Although normally I don’t post about controversial topics, after listening to all the media about the  measles outbreak and vaccination debate I wanted to share my opinion as a parent.  Are we trying to vaccinate against our Rights?  Currently the major debates are over vaccinations and if they should be required by law (forced) or if they should still be allowed to be a choice.  Here’s my opinions on the matter-
First of all let me be up front in saying that I vaccinate my kids.  Every vaccination that is recommended by my child’s doctors are received.  Because I believe that the risk for not having these is much higher than the risk of getting them.  However, I also believe that one should not over-consume medicines and add unnecessary things to our bodies.

So for this reason our family does not get the flu shot.  And luckily enough we have a pretty healthy family.  With 6 kids, 4 of which attend public school there’s lots of germs potentially passed around that could keep our family sick often, but we are lucky enough to have good immune systems and rarely get sick.

Now back to the vaccination debate-

The Facts without drama:

When someone doesn’t vaccinate their child it puts not only that child at risk, but other children as well.  Since vaccinations aren’t a 100% guarantee you wont get sick but only decrease the chances greatly those vaccinated still have a small chance of contacting the sickness.  Not to mention that vaccines are given at certain ages, so babies are at danger because they can get the sickness but aren’t able to receive the vaccines yet.  Oh and let’s not forget those children with weakened immune systems (immunosuppressed) as a result of other diseases and treatments (such as cancer) that prevent them from being able to be vaccinated.

So for babies, and the immunosuppressed they depend on the health of the whole. Meaning the more people that are vaccinated the less likely it will be that they will be exposed to the sickness.

On the flip side, there are those that believe that vaccines cause autism and other problems even death in rare cases.  Studies on these are inconclusive and educated guesses at best so far.  And there are also those who believe that either the government or pharmaceutical companies are putting unnecessary things into the vaccines for a greater agenda. (conspiracy theorists)  I myself find these conspiracy theorists having a better argument because I do believe that both the government and pharmaceutical companies do sneaky things without the public knowing (or at least trying to keep it a secret).  My opinions on these is as a result of GMO’s and other ingredients put into FDA approved processed foods.  But that is a discussion for another time.

At the end of the day my personal choice was to vaccinate because I felt the risk and chances of my kids getting sick by something that is preventable weighs more than my fears of the consequences of the vaccines.  It all comes down to fear- which do you fear most?

So what do I believe should be done?  Well although I believe in vaccinations, I do NOT believe it should be forced or made into a law that all are required to do.  I think people should still be able to choose.  That doesn’t mean that they are free from the consequences of their choice though- so if schools decide that they don’t want children attending who haven’t received their vaccinations then it’s the way it is and the consequence for those parents that choose not to vaccinate their kids is that they have to find a different school or homeschool their kids.

When we force something like vaccinations we are taking away the individual’s rights and in essence giving them to the government.  Well who says the government knows best?  If, lets say a new law were to be passed saying everyone HAD to be vaccinated, who determines the consequences of those that don’t?  What about those immunosuppressed children that can’t? Who says it’s ok for one to not get vaccinated and another has to?  Where is the line?  At what point is a child too sick to receive their vaccinations and be exempt?
And if a family can not afford the vaccines, and/or doesn’t have insurance who pays for them?
Or let’s say a child does have an adverse reaction to a vaccination.  Who’s responsible?
Are there multiple manufacturers of vaccines? If so, who determines which ones get used?

Society has been so quick to vote their rights away in exchange for a promise of a better tomorrow.  Meanwhile we are giving away our freedoms that our founding fathers and ancestors gave their lives to give us.  If you haven’t read the book “The 5,000 year leap” by Cleon Skousen, I highly recommend it for everyone.  It talks about the constitution and why it’s so important and some trial and error stories of those that tried different types of governmenting. It explains different types of governments and how they work.

To sum up- Although I personally choose to vaccinate my kids, I don’t have a problem with those who choose not to for whatever reason and don’t believe that there should be a law forcing everyone to vaccinate.

That being said, there are still consequences for all our choices and if public schools that are funded by the government choose to only allow vaccinated children to attend then that is their choice and those parents who choose not to vaccinate will need to find alternatives for their child to go to school such as home school or charter or private school.  And if you are a parent that vaccinates your kids and don’t want your child to have any contact with unvaccinated kids (first of all good luck) you also have the choice to home school or find a school that has the “all must be vaccinated” rule.

So there you have it- that’s my 2 cents. Take it for what it’s worth and hopefully it will help you better understand a new perspective on the matter.