Posted by
perseveringjayhawker on Tuesday, March 06, 2007 2:23:02 PM
Uncle Sam
Father Knows Best
The state of Texas has a lot of admirable qualities and those who hail from that place have reason to be proud, until now. No longer the land of rugged independence, Texas seems to have transformed into a monarchy overnight with King Perry (formerly know as Governor Rick Perry) ruling that his subjects do not know what is best for their daughters. Thanks to their governor, who sidestepped the will of the people by issuing an Executive Order, they became the first state to mandate that all female children be vaccinated for the Human Papiloma Virus (HPV) prior to the sixth grade. HPV is a virus that can cause abnormal tissue growth on different cell surfaces in the human body and women who contract certain strains of the virus greatly increase their risk of developing cervical cancer. HPV is a strictly sexually transmitted disease, and cannot be contracted through casual contact.
The new vaccine is being touted as a medical breakthrough for its potential to “prevent” cervical cancer in women. Of course, upon closer examination it all sounds better than it really is. The vaccine only protects against four strains of HPV, with there being more than twenty different variations. Contrary to the vaccines own advertising, it cannot, and does not, “prevent” cervical cancer. It may reduce one’s chances of getting it from the four types of HPV for which the inoculation works. Also, because the drug is so new, nothing is known about how long the immunity will last. Sixth graders could be unprotected by the time they reach high school. Not to mention the long term side effects of this drug are a complete unknown. Despite all of these concerns the Texas Governor, and soon to be many other state governments, feel comfortable forcing parents to put this unnecessary drug in their child’s body.
There are mandatory vaccinations that children receive before entering the public education system. The HPV vaccine cannot be compared to those vaccinations that protect children from highly communicable diseases. While one student can casually pass Whooping Cough to his neighbor one desk over, potentially causing an epidemic, the same is simply not true for HPV. The HPV virus is one hundred percent avoidable without an inoculation.
The justifications of those who wish to force parents to give their daughter this drug are that it can significantly decrease her chances of developing cervical cancer. If preventing cervical cancer is truly the goal then why don’t the schools teach stringent classes on abstinence, and all the health benefits that that lifestyle affords? Abstinence reduces a girls chances of developing cervical cancer from HPV with one hundred percent efficacy. No takers? The attempt to prevent cervical cancer may be noble, but cervical cancer is not a public health risk, and is therefore none of the school’s business.
It is difficult to remain un-skeptical about the true nature of laws passed that take away a parents rights even though it all seems to be for the “good” of the child. Skepticism is necessary in this case. The facts are that cervical cancer in the United States kills an estimated 3,200 women a year. Statistically, that affects less than one percent of the U.S. population. That does not constitute an epidemic and definitely does not justify mandatory vaccinations. In fact cervical cancer does not even make the top ten list of cancers that kill women most often. Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer in women. If we allow the government to tell us that we have to be vaccinated for HPV to reduce cervical cancer, where do we draw the line? Can the government force citizens to have a mammogram for their own good? This would be a serious invasion of individual rights just as forced immunization for HPV is a serious invasion of parental and personal rights.
Other states had better be on their toes, prepared to inform our Legislatures and Governors that we still believe that where our children are concerned Father knows best, not Uncle Sam.