ABC News: Vaccinations or Jail? Parents Up in Arms

This is kind of creepy, in my opinion. I'm used to the government telling people what they can't put in their bodies, but this seems to be a first for the government telling you what you have to put in your body.

Does anyone agree with this policy? I'm a firm believer that the ultimate decision rests with the parents on deciding what gets injected into their children and what doesn't. It seems kind of messed up that the government is blocking education to anyone that doesn't get these inoculations.

The social darwinist argument could be that the kids are the next generation of the genes of their parents and by the parents bad decisions there genes will then not be passed onto the next generation which weeds out the people that make poor decisions out of the gene pool. I'm not saying I completely agree with it but I guess it's a way to look positive towards parents that make the decision not to get vaccinations. This issue is sort of a tough one for me because I believe in freedom of choice but then again the idea of a child suffering or dying because of a disease because or a parent's decision seems pretty damn awful and if there is every a time to cross the line to make something mandatory then this is it. Personally I can see both sides of the issue and hope this discussion helps me settle on something a little better.

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"Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

This is an interesting subject. Around here, inoculations are mandatory for a number of diseases. This has existed for decades and is rarely even questioned by young parents. I've always been quite sceptical of it. Medecine is a subject that is far from being totally explored and I seriously doubt whether the full implications of exposure to traces of these diseases are actually, or even can be, known. I doubt it is necessarily always a good thing.
With mandatory inoculations there is always the risk of an alliance between a pharmaceutical company and a number of government officials, especially in countries prone to corruption, to make an arbitrary new invention mandatory for no other reason than profit.
Obviously most parents take the wellbeing of their children at heart so they will allow the inoculation if they deem it necessary based on the advice they personally gather from medical professionals. And the parents that are incapable or in some way too perverted that they don't take this wellbeing at heart, mess their kids up in a plethora of other ways,
reducing the relevancy of the lack of inoculation to practically nil.
So, no, inoculations should not be mandatory.

Personally, there's just something that doesn't sit well with me when it comes to "forced inoculations" and "the government". We've had public schooling in this country for about 180 years or so without the need for forcing students to get vaccinated in order to attend class. From what I understand, there hasn't been any mass deadly outbreaks in schools due to this.

The article says that as of now, there are about 1,000 students who haven't attended school in over a month due to this policy. Sure, we could say it's the parent's fault for not getting their kids vaccinated, but I think the responsibility lies on the government here. After all, they're the ones who implemented this policy.

I dunno. I just always get weary when government 'forces' people to do things.

Louisiana has a mandatory vaccination policy with provisions for exemptions for moral or philosophical reasons. As a nurse, I have to agree with it because I've seen first hand what happens when parents neglect the healthcare of their child. If vaccinations weren't a requirement for school, many parents here, out of ignorance or lack of concern, wouldn't bother to protect their children.
As late as the 1950's, there were outbreaks of polio but since Salk and Sabin developed vaccines, the dreadful disease is almost unheard of.
The MMR has prevented not only the illnesses but also the deaths that can be associated with the diseases so one would have to be crazy not to take advantage of the vaccines.
I do hate giving the government this kind of power but I'd hate it even more if we began to see outbreaks of polio and smallpox which could conceivably happen if enough students weren't inoculated.

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"Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways - Chardonnay in one hand - chocolate in the other - body thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and screaming "WOO HOO, What a Ride!"

I can understand the school district wanting kids to be innoculated but, I agree, being forced to do it or face a jail sentence is over-reaching...

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Obama's New "57 State Patriotic Pin":




Sayeth John Drake - 10/13/08: "OK, you're right, I admit to LYING"

you gotta love this line...."But if parents continue to be recalcitrant, they face up to 10 days in jail and a $50 a day fine."

That's hilarious spin...you know people are doing something wrong (that they know is wrong) when they carefully choose words that few people have heard of, so as to be less controversial.

If he had said--- " "But if parents continue to not submit to the authorities, they face up to 10 days in jail and a $50 a day fine."---- that would have created quite the stir.

I agree with the vaccines but I don't agree with a Judge saying: "Do it or you are off to jail". It should have been: The kids are restricted from school and you'll be fined "x" amount of dollars when the child exceeds the missed days limit.

Has anyone heard whether or not the parents have a right to be concerned of the vaccines?

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Anyone who thinks freedom comes cheap, please put the blindfold on and stand against the wall.

Many times I believe Americans will have to take back the country and start a new government.

I used to have a boss that did that, he'd use words to make himself appear better than the rest.....To bad the moron couldn't tie his own shoelaces.

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Anyone who thinks freedom comes cheap, please put the blindfold on and stand against the wall.

Many times I believe Americans will have to take back the country and start a new government.

As a child, I recall my parents needing to show proof of vaccinations for their children to be able to attend school (public and private). However, I don't recall jail being threated. Truant laws were on the books and that was a time when schools actually reported truants as a habit. As Mrs. M stated, polio had reared it's ugly head a decade or two before. Perhaps because of these inoculations, polio is a relatively rare disease in the US and other countries that require them. Forced inoculations led to the near eradication of small pox.

Although one could look at this with the Darwin approach, I don't believe that small pox would have reached it's level of near eradication had the inoculations not been forced.

Other than for medical reasons or for reasons of conflict with religious beliefs (cases of both are few), and the fact that the government will foot the bill for those who cannot afford to inoculate, I see this as a small price to pay in personal freedom for the greater good. As one of the roles of government is to protect us (not from ourselves), I see it as not a high price to pay for a healthy society.

However, if one were to ask where the line is drawn for this view, I draw the line at a 30 minute time requirement and the potential of a sore upper arm for half of a day. If one were to say that we should outlaw trans-fats, for example, because it's good for the public health, I draw the line there. That requires a lifestyle change and obesity is not a passive disease. I also agree with no smoking regulations, with reason, since that is a passive exposure to a health hazard. I also agree with many EPA and OSHA regs, as others can be unwittingly exposed to hazards due to the negligence of others, thus affecting the general health of others who wouldn't have a choice in being exposed to these hazards if the regs weren't in place.

It's a balance, as some inherent rights will conflict with others. Some may call this a liberal view, yet I have never claimed to be 100% conservative, 100% liberal, or 100% libertatarian.

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I am an American. That's the way most of us put it, just matter of factly. They are plain words, those four: you could write them on your thumbnail, or sweep them clear across this bright autumn sky. But remember too, that they are more than just words. They are a way of life. So whenever you speak them; speak them firmly, speak them proudly, speak them gratefully. I am an American. ...a tradition

I am weary also but I think there are exceptions to everything. If the government can't force us to do anything then it couldn't tax us which means the government would not exist and we would be in a anarcho-capitalist situation where everthing is privatized and everything is always based on the size of our wallets and ability to pay. I am a capitalist but I have my limits and will always admit when free markets to have some drawbacks and when freedom does lead to problems beyond the individual making the decision. The only person really benefiting from this sort of freedom is maybe the people that manufacture little baby coffins.

__________________
"Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

While i'm all for the freedom to make your choises in life, I do think the goveremtn should "help" make a few choics for our children. Children can not make their own choices most of the time and parents sometimes can make the wrong discisions for them based on facts that can be wrong.

This case though I have to ask, is there any nasty side effects for taking the vacines? Is this just a relgious debat? If there is no nasty side effects other then a sore arm, then why not do it?

There's always the very slim chance of a fatal side effects from ANY medication.

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"Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways - Chardonnay in one hand - chocolate in the other - body thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and screaming "WOO HOO, What a Ride!"