Getting the first shot Sunday.

Wasn’t gonna mention it – I don’t want to make this a production about me – but mentioning it might help get more people vaccinated. The sooner that happens, the sooner I can get my life back. Aside from everything else, I’m tired of eating half-cold takeout.

Moe Lane

PS: Two shots, dunno which one yet. And as soon as the two week period after the second is over I only wear a mask when I absolutely have to. Because I’m done with that, too.

Vaccination Watch: DO NOT WORK IN SILICON VALLEY IF YOU HAVE KIDS.

The local vaccination rate there is horrible.

A WIRED investigation shows that some children attending day care facilities affiliated with prominent Silicon Valley companies have not been completely vaccinated against preventable infectious diseases. At least, that’s according to a giant database from the California Department of Public Health, which tracks the vaccination rates at day care facilities and preschools in the state. We selected more than 20 large technology and health companies in the Bay Area and researched their day care offerings. Of 12 day care facilities affiliated with tech companies, six—that’s half—have below-average vaccination rates, according to the state’s data.

And by below-average WIRED means ‘critically unsafe,’ here. It’s the herd immunity problem: essentially, anti-vaccination advocates pretty much bank on the fact that since everybody else vaccinates their kids, then unvaccinated kids are safe from outbreaks, because an outbreak is unlikely to spread. The critical percentage is, according to WIRED, about 92% (which is probably just taking an average of the 90% to 95% that seems to be the general rule of thumb): less than that, and a measles outbreak is possible.  Those day care facilities mentioned above are all showing vaccination rates below 90%*.  The companies involved are, of course, contesting the findings, blaming poor and incomplete record keeping for their low scores. Continue reading Vaccination Watch: DO NOT WORK IN SILICON VALLEY IF YOU HAVE KIDS.

Speaking *solely* on the politics of this…

…this entire vaccination issue is a pretty good example of how messy things can get when an issue abruptly switches over from You can safely pander about this to This is a third rail. In 2008 politicians could get away with smiling and nodding at the anti-vaccination people while backing up slowly. in 2015 it appears that they cannot.

So don’t expect this to destroy any actual political careers; taking seriously the anti-vaccination people was far too widespread a practice back then, on both sides of the fence. It’ll mildly embarrass the politicians getting caught out now, and that’s about it. Even the media can’t really pretend that it’s all one-sided.

Moe Lane

PS: I have no sympathy whatsoever for the anti-vaccination movement.

#rsrh Unfair to creationists, really.

Calling anti-vaccination hysteria “Left-wing creationism,” that is.  *I have yet to have it explained to me why I should worry more about my kid being around another kid whose parents believe that the universe was created six thousand years ago than I should be worried about my kid being around another kid whose parents believe that the MMR is the tool of Satan.  Creationism doesn’t cause encephalitis, meningitis, and/or deafness; mumps can.

Anyway, The Panic Virus: A True Story of Medicine, Science, and Fear is not the Book of the Week.  While I will pick books that I have not yet read, I try to pick ones that I’m pretty sure that I will read, once they come out; and this particular book is probably superfluous to my needs.  I’m already quite aware that there’s an unscientific fringe group out there pushing a false link between autism and vaccinations; and that said group is putting my kids at risk with their nonsense; and that the typical believer is, ah, generally not on my side of the political spectrum.  You may still want to check out the book anyway.

See also here and here.

Moe Lane