Vaccinations--Should they be mandated?

[magekillr]

The controversy obviously arrives from two stems, at least two stems that I can muster up.

 

 

 

The first being that there are links to autism. Now, most scientists in the scientific community have established that vaccinations are not the cause of autism, and that there are many other factors in play.

 

 

 

The second being that people want control over their own bodies, and they do not want the government saying what they can inject into you for the public good.

 

 

 

The counter argument to this is that diseases are currently kept at a level of control, and when people start to develop the mentality to not get vaccinations en masse as opposed to a few disgruntled folks, they could start being more widespread. The reason some people want to make vaccinations mandatory is because it IS a public health issue.

 

 

 

So, do you support mandatory vaccinations, or not?

 

 

 

I am on the fence because I don't quite know where the line should be drawn to helping the public good with their health, and their freedom.

[Lenticular_J]

Huh, I really have the same opinion as you. If people want to ruin their bodies, I say go ahead.

 

 

 

But that same argument is used for drugs, and I definitely am not on the fence about hard drugs.

[meol]

There's a point where all personal freedoms cease, and it's where they collide with other people's freedoms. Non-vaccinated people may later become vectors of the disease and help it expand, especially harming others who might have not been vaccinated yet -like the case of young children. Personal freedom must have its limits for the sake of society.

[Princess Viola]

Ironically, I got my vaccinations today.

[Range_This11]

I have never been vaccinated in my entire life for anything. I will fight to my last breath never to get vaccinated unless it is absolutely necessary (stepping on a rusty nail, etc.). I urge the government to just try to make me do it.

[Princess Viola]

I have never been vaccinated in my entire life for anything. I will fight to my last breath never to get vaccinated unless it is absolutely necessary (stepping on a rusty nail, etc.). I urge the government to just try to make me do it.

 

Shame on you :shame:

 

 

 

Barack Obama's first law, Range_This11 must be vaccinated or he/she/it/ will be deported.

[Range_This11]

 

Shame on you :shame:

 

 

 

Barack Obama's first law, Range_This11 must be vaccinated or he/she/it/ will be deported.

 

Shame on me for wanting to control my own body? Excuse me, but I have an immune system, and it's a very good one. It's the same immune system that has never gotten me the flu or any other sickness aside from the common cold or food poisoning. I can do perfectly alright without a vaccine.

[Zierro]

I think I agree with Meol on this one. I mean, what is the point in causing more health risks to yourself and others around you?

 

 

 

I have never been vaccinated in my entire life for anything. I will fight to my last breath never to get vaccinated unless it is absolutely necessary (stepping on a rusty nail, etc.). I urge the government to just try to make me do it.

 

 

 

Why do you feel that way?

[Range_This11]

 

Why do you feel that way?

 

I believe that it is my body and I can control what is and is not done to it. I believe that having a healthy and working immune system means it needs to work on its own. I just don't believe in vaccines other than ones that are life saving and emergency situations. I've lived for 19 years and never gotten a disease or sickness that needed a vaccine. I think that's enough proof for me.

[user1991]

No, you should not have to have a vaccination. Personally I will, because I don't want to get a disease that will kill me, but if someone doesn't want to, then they shouldn't have to.

[ThurinEthir]

I agree with Meol. Getting a vaccination for a serious disease is for the common good. If it's something minor, then no, it shouldn't be mandatory.

 

I don't see why anyone would be against vaccinations, you get a needle stuck into your arm for a second or two, which can save you a lot of pain or even your life. Hrmf.

[user1991]

I agree with Meol. Getting a vaccination for a serious disease is for the common good. If it's something minor, then no, it shouldn't be mandatory.

 

I don't see why anyone would be against vaccinations, you get a needle stuck into your arm for a second or two, which can save you a lot of pain or even your life. Hrmf.

 

 

 

I'm not against vaccinations, but I don't think we should FORCE anyone to have them.

[warri0r45]

I support vaccines, and yes they should be mandated for children. Meol hit the nail on the head with the personal freedom vs. vaccines issue. Looking at it from a pragmatic point of view, it's getting jabbed by a needle for the sake of seriously lessening the chance that others in society catch a disease. Take diphtheria as an example here - throughout the 1920s, 15,000 people in the U.S. died from it [1] while in the 80s, only 33 people actually got the disease. [2] Wherever the vaccine has been used effectively, the rates of incidence have gone down. As far as I'm concerned that's a good thing, and it's the kind of thing that should be mandated.

 

 

 

I agree with Meol. Getting a vaccination for a serious disease is for the common good. If it's something minor, then no, it shouldn't be mandatory.

 

I don't see why anyone would be against vaccinations, you get a needle stuck into your arm for a second or two, which can save you a lot of pain or even your life. Hrmf.

 

 

 

I'm not against vaccinations, but I don't think we should FORCE anyone to have them.

 

 

 

Why not? School is good, and we force that on kids. Vaccines are good too, and we force those on kids as well. So we should.

 

 

 

Why do you think we shouldn't?

[user1991]

I support vaccines, and yes they should be mandated for children. Meol hit the nail on the head with the personal freedom vs. vaccines issue. Looking at it from a pragmatic point of view, it's getting jabbed by a needle for the sake of seriously lessening the chance that others in society catch a disease. Take diphtheria as an example here - throughout the 1920s, 15,000 people in the U.S. died from it [1] while in the 80s, only 33 people actually got the disease. [2] Wherever the vaccine has been used effectively, the rates of incidence have gone down. As far as I'm concerned that's a good thing, and it's the kind of thing that should be mandated.

 

 

 

I agree with Meol. Getting a vaccination for a serious disease is for the common good. If it's something minor, then no, it shouldn't be mandatory.

 

I don't see why anyone would be against vaccinations, you get a needle stuck into your arm for a second or two, which can save you a lot of pain or even your life. Hrmf.

 

 

 

I'm not against vaccinations, but I don't think we should FORCE anyone to have them.

 

 

 

Why not? School is good, and we force that on kids. Vaccines are good too, and we force those on kids as well. So we should.

 

 

 

Why do you think we shouldn't?

 

 

 

Children should have to have them yes.

 

 

 

But if an adult doesn't want to, they shouldn't have to.

[Baconxl]

Personally I think anyone who is in school should be vaccinated. They are pretty much a breeding ground for disease and they can spread very fast. Maybe after you're 18 or something you should be allowed to make the choice for yourself but I think for children it really benefits the other children, their parents, and themselves so why not?

[warri0r45]

Children should have to have them yes.

 

 

 

But if an adult doesn't want to, they shouldn't have to.

 

 

 

Ok, but I'd still like to ask the same question:

 

 

 

If it will lessen the likelihood of spreading disease, why not? I'm sure not everyone likes having to go through the process of getting a drivers licence these days (tests, log books, etc), but at the end of the day it saves lives. The same can be said for vaccines.

 

 

 

Edit: It's worth bearing in mind the following information: [1]

 

 

 

Why might some adults need vaccines?

 

 

 

Some adults incorrectly assume that the vaccines they received as children will protect them for the rest of their lives. Generally this is true, except that:

 

 

 

Some adults were never vaccinated as children

 

 

 

Newer vaccines were not available when some adults were children

 

 

 

Immunity can begin to fade over time

 

 

 

As we age, we become more susceptible to serious disease caused by common infections (e.g., flu, pneumococcus)

 

[Lenticular_J]

I just don't know. I mean, we do a lot of things for the sake of society, when we should be furthering the future. Furthering life.

 

 

 

But we should also further freedom, and humanity needs to take control of themselves. This must start at an individual level, with petty things such as hair cuts.

 

 

 

BLAGH.

[Kenshinjapan]

I might be with range on this one. For example, my entire family has bad allergies against pollen. Well, we were all on allergy medicines and they never improved, we were just hit with worse and worse attacks. Well, one summer, I was fed up and dropped my medicine and let my body fight the allergy. It took months of runny noses and sniffing flowers, but by the end, I hardly reacted to pollen without a medicine at all.

 

 

 

The same can be said about many medical problems in the past. Asthma hasn't been discovered for very long, and when the few that did have it had an attack, they had to deal with it or die.

 

 

 

Personally, I think only babies should get vaccines only for necessary things.

 

 

 

I know it sounds cruel, but survival of the fittest should apply in my ideal world. With modern medicine, sickly people can pass on their defective genes and make the next generations even more susceptible to these illnesses.

[Lordjake]

I don't know how many (if any) of the vaccinations prevent spreadable diseases/illnesses, but those vaccines should be mandatory.

 

 

 

Any others should be (very very highly) recommended, but not mandatory. If someone wants to risk getting polio to avoid a needle, more power to them.

[warri0r45]

I might be with range on this one. For example, my entire family has bad allergies against pollen. Well, we were all on allergy medicines and they never improved, we were just hit with worse and worse attacks. Well, one summer, I was fed up and dropped my medicine and let my body fight the allergy. It took months of runny noses and sniffing flowers, but by the end, I hardly reacted to pollen without a medicine at all.

 

 

 

There's one problem with that argument: vaccines do the exact same thing, i.e. they let your own immune system build up resistance to these diseases. They're not covering for your immune system or dealing with symptoms. Again, they stimulate the natural immune system response.

 

 

 

I can't say i agree with you on the natural selection point either.

[BlueLancer]

In most European countries, you don't "select" to be vaccinated - after being born, you are required to bring the baby back to a hospital for vaccinations for:

 

 

 

Polio

 

Diphtheria

 

Tetanus

 

Acellular pertussis

 

Type B hemophilia influenza

 

 

 

To put it bluntly, you'd have to be a pretty crappy parent not to vaccinate your kid shortly after he/she has been born, and at around age 5/6 for additional easily preventable diseases.

 

 

 

Excuse me, but I have an immune system, and it's a very good one. It's the same immune system that has never gotten me the flu or any other sickness aside from the common cold or food poisoning. I can do perfectly alright without a vaccine.

 

 

 

If you go to a foreign country or come to contact with fatal contageous diseases such as diphtheria, malaria, typhoid, rabies, your immune system isn't going to be of any help even if you're Clark Kent.

 

 

 

It can't really be stressed enough, the only way to prevent an unnecessary death from those diseases is by making your body immune to it in advance. If you travel to certain countries in Africa for example, as a US/EU/Australian citizen, you aren't *allowed* to get a visa before you have been certifiedly vaccinated against key diseases

[Kenshinjapan]

I might be with range on this one. For example, my entire family has bad allergies against pollen. Well, we were all on allergy medicines and they never improved, we were just hit with worse and worse attacks. Well, one summer, I was fed up and dropped my medicine and let my body fight the allergy. It took months of runny noses and sniffing flowers, but by the end, I hardly reacted to pollen without a medicine at all.

 

 

 

There's one problem with that argument: vaccines do the exact same thing, i.e. they let your own immune system build up resistance to these diseases. They're not covering for your immune system or dealing with symptoms. Again, they stimulate the natural immune system response.

 

 

 

 

 

 

That's just what we assume. Sure, you become resistant to that disease, but in reality, you're cutting your immune system slack, making it less efficient than what it should be.

 

 

 

And yes, I assumed 99% of people wouldn't agree with me on my views of natural selection.

[warri0r45]

I might be with range on this one. For example, my entire family has bad allergies against pollen. Well, we were all on allergy medicines and they never improved, we were just hit with worse and worse attacks. Well, one summer, I was fed up and dropped my medicine and let my body fight the allergy. It took months of runny noses and sniffing flowers, but by the end, I hardly reacted to pollen without a medicine at all.

 

 

 

There's one problem with that argument: vaccines do the exact same thing, i.e. they let your own immune system build up resistance to these diseases. They're not covering for your immune system or dealing with symptoms. Again, they stimulate the natural immune system response.

 

 

 

 

 

 

That's just what we assume. Sure, you become resistant to that disease, but in reality, you're cutting your immune system slack, making it less efficient than what it should be.

 

 

 

And yes, I assumed 99% of people wouldn't agree with me on my views of natural selection.

 

 

 

No, that's what we know because that's how we develop vaccines. A vaccine is an analog to or deactivated version of a toxin or other bacterial/viral molecule. It's set up to generate the exact same immune response seen in the real infection.

 

 

 

What you're saying makes no sense whatsoever - the whole strategy behind a vaccine is to strengthen your immune system, not to make it weaker or cut it slack.

[Laura]

At first I got confused because I thought you said vacations. Vacations are linked to autism? :notalk:

 

 

 

Anyways, I still think they should be mandatory. Wasn't Gardasil already like that for women at a certain age?

[Ginger_Warrior]

Ironically, I got my vaccinations today.

 

Ironically, you don't know what the meaning of "irony" is. :P

 

 

 

Anyways, I think certain vaccines should be mandatory. I think there are certain diseases which are so highly contagious I think it would be a danger not to vaccinate. Indeed, some vaccinations are given compulsory over here at birth and civil liberties groups haven't said anything about it.

 

 

 

I think the line is drawn with diseases like Hep B though. As someone entering Medical School, I'm currently having a course of Hep B vaccinations. I need those vaccinations before dealing with any member of the public, even as just a student. That's right, but not all people need the immunity so otherwise the Hep B vaccine shouldn't be mandatory.