Saturday, April 25, 2009

A small prediction

It's true that Jim Carrey is the guy who quite literally spoke out of his ass in that whacky pet detective movie, but he makes some very good points here regarding the safety of vaccines.

I've been reading about thimerosal for years - a controversial compound used as a preservative in vaccines - that some parents, doctors and scientists believe could be the cause of autism.

Here's Carrey's first good point:

"Veterinarians found out years ago that in many cases they were over-immunizing our pets, a syndrome they call Vaccinosis. It overwhelmed the immune system of the animals, causing myriad physical and neurological disorders. Sound familiar? If you can over-immunize a dog, is it so far out to assume that you can over-immunize a child? These forward thinking vets also decided to remove thimerosal from animal vaccines in 1992, and yet this substance, which is 49% mercury, is still in human vaccines. Don't our children deserve as much consideration as our pets?"

Money quote:

"In a world left reeling from the catastrophic effects of greed, mismanagement and corporate insensitivity, is it so absurd for us to wonder why American children are being given twice as many vaccines on average, compared to the top 30 first world countries?"

Here in the U.S. we've sadly become accustomed to industry-related scandals. And it would be a mistake to believe that the masters of the financial universe are the only ones capable of ass-raping hard working Americans for personal gain.

Here's a small prediction: The bio-tech industry will be the next hit hard by ethics scandals.

Here's a final word from Carrey:

"If the CDC, the AAP and Ms. Brown insist that our children take twice as many shots as the rest of the western world, we need more independent vaccine research not done by the drug companies selling the vaccines or by organizations under their influence."

Amen.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I am listening to: Last week's episode of The Tudors
I am reading: Nothing
And I am: Right on this one folks

8 comments:

Dave said...

Without knowing anything and without research, my problem with your source, is your source. From an actor point of view only.

Hedy said...

I know, I know. But do a little digging and you'll find his points are sound.

CRUSTY MOM-E said...

as a mom I have dealt with choices regarding these vaccines--mainly the one that could cause autism..MMR..I read Jim's girlfriends book, I've researched and I at one point refused the vaccine.
Until I was told something like this: "my children would NOT be allowed into the school system, and it is a form of child endangerment by not having these done, we could report this."

Can you believe that? I'm trying to protect my children based on my concerns and I'm being threatened about child endangerment?

Fucked. it is, it's just fucked. Even if we're against it we can't do a damn thing about it, unless we want to homeschool and hide from the bitchy nurses and doctors that are too sour because their teetime was pushed back due to rain.

(SIDETHOUGHT: Should I sue WHO and the CDC for child endangerment because of the recent events pertaining to the swine flu?)

Touchy subject you've spoken about here but one that is so important to be spoken about (check out Dooce's thoughts and momversations on it if you haven't already).

Touchy but truthful.

Dealing with it first hand so far luckily without witnessing adverse reactions from my little ones.

E

Hedy said...

Thanks for your comment, Elizabeth. I was really hoping a Mom would chime in on this - and you said it, it's fucked.

Posol'stvo the Medved said...

How about hearing from a father instead?

Bottom line -- Hedy, I love ya, but I gotta agree to disagree here. In my opinion, vaccinations, on the whole, are a *good* thing. Unless you'd like to return to an age when a bout of measles may have killed you. Or perhaps you'd still like to worry about contracting Polio or Smallpox.

And, as far as my research has gone, and from people that I trust who have done more research than I have (with PhDs in Biochemistry), the link between vaccinations and autism is circumstancial.

Look, I don't support mandatory vaccination. The community that I live in is populated by probably 40% folks who don't immunize. And I'm okay with that. Among that population, at least one good friend attributes his child's autism to vaccination. So I understand the choice, and I support your right to choose.

But I don't support the out of hand vilification of vaccines.

And using Jim Carrey as your spokesperson is a dangerous thing to do.

Hedy said...

Hey Pos, thank you for your always thoughtful commentary. If you read Jim Carrey's article, you know that he's not coming out anti-vaccine. He just asking that the people who develop vaccines (and stand to make $$ off of them) aren't in bed with the people in our government who approve them. I think we can all agree that thimerosal is probably not a good thing to have in vaccines. Whether or not this compound is a source for autism remains to be seen. That said, I stand by my prediction: bio-tech will experience a similar ethics scandal within the next two years.

judy said...

I have a nephew who has autism and there have been many speculations on what causes this....vaccines, diet, hereditary issues....whatever the case, I do believe that the pharmaceutical companies rule and we do tend to "over vaccinate" and over medicate. Look at how antibiotics have become more resistant over the years due to over prescribing. How many commercials do we see on TV now for drugs that are a sure fix for any ailment........sleeplessness, low libido, over weight, depression, anxiety....You can even get a "free" sample of these drugs by calling NOW!!! Scary....okay, sorry, maybe I got off the track a bit here :) Hi Hedy...it's been a while since I've checked out your Blog. I'm catching up!! xoxo

Hedy said...

Judy! Great points on how we tend to over-medicate. So glad you're here! xoxo!