This blog is dedicated to the memory of Lorrin Danielle Kain, who died four years ago today at the age of 15 from complications directly related to a vaccine injury she experienced at the age of six weeks.
March 14, 1994 – December 22, 2009
Recently a “parody” video was posted on Upworthy.com, a site I usually enjoy quite a lot. They post videos about empowering women and girls, and denouncing bullies. This one, however . . . Well, check it out for yourself. The person who posted the video, Morgan Shoaff, says, “It’s hilarious and poses the question “What’s worth it?” when it comes to, you know, staying alive.”
As someone who doesn’t vaccinate her children and the mother of a child who died (of something no vaccine could prevent), I didn’t think it was the least bit funny, much less “hilarious.” And I wasn’t alone. There are no comments allowed on their posts, so I sent Upworthy an email to let them know just how disgusted I was by this attempt at humor. (You can too. Just click on the Contact link or send email to: [email protected].)
You see, I and many of my friends used to think simplistically like the woman in the video. We used to believe that if you didn’t want your kids to die, you vaccinated them — pure and simple. But, for any one of a number of really good reasons, somewhere along the way we started to question that assumption. For some, it was when a healthy baby was vaccinated for hepatitis B on the second day of life and was suddenly fighting for his life in the NICU. For others, it was when they took a healthy child in for a “catch-up” round of vaccinations that marked the line between healthy and developing normally, and chronic debilitating illness and developmental regression. And for still others, it was when their child was rushed to the hospital within 24 hours of a vaccination and either died as a result or got very close to it. But for all of us, it has meant a more in-depth investigation of the risks and benefits of the current vaccine schedule.
And you know what we found? Not all vaccines are created equal. The risks associated vary with the vaccine, but all vaccines pose risk of injury or death (which is why the Supreme Court declared them “unavoidably unsafe,” thus making sure that vaccine manufacturers will not be held liable for the damage their products do), and should not be taken lightly. Vaccines are a preventive measure given to healthy people. As such, mandating their use cannot be justified unless the risk of causing harm is vanishingly small. That may have been true (or appeared to be true) back in the days when there were very few vaccines on the CDC-recommended schedule, but the more vaccines that are added to the schedule, the greater the absolute risk.
In addition, it seems likely there are additional risks to simultaneous injection of more than one vaccine, as many reports of developmental regression cite doctors’ appointments with multiple vaccines, such as the one that caused Hannah Poling’s autism. Can we prove that? No. But neither can anyone prove the converse, because there have been no safety studies on the combinations of vaccines routinely recommended for children.
There are now vaccines on the CDC-recommended schedule for a number of illnesses that are are not particularly deadly for the vast majority of the population (like varicella) or we are not at any great risk of contracting (like hepatitis B). When it comes to something like the birth dose of hepatitis B, why should parents take on the considerable risk of injecting their healthy newborn with a preventive for something that child has virtually no chance of encountering until puberty, by which time any immunity conferred by the vaccine will likely have worn off?
We also found that vaccines come with a host of known and acknowledged “side effects” and warnings, including seizures, encephalopathy, anaphylaxis, Guillain-Barre, as well as unacknowledged effects that are not even studied because they aren’t diagnosed in the short-term window of a vaccine safety study.
That “hilarious” video was done in a style reminiscent of a drug commercial, but no vaccine manufacturer could ever get away with running it as an ad, because when you advertise a drug – and make no mistake about it, vaccines are drugs – you have to list the side effects and warnings. If you were to include the warnings appropriate to “vaccines,” you would have to add a 15-minute disclaimer to the one-minute video. This is the list of side effects and warnings for one trivalent vaccine.
People keep trying their damnedest to paint people who ask questions about vaccine safety and vaccine policy as “selfish” and “anti-science,” when nothing could be further from the truth. Most of the people questioning vaccine policy have already suffered a huge loss due to vaccination (people such as my friend Karen Kain, whose daughter Lorrin died in 2009 after a 15-year struggle with vaccine injuries. Lest you think, ‘Oh, that’s just her opinion,’ unlike many people, Lorrin’s vaccine injury was acknowledged by an award from the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program, also known as Vaccine Court). They’re not doing what they do for their own sakes; they’re doing it for yours.
And as to anti-science, science is about asking questions and not settling for assumptions. It requires an inquiring mind that notices anomalies and won’t rest till they are explained. Science is about digging deeper and looking for real, honest answers. It’s not about toeing the corporate, government, or religious line. Just ask Galileo. He could tell you a little something about how “anti-science” it is to have the audacity to question what is said in the mainstream media and actually read the studies behind those reassuring claims, and how “anti-science” it is to think about them and notice that the methods and/or conclusions of the studies don’t support those claims.
Much as the CDC and the Strangemeal video would pretend otherwise, the truth about vaccines is not nearly as simple – or cut and dried – as they imply. And it’s offensive – very offensive – to everyone who has experience with vaccine injury to imply that it is. To do so is to dismiss the very real illness and suffering caused by vaccinations. And that is not okay.
If you want to have an idea just how offensive it is to say “Vaccines: and now my kids don’t die!” listen to Karen Kain talk about her daughter Lorrin’s struggles due to vaccine injury on this, the fourth anniversary of Lorrin’s death. Strangemeal, Upworthy and Ms. Shoaff can only regard their video as “hilarious” if they truly believe that the lives of Lorrin, her mother and father, and those of the thousands of other people affected by vaccine injury, just don’t count.
I dare you to watch this video and think, “They don’t count.”
In the words of Harry Bosch, Michael Connelly’s iconic homicide detective, “Everybody counts or nobody counts.”
Lorrin Danielle Kain, I wish I had known you while you were alive, but I’m so glad I have gotten to know you through your mother’s grace, courage and huge heart.
~ Professor and Karen Kain
To read more blogs by Professor, Click Here.
I am a nurse and was vaccinated, by choice, for the flu in 1996. I got Transverse Myelitis from this vaccine.To make a long story short, I was paraplegic initially. I had to learn to walk again, was single and could not work. For 2 months and went back to work with no feeling in my entire trunk down. I have life long permanent injury from this. I have spent thousands and thousands of dollars out of pocket. Went bankrupt due to medical expenses. And have had every treatment for my residual injuries. None have worked to date. I lost most of my bladder control, have depression, suffer from serious fatigue, have something called Periodic Limb Movement where in which my legs flail every 8 seconds when I am sleeping. This has devastated my life! I was not aware of the chance for compensation for this injury until recently. I feel as if regardless of the “Statute of Limitations” to apply for injury with the Federal Government, I should be able to make a claim. The injuries that I battle will be lifelong.
thuja is a homeopathic remedy for vaccinosis.
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also, there are clay baths
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epsom salt and autism
Just another reason not to put these viruses and diseases inside our children…. I’m glad mine are old enough that this is no longer a necessary battle I must have when I take my children to the doctor.
Dear Editors at Unworthy. Com,
I recently saw your parody commercial regarding “vaccinating your children, so your kids don’t die.” I felt as a parent this was EXTREMELY offensive, completely ignorant and not at all funny. In the future it would be useful for your contributer Ms. Morgan Shoaff to educate herself on the dangers of vaccines before producing such a disrespectful piece to showcase in your publication.
Many parents choose not to vaccinate which is there RIGHT, because they are EDUCATED on the dangerous Neuro toxins, carcinogens and disgusting waste materials that are in these shots. And feel it would be detrimental to thier child. The millions of vaccine injured children are a testament to that. Like my neice who has aluminum poisoning and is still at the age of 3 unable to speak because of her proven vaccine induced injuries. Some make this choice for religious or philosophical beliefs. Some just simply know that the process of injecting viruses directly into a childs blood stream bypassing natural immune system functions does far more damage to a developing immune system then any good. Some make this choice for all of the above reasons or simply because they have COMMON SENSE and choose not to arbitrarily trust there children’s life to Drs or the pharmaceutical industry.
Either way its not your place or ms Shoaffs place to mock these parents or there choice for there children in such a manner. The children who have been injured and the families who suffer should not be a punchline for one of your jokes.
I usually enjoy your site and hope you will consider taking this offensive piece down immediately. And being more cautious and responsible in the future. Its not a good look upworthy. I’m sure their are other subjects you can parody that won’t piss off a vast and growing number of awakened parents.
I want to thank you for your time and consideration in this matter. I truly hope you all enjoy your holiday and come back with better, less offensive ideas for your future video projects.
Sincerely,
Jaz Landess
Bayside NY
When will they every learn ?
We don’t know, but we’re hoping to help push it to sooner rather than later.
Why wasn’t my response approved? there was nothing controversial in it? was it not a valid point? you deride upworthy for not allowing you the chance to raise your concerns yet it seems apparent you’re censoring any chance of a discussion, only allowing viewpoints that directly align with your world view i don’t disagree with you, children getting sick from vaccine’s is not a good thing. If you had faith in what you’re saying how does my comment weaken your stance?
Ok, my response to this went through so i’ll try again.
I’d be curious to see the statistics on what effects actually contracting the disease has on the child, i mean diphtheria whooping cough and tetanus can all kill in pretty short order and all risk some really nasty long term effects. If the child has a severe reaction to a vaccine when the parent is on the look out for any issues it would be a fair assumption they’re going to have a pretty major problem with a live virus that infects without warning.
Unfortunately, there are no reliable statistics out there for what would happen if children actually contracted the disease. For diseases that cause high fevers in some children, there is a pretty good chance that seizures are a possibility. However, I grew up in the ’60s and measles was a very common illness at the time. That’s one of the diseases that some people think can cause significant neurological damage. But the funny thing is that I NEVER heard of anyone saying, “Yeah, that case of the measles really messed over his brain.” Anecdote, I know. But I have a HUGE family, most of whom had the measles at some point, and I was a VERY good listener. Lots of data points.
And the children who react to the vaccines are not necessarily the same children who will react badly to a live virus. Firstly, the vaccine ALTERS the immune system, so it cannot mount the same kind of immune system response that an unvaccinated immune system could. Secondly, as vaccines are normally injected, they bypass much of the immune system and so cause reactions that would not happen if a virus entered by the more “normal” paths of nose or mouth. Thirdly, many of the children who have reactions are reacting to ingredients of the vaccines that would not accompany a live-virus infection, such as mercury (MTHFR mutations alter people’s ability to methylate toxins out of the body) and aluminum.
By the way, the last case of diptheria in this country was in 2003. There have only been 53 cases since 1980. Chances are good those were “imported” much like 150ish of this year’s 175 cases of measles. It’s possible that’s due to vaccination, but it is also possible that incidence would have declined anyway, like the incidence of scarlet fever, for which there is no vaccine.
Tetanus can kill, but it is very rare in children. Not because the bacteria is rare. It’s not; it’s everywhere. Because the toxoid that causes tetanus is only produced in an anaerobic environment. Oxygenated blood keeps the average person from providing that anaerobic environment. A wound that bleeds freely, and/or one that is cleaned properly, and/or a child with reasonably good circulation lessen the risk of tetanus so much that most of the approximately 25 people who get tetanus per year are older people with diabetes or IV drug users. Tetanus is not an infectious disease. It cannot be “eradicated” by vaccines. The number of cases can be kept low effectively by the use of tetanus immuno globulin shots when people are really at risk of developing tetanus. It would require a lot of education on the part of health care practitioners, however, as few seem to really understand tetanus.
Whooping cough and its history are a lot more complicated. Infants younger than 6 months are the most vulnerable population. Approximately 1% of children that age who get whooping cough will die and approximately 0.3% will develop encephalopathy. It’s interesting that in an unvaccinated population, whooping cough would be rare in the population of children under 6 months if their mothers nursed. In an unvaccinated population, mothers would encounter the virus sometime in their lives, develop antibodies and pass those antibodies on to their infants. In a vaccinated or partially vaccinated population risk factors are harder to judge.
Pertussis comes from bacteria. Bacteria are very good at rapidly adapting to a hostile environment in order to keep replicating. That’s why we have MRSA. Many health care professionals suspect that recent whooping cough outbreaks are happening in vaccinated populations because the bacteria have mutated to a different strain that vaccine antibodies cannot kill.
Ashley, I did not “deride” Upworthy for not allowing the chance to raise my concerns. I merely mentioned it, which is by no means the same thing. I have no idea why your previous reponse was not approved. Many times people think that their comments contain “nothing controversial,” but they are insulting and/or just plain rude. And other times, people accidentally click the wrong button. We publish lots of comments that don’t align with the individual world views of the 24 people who make up TMR, partly because we don’t even “directly align” with each other’s world views! We’re happy to engage in respectful discussion, but we are under no obligation to publish every critical comment we receive.
I have not idea how your comment would “weaken my stance,” because I have no idea what your comment was.
But when you have a history of miscarriage AND a note from a doctor and your pregnant and you refuse a vaccine, you get fired: http://www.prpick.com/health-5/pregnant-nurse-fired-after-refusing-flu-shot-to-protect-unborn-child-2883.html
Thanks for writing this post. Every CDC official, doctor, and parent in America needs to read it.
Thank you, Jennifer! Coming from you that means a lot to me.
That pregnant nurse is going to end up being the match to the fuse I think. It has gone so far beyond bullying when they’re forcing pregnant women to get drugs that HAVE NEVER BEEN TESTED ON PREGNANT WOMEN!!!!
I’m currently pregnant and after reading the inserts on the flu vaccine packages I chose to not get the vaccine. What scared me more than the fact that many of these haven’t been test on pregnant women and their unborn children but that they require pregnant women who have been vaccinated to be registered. Quite simply I would be one of their test subjects. No thank, you.
In addition with the consideration that the flu shot is reformulated every year to include more strains there wouldn’t even be adequate time for testing if some mothers were willing to be test subjects in a lab.
Being a good liberal, college-educated mom (with an advanced degree), I just don’t understand how organizations such as Upworthy can post such corporate lies. I know that I’m in very diverse company (politically and socially) with my discomfort of vaccinations, but I felt like I had to say something. I’ve read a whole lot about them, and I just don’t understand why anyone would think that it’s okay to inject young children (or anyone, for that matter) with these toxic substances.
I wrote to Upworthy:
People question politicians. They question government. They question corporations. They question businesses. They question laws and leaders. They question GMOs and Monsanto. They question drug companies. They question doctors. They question the validity of prescription drugs. They question science and scientific study. All of the above have the capability to be corrupt and give us the wrong information. Why not question vaccinations, too?
Thanks, Melissa. Sounds like you and I have the same befuddlement with people who seem to question the status quo on so many other topics, but who seem to think that all the people in government agencies and pharmaceutical corporations somehow become all fuzzy humanitarian when it comes to vaccines.
Thank you, Melissa! I’m a good liberal, too. I am with them on pretty much everything except the vaccination issue. Thank you for putting that on the table with Upworthy. It’s so frustrating!
This is superb and so well written. If it offers hope, I have not and will not vaccinate my two children because heartbroken parents going before me had the courage to tell their stories and I chose to listen and learn.
Julie, you don’t know how much we LIVE for comments like yours. It DOES offer hope. You’re why we do this day after day. Thank you!
No, thank you. I am grateful and beholden to those who’ve gone before me and had to suffer so that I can learn how to protect my family.
I have worked for six pharmaceutical companies over the past fifteen years. Every drug I have sold has required the physician to consider each individual patients family history, allergies, weight, medical history and current health in order to prescribe a drug. Once the patient starts a medication they are followed to make sure they are responding appropriately. Obviously, this is because each person is different and responds to medications differently. But for some reason it seems to be OK to shoot, now 25 vaccinations into an infant within the first year of life. In no other area of medicine is a blanket treatment given without regard to the individual. If there is a reaction, can you even tell? Babies cry. How could a mother know?
Of course vaccinations have eradicated diseases. Many of them are absolutely necessary. But not all are necessary so soon and in such large quantities. Some children are born immuno-compromised and need to wait a few years until they are strong enough to have a proper immune response.
The medical community is vaccinating the masses. It is a mothers’ job to make sure their children are cared for as individuals. This video is insulting to thinking mothers everywhere. Don’t let this bully you!
Mary Catherine, thank you so much for your comment. Yes! Individuals respond differently to different drugs for myriad reasons. Every drug manufacturer knows this, the CDC knows this, the FDA knows this, the NIH knows this. So HOW can they justify the one-size-fits-all vaccine policy that they KNOW is damaging children?
I just want to suggest a little more delving into vaccine history. When you dig deeply, it’s not so clear that vaccinations have eradicated disease. As our favorite rabid vaccine apologists love to say, “Correlation does not equal causation.” The histories of smallpox and polio vaccination are not nearly as clear-cut as they seem. But in any event, there is a cost to use of vaccines that is not being counted in the overall equation. Much as the fact that plastics are rapidly clogging our landfills and likely to do so for the foreseeable future is not factored into the “Should we use cheap disposable plastic containers for our lunch crowd?” decision at your local restaurant.
I work in healthcare and we are being required to get flu vaccines. Medicare is forcing the hospitals to vaccinate us or the hospital doesn’t get paid for Medicare patients. They have to show 60% compliance. I am opting to wear masks when I go into patients’ rooms. It’s better anyhow. There is two way protection. Luckily I don’t deal with direct patient care any longer therefore don’t need to be so diligent.
I hate the flu vaccine. It’s pointless. I had a retired CDC microbiologist tell me he doesn’t get the flu vaccine because it’s based on last year’s strain and there’s no guarantee. I have two immediate family members the experienced two different permanent reactions from two different vaccinations. One an autoimmune reaction and the other shingles (2x) from the chickenpox vaccine. I react to the PPD test. Since it’s obviously in my bloodline to react to vaccines I keep them to the bare minimum.
When my daughter was born I did not get her Hep B done until she was 1 month old. Hindsight I should have waited but I definitely found it ridiculous to vaccinate a newborn. Their rationale is that since I have been vaccinated and I test positive then there’s no way to know if I contracted the actual virus or just vaccinated and studies show that if you vaccinate within 48 hours of birth (or something like that) then they have a minimal chance of developing the actual virus. Um…ok. If I have another child, I still won’t do the Hep B until the child is older. It’s ridiculous.
I think you are very wise to avoid vaccination, given your family’s history with them. I had not heard that the Hep B vaccine could make someone test positive for Hepatitis B. Most adults have not been vaccinated for Hepatitis B, so they test negative making it an easy decision for many. If the next generation, many of whom have been vaccinated tend to test positive that will muddy the waters significantly and probably mean that many more newborns will continue to be vaccinated that don’t need any protection from Hepatitis B.
my daughter got shingles after chicken pox shot. 16 years old never had chicken poxs when little.
Andrea,
You can also have a Hep B titer done. This is a test that shows wether or not you vaccine took (not everyone’s does). My husband and I both had titers done and the showed that our vaccines took (for lack of a better word). When both of our daughters where born we refused the Hep B shots. They don’t live in an environment where there at risk and by the time they are at risk of contracting Hep B the vaccine at birth will have worn off. My oldest is 4 and I’ll be taking her in for her last shot soon because she’s in school now. Also, if you’re trying to avoid anymore shots than you feel is necessary, you could have your child get 1 Hep B shot and then have their blood drawn to check if it has taken. Instead of just getting all 3 and hoping for the best.
Thank you for writing and sharing so poignantly on this critical issue. I can’t begin to understand the harsh attitude towards those who have experienced vaccine injury. My heart goes out to all families whose lives have been forever changed by routine procedures they thought would help them to be healthy. Just because I have not personally experienced vaccine injury does not make me blindly accept routine recommendations. Enough is enough. Vaccine damage is so obvious. Vaccine benefits are so dubious. More and more vaccines are being pushed on the unsuspecting. More and more devastation. I stand with the vaccine injured to try to help educate against this unmitigated greedy deception. Yes, there are many involved who do not have personal evil intent, they are deceived and blinded and need to be informed. It is no longer acceptable to stubbornly refuse to face the reality of vaccine injury and blindly accept the ‘science’ behind vaccinations all while punishing those trying to speak up. The more people who speak out, the sooner we can create a tipping point and truth can prevail. I admire all that the TMR families are doing, and the way you are doing it. I pray you will have all the strength and wisdom you need to accomplish all God has called you to do.
Becky, it’s people like you that are going to make the difference in our efforts to stem the tide of damage: the people who have absolutely no stake in “the game,” beyond the health of all concerned. I’m so glad to have you with us in this journey. And thank you for the wishes, they are exactly what we would wish for ourselves. 🙂
I contacted them also recounting my vaccine injury. I pointed out that to make fun of someone’s choice or beliefs is bullying, something upworthy claims to be against.
Thank you, Lisa. Your story is one of the most powerful I’ve ever encountered. Let’s hope it did some good here.
I couldn’t even get past the first minute of this video, I couldn’t stop crying! Bless you and your family for telling your story. I’m so sorry you lost your daughter. Prayers and hugs to you all!! I will be writing a letter as soon as I am done with this note!! xoxoxoxo
Thank you, Kerry. It is indeed a heartbreaking video, and I marvel at Karen’s courage in making it. She could have hidden away, licking her tremendously deep wounds, but instead she is out there every day using her experience to help other families. I have a number of personal heroes, and Karen is definitely one of them.
I emailed then too. Let me know if you get a response back and what they say!!
Thanks, Laura! I suspect they are going to try really hard to ignore any negative responses, but we’ll do what we can to try to change that. Apparently, they have teamed up with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation lately, which means it’s likely that they are receiving money to promote the vaccine agenda. Here’s hoping we can cause them to have at least a few pangs about it in the short-term and a change of heart and direction for the long term.
Try to get medical help for a vaccine-injured child and you soon realize to your shock and disgust just how many underinformed health care professionals deny the problem exists — and some will even attack you for suggesting it.
How did society get to this point of cruelty, where vaccine uptake is presented as unquestionable healthcare patriotism? Discounting the neuroimmune damage of autism and denying deaths as coincidence, without even looking at the evidence first?
Fearful citizens stoked by overzealous public health policymakers and vaccine manufacturers react with a witch hunt mob mentality toward injury victims. The more vocal media mouthpieces are sickeningly willing to erase your civil rights over the most statistically remote possibility one might catch a treatable and temporary disease.
But there is hope — in calm conversations with individuals willing to listen, investigate, and change the dialogue. Share your stories everywhere.
Nancy,
I love it when you comment on my blogs. As I read your comments, I’m always overcome by this feeling of relief that, yes, there are sane people out there who see what’s in front of their eyes.
I like your last paragraph the best. Share your stories (a.k.a. “anecdotes” 😉 ) and change the dialogue.