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We don't have any big problems here at casa blue jersey tonight. I am not wild about the cold and snow, but hey it's New Jersey in February. We are all healthy; I have a good job; we have a roof over our head and food on the table. No big issues. However, as I read the news, I am wondering how so many people in this country got so stupid. Please follow me below the cheese doodle.
I grew up in the 1950s. I remember polio, which is a devastating disease. I remember getting my first polio shots when the vaccine became widely available. I was in elementary school at the time. I also remember the measles. I caught the measles when I was in kindergarten. I had a fever of 105, and I saw bugs crawling up the walls. It was not marvelous. Frankly, I would not wish the measles on my worst enemy. Here we are in 2015 with a major measles outbreak. As a parent, I am just stunned that many states offer a philosophical exemption to vaccination for school children. I understand that some children with weakened immune systems cannot be vaccinated, but a philosophical exemption!? Give me a break. Without herd immunity, we are putting babies, cancer victims, and others at risk. And why are people not vaccinating? In part, because Jenny McCarthy, a former Playboy model, claimed that vaccines cause autism. We even have senators with medical degrees spreading nonsense about vaccinations. Yes, I am looking at you, Rand Paul. Hey, I vaccinate my cats because I don't want them to get diseases like rabies. For Pete's sake folks, don't take your medical advice from a Playboy bunny. Vaccinate your kids.
Of course, this is the same country that was up in arms about ebola just a few months ago. The ebola scare took place right before the 2014 elections. Unlike measles. eloba is hard to catch. You need to be in contact with the bodily fluids of someone who is sick with ebola. As the CDC notes,
Ebola is not spread through the air, by water, or in general, by food.
We even had congresscritters claiming that undocumented immigrants were carrying diseases like ebola across our southern border. Yes, I am looking at you, Phil
Gingrey. This claim was rated "pants on fire" by Politifact.
The anti-vax nonsense is just part of a greater war on science and education in this country. According to Gallup, 42% of Americans believe that
God created humans in their present form 10,000 years ago.
This poll was published in June of 2014! We are spending millions to build creation museums in this country. Even the
pope believes in evolution and the Big Bang. How did we get so stupid?
Right now the US has the best system of higher education in the world. Here is the list of the world university rankings for 2014-15. Both my alma mater, the University of Pennsylvania (no. 16), and blue jersey dad's alma mater, Columbia University (no. 14), appear on the list. So does the University of Wisconsin (no. 29). This week we learned that potential 2016 presidential candidate, Scott Walker, has proposed to cut $300 million from the University of Wisconsin system. And where does he want to spend his money--magical tax cuts for the wealthy and drug testing food stamp recipients.
It seems that we are doing everything in our power to change this nation from a country that is on the forefront of science and technology to one that is increasingly stupid and fearful. This is my f#$king problem tonight.