Bush Backs Voluntary Smallpox Vaccine; offered to the general public in 2004

Reuters ^

[RCW2001]

Wed December 11, 2002 06:51 PM ET
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Bush said on Wednesday he had decided to make smallpox vaccine available to Americans on a voluntary basis to guard against a possible biological warfare attack.

"I think it ought to be a voluntary plan. ... I don't think people ought to be compelled to make the decision," Bush said in an interview with ABC television's Barbara Walters, a portion of which was broadcast on Wednesday.

Bush was expected to announce details of the plan later this week.

ABC said the vaccine would be given first to military personnel, then to emergency workers, including hospital employees, paramedics and police. It would be offered to the general public in 2004, when newer stocks of vaccine become available.

First Lady Laura Bush, asked in the interview how she would feel about her daughters taking the vaccine, said: "If the vaccine were available, which I think it will be, I would feel like that was certainly safe. ... I know there's a slight risk. That's what people will weigh."

Scientists say the smallpox vaccine, based on decades-old technology, presents a risk of side effects that include death in about one to two cases per million.

[Steve Eisenberg]

Let's have NO government vaccinations.

Why? My sister in law had polio and still suffers its effects. Then almost everyone, including me, got the sugar cube vaccines, given out free at schools, and, guess what: very few new cases of polio.

These smallpox vaccines will take a weapon away from the terrorists. If even 70% of us get the vaccine, that should be enough to fully take the weapon away from them. The other 30% will be freeloaders, just like those Americans who did not show up for their sugar cubes but nonetheless did not get polio because those who did take the cubes, and some small risk with it, had blocked the contagion.

[Tuor]

There will likely be an extensive public information campaign to help Americans "digest" (as the president said) the plan and their options.

Translation: The state propaganda machine will be working overtime for a while.

Tuor

[Helms]

I will take this to back our soldiers, but I take this as very serious and that stage 2 will be quite long or stage three will be Hezbollah, Islamic Jihad and the rest.

[rintense]

Let's have NO government vaccinations.

What? We've already had them. I got mine when I was 2 and 5.

[FormerLurker]

Why? My sister in law had polio and still suffers its effects. Then almost everyone, including me, got the sugar cube vaccines, given out free at schools, and, guess what: very few new cases of polio.

Polio was already on a sharp decline prior to the vaccine. Not only polio, but many other infectious diseases have declined on their own PRIOR to the introduction of a vaccine.

---

 

GRAPHICAL EVIDENCE SHOWS VACCINES DIDN'T SAVE US

 

The above graphs, based on the official death numbers as recorded in the Official Year Books of the Commonwealth of Australia, are taken from Greg Beattie's excellent book "Vaccination A Parent's Dilemma" and represent the decline in death rates from infectious disease in Australia. They clearly show that vaccines had nothing to do with the decline in death rates. (Note: Graphical evidence on the decline in death rates from infectious disease for USA, England, New Zealand and many other countries shows the exact same scenario as above).

So what were the true reasons for this decline? From his book 'Health and Healing' Dr Andrew Weil best answers it with this statement;

"Scientific medicine has taken credit it does not deserve for some advances in health. Most people believe that victory over the infectious diseases of the last century came with the invention of immunisations. In fact, cholera, typhoid, tetanus, diphtheria and whooping cough, etc, were in decline before vaccines for them became available - the result of better methods of sanitation, sewage disposal, and distribution of food and water."

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From HISTORICAL FACTS EXPOSING THE DANGERS AND INEFFECTIVENESS OF VACCINES

- In 1977, Dr Jonas Salk who developed the first polio vaccine, testified along with other scientists, that mass inoculation against polio was the cause of most polio cases throughout the USA since 1961. (Science 4/4/77 "Abstracts" )

And from DOCTORS AND SCIENTISTS CONDEMN VACCINATION;

"Live virus vaccines against influenza and paralytic polio, for example, may in each instance cause the disease it is intended to prevent..."
Dr Jonas Salk, developer of first polio vaccine, Science, 1977

"Official data have shown that the large-scale vaccinations undertaken in the US have failed to obtain any significant improvement of the diseases against which they were supposed to provide protection."
Dr A. Sabin, developer of the Oral Polio vaccine

If even 70% of us get the vaccine, that should be enough to fully take the weapon away from them.

Not if historical facts are true (which they are of course..)

From HISTORICAL FACTS EXPOSING THE DANGERS AND INEFFECTIVENESS OF VACCINES

- In 1871-2, England, with 98% of the population aged between 2 and 50 vaccinated against smallpox, it experienced its worst ever smallpox outbreak with 45,000 deaths. During the same period in Germany, with a vaccination rate of 96%, there were over 125,000 deaths from smallpox. (The Hadwen Documents)

[Steve Eisenberg]

GRAPHICAL EVIDENCE SHOWS VACCINES DIDN'T SAVE US

Why do the starting point on these graphs vary from 1880 to 1950? Obviously to prove a point rather than to allow the reader to draw an objective conclusion. Fact is, if I had the freedom to stack the deck by choosing my own start and end points for the charts, I could prove the opposite. And why are the years on these charts so tiny that I had to use a magnifier utility on my computer to see them?

Vaccines were not the only factor in conquest of these diseases. But people who are tempted to believe the anti-vaccine crowd should ask why they feel such a need to stack the deck.

[ItisaReligionofPeace]

What is wrong with you? What is wrong with "government" vaccinations? If you don't want to be vaccinated, don't! Others, would like to be vaccinated.

[ItisaReligionofPeace]

You may want to find out what drugs your doctor can prescribe you for paranoia.

[woofie]

Bump

[Brownie74]

Correct. Our vaccines would do no good against a military grade smallpox virus.

[Steve Eisenberg]

"Official data have shown that the large-scale vaccinations undertaken in the US have failed to obtain any significant improvement of the diseases against which they were supposed to provide protection." Dr A. Sabin, developer of the Oral Polio vaccine

Please provide a reference for this startling quote so we can check out the context. Thank you.

[Abar]

President Bush said on Wednesday he had decided to make smallpox vaccine available to Americans

But whatever you do Bush, DON'T seal the borders, DON'T expel illegal aliens and DON'T offend muslims.

IT'S MUCH BETTER FOR US TO SUFFER A BIO ATTACK.

[FormerLurker]

Please provide a reference for this startling quote so we can check out the context. Thank you.

It is from the book Vaccination The "Hidden" Facts by Ian Sinclair.

[FormerLurker]

Why do the starting point on these graphs vary from 1880 to 1950?

Apparently that is how far back they collected data in relation to each disease in Australia.

Obviously to prove a point rather than to allow the reader to draw an objective conclusion.

Have you seen the ridiculous graphs provided by various pro-vaccination groups that show a drop in disease from the point where a vaccine is introduced, but ignore the data from past decades that show that the disease was ALREADY in decline as is readily apparent in the graphs that I've provided? Now THAT is stacking the deck to prove a non-existant point...

Fact is, if I had the freedom to stack the deck by choosing my own start and end points for the charts, I could prove the opposite.

Not wouldn't be proving anything, and that is what pro-vaccination advocates have done.

And why are the years on these charts so tiny that I had to use a magnifier utility on my computer to see them?

Either you have a small monitor or you have your screen resolution set too high..

Vaccines were not the only factor in conquest of these diseases. But people who are tempted to believe the anti-vaccine crowd should ask why they feel such a need to stack the deck.

Facts don't lie, and the only stacking of the deck is that done by those who are trying to prove a false premise.

[my_pointy_head_is_sharp]

"I think it ought to be a voluntary plan

Let's hope he doesn't change his mind.

[FormerLurker]

Oops, didn't catch a typo before I hit post. I meant to say..

Fact is, if I had the freedom to stack the deck by choosing my own start and end points for the charts, I could prove the opposite.

NotThat wouldn't be proving anything, and that is exactly what pro-vaccination advocates have done.

[Miss Marple]

The Salk vaccine was introduced in 1955. I was vaccinated in 1956, as was my entire grade school. Almost every child in the country was vaccinated, because the risk of polio was quite high.

The decline in the death rate from polio was DIRECTLY because of widespread vaccination. I don't know about the other diseases, but I know for a FACT that vaccinations were widespread in late 1955 and 1956. There were even pictures of the kids being vaccinated in the papers.

The chart indicates that the vaccine wasn't introduced until 1957. This is incorrect.

I fail to see how the graph points out that the decline in polio was NOT from vaccination.

I detest these anti-medicine writers who cannot even get their supporting facts correct. In addition, the very idea that one doesn't need vaccinations is not supported by the record in impoverished countries, where disease is widespread, vaccinations are given, and lo and behold, deaths from diseases such as polio drop!

[FITZ]

I'm not afraid of a live vaccine, I like that Bush intends to make this voluntary but my family will be vaccinated. Live vaccines only get your own body prepared to fight off disease.

[Miss Marple]

Oh. This is Australia. Well, as Emily Latella said, "Never mind."