General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Can you put down your pitchfork long enough to discuss the root causes of the anti-vax problem? [View all]MineralMan
(146,286 posts)When the smallpox vaccine was shown to provide excellent protection against that dreaded disease, people fought against its use for decade after decade. This was long before pharmaceutical companies existed. It happened in the early 19th century. People wrote long treatises against vaccination. People refused vaccination.
Why? Because they were ignorant and did not trust the valid science that demonstrated the vaccine's effectiveness against this disease that took the lives of so many.
Eventually, mandatory vaccination won. Eventually, everyone got vaccinated. And do you know what happened? 200 years after the smallpox vaccine was developed by Jenner, smallpox was eradicated from the planet. Today, people do not get vaccinated against smallpox, since there is no need for vaccination against that disease. Smallpox has been defeated.
Polio is next. We're almost there, and in much less time. I remember the polio scares of the 1950s. I knew people who died from polio and people who were very sick but recovered. We're almost rid of polio now, but people still fight against vaccination. People are still stupid and unwilling to trust science. That's the real reason for the anti-vaccination nonsense: Stupid people who don't believe that science can solve the problem of some diseases.
We'll win, but it will be a long battle, because there are always stupid, ignorant people who will resist lifesaving measures. I hope it won't take 200 years again. Truly.