Fundie anti-vaxxers expose religious right's moral bankruptcy
Christian Dem in NC printable version print page     Bookmark and Share
Sun Sep 02, 2012 at 10:38:14 AM EST

cross-posted at dKos

Last week, I discovered that one of the leading religious right groups in California, the Campaign for Children and Families/SaveCalifornia.com, wanted to derail a bill that would abolish the "personal belief" exemption to the childhood vaccination requirement.  SaveCalifornia.com's action alert on this bill was chock-full of anti-vaxxer hoakum.  And apparently Pat Robertson found it important enough to have CBN News highlight it.

It isn't clear from this whether Robertson has joined the anti-vaxxer flock, or is just willing to give succor to any group willing to fight for "parental rights," no matter how loony they sound.  But one thing is clear beyond all doubt.  Those on the religious right who embrace anti-vaxxer hoakum have inadvertently exposed their movement's moral bankruptcy for all to see.

Think about it.  They wring their hands about gay marriage possibly destroying the fabric of our society, but they're perfectly OK with a practice that has been proven several times over to be a threat to public health.  They talk so much about the sanctity of human life, but appear to be deliberately ignorant about putting other people's children and those with weak immune systems in danger.
While the religious right's vocal support of "creation science" and "intelligent design" gets a lot of ink, the apparent embrace of anti-vaxxerism by some elements of it is much, much more dangerous.  While pushing for creationism to be taught in science classes is merely ignorant and stupid, not getting your kids vaccinated can actually get innocent people killed.  Somehow, we need to put our heads together and find out just how far this claptrap has spread--and if any religious right leaders actually subscribe to it, they need to be called out, loudly.


To discuss this story, sign up for a free account

Display:
Fundie anti-vaxxers expose religious right's moral bankruptcy | 18 comments (18 topical, 0 hidden)
Vaccinatins are Dangerous (none / 0)
Vaccinatins have proven to be dangerous. At the very least they contain mercury/themerosol, as well as many other unsafe chemicals. It has been proven that vaccines cause autism (from mercury) and a host of other illnesses that our children are acquiring in ever-progressing numbers. The CDC is trying to vaccinate babies as young as one month old which is clearly an idiotic idea. Babies haven't formed their immune systems yet so they aren't able to form immunities to whatever disease they're being vaccinated against; meanwhile, it also harms their immune systems at that age. My husband worked many years as a virologist/microbiologist for the State Of Pennsylvania Dept of Health and knows this. He did everything he could to delay his daughter's vaccinations, because the doctor wanted to start them when she was one month old. She was about 3 when she got her first one and today she is official mentally impaired. My husband still wonders if it's from the vaccines she got when she was too young for them. If a baby drinks its mother's breast milk, he/she automatically has immunity because they get it from the mother's milk.

by wolvenwood on Thu Oct 11, 2012 at 06:33:08 PM EST
Pure Hogwash (none / 0)
Mercury was removed from vaccines a decade ago. In Europe more than twice that long ago. Nothing changed. There is not a single credible study that shows vaccines cause the alleged cases of autism. There are only the manufactured anecdotes spread by the right-wing loons. Children are born with no immune system? That's one of the dumbest things I've heard since the last time pat robertson opened his mouth. What is real is the studies that show not vaccinating children is dangerous. It tak