Comments on: Breaking News: The Government Wants to Poison Children!

By: Kenneth Polit

Kenneth Polit — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 05:18:06 +0000

This “real mommy” must be a disciple of Jenny McCarthy. She calls herself a real mommy because she “knew” that her son got autism from his vaccine. Vaccines don’t cause autism, but apparently fake tits cause stupidity.

By: jeshua

jeshua — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 15:19:40 +0000

Well, technically, he’s right. Vaccines are poison, as is coumadin and ethnanol. That doesn’t mean someone who takes them in the proper dose is going to die from taking them. I don’t take coumadin, but i’m not giving up on vaccines or ethanol because they are technically poisons. You can die from water poisoning if you drink too much!!

By: GDrak

GDrak — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 11:28:27 +0000

I agree with you but unfortunately their ignorance will affect the health of all of us hence we need to keep debunking their claims.

By: Alex

Alex — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 16:31:02 +0000

Same here. I bought into a ton of conspiratorial thinking for a long time, until I started looking behind the curtain.

Hard to say what turned me around, though sites like this one, the Skeptic’s Dictionary, Steven Novella’s blog, etc., definitely played a big role.

Alas, there is some hope for humanity – those conspiracy theories just can’t stand on their own in the light of day, and eventually, the truth breaks through.

By: Jose the Paranormal Skeptic

Jose the Paranormal Skeptic — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 05:30:25 +0000

Botox is a form of neurotoxin, therefore, technically a poison.

Shhhh….don’t mention it around Jenny McCarthy. Allegedly, she has this thing against injecting people with poison.

By: Al Morrison

Al Morrison — Sun, 01 Aug 2010 17:29:04 +0000

I dunno, Brian: I surfed the Prevent Disease.COM website and it does seem there is more going on than mere scientific illiteracy. The H1N1 flu page, for instance, reads like an anti-vax, alt-med, gov’t conspiracy handbook.

We have: (1)”PharmaMedia to Squelch EU Council’s Secret Investigation into H1N1 Vaccine Fraud,” (2) “Teenage Girl Left Blind and Disabled by Antiviral Tamiflu Treatment,”
(3) “International Hearings Begin On “Falsified” Swine Flu Pandemic,” (4) “Doctors poisoned by Medical-Media Monopoly,” (5) Secret Egg Programs For Swine Flu Vaccines Are Like Military Labs.” I did not edit these. They are the first 5 articles as they appear in the H1N1 Archive section.

On every page there is an ad for “Soul Coaching,” skin treatment, and a recession-proof gym business. This stuff is crisp, clean, and well-planned. No illiteracy here. They want your cash and your mind.

By: Chris Howard

Chris Howard — Sat, 31 Jul 2010 16:32:12 +0000

Thank you Jose,
That’s exactly my point, too. The hallmark of open mindedness is the ability to abmit one is wrong, when presented with new, more compelling evidence. Many of these people are true believers, we cannot change their minds because they have emotional involvenment, that clouds their better judgement, and closes thier minds.

The people we may be able to reach are those in the general public that aren’t “true believers” and are actually looking for the best evidence, as opposed to furthering a position.

By: Øyvind W

Øyvind W — Sat, 31 Jul 2010 14:01:27 +0000

For the outsiders, simple explaining goes a long way. Such as saying that “sure, the vaccine contains toxins, but what matters is the dosage, not the chemical — I mean, sea food contains far more mercury than the vaccine*, yet strangely Jenny McCarthy hasn’t uttered a word on it and there’s no autism epidemic in New Orleans or other sea food-hungry cities.” Or you could point out that apple seeds contain cyanide. Explain how anecdotes prove nothing, because you have to look at the whole picture (you could use anything as an example, from seat belts to stairs). Things like that.

I think the best way to combat these people, and the solution is fitting considering we’re discussing vaccines, is to prevent them from springing up in the first place. Inoculate the populace with critical thinking skills, and far fewer of them will end up like the guy with that web site.

By: Allison

Allison — Sat, 31 Jul 2010 12:35:23 +0000

oops, I meant “They will just counter it with an irrational NON-evidence-based argument they believe to be of the same quality as the scientific one. “

By: Allison

Allison — Sat, 31 Jul 2010 12:34:37 +0000

I think in the community of people who don’t vaccinate their children, there are two categories (I’m grossly oversimplifying, of course). First, you have the folks that write the kind of article you bring up, and I think they are next to impossible to reach. Some people have an idea so fixed in their minds that they aren’t going to be responsive to a rational evidence-based argument. They will just counter it with an irrational evidence-based argument they believe to be of the same quality as the scientific one. The other category, however, is the people who just want to take care of their kids, and they don’t know what to believe. These parents might not have a strong background in science, or just don’t have the time to examine and synthesize all the available evidence. These people are susceptible to believing a highly vocal (but mistaken) advocate of a clearly untrue idea. These are the people we need to reach. I do it, as best I can, by giving a full overview of the available scientific literature, including studies with conclusions that support both sides of the argument. I try to do this in as unbiased way as I can, and most importantly, I never ever stoop to making personal attacks on the advocates of non-scientific ideas. No one is going to be convinced by me calling mr. vaccines kill people a moron. Just my two cents.