We’ve done stories before on this and the wackos who would rather risk their daughter’s health rather than accept that their little angel just might not listen to their abstinence policy.
Will states require cancer vaccine?
A federal panel of scientists recommended Thursday (June 29) that all 11- and 12-year-old girls get a vaccine that could prevent 70 percent of cervical cancer cases. Now discussion moves to state capitols, where legislators will decide whether to make the three-shot treatment mandatory before girls enter certain grades.
The recommendation by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices means that the federal government will likely pick up the tab for vaccinating poor women. The suggestions can also influence insurance coverage.
The issue for states will be whether to add the vaccine for the most dangerous strains of Human Papillomavirus (HPV), which causes cervical cancers in women, to the list of shots such as measles, mumps, polio and whooping cough required for admittance at school.
Linda Klepacki, an analyst on sexual health for Focus on the Family, which promotes abstinence until marriage, said the reason for inoculating schoolchildren for diseases like measles doesn’t apply to the cervical cancer vaccine.
“HPV cannot be communicated by sitting in a public school classroom. It’s communicated only by sexual behavior. Because of that reason, we believe that parents should be the primary decision makers. … It’s not something you can catch, but it’s something you really have to go out and get,” she said.
Klepacki acknowledged that women who remain celibate until marriage still could be at risk, if their husbands contracted the virus earlier.
And these same people will say that the Federal Government should decide who gets married (and subsequently reaps the benefits of marriage) to whom. Oh, and the Feds should protect us from people who want to burn the flag, should legislate how schools demonstrate equity, should protect us by stirring the terrorist’s nest on the other side of the globe, and should not interfere in private affairs except to the benefit of campaign contributors… but the states should be doing the vaccines. Right.
Nothing is without risk. Personally, I’d prefer to know the risks of this vaccine and decide based on that information.
When you go out and get a flu shot, there is a chance you could develop the flu strictly from that contact. If my 12 year old is decidedly not sexually active why create that risk? On the other hand I could be blind to my 15 year old daughters sexual activities.
Personally, my daughter is actually 14, and I have no doubts she’s not sexually active. The only boy she talks to, and talks about is gay. She never goes anywhere without either a parent or her little brother (12) who would love to rat her out on any misbehavior. If this shot had a substantial health risk, I would not want her to have it.
However, what we are getting from the press is a miracle vaccine with no side effects whatsoever. We are not being told if there are risks involved. I’d rather not have the government make this choice for me.
So if some sicko rapes their daughter and gives her HPV then it is her fault for dressing or acting “provocative”. (yeah that makes sense)
I agree with Calin that it is important to know the side affects etc., but if with a vacine we can cut out 70% of a debilitatiiong cancer in women then I would tend to lean to the side towards having the vacine.
While I agree that young girls should abstain, it is a very unrealistic assumption that they will. Should the punishment really be death and disease? Seems rather harsh. What about those instances where she does abstain and she marries some guy who has it. I guess it is her fault that unbeknownst to her the guy had HPV. “God” must have wanted her to have it.
No, we wouldn’t want to advance women’s health issues. Keep them barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen where they belong.
Anybody else notice the dearth of female respondents?
Should the punishment really be death and disease?
In the minds of the religious right wackos, yes. All of these issues, abortion, gay marriage, RU-486, abstinence-only education, the morning after pill, sodomy laws, and now this vaccine have NOTHING to do with the various “principles” these douches espouse — state’s rights for some, federal laws for others, and even Constitutional amendments.
The one thing they all have in common is preventing non-procriative pre-marital sex. Period. That’s the agenda. And they’ll lie, misinform, advocate intrusive federal laws, invoke the Bible, even allow women to die of cervical cancer, whatever it takes, to get that.
Why mandate any vaccines at all? The main argument is that having a few unvaccinated people puts everyone at risk, but here the disease doesn’t spread through that easily. The number of mandated vaccines keeps increasing.
HELLO!!! This is a cancer vaccine.
Have these idiots seen what ANY cancer can do to someone? But as usual, these “Christians” would rather see someone die than admit they’re wrong.
“I was born catholic so sex will always be dirty.”
John Waters.
John W., we have a very low percentage of women commenting — all the time.
Just to be clear – The vaccine does not prevent cervical cancer in 14 year old girls, who are not really at risk of it anyway… It reduces the probability of cervical cancer over the limetime of a woman, and its best chance of success is if it is administered before a woman is sexually active. It does not matter if she is sexually active at 15 or waits until she’s 35…
It makes sense to do two things in this country…
1. Adminster proactive solutions to prevent future problems.
2. Give every right wing zealot a good swift kick in the ass.
Anybody else notice the dearth of female respondents?
Maybe they are all in the kitchen, praying together that their husbands don’t carry HPV.
Does anyone else feel like our children are sometimes being used as guini pigs?
I have children who have responded to vaccinations quite dramatically and negatively, and so I have chosen not to vaccinate them at all any more. Other people I know in the same situation would obviously not want to be forced to vaccinate their children for something that they might not even get. For some, vaccinations have proven to be a serious health risk!
Surely education about how to remain free of all sexually transmitted diseases and the importance of thinking ahead will prevent many cervical cancers as well as other sexual diseases.
*AHEM*
Um, I don’t suppose anyone really cares, but… Cervical Cancer Vaccine Proves Effective: Test Results
“…The trial is partof the ongoing phase III program for Gardasil, which has involved more than 25,000 people in 33 countries worldwide in total…
“…Gardasil was successful in preventing 100 per cent of cases of high-gradepre-cancer and non-invasive cancer associated with human papillomavirus(HPV) strains Type 16 and 18, which cause cervical cancer…
“…None of the women involved in the trial were forced to pull out as a resultof adverse side-affects. The most serious adverse side-affect reportedwas local discomfort at the injection site…”
So I suppose we attack the FDA’s well-known liberal bias, next?
Same FDA that user #12 mentions considers childhood vaccinations containing mercury completely safe while (ahem) most MD’s agree that these are the cause of the ten fold increase in autism …
Government should educate and advocate for vaccinations, parents should be the ones to decide.
#13, Not quite. The medical community does not see any issue with the current vaccines containing mercury. The vociferous opponents are those who have autism and looking for someone to blame, not the medical community. The mercury is being removed more as a safe guard then because of any link. These vaccines have saved many fold more lives then even the critics claim have been injured.
The increase in autism may have any or many causes. We don’t know. Children that have been immunized get autism. Children that have not been immunized get autism. But would you expose your child to death because you fear the vaccine might violate your religious beliefs? Are you going to play God?
“But would you expose your child to death because you fear the vaccine might violate your religious beliefs?”
What, are people at school passing HPV via the water fountains these days?
This is an STD. Sure, if there are no side effects I would encourage my daughter to take them before she becomes sexually active. However, why is it being forced on people? You don’t spread it by being in the room…….you spread it by screwing people. Why is it the governments job to protect us from ourselves?
People talk like the religious people want this drug banned. I personally know of no one who does. However, I don’t want the government to force it down my throat either. Barring the rare rape exception (nice red herring btw), this is a disease you have to actively participate in getting. Why should the government protect me from my own stupidity? While you’re at it, ban red meat, cigarettes, alcohol, caffeinated drinks and anything else you can think of that Americans are killing themselves with daily.
#15:The government doesn’t force anyone to get vaccinated—as far as I know. Vaccines are a requirement for entrance to public schools.
And seriously, HPV is a disease that 80% of women are going to catch by the time they’re 50. It vary rarely show any signs or symptoms, so it spreads like wildfire. Saying that people catch this through their “own stupidity” is naïve. Considering that it can be spread while wearing a condom, what are people to do? Never, ever have sex?
#15: Its an is/ought problem, Calin. People ought to be able to inform themselves and make responsible choices on that basis. The way things is, that ain’t what they do.
Everybody’s kind of internalizing this, taking it personally, having an emotional reaction — well and fine, but in the end, that’s gonna end up clouding people’s judgment. Not necessarily anyone here, but the fact remains, there are a lot of crappy parents out there. That’s just how it is.
Depending on where you get your statistics, one in four to one in five women end up being sexually assaulted. Half of those occur before age 18, one in six before age 12, 92% are committed by someone known to the victim (send your thank you notes for the red herring to the DOJ, who compiled these statistics).
So yeah. Some people are gonna push this pretty hard.
>The government doesn’t force anyone to get vaccinated—as far as I >know. Vaccines are a requirement for entrance to public schools.
That’s close enough. Why do the public schools need to force this? Should they also have mandatory drug testing?
I never thought I would hear myself saying this – but I agree with the FRC. Why should an immunization for an STD be required for school attendance? I think all women should get this, but I just don’t see the justification for another government mandate, when it does not have anything to do with school health or safety.
Anyone thinking their kid isn’t going to have sex in this day and age is a fool. It is a vastly different world for them than it was when you were young. Whatever you think is going on isn’t even close to what is really happening. By the time the kids of today are old enough to decide on their own if they should get the vaccine, it could be too late.
To quote from my post on this last year: “I hope you never have to explain to your daughter that her cancer was just a casualty of the conservative’s war against promiscuous sex. I’m sure she will thank you for it.”
Getting the vaccine before starting school ensures when the nearly inevitable happens, they are protected.
You will find that all the arguments in favor of king-craft were of this class; they always bestrode the necks of the people, not that they wanted to do it, but because the people were better off for being ridden.
Abraham Lincoln
Uncle Dave, well put and an extremely pervasive argument.
To those complaining that the government is exceeding it’s authority by requiring vaccinations. Balderdash. It is all part of legislating for the public good. Can anyone argue that requiring restaurants maintain a level of cleanliness is not in the public good, even if you don’t eat there? Or that drivers using the public highways demonstrate a level of proficiency before being allowed to drive? Or in years past, when someone had a communicable disease, they were quarantined in an effort to contain the spread? Or transports carrying dangerous products have external labels so firefighters know what they face?
These, and many other regulations, are to protect us from ourselves. They are for the public good. The arguments that they may cause autism, that your child is a virgin, that God wouldn’t want it are all straw men. Like Dave suggested, explain to your child why God didn’t her to be vaccinated to her cancer
My argument against it has nothing to do with God. I knocked up my 16 year old girlfriend when I was 18. We’re still married today. I’m well aware that teenagers have sex.
Do I want girls to get this before they become sexually active? Sure, if it’s harmless. Do I want the government to mandate it? No.
Arguments like “The government doesn’t force anyone to get vaccinated—as far as I know. Vaccines are a requirement for entrance to public schools” sound way too Republican for my taste. I mean, isn’t it the liberals that are supposed to stand up for the abilities and rights of the poor? If I can’t afford to put my three kids in private school, I don’t deserve the choice? When I re-entered college at the age of 30, MSU required my vaccination records. So, if you want a choice on this vaccination you have to be wealthy enough to fund private schools (while your tax dollars pay for the public school you aren’t using)……and your child will have to attend private university if any at all?
The rich can choose, but the poor cannot. I see all kinds of nobility in this legislation……really.
On the other side, notice all the examples given are to protect the public from the unknown. You drive down the street assuming (usually to your disappointment) that the other drivers know what they are doing. You have no way of knowing. In all of these examples, the government is not protecting you from yourself, they are protecting you from others. You dont’ have a choice in who is driving on the road beside you, or what is in that tanker truck. You do have a choice as to whether or not to expose yourself to HPV. If you choose to take the risk, you should be educated to the risks and have the chance to take whatever measures of protection you can (up to and including this vaccine). The parents should weight the chance of rape, and the chance of catching HPV via abuse (no statistics on that……that’s the red herring) and choose this vaccination if they think it’s a possibility. I mean the statistics do say up to 25% of women….which equals 12.5% of the population (roughly). It does not say how many of these vicitms catch a communicable disease from this. I’m sure based on your location this number will go up or down accordingly.
It is her body. She should have the choice of what goes into it. The schools aren’t allowed to give her so much as an aspirin without parental permission…….why should the government force her to take this series of shots? Why not put all medical information (history, allergies) on a database and require an RFID tag to be surgically implanted? This would be for the public good wouldn’t it? Or does that cross the line into Big Brother?
Forcing someone to meet a requirement before they are allowed to do something is one thing. Forcing them to undergo a medical proceedure (albeit extremely minor) whether they are going to do something or not is an entirely different thing.
As the liberals preach in the abortion debate……it’s her body, it’s her choice.
The rightist obsession with “liberalism” and “government” seems to extend to killing women who are dirty little hoo-ers and deserved to die.
Geniuses: most women have HPV, or will have. Most men, too. Women are raped, all the time, reported or not, starting at prepuberty, and always will be. Women marry or pair up with men who have slept with other women. Women therefore will die in their millions to satisfy your hatred of secular humanist government liberal interventionists.
You people are mentally ill.
“Geniuses: most women have HPV, or will have. Most men, too. Women are raped, all the time, reported or not, starting at prepuberty, and always will be. Women marry or pair up with men who have slept with other women. Women therefore will die in their millions to satisfy your hatred of secular humanist government liberal interventionists.”
And they should have the choice of taking this vaccine in order to combat that chance.
What you are wanting to do is take the choice away from the woman. Excuse me, not all women, just the poor ones who can’t afford a private education. After all, aren’t they just poor stupid women who can’t make decisions for themselves?
Your argument stems from some fallacy that we want this vaccine banned. I’m glad it’s been invented. I hope more treatments come about to inoculate other strains of HPV, or even of AIDS. What I don’t want is the choice of medical care taken away from the individual who will be receiving it. Isn’t freedom really about choice after all?
23. “To those complaining that the government is exceeding it’s authority by requiring vaccinations. Balderdash. It is all part of legislating for the public good.”
but what does an HPV vaccination have to do with going to school? and if we can legislate HPV vaccinations, can we legislate chastity belts?
of course not. none of the examples you cite involve government intruding upon the bodies of individuals.
I think every responsible parent will get their daughter vaccinated, but it is not the government’s place to mandate it any more than it is their place to require them to take their Flintstone’s chewables.
They are all examples of legislating for the “public good”. Another example is wearing seat belts. A lot of people use the same argument, yet when your medical bills surpass your ability to pay, we, the taxpayer, pay. Or how about attending public schools. Every student needs to show that they have been immunized to several diseases. Only a few people argue that there is no “public good” in such a policy.
I can remember getting a polio vaccine about 1960. Although my parents would have approved, they weren’t asked for permission. It was the government paying for all those iron lungs that insisted upon the “public good”.
If you don’t want to drive, don’t subject yourself to the requirements. If you don’t want your child to attend public school, don’t have them immunized. BTW, most private schools require immunizations, for the same reasons the public schools do.
>It is all part of legislating for the public good.”
So you support banning smoking for the public good?
In order to get into school, you should be tested for drugs?
How about getting cholesterol levels checked and diet and exercise requirements imposed?
I am hoping it will be available for both my girls when the time comes….ALOT of people have it (hpv)and have and dont know they have it and may not know they have it for YEARS. I absolutely believe they should be required to get it….would we be arguing if a vaccine for AIDS existed…I dont think so. This is sad. You know what…it actually pisses me off. Those of you who think this is some sort of enabling tool for your kids to have sex have lost your minds. Horomones will take care of that dont worry. And those who probably wont vaccinate their kids will be the same ones whining and crying when their children die because enough wasnt done or claiming it was the work of God or possession by the devil or whoever else you can blame so that you dont have to take responsibility for not having your kids vaccinated. Thats what it really comes down to…responsibility to your children to protect them. Vaccines are like a freebie for parents….
Thank you, Max Bell. You have obviously not had a child almost die after a vaccination. You have obviously not had to raise the same child with the challenges of autism, where the child had lived a normal live before the vaccination. Do enjoy your ‘normal’ heredity. Perhaps if we keep manditory vaccinations up we will have no autism and no children dying after vaccinations. because they will all be bred out.