Michael Bloomberg, the mayor of New York City, is making a
final mark before he leaves office.
The New York City Board of Health unanimously approved Bloomberg’s
initiative to require children under the age of 5 to receive a flu vaccination
if the child is enrolled in a city-licensed day care or pre-school.
Bloomberg is the face of the nanny state. He is well known for his ban on large
sodas. He is a nightmare for
libertarians, except for the fact that he shows just how abusive the state can
be.
This latest initiative is controversial in many ways. There are many people opposed to it
because they argue that vaccines can cause autism and other health problems.
Ironically, this new law applies to children who are 6
months old up to just under the age of 5, which would actually be the group
most susceptible to harmful effects, such as autism. Most young children already receive a high number of vaccines
at an early age. If the child’s
immune system is already weakened, another vaccine could make the difference
between a healthy child and an unhealthy child.
The defenders of the nanny state will dispute any link
between vaccinations and autism, yet they won’t leave that choice up to the
parents. There is nothing
preventing these people from vaccinating their own children. They just want to control the lives of
other people.
Defenders of the Bloomberg measure say that the flu can be
quite dangerous and even deadly.
But the opposition who believe there is a link with autism can make the
same argument on their side. Shouldn’t
it be up to parents to decide and not the state?
If you live in New York City or another place that has this
requirement, my only suggestion is to either move or homeschool your
child. Unfortunately, the state
burdens us with so many taxes and regulations that many two-parent households
need both of them to work. One has
to work just to pay all of the taxes, particularly in a place such as New York
City.
This latest episode of heavy-handed government provides a
good example of how some people simply want to control others. If they are worried about the flu and
they think a flu vaccination is effective, then vaccinating their own child
should protect their own child. My
guess is that most of the advocates of this measure don’t even have children in
the age range affected.
If people are so concerned about the flu, why don’t they
start a public campaign to take vitamins such as C and D, and to take a good
probiotic supplement? There are
also other herbs and supplements that can be used in helping to suppress
viruses and to boost the immune system.
Of course, such an act might actually help reduce the number
of people getting the flu, but it would also help reduce the profits of some of
the big pharmaceutical companies that push these vaccines.
The politicians don’t care about your health. They will sabotage your health in a
second if it means taking care of lobbyists and special interests that funnel
money to them.
Michael Bloomberg is even worse than the average politician. I think he simply enjoys exercising power over others for the sake of it.