Friday, January 28, 2011

The Real Victims

Mr. Shiny Shorts (NOT a victim)
I was thinking about innocent victims the other day and it seems very clear that vaccination conspiracy theorists like Mr Hubbs don't really care about others.  They would rather get their way regardless of how much science and evidence exists that prove that vaccines do far, far more good than harm.  They could care less about the millions of lives saved by vaccines, or the millions of humans who are protected from contracting diseases each and every year.

One only has to examine the published data from the World Health Organization (WHO) to clearly see those countries who have the highest rates of vaccination have a much lower infant mortality rates than those counties who have much lower vaccination rates.  Case in point, if you were to compare the US, Sweden, and Norway with countries like Niger, Nigeria, and Somalia here is what you would find:

United States:
Infant mortality rate (per 1,000 live births): 7
Under-five mortality rate (per 1,000 live births): 8

Sweden:
Infant mortality rate (per 1,000 live births): 2
Under-five mortality rate (per 1,000 live births): 3

Norway:
Infant mortality rate (per 1,000 live births): 3
Under-five mortality rate (per 1,000 live births): 4

Chad:
Infant mortality rate (per 1,000 live births):  124
Under-five mortality rate (per 1,000 live births):  209

Nigeria:
Infant mortality rate (per 1,000 live births): 96
Under-five mortality rate (per 1,000 live births): 186

Somalia:
Infant mortality rate (per 1,000 live births): 119
Under-five mortality rate (per 1,000 live births): 200

Obviously vaccines are not the only determining factor when it comes to infant mortality.  There are other factors such as access to clean water and quality medical care as well as adequate supplies of food.  However if you examine the numbers you will find a direct correlation between vaccinations and child mortality rates regardless of these other factors.

If you really take the time to examine the numbers - no matter what countries you examine, the trends are clear.  Those countries who vaccinate the greatest portion of their population have fewer children dying while those countries who have not had as much success in vaccinating their populations have many more children dying each and every year from preventable diseases like measles (which according to the 2008 figures killed 164,000 people globally).

Think of that - 164,000 people dying from a disease we have a known and proven vaccine to prevent.  450 deaths every single day simply because our vaccination rates are not where they need to be worldwide.  However there is some good news - measles vaccination programs have reduced deaths 78% from 2000 to 2008 worldwide.  Those are indisputable facts and prove that higher vaccination rates lead to fewer deaths, yet people like Lowell Hubbs still refuse to accept these facts and act as if the WHO, UNICEF, the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Red Cross, and dozens of other agencies are all in on some vast conspiracy to push vaccines for the sake of personal profit.

Perhaps even more shocking than the number of children who die from measles is the number of children who contract measles but don't die.  It is estimated that between 1%- 5% of those children with measles die from complications from the disease, which tells us that 95%-99% recover and live.  That equates to over 16,000,000 children who contract measles each and ever year.  That is 16 million children that have to suffer in pain while their bodies fight against the virus.  Apparently in the mind of a vaccine conspiracy theorist like Lowell Hubbs, 16 million children suffering for two to three weeks is much better than those same 16 million children receiving a single dose of the measles vaccine.

So let me ask: Are those 164,000 children who die from the measles the true victims, or is it the children who receive vaccines in countries such as the US?  Is it the millions of other children who contracted measles but didn't die, or is it people like Lowell Hubbs who pretend to understand issues of medicine even though he has never set foot in a research lab or taken so much as a remedial biology or immunology course in any college or university worldwide?

It seems clear when you really examine the facts, people like Mr. Hubbs don't care about these people at all.  They might claim to care and they might pretend that what drives their insanity is a desire to protect others, but the truth is Mr. Hubbs and his ilk are only interested in one thing and one thing alone.  They wish to ban all vaccines - and by doing so they wish to prevent people from making informed decisions on their own. 

The antivaxxers would be more than happy to see millions of children die each and ever year if it meant there were no vaccines, because in their minds vaccines are responsible for autism.  Aside from the fact that is zero scientific evidence to support this theory, and although there never has been any scientific evidence to support such a theory,  even if it were true antivaxxers like Mr. Hubbs would have us believe millions of dead children are better than a few thousand with autism, even though the vast majority of children who fall within the autism spectrum go on to lead relatively normal or near-normal lives.

Yea that makes sense.  Sounds like a great trade off... provided you or your children aren't the ones suffering.  These types are arguments are always easy for the antivaxxers to make when they realize they have already been vaccinated so they are safe from the diseases they wish to push onto the world's populace.

With all of this said, there is another smaller group who suffers negative impacts from anything and everything Mr. Hubbs stands for, and that group includes other people who just so happen to share the name "Lowell Hubbs".  Imagine sharing a name with a prolific vaccination conspiracy theorist who spends dozens upon dozens of hours each and every week writing on blogs and forums and websites and discussion groups all about various conspiracy theories. 

Imaging interviewing for a job only to have the potential employer type your name into Google and see all of this quackery associated with your name.  Imagine people emailing you or calling you and asking if you are the nutcase on the Internet who believes all vaccines are harmful or that science should be determined based upon wild theory or fabricated evidence or perhaps even nothing more than a strong opinion?

There are a lot of victims here, but I dare say anyone who shares the name Lowell Hubbs is harmed (at least on an emotional and psychological level) as much as anyone who has ever suffered from a disease treated or eradicated by a vaccine.

But Lowell Kevin Hubbs from Sioux Falls, South Dakota doesn't care about anyone else.  He merely cares about himself and meeting his goal of convincing the rest of the world to believe what he believes.  Because in the mind of a crazed conspiracy theorist, collateral damage or side effects imposed upon others just doesn't matter.  The end goal is a complete and total eradication of anything and everything related to vaccinations - innocent victims and anyone else who gets in the way be damned.

10 comments:

  1. What will Lowell say to Bill Gates donating money to help eradicate Polio?

    A billionaire genius with no ties to "big pharma" donating money to help third-world countries. The plan is to use the money for vaccine! Imagine that.

    Kind of nice to see someone wanting to help these people. I think the gesture by Mr. Gates echoes your thoughts. Here is a guy that is not sending money for food, clothing, or education. He sees the need and importance of eradicating a disease...what a novel idea!

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  2. Interesting point SDealer. I believe Bill Gates as well as Warren Buffet have both donated large amounts of money towards programs which are involved in vaccination and they are saving an untold amount of lives.

    Obviously both Gates and Buffet are not beholden to anyone nor do they need to protect their wealth (because they are giving most of that wealth away by choice), and yet these men are both intelligent enough to realize there is merit in vaccines.

    Does this Lowell Hubbs believe people like Gates and Buffett are somehow controlled by big pharma too? If not it would seem they are spending hundreds of millions of dollars of their own money to do what they feel is right with no influence from outside forces.

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  3. I'll say this much, I'm sure glad MY name isn't Lowell Hubbs. What a nutcase!!!!!!!

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  4. So now what does Bill gates have to do with anything?

    Bill Gates is such a nice guy, he wants depopulation through use of vaccines. Listen to what he states, yourself! What is his real agenda? Makes a person wonder.

    Bill Gates: Use vaccines to lower population
    Billionaire advocates curbing CO2 by reducing earth's inhabitants.

    Read more: Bill Gates: Use vaccines to lower population http://www.wnd.com/?pageId=127346#ixzz1Cl40DKvH

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JaF-fq2Zn7I&feature=player_embedded

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  5. You might want to actually read the entire article that you reference since it spells out precisely what Gates was suggesting. His goal is to reduce infant mortality rates which in turn would actually decrease populations as people would no longer need to have 10 children hoping at least a couple of them would live beyond the infant stage.

    Second, Gates also promotes the idea of improved reproductive health services which would likely include the idea of contraception - something that is very rare in much of the world. Combined these ideas could curb population growth before we become a planet which cannot support itself with our finite resources.

    Of course I realize you lack the critical thinking ability to actually make these conclusions even when they are handed to you on a platter, so I'm happy to help.

    As far as what Gates has to do with anything... he will very well go down in history as a man who directly saved millions of lives as well as prevented the suffering of millions more through his donations. He is giving away $10 Billion of his own money much of which is going to vaccination programs, and he doesn't get a thing from it other than the personal satisfaction knowing he is saving lives and eradicating disease worldwide.

    So much for your "big pharma" and profit arguments. They fall flat yet again. Nice job with the WND source too... just goes to show how far you anti-vaxers will go to spin a story when you have to rely upon WND as your source, but I allowed it to be posted just because it was so easy to prove your ignorance of the facts.

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  6. Wait is this guy really trying to suggest Bill Gates is trying to kill people with vaccines? That would be pretty stupid considering industrialized nations from the West who vaccinate have much longer lifespans than nations in the Middle East and African regions who do not.

    So giving them vaccinations is a pretty piss poor way of controlling populations. If Bill Gates really wanted to reduce populations all he would have to do is funnel some of his money to terrorists and dictators who could start acts of violence and war.

    Can't someone just do something nice with their money without someone thinking there is some secret ulterior motive? Seems like Gates is pretty sincere to me and he wants to do the right thing by saving people. Where is the harm in that?

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  7. His goal is to reduce infant mortality rates which in turn would actually decrease populations as people would no longer need to have 10 children hoping at least a couple of them would live beyond the infant stage.

    The demented insanity of that twisted and baseless comment is just amazing. And you claim to be a rational and common sense debater? Where in any of gates commentary does he even elude to the interpretation you claim that message has.

    If Gates was referring to contraceptive vaccines; either he is a very poor communicator in his choice of words, or something more is behind it. Any way you look at it, the intent is far from clear. Gardasil clearly has potential for creating massive infertility, given to young girls; do your research. As well sterility vaccines have been already given to 1000;s of unsuspecting women in more underdeveloped counties. All they need is to use hCG, and a carrier virus, (antigen). And guess who is connected to it, The World health Organization. And who does Bill Gates work with? Only a true sheeple wouldn't question that.

    http://www.thinktwice.com/birthcon.htm

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  8. Mr. Hubbs - it isn't a matter of my interpretation, it is what is clearly stated in the article that you referenced.

    Case in point, here is an actual quote from the article: "Gates contends that parents have more children when infant mortality rates are high so they can be sure several children will survive to care for them later in life."

    Perhaps in the future, you would like to actually read beyond the first paragraph of the sources you cite to prevent yourself from looking like an idiot - but I guess that is far too much to ask.

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  9. Thats a pretty nice picture. I bet he could kick your ass Mr. Costner!!!!

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  10. Yes Mr. Hubbs - I realize you think your picture is nice which is why you posted it. I also realize you think the threat or actual use of physical violence somehow makes your idiocy more valid, but I'm afraid it doesn't.

    Truth be told if I was in a situation where I thought you were in one of your anger-filled rages where your face is red and you are stuttering and stammering to make a sentence without dropping an f-bomb, I would probably provoke you enough to make you take a swing at me. Why? Easy - a known felon with a record like yours would mean you would be back in the pen faster than you can write "probation violation". Then I would turn around and sue you in civil court and take the whopping $450 you have to your name... as well as that sweet 27" tube TV and bike with the fancy rack on the back.

    Don't let any of that stop you from your Internet tough guy routine though. I've already explained how that condition can progress into something much worse.... and you are on the downhill side headed straight for crazytown.

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