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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsAmid measles outbreak, anti-vaccine doctor revels in his notoriety
Its 6:30 p.m. in eastern Arizona, and an energetic doctor who has gained notice due to his disdain for vaccinations has just gotten home. Its been a busy day. Hes already spoken to USA Today. He just did a segment on CNN. And hes closely monitored his Facebook page, which has collected 4,000 likes in the span of 48 hours. But Jack Wolfson always has time to discuss vaccinations his hatred of them and his abhorrence of the parents who defend them.
Dont be mad at me for speaking the truth about vaccines, Wolfson said in a telephone interview with The Washington Post. Be mad at yourself, because youre, frankly, a bad mother. You didnt ask once about those vaccines. You didnt ask about the chemicals in them. You didnt ask about all the harmful things in those vaccines
. People need to learn the facts.
But whose facts is he talking about? Every respectable expert totally disagrees with him and his anti-vaccine movement and, along with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, urges parents to get their kids vaccinated. And Wolfson himself, who has quickly become something of a spokesman for the anti-vaxxers, is in no way an expert on vaccines or infectious diseases. Hes cardiologist who now does holistic medicine.
What the experts say: The measles vaccine is one of the most highly effective vaccines that we have against any virus or any microbe, and it is safe, number one, Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told CBS. Number two, measles is one of the top two most contagious infectious viruses that we know of
. So you have a highly infectious virus and you have an extraordinarily effective vaccine.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/01/30/amid-measles-outbreak-anti-vaccine-doctor-revels-in-his-notoriety/
Archae
(46,327 posts)For depraved indifference.
CaliforniaPeggy
(149,611 posts)Despicable SOB's.
hlthe2b
(102,247 posts)shenmue
(38,506 posts)Ykcutnek
(1,305 posts)Why hasn't the AMA done anything?
Response to Ykcutnek (Reply #4)
Name removed Message auto-removed
hrmjustin
(71,265 posts)uppityperson
(115,677 posts)hrmjustin
(71,265 posts)After 10 years you would think the poor dear would get a new hobby.
MohRokTah
(15,429 posts)He belongs in prison. I consider him responsible for deaths.
zappaman
(20,606 posts)al_liberal
(420 posts)We've digressed 15 years in measles control.
Unfortunately this is exactly what is going to have to happen if we're expecting to defeat the growing anti-science cadre in this country.
bravenak
(34,648 posts)One is Autistic. One is not. One is dead. Ask me if I'd would have taken the chance that a vaccination would turn my dead child into an autistic child. Yes. If there had been a vaccine for genetic disorders I would have taken it and gladly. Alas, there is no possibility if vaccinating against that sort of thing. There aren't even test you can take for it while you're pregnant.
Next time you think about the slim chance of your kid dying from measles, go look up Zellweger's syndrome and see how high chances are of being born with that. Then go vaccinate your child.
Barack_America
(28,876 posts)I'm so very sorry for the loss of your child. It's a pain I cannot even bear to imagine.
But I thought you might be comforted to know that, now, something can be done. I work for a copy that tests embryos for genetic diseases. We can test for the PEX genes. In fact, we've done both PEX1 and PEX6 recently, two less families that will have to suffer what your family suffered. I thought you might be interested to know that.
bravenak
(34,648 posts)I agonized during my last two pregnancies because of that. After the two I have I knew I never wanted to take that chance again. This is great news. Try not to think about it or watch movies with that lady in it. Swear i never saw Bridget Jones diary because of it. Kinda crazy, but it was around that time. Maybe I'll get over it now.
Dorian Gray
(13,493 posts)I can't imagine the pain that you've had to live through.
And I agree 100%. I would much prefer my child to have a reaction to the vaccine than to die from a preventable illness.
bravenak
(34,648 posts)I hope people can see that it's better to have autism than to be dead. No contest.
seveneyes
(4,631 posts)There are two kinds of facts in this world...
Those that are true and those that are false.
Orrex
(63,208 posts)Makes me want to shriek, but I know from past arguments that this guy won't be swayed by reason, logic or evidence.
Dorian Gray
(13,493 posts)A really close friend from my childhood. I almost flipped when I saw the sanctimonious straw man bullshit post that "doctor" posted on FB in response to the antagonism his position has caused.
Despicable. And it's making me think my friend is a lot less smart than I did only a few days ago.
Orrex
(63,208 posts)"How smart can he be if he believes this bullshit?"
Additionally puzzling: he and his partner are living in Fort Worth, and they're both hard-right Republicans. I simply can't figure it out.
jeff47
(26,549 posts)It gets him more victims.
Dorian Gray
(13,493 posts)cardiologist! Just who I want to see when I have heart problems.
If he quacks like a quack... he's a quack.
(And he probably shouldn't be seeing any elderly heart patients, as they should take flu and pneumonia vaccines to prevent major complications, including -- but not limited to -- death.)
NuclearDem
(16,184 posts)Avalux
(35,015 posts)I wonder if he would take a drug if he needed it to save his life, or give it to a loved one to save their life, or if he'd just let himself or them die, and not be injected with chemicals?
COLGATE4
(14,732 posts)"What do you call the person who graduates last in class in Medical School"? "Doctor".
rock
(13,218 posts)Favored by politicians. Need I say more?