WA measles outbreak likely originated in Bible study class

[pdq]

...is the title of this article, which relates that the outbreak may have started in a third grader who attended this class and came down with measles over Christmas break..

Kind of an odd admission - I presume there aren't epidemiologists on staff at the Gracepoint Christian Church or the Slavic Christian Academy. And the church is quick to add that they encourage vaccination.

But some parents mistrust the vaccines. The mistrust may be a holdover from time spent living in the former Soviet Union.

:dunno:

In any case, it would seem as though attending Bible study class ain't going to protect you, y'know?

[bfd]

Pray best?

[rjmacs]

Apparently, vaccination rates in this area are around 75%, and community immunity doesn't occur until you're in the mid-90s.

It takes a village, not just 3/4 of a village. Refusing to vaccinate has weird resonance with a kind of racist elitism in this country - mostly because it's about devaluing people who are vulnerable in favor of prizing people who are 'yours.'

[$tevie]

rjmacs wrote: It takes a village, not just 3/4 of a village. Refusing to vaccinate has weird resonance with a kind of racist elitism in this country - mostly because it's about devaluing people who are vulnerable in favor of prizing people who are 'yours.'

I have to ask for some clarity on this statement. I don't understand it at all, to be honest.

[SteveG]

Nice to see them joining hands with the Ultra-orthodox Jewish community here in the East. Stupidity knows no religion.

[rjmacs]

$tevie wrote:
[quote=rjmacs]It takes a village, not just 3/4 of a village. Refusing to vaccinate has weird resonance with a kind of racist elitism in this country - mostly because it's about devaluing people who are vulnerable in favor of prizing people who are 'yours.'

I have to ask for some clarity on this statement. I don't understand it at all, to be honest.
Okay, that's fair. It's a resonance, not a straight logical line, so you may have to bear with some discursive wandering.

In this country, philosophies of the 'good public life' run the gamut from radical individualism (we are all sovereign bodies, and our freedom from coercion by the collective is a hallmark of being American) to a kind of collectivist utopianism (it takes a village, living together means sacrificing for the common good, America's greatness comes from e pluribus unum).

Unsurprisingly, the more privilege one has, the easier it becomes to align with the former philosophy - who needs insurance if you can pay a doctor cash? Why contribute to social security when we should really be responsible for our own welfare? Misfortune is a reality of life, but that doesn't make me responsible for someone else's woes... The trick is to be ambitious, resilient, and lucky,

Also unsurprisingly, the less privilege one has, the more it makes sense to buy into the collective idea of health, happiness, and security - misfortune can be cruel and random, and we are all vulnerable, so why not pool our resources for safety? When the most vulnerable are safe, then we are all better off. Hard work and persistence matter, sure, but there's also inequality, bad luck, evil...

I'm not implying any kind of uniformity among members of racial groups and these ideologies, and there are lots of exceptions to the rule. But there's still some resonance, for me.

(This was composed in haste - apologies for lack of clarity or insensitivity!)

[testcase]

"Refusing to vaccinate has weird resonance with a kind of racist elitism in this country"


Really? When did free choice die in America? Choosing NOT to be vaccinated now makes someone guilty of "racist elitism"? I'm glad I don't have to live in your neighborhood or, have you making medical decisions for me.

[Acer]

I agree with testcase. Anti-vax is not racist elitism. It's ill-informed stupidity.

[DeusxMac]

Acer wrote:
I agree with testcase. Anti-vax is not racist elitism. It's ill-informed stupidity.

Jenny McCarthy - "She spent two years at Southern Illinois University." "McCarthy wrote that [her son] was gifted, a "crystal child", and she an "indigo mom"."

"McCarthy's public presence and vocal activism on the vaccination-autism controversy, led, in 2008, to her being awarded the James Randi Educational Foundation's Pigasus Award..."

[hal]

DeusxMac wrote:
[quote=Acer]
I agree with testcase. Anti-vax is not racist elitism. It's ill-informed stupidity.

Jenny McCarthy - "She spent two years at Southern Illinois University." "McCarthy wrote that [her son] was gifted, a "crystal child", and she an "indigo mom"."

"McCarthy's public presence and vocal activism on the vaccination-autism controversy, led, in 2008, to her being awarded the James Randi Educational Foundation's Pigasus Award..."
hahaha! I LOVE Randi - check out a little film about him called 'An Honest Liar'.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9ZWaS_FjNU