Marin County parents having ‘measles parties’ instead of vaccinating their kids

[Douglas Carpenter]

Everyone has lost their goddamn mind...We have hit peak crazy
by Joanna Rothkopf



The rumor of these parties spread when KQED reported that Julie Schiffman, a local mother who decided not to vaccinate her children, declined an invitation to one. Now, Dr. Gil Chavez of the California Department of Public Health has issued a statement, urging parents to resist the bananas trend:

“CDPH strongly recommends against the intentional exposure of children to measles as it unnecessarily places the exposed children at potentially grave risk and could contribute to further spread of the outbreak… Measles is a serious illness that can have significant consequences.”

“People did this with chicken pox all the time,” said Art Reingold, an epidemiologist at UC Berkeley’s School of Public Health in an interview. ”Parents would have kids lick a lollipop and give it to other kids, or mail it to other kids… The basic notion is ‘This is my opportunity for my kid to get immune the old fashioned way, the way God intended.’”

“The difference is we have a measles vaccine today, which is incredibly safe and highly effective,” Reingold said in another interview with the L.A. Times. “It just doesn’t make sense to say I’d rather have my kids get the measles than the measles vaccine. That’s… based on misinformation that the measles is a benign childhood illness.”
http://www.salon.com/2015/02/10/the_way_god_intended_california_parents_are_having_measles_parties_instead_of_vaccinating_their_kids/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=socialflow

[Rex]

1. A banana republic has banana people.

America is a reality TV show 24/7. Honey Boo Boo and the Tiniest Princess Measles Party.

[hobbit709]

2. What will be these idiots' reaction be when a kid dies from measles?

[Yo_Mama]

21. Or develops hearing loss, loss of vision or other more commonly experienced problems.

I hate to say it, but I believe it will take some of those to stem this trend.

People just BELIEVE that the vaccines are harmful, and until they see the results of the "natural" way, they won't change their thinking.

Fuck nature. To HELL with nature. Half of us would be dead by our mid-forties if we all lived "naturally". People die agonizing deaths from appendicitis and tooth abscesses naturally. People prick themselves on a thorn and expire agonizingly naturally. Nature ain't so damned wonderful.

Typhoid fever used to wipe out lots of people naturally.

[TDale313]

3. It's so infuriating!

I don't know if this story is true or not, but the Anti-Vax trend is just

It would be bad enough if it were just their own kids they were endangering, but there are children/people who for medical reasons can't be vaccinated, and infants too young, that these assholes are endangering because of their stupidity.

[longship]

4. Ignorant assholes!

I wonder what they would think if one of their children died from measles. That would cure them of their anti-vax lunacy.

[Orrex]

5. Hey, they should try this with ebola!

It might be exactly the outside-the-box thinking that we need!

[3catwoman3]

6. Will they take consolation in God's intentions...

...should one of these party-goers develop measles pneumonia or measles encephalitis?

If this were polio, would these ignorant idiots be planning polio parties?

[haele]

7. Wonder how popular those parties will be after the first "attendee" loses their sight or life...

or passes it on to infant sibling or cousin and that baby loses it's sight or life because the Clueless Crusader parents wanted to have their precious grow up "au-natural".

When I was growing up in the 1960's, I remember there was a special education cadre program in the public schools specifically for children who had a reduction in sight or hearing, or had developed serious immune disorders or brain damage, from childhood diseases like scarlet fever, rubella or mumps after they had already enrolled so they could learn how to adapt to their new situation and not be isolated from school and their friends, even if they did lose a school year or two before getting back "on track". These children typically didn't share most of the same core requirements classes, but they would tend to take many of the arts electives with the rest of the student body, and most would graduate with a GED or diploma by the age of 20.

If these parents are so terrified of not having a "pure" child or of having a child with developmental disorders from Big Pharma and Big Chemical, I would wonder how they'd handle having a 8-month old going blind because of measles contracted from a five year old sibling who wasn't quarantined quickly enough, as happened in a friend's family when I was growing up.

I wouldn't wish such pain and guilt on anyone, not even an over-privileged, misguided narcissist that would refuse to vaccinate on "principles" or some other such personal opinion.

Haele

[Yo_Mama]

22. Yes. And brain damage. Hearing loss & pneumonia are relatively common

But loss of vision and brain damage are well known consequences.

I'm in my fifties - my generation was the first to benefit, and yes, we had less kids in our group with hearing aids (which weren't that good in my day) than the group ahead of us.

Parents when I was young were so thankful for the vaccinations.

[Telcontar]

42. I had scarlet fever as a kid

Goodness, that sucked. Got dunked into a tub of ice water because they couldn't get my temp to come down. My parents tell me it was 106. All I remember is pain. Like someone said up thread, fuck nature. We have science bitches.

[Marrah_G]

8. And how will they feel if their child is permanently damaged by the measles?

I hope they are ready to deal with the massive guilt.

[shenmue]

9. That's it. People need to start going to jail.

[Solly Mack]

10. Ignorance can be fatal.

[dhill926]

11. fucking morons….

playing with their kid's health. Despicable.

[HockeyMom]

12. Probably got this idea from their Parents/Grandparents

Yes, there were measles, mumps, in addition to chicken pox, parties decades ago. If you are over 60, you never heard of these?

Plus, then they can go to a public school and say their child had measles and doesn't need the vaccination. This is true, you know. Natural immunity from the disease can replace the vaccination for school attendence. It is the old born before 1957 blanket rule. Had the disease and no vax required. Applies to working in public schools also.

This is a way around school vaccinations rules.

[TDale313]

16. The difference is there wasn't an effective vaccine back then.

Anyone doing this now is making the very bad gamble with their child's health that getting the disease is far better than getting the vaccine. That's several steps beyond the usual anti-vax lunacy that the small chance their child will be unlucky enough to catch it is worth the risk.

[Yo_Mama]

25. You know what's so strange?

The measles vax contains a specially weakened live virus. It's a far, far safer way to do what these parents are trying to do. Because it does contain a live virus, it's too dangerous to give it to some children anyway.

This is really the nuttiest thing I ever heard of - it's like being afraid of getting a flat tire so riding on your rims.

[UncleYoder]

17. Yep, my mom was always

on the phone organizing sleep overs with her sisters for us kids if anyone knew of someone who may have been infected.

Because we didn't have any vaccines yet!

Once the shots became available, we were the first in line to get them.

My mom was a nurse as was 3 of her sisters. They knew what was at stake and didn't mess around.

We all got the polio shots together and our moms cried tears of joy for not having that to worry about anymore. Their brother Benny was in an iron lung. Our cousin Jerry was born deaf due to his mom having measles when she was carrying him.

People today are fucking insane.

[Xithras]

23. I remember chicken pox parties in the early 1980's.

Woo, those were the days! Cake, ice cream, and itchy bumps that will make you miserable for days!

[HuckleB]

31. Most of their parents and grandparents are likely telling them to get the vaccinations!

They know the reality.

[KitSileya]

36. Let me ask you a question.

And I ask it sincerely:

Do you think it is better, or let's say less dangerous, for kids to get the disease than the vaccine? In other words, do you think there are less detrimental effects for the kids in getting the disease than to get the vaccine?

[Dorian Gray]

47. "It's a ways around school vaccinations rules"

But you have to get the virus and all the possible issues that come with the virus. So much more dangerous than the vaccine.

[Archae]

13. I know exactly what these parents will do if their kid is damaged or killed by measles.

They will sue doctors, vaccine makers, even the CDC.

You see, it's always someone else's fault.

[Johonny]

14. I can feel my "Yellow Fever" Lollipop business is about to take off

[HappyMe]

15. I would ready a Lime Leprosy recipe as well.

Charge plenty for those lollipops, those people aren't poor.

[Arkana]

18. This is child abuse, and it should be treated as such.

[Telcontar]

43. I can't agree enough

[Takket]

19. intentionally inflicting a disease on your child is abuse.

Those children should be taken away and placed in protective custody.

[LeftinOH]

20. The story seems fake-y. Marin County = "dirty hippies"; ergo

"dirty hippie parents are having 'measles parties'". It still sounds like a mostly unverified RUMOR, and it is even described as such. One parent who says she declined an invitation to a "measles party" seems like flimsy evidence that such a thing is even happening.

[Yo_Mama]

24. No, this has been around for a while

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/health/1448848.stm

Before we got the vaccinations, this is what parents did. They would try to expose their children deliberately at the safest age.

Esp. for mumps. When I was very little I remember my mother getting a call that so-and-so had mumps, and we were all promptly taken over there (this family lived on a farm) with all the other kids to get exposed. There were at least 20 kids over there!!! Then we got the vaccinations and all of that promptly faded out.

[Lifelong Protester]

27. I recall this, too.

As I was the kid with mumps, measles, chicken pox. The other kids were ostensibly brought over to "play". When you are sick with one of these diseases, the last thing you want to do is "play".

The vaccine had not been developed yet. But we sure got the polio vaccine! I was a "pink fluid on the sugar cube" kid.

[Yo_Mama]

30. Yeah, and they used to try to expose the kids in the household at the safest age.

When I was very little I remember my mother calling her mother because she had a prospect, and her talking to my grandmother about whether it was "time" yet. Answer, no, because my little brother was far too young. I remember her talking to my father about it.

I also remember getting calls when anyone thought they had been exposed - the protocol was for strict quarantine. Some couple, I don't remember who, had been over at our house, and they found out several days later that a kid in another family to whom they might have been exposed had measles, and then we were all locked up for a week. We had been supposed to go to a park with my grandmother - that was canceled. We weren't allowed to go out and play. I remember because it seemed so unfair. We were really little then. I remember my grandmother coming over for a few days. They were constantly checking our temps, esp my little brother. I guess really young kids threw high fevers and had seizures. One day they thought one of my brothers looked a little off, and they took him right to his room, made him lie down, and watched him for a day.

Out of curiosity I looked it up, and for measles there's a real reason - getting it around 8 or 10 is by far the safest time to get it.
http://jid.oxfordjournals.org/content/189/Supplement_1/S4.full.pdf+html

So what they were doing was absolute quarantine if there were young children in the household, and then when everyone was out of the more vulnerable stage, frantically trying to expose the kids before they got too old, because mortality and morbidity goes up sharply for adults.

Parents were so, so thankful when these vaccinations came out, and now we've lost the cultural memory of why. About 1 in 200 kids under five who get measles are going to either die or get encephalitis, and far more than that are going to have serious complications. Any disease with a 20% hospitalization rate has to be considered serious.

The "brain fever" that appears in American literature is now a very rare phenomenon.

[TBF]

28. Marin is a very upscale liberal area

Here is a recent article:

Marin County And California’s Measles Outbreak: A Look Into The Epicenter Of The Anti-Vaccination Trend
By Philip Ross @ThisIsPRo [e-mail] on February 06 2015 3:46 PM

Belvedere Island in Marin County, California, is one of the highest-income cities in the state. Marin County has become the epicenter of a the country’s anti-vaccination movement, a trend that goes back at least a decade and has been largely to blame for California’s ongoing measles outbreak. Its followers are generally affluent, liberal and well-educated. Creative Commons

Marin County, California, an enclave of expensive homes, private schools and yoga studios nestled along the Pacific coast just north of San Francisco, has been considered by many to be the epitome of active, healthy living. But in recent years the birthplace of modern mountain biking and competitive trail running has become the epicenter of the country’s anti-vaccination movement, a trend that goes back at least a decade and has been largely to blame for California’s ongoing measles outbreak that has put health officials and parents on edge.

Its followers are generally affluent, eco-friendly, liberal and white – parents with college educations whose families travel abroad, eat well, drive Priuses and attend private schools. “You’re talking about a place where they only eat organic everything,” said Lexie Jordan, a 25-year-old yoga instructor in New York City who grew up in Marin County. “People spend money on these things, like all the moms go to yoga, and everyone’s buying organic from Whole Foods or these huge farmers markets. ... I’m sure people don’t even use antibacterial stuff there."

Despite its reputation for being physically fit and contaminant-free, Marin County has a serious public health problem. Too few parents have chosen to vaccinate their children against such contagious diseases as measles and pertussis, commonly known as whooping cough. So-called anti-vaxxers have often eschewed modern medicine for more traditional health regimens, turning to the Internet’s flood of health and wellness blogs for direction. Blog posts with titles like “Massive Vaccine Cover-up Confirmed: Secret Documents Prove Vaccines Cause Autism” and “Studies Show That Vaccinated Individuals Spread Disease” inflate the risks of childhood vaccinations but end up getting disseminated throughout Marin.

entire article here: http://www.ibtimes.com/marin-county-californias-measles-outbreak-look-epicenter-anti-vaccination-trend-1808182

[HuckleB]

33. Actually, Marin County = Aloof People With Non-Science Degrees Who Think They Understand Science

It's really bloody sad to see the contempt they have for actual knowledge.

[bluestateguy]

38. Dirty hippies can't afford to live in Marin Co.

This is more like the organic food, yoga lessons and Prius (all of which are expensive) crowd.

[pstokely]

39. a Prius is cheaper to own than a BMW or Mercedes

nt

[Widget2000]

41. But not a Tesla

Those are all over Marin too

[pstokely]

45. how much it cost to maintain a Telsa, what's the resale value?

European luxury cars have a high depreciation rate, the original owners dump them when they're no longer status symbols and start need expensive repairs, Lexus has lower repair costs

[Widget2000]

48. I think it's too early to guess on resale value

I know for the electric roadsters, used they were going for peanuts (~30K) until the Model S came out, now they're upwards of 50k. Which makes sense because they are truly unique cars.

Given how hand's-on Tesla is with customers, I would be fairly confident about Model S's holding value unless there are any surprised about maintaining them 10+ years out. But again, Tesla is fully prepared to loss-lead to keep and expand this market through exemplary customer service.

All the luxury brands are desperately trying to build hyrbrid and electric sedans and crossovers to stop their momentum. I think porsche just put one out.

Weird living around here, it's definitely a bubble!

[JI7]

44. even if this particular story is false, it's a fact that Marin County Liberals are some of the

biggest idiots on this issue.

[Throd]

49. Marin just has better educated idiots.

I like Marin, but some of the residents are quite full of themselves.

[bluestateguy]

26. Granola munching New Age fuckwits

The same people I'm sure who would be hysterical if someone lit up a cigarette within 1000 feet of their precious snowflake.

[Vinca]

29. Wonder if they'll throw funeral parties if the little ones start to drop like flies.

[MohRokTah]

32. This crap is going to keep going on until a kid dies or has brain damage...

or is harmed in some other way from the disease.

Even then, most of the anti-Vaxxers will still deny the measles is a serious disease.

[hifiguy]

34. Even that won't stop it.

This country is now so stupid in so many ways the tenth-percenters may not even need to implement their planned die-off of the peasantry.

[MohRokTah]

35. Silly.

The anti-Vaxxer movement is PART of the planned die-off of the peasantry.

[Panich52]

37. ThinkProgress covered story of these idiots, too.

Parents Reportedly Throwing 'Measles Parties' To Infect Their Unvaccinated Kids | ThinkProgress

http://thinkprogress.org/health/2015/02/09/3621020/measles-parties-california/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=tptop3&elq=~~eloqua..type--emailfield..syntax--recipientid~~&elqCampaignId=~~eloqua..type--campaign..campaignid--0..fieldname--id~~

...
So glad my parents were smart. In late 50s, early 60s when my siblings & I were going thru 'usual' childhood diseases, whoever got sick got their own room f/ week at least. Mom'd never buy into that 'share the immunity' bull.

..

[Comrade Grumpy]

40. "'Measles Parties' in California Prove False"

http://www.today.com/health/measles-parties-california-prove-false-2D80486307

Recent rumors of "measles parties" in northern California have prompted concern among parents nationally and locally.

The fears are unfounded, as there isn’t proof that such parties existed and many reports appear to have all relied on a single mother’s account in Marin County, near San Francisco.

California Department of Public Health spokesperson Anita Gore told TODAY.com there is no “information to share about the existence or frequency of [measles] parties.” But, the CDPH strongly recommends against the intentional exposure of children to measles under circumstances, Gore said.

<snip>

The measles party rumors started when California public news outlet KQED quoted a Marin County mother of two unvaccinated kids as saying she was approached by a friend who offered to set up a play date with a child who has measles. But the mom, Julie Schiffman, told KQED, “I would never do that to my child.”

Schiffman told TODAY.com that, to her knowledge, there were no measles parties or play dates that had occurred or were planned for the future. Schiffman’s two sons, age 5 and 8, are unvaccinated on the advice of her doctor because of the family’s medical history.

According to Schiffman, the current measles parties rumors have all been based on a casual remark she posted in a private Facebook group and then repeated to KQED.

“Someone asked me in passing if I wanted to expose my kids because she knew a family who had measles,” Schiffman wrote in an email to TODAY. But, she added, the friend — who vaccinates her own kids — hadn’t even asked the family of the infected child if they would be willing to host an unvaccinated kid in their home.

<snip>

More at the link

[FrodosPet]

46. Snopes says FALSE

http://www.snopes.com/politics/medical/measlesparties.asp

Origins: In February 2015, a number of news outlets reported "measles parties" (purposeful gatherings during which uninfected children are intentionally exposed to measles in a bid to sicken them) were occurring in California in the midst of a then-current outbreak of the illness. The idea was not an entirely new one, as rumors of "chicken pox parties" circulated for years before the introduction of a chicken pox vaccine. In both scenarios, parents purportedly aimed to deliberately infect children with once-common childhood diseases in an effort to ensure resultant immunity was achieved within a convenient age range. (In the years before a vaccines was available for chicken pox, parents often hoped the near inevitable virus would sweep through the home while children were young enough to recover quickly and without infecting infants.)

~ snip ~

Fox News' blog, for example, repeated an on-air iteration of the rumor:
This morning on "Fox and Friends," Elisabeth Hasselbeck said that parents are bringing their kids who haven't been vaccinated around those who are infected in order to "build up their immunity."

Dr. Philippa Cheetham explained that the idea of measles parties came from chicken pox parties that began in the 1980s. She said that parents at that time wanted "to mix children who had chicken pox, with children who did not have chicken pox to try and increase exposure as a way of building up natural immunity."

~ snip ~

It sounds to me like a thinly veiled attempt by Fox News to slam California.

(Naw, what am I saying? The fairly unbalanced fair and balanced folks at Fox would never do that!)

[Brother Buzz]

50. Just a bunch of misguided Marin county hot-tubbers

G H W Bush was right all along, so stop saying that!