Vaccines and herd immunity
To my conservative friends in the NH State Legislature: Vaccines have nothing, repeat nothing, to do with autism or any other neurological condition. The science is overwhelming on this point and to ignore the science is – well, I don’t know what – just plain stupid?
So that leaves us with the very important principle of herd immunity. Herd immunity isn’t an abstract theory; it’s a practical way communities protect their most vulnerable. When enough people are immune, diseases struggle to spread, shielding infants, grandparents, and those with fragile health. This approach respects family responsibility and supports local resilience. Vaccination and immunity keep schools open, hospitals functioning, and workplaces stable—outcomes every family depends on. Herd immunity doesn’t replace personal freedom; it amplifies it by lowering the odds that everyday life becomes dangerous. Choosing immunity is a prudent, neighborly investment in the health, safety, and continuity of our communities.
So one has to wonder what Conservatives, or MAGAS have to gain by opposing one of the most important developments in public health since the treatment for Smallpox – our amazingly effective childhood vaccination regimes. What is there to gain? Freedom? Freedom to NOT get vaccinated and thus become a source for public infection wherever you go? Freedom to send your unvaccinated child to school so he/she can infect an entire class if not the entire school?
It was once stated by none other than Wayne Lapierre of the National Rifle Association, that the only way to stop a criminal with a gun is a good guy with a gun. The vaccine argument reminds me of this twisted logic. Wouldn’t it be a lot better if neither of them had a gun? Similarly, rather than having unvaccinated citizens roaming around the country infecting their neighbors, wouldn’t it be a lot better if none of us could infect others? Wouldn’t we all be a lot safer? So all of you NH Legislature MAGA folks think about this. Are you arguing for individual freedom, or community disaster by opposing vaccines? What about your own freedom from communicable disease? In fact, what exactly IS your point?