Australian (Anti) Vaccination Network called out

Just a couple of quick posts that are copied from Dr Plait's blog.  I am glad that this is finally happening.  These people are a public danger, and there should be criminal repercussions to their deceitful and dishonest propaganda.  And in case there is any doubt about vaccines, you may want to visit Tajikistan.  Just saying.

And I like that Dr. Plait linked to Vaccine Central.  One of the blogs on my feed.  It's just a bit heartbreaking sometimes when he posts pictures and stories about people who died from perfectly preventable diseases.  And now pertussis is in epidemic proportions in places like Minnesota too, not just California.

The AVN falsehoods keep on a-comin’

Meryl Dorey, head of the flailing Australian Vaccination Network — an organization dedicated to twisting the truth about vaccines and saying anything at all to scare people into an antivax stance — has once again put fingers to keyboard, and as usual the truth eludes her.
She wrote a lengthy essay about her dealings with Toni and David McCaffery, who lost their four week old infant Dana to pertussis two years ago.
I hardly need to point out that her interpretation of reality doesn’t come within a glancing blow of it; you can read what Dorey wrote, and then compare it to Toni McCaffery’s response detailing what really happened, and why Dorey is so wrong.

I also received a note from David McCaffery about a terrific site that helps educate people about vaccines: Chain of Protection. They have really good videos describing benefits of vaccinations. Here’s the one about herd immunity which shows just why it’s important:

Herd Immunity – How it works from Chain of Protection on Vimeo.

Check out the site. It’s what Meryl Dorey wouldn’t want you to do.

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Related posts:
- AVN now getting routinely publicly humiliated
- Australian skeptics jeer Meryl Dorey
- Major step against antivaxxers in Australia
- The AVN is reaping what they sowed
- Australian skeptics strike back against antivaxxers

Antivaxxers take note: vaccines stop polio outbreak in Tajikistan

 This is wildly good news! Through Vaccine Central I learned that a major polio outbreak in Tajikistan has been stopped!
How? Through vaccination.
Yup. The first reports of polio were confirmed in April — 413 of them. However, that ended in late June, when no new cases were reported. That is credited to the thousands of doctors and nurses who not only vaccinated at least 97% of the children in each region of the mountainous country, but also flooded the area with multi-lingual informational leaflets, posters, and banners.
And they succeeded! With no new reports, it appears this outbreak was stopped cold.
And with the AVN in Australia getting hammered repeatedly in the press, I can now have some hope that the movement here in the United States, spearheaded by Jenny McCarthy, will die off as well. Vaccinations work, and they save a lot of lives.