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When I first started poking around the anti-vax issue, it was with the belief that vaccines are bad. Which is a very trendy thing to believe these days. Although, I had already been exposed to the skeptical side of myself via my research into SIDS and mattress fumes. So, I suppose I was feeling a bit skeptical when I started out.

However, what I've found is... more than a little bit scary. People who assert that vaccines cause everything from autism to allergies to SIDS and everything in between, and who do so in the face of all research which concludes the contrary. People who believe that every SIDS organization, autism organization, government health organization IN THE WORLD are in on a grand conspiracy to convince us all to vaccinate for monetary gain.

Someone close to me sent me to the Dr. Carly website, which was one of the first that I really made myself sit down and analyze... and found myself reading things like:

"However, the reverberating truth, “the shot heard round the world” which will lead to the evolution of consciousness necessary to stop the holocaust against humanity known as vaccinations, will be that not only are vaccinations not safe or effective, but that they are actually weapons of mass destruction being perpetrated upon humanity in the name of health, for the purpose of genocide and to bring in the New World Order. Part 2 of the genocidal plan could drop anytime with activation of the Model State Health Emergency Powers Act whenever the next fabricated terrorist attack using biological agents occurs. The “bird flu” is apparently going to be used as an excuse to inoculate the masses soon, as predictions of a pandemic are being made by the media almost every day." ~Dr.Carly

Yes... that's right, folks. Vaccines are part of an attempt at global genocide.

Of course there is no explanation as to who would benefit from said genocide nor what their motivation would be to do such a thing.

Not only that, but Dr. Carly is part of a group of people who believe that vaccines are part of some satanic ritual.

It doesn't bother me or scare me to see parents (like myself) doing more in-depth research as to what is in vaccines, why they are given, what they prevent against, and all the facts therein. It does bother me to see people taking advice from someone who believes a) vaccines are part of a global genocidal plot or b) vaccines are part of a satanic ritual. Either way, consider your source please!

Trying to have a coherent discussion with the most vehement anti-vax people usually goes something like:

Anti-vaxer: "Rotavirus is no big deal."
Skeptic: "My godson had rotavirus and spent a month at children's hospital. It was way more than "no big deal" for us. A vaccine could've saved a month of his life spent hooked up to IVs."
Anti-vaxer: "But if he'd died of a vaccine, you'd have a different perspective."

What???? I'm not sure how that is relevant, except for being able to say in response: "Yes, and if your child had almost died of rotavirus, maybe your perspective would be different as well."

I'm really doing this only for my own sanity and to sort out all the information I've been collecting about vaccinations, but I'll be going through and addressing some of their basic arguments and concerns about vaccines.

To clarify, I will just say that being concerned over vaccines is good. Researching them is good. Having a dose of *healthy* skepticism towards modern medicine can be good. But rejecting all medical science, all medical research, and every doctor on the face of the earth in the belief that sodium ascorbate can heal all the world's ills and vaccine preventable diseases are no big deal... sorry, that is not good.