What?!

There was a headline in a well-known publication that asked, “Is RFK, Jr. winning or losing the battle against vaccines?” I guess I’m not clear on the phrasing, or why the question was asked in the first place.

As the query bounced around in my brain, a couple questions popped up in response. First, beyond the mind-numbing reality of his current status as head of HHS, why is RFK, Jr. part of any conversation pertaining to the benefits or dangers of vaccines– or any medical question whatsoever? And second, why is there a war over vaccines at all? Why speak of it in such a way?

I think I understand that any vaccine is going to be unsafe or ill-advised for a certain small percentage of the population, but that, on the balance and according to a majority of those who actually know about such things, they are safe and efficacious.

The fact that this is being spoken of in terms of war is unsettling, to say the least. It’s as if the whole enterprise is the brainchild of cold-hearted pharmaceutical companies who only care about the bottom line, or there is this unfounded fear among MAGA adherents and others that vaccines are the devil, a symbol of wokeness, somehow. It’s irrational to think this way, and yet enough people are making noise over it that we have to waste time talking about it.  

I’ve never understood vaccine mandates to be the intentionally oppressive means of forcing preventative measures on someone. I’ve always understood them as being the reasonable recommendations of those who used to be trusted as having done their due diligence, done their homework, engaged in the trial processes and as a result stand behind the safety and effectiveness of drugs that keep us safe from horrendous, sometimes life-threatening diseases.

In the end, Bobby, Jr., please do the right thing and at least leave the choice of whether or not our kids are vaccinated to parents who do their homework. And let research surrounding these miracles of medicine continue.

Otherwise, just resign and enjoy your days foraging for roadkill.