There is that old meme, you’ve surely heard the phrase “First World Problems,” like when you’re upset that your printer breaks and are forced to go to FedEx, only to find that it actually closes at 6:00 p.m. and not 8:00 p.m. as you had thought. Huge problem! You needed the printout! Huge “First world problem.” If you want to count the entire world, it is a huge problem when your four-year-old child is hungry, having not eaten all day, and it is 6:00 p.m. – and you thought food would be delivered, you hope maybe by 8:00 – but you’re not certain. Yes, reality hammers home quickly when we set aside our deeply rooted expectations. Similarly, only three to four years ago, fear of a big measles outbreak would not be a first-world problem. The “MMR” or “Measles, Mumps, and Rubella” vaccine is more of a right of passage in the Western world now than the diseases – try getting your child into a new school without a vaccination certificate (Yes, it can be done without vaccinations but it’s not the preferred means, by far). And yet here we are, first-world Texas, now coping with a measles outbreak so large that H.H.S. Secretary Robert F. Kennedy has had to set aside his comfortable first-world view of vaccines in order to stave off the disease. Yes, Kennedy now advises people to get the vaccination. Big disease outbreaks are a big political buzzkill.
Though it is highly likely that an aide wrote an initial outline for the article, Kennedy at least does a nice job of describing the disease process without exaggerating nor downplaying it. From his original article on Fox News’s website:
Measles is a highly contagious respiratory illness with certain health risks, especially to unvaccinated individuals. The virus spreads through direct contact with infectious droplets when an infected person breathes, coughs, or sneezes. Early symptoms include high fever, cough, runny nose, and red, watery eyes, followed by a characteristic body rash. Most cases are mild, but rare complications can be severe, including pneumonia, blindness, and encephalitis.
One would think that the outer possibility of blindness would motivate nearly everyone. That death thing, too. But the entire matter has become so political that the actual cost-to-benefit ratio is out the window as a medical consideration. If it takes risking one’s kid having measles to stand up to “the liberal medical establishment,” then so be it. (Ironically, it was initially the effete liberals who started the anti-vax movement. Wealthier people like RFK Jr. – had such herd immunity that they convinced themselves that the vaccine was a bigger risk than the disease. Only later did it transition to a more “MAGA culture” issue.). If you could transport a parent from the late 1950s to early 60s here today, they would first be amazed by Monday Night Football, but also look at the measles numbers and find anti-vaxxers to be utterly insane. Numbers? Kennedy sets them out:
Prior to the introduction of the vaccine in the 1960s, virtually every child in the United States contracted measles. For example, in the United States, from 1953 to 1962, on average there were 530,217 confirmed cases and 440 deaths, a case fatality rate of 1 in 1,205 cases.
Okay, and Texans have already witnessed the disease take one child, and 20 out of the 146 reported cases (As of February 28th) have required hospitalization. Whether it is simply a more sophisticated healthcare system generally or a more extreme version of the virus, the numbers look more serious now than those obtained from ’53 to ’62 above. Given that a parent can likely get a same day vaccination today, ending up with a child largely immune from the disease in a few weeks, it defies all logic to not give it to a vulnerable kid. Even Kennedy comes around to all but ask Texans to get their kids vaccinated. He doesn’t expressly state he wants people to vaccinate their child. He certainly implies it – with some urgency. One thing is certain, he sure doesn’t argue against getting a shot or talk about the risk:
Parents play a pivotal role in safeguarding their children’s health. All parents should consult with their healthcare providers to understand their options to get the MMR vaccine. The decision to vaccinate is a personal one. Vaccines not only protect individual children from measles, but also contribute to community immunity, protecting those who are unable to be vaccinated due to medical reasons.
One cannot inject saline into the arm without assuming some level of risk. If a community has robust herd immunity, there is no reason whatsoever to have one’s child vaccinated. You’re protected by vaccinated front lines. Make that political statement! That works, largely risk free (But be careful at Disney World). It works right up until the community is filled with more political statements than vaccinations. Very suddenly a portion of your state has an initial 146 reported cases, one death, and one somewhat humbled H.H.S. secretary to deal with. First world problems begin to match those of less developed nations. It is true that in the vast majority of cases, kids continue to get through what was once a measles “rite of passage” safely and all naturally. But not in all cases, some went blind, some ended up in the hospital, some even died – all naturally.
Setting aside the irresponsibility in downplaying the risks of childhood diseases, Kennedy is right in his decision to “set aside” his past assumptions and strongly imply that he recommends that parents get the vaccine, urging them on – all while staving off his usual skepticism, cynicism, and lawsuits. Nothing like an outbreak of the disease itself to hammer home why they developed vaccines in the first place. Now, if one could only find time to get the child vaccinated, “maybe after getting the dog from the groomers… ” First world problems.
God Bless: I can be reached at [email protected] and on twitter-X at @JasonMiciak, and follow now on Bluesky.Â
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I can’t help but wonder if, say, some of those people with the so-called Woke mind virus saw this coming. I’m not one to say I or we told you so… Just kidding, WE told you imbeciles this would happen if you took medical advice from people with no medical experience. Despite all of this, I’ll bet many of these vaxxer types would still like to put Fauci in prison instead of the people who convinced them to not vaccinate their child.