent posts.
Let me know your thoughts.