Help me understand: today show segment

[kriket]

I need help understanding what just happened. I was watching the TV (which was my first mistake, the kids I nanny were still in bed :p) But then there was a segment about how Dr.Wakefield manufactured evidence (or something) on a study he produced. This wasn't the disturbing part (as I tend to tune out the vax=autism argument, there are many other reasons) the disturbing part was the guest talking about how the government has to protect pharm from frivolous law suits so there will be someone available to produce vaxes. Because the UK was in danger of not having anyone make vax. ?!? also at the end she made sure to say vaxes are safe and everyone should get them. I am also concerned about the motivation of all parties involved. I know what pharmas motivation is, Money. I am unsure what the gov't's is. Money? do they get money from vax? Public health? I can see where on paper, vaxes prevent or lessen the severity of a disease, which is a good thing. What is this all about? I went over the CDC schedule again, just to make sure I am making the right decision. (Which I do occasionally! I think everyone should reevaluate decisions occasionally) and I am confident in my decision, but I know there will be at least one person (my mom) who feels the need to post a link to this on my FB or print it out and mail it to me.

[daisymommy]

Because they are "all in bed together" as the saying goes.  You scratch my back, I'll scratch yours kind of thing.  Every agency voting for each other's little pet projects, giving kickbacks, funding things...it's a domino effect.  I know there is more too it though that I can't explain.  But it all comes back to money and power.

[carriebft]

http://www.bmj.com/content/342/bmj.c5347.full

an indepth analysis of how Wakefield and his team changed medical records, lied, etc can be found here. It is well backed up and researched.

I think there is a problem when you have people basing lawsuits on a fraudulent study.

[Marnica]

I agree with PP but beyond that, Can you imagine if a major public health agency and the government had to admit that something they mandate for public school education has damaged and continues to damage a generation of children?? They can't just say opps, oh well. The fallout would be huge. NOT something they want to deal with.

[BeckyBird]

I have theories. If you are interested, please pm me.

[stayo22]

Originally Posted by carriebft 

http://www.bmj.com/content/342/bmj.c5347.full

an indepth analysis of how Wakefield and his team changed medical records, lied, etc can be found here. It is well backed up and researched.

I think there is a problem when you have people basing lawsuits on a fraudulent study.

Sorry carriebft, but any article that I see written by Brian Deer I just immediately think "bias".  Brian Deer and Paul Offitt are the go to people for media when it comes to pro-vax.  Why Brian Deer has made it his mission to take down Wakefield is beyond me?  If ANYONE other than Brian Deer had written the article you posted I may be inclined to read it.  (Nothing against you :)  I have researched both sides and find him too biased.)

[ciaparker2]

Hi,

You need to look at the info  of Age of Autism, look for the J.B. Handley article on Brian Deer (the hit man referred to by Wakefield in the Cooper interiew). There's amazing evidence that Deer has been lying about Wakefield for many years, and he's lied about who's been paying him. The Sunday

Times of London and Channel 4  have denied paying him as he says. He got access to the Lancet 12 chldren's medical records illegally and without the permission of their parents. They wouldn't bring action against  Wakefield, the parents love him, so Brian Deer has done it himself. It's unbelievable how the Today show and  Anderson Cooper treated Andrew Wakefield with contempt. It's clear that in a substantial number of cases the MMR  (and, in my daughter's case, the hep-B vaccine) cause autism. There is an immense effort on the  part of the vaccine industry and the governments (and the news media) to discredit and silence Wakefield because he's telling the truth, and they will be out billions if large numbers of parents stop vaccinating. We must demand the truth about Brian Deer's lies, exonerate Wakefield, and carry out the vax/unvax study which has never been done. Offit says it would be unethical to do because it would deprive the unvax group of disease protection, but there are thousands  of children whose parents have refused the vaccines, use them!

Deaths from measles are very rare, deaths from mumps rarer still. This fear-mongering about their being deadly diseases is just hype to drive people to get the shots. I had measles when I was six, at that time nearly all children got it, no one considered it a big deal. Two weeks ago a friend in Mexico City e-mailed me that his nephew and niece had measles, and, as is usually the case, they  had it and then got well. Thousands of children get the MMR and boom! they have autism. One in a hundred at the present time. There was no autism when I was a child in the 1960s, and it wasn't that it wasn't diagnosed properly, there was never anyone you even heard of whose child had strange behaviors, who were sent away to institutions. They weren't in special ed classes at school. They just weren't there! At my daughter's elementary school there are 800 children, and six of them have autism. The rate of autism started skyrocketing in 1991, when they started  the hep-B vaccine at birth, going up four times in the course of that decade.  

Let's demand the truth, and educate  parents  on the dangers both on the diseases and the vaccines, and let them make the difficult decision.