McCain: VACCINATIONS CAUSE AUTISM!!!

[SirNitram]

Link

At a town hall meeting Friday in Texas, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., declared that "there’s strong evidence" that thimerosal, a mercury-based preservative that was once in many childhood vaccines, is responsible for the increased diagnoses of autism in the U.S. -- a position in stark contrast with the view of the medical establishment.

McCain was responding to a question from the mother of a boy with autism, who asked about a recent story that the U.S. Court of Federal Claims and the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program had issued a judgment in favor of an unnamed child whose family claimed regressive encephalopathy and symptoms of autism were caused by thimerosal.

"We’ve been waiting for years for kind of a responsible answer to this question, and are hoping that you can help us out there," the woman said.

McCain said, per ABC News' Bret Hovell, that "It’s indisputable that (autism) is on the rise amongst children, the question is what’s causing it. And we go back and forth and there’s strong evidence that indicates that it’s got to do with a preservative in vaccines."

McCain said there’s "divided scientific opinion" on the matter, with "many on the other side that are credible scientists that are saying that’s not the cause of it."

The established medical community is not as divided as McCain made it sound, however. Overwhelmingly the "credible scientists," at least as the government and the medical establishment so ordain them, side against McCain's view.

Moreover, those scientists and organizations fear that powerful people lending credence to the thimerosal theory could dissuade parents from getting their children immunized -- which in their view would lead to a very real health crisis.

The Centers for Disease Control says "There is no convincing scientific evidence of harm caused by the low doses of thimerosal in vaccines, except for minor reactions like redness and swelling at the injection site."

The American Academy of Pediatrics says"No scientific data link thimerosal used as a preservative in vaccines with any pediatric neurologic disorder, including autism."

The Food and Drug Administration conducted a review in 1999 -- the year thimerosal was ordered to be removed from most vaccines -- and said that it "found no evidence of harm from the use of thimerosal as a vaccine preservative, other than local hypersensitivity reactions."

The Institute of Medicine’s Immunization Safety Review Committee concluded "that the body of epidemiological evidence favors rejection of a causal relationship between thimerosal-containing vaccines and autism."

And a study of California Department of Developmental Services data published last month indicated that there was "an increase in autism in California despite the removal of thimerosal from most vaccines."

Yet there is a vocal, determined, passionate group -- including some medical researchers and organizations -- who vehemently dispute what the established medical community says about this wrenching issue. One of the questions they ask is why would the thimerosal have been removed from the vaccines if there was no real harm?

(The answer according to the Public Health Service, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and vaccine manufacturers was "because any potential risk is of concern.")

In any case, here we have a major political figure, the presumptive Republican nominee, who stated that he at the very least isn’t as sure about thimerosal as the medical establishment is.

Moreover, he made it sound as if the thimerosal is still in vaccines -- though as I understand it, thimerosal is all but gone in almost every childhood vaccine now, and has been for years.

This could be quite controversial.

Congratulations, conservatives. Your flavour of the month is an anti-vaccination idiot.

[Erik von Nein]

Bwa, hahaha! That's freaking retarded. I knew McCain was pretty anti-science (he's a Republican; it's in their nature) but this is just damn stupid. Is he going to start pushing homeopathic bullshit next?

[Superman]

[That NOS Guy]

As if people needed any more reasons not to vote for him.

[FSTargetDrone]

McCain said, per ABC News' Bret Hovell, that "It’s indisputable that (autism) is on the rise amongst children, the question is what’s causing it. And we go back and forth and there’s strong evidence that indicates that it’s got to do with a preservative in vaccines."

Isn't this more a case of the diagnoses of autism increasing, autism that may have been there all along in the general population in similar percentages, just never noticed, or misdiagnosed?

In any case, it's irritating beyond description when non-scientists and non-medical people are asked to give their opinions about medicine. Especially politicians.

[CaptainChewbacca]

Alright, that's it. I'm voting for Obama unless he picks Romney as a running mate.

YOU HEAR THAT CONSERVATIVES?!! I'M VOTING FOR OBAMA! ARE YOU HAPPY NOW?!!

:banghead::banghead::banghead:

[Spin Echo]

In any case, it's irritating beyond description when non-scientists and non-medical people are asked to give their opinions about medicine. Especially politicians.

What really gets me is these people that think they are making "informed" about not vaccinating their kids just because they spent an afternoon on google.

I wonder if he would/could (not sure if it's a states right) work to remove the manditory vaccinations required by many states if elected. Anyone have any hand numbers on what percentage of parents in the US at the moment wouldn't vaccinate their kids if they didn't have to?

[JME2]

McCain, you're a sellout and a fucking idiot. If you manage to get the RNC nomination and if the Democratic candidate trumps you in November, I'm pulling out a bottle of Merlot I've been saving for the ocassion and celebrating.

[Superman]

It's funny, I listened to him speak about global warming and thought, "gee, maybe he's not so bad! He's pro science!" Then he says vaccines cause autism, and suddenly he's right back into conspiracy cookville with the rest of the right wing idiots.

[Oni Koneko Damien]

Wow, it seems Republicans are taking a page from the Democrats "Defeat At Any Cost!" playbook.

I'll have to remember this little gem and pass it around next time I hear someone claim McCain's progressive.

[Cairber]

McCain was responding to a question from the mother of a boy with autism, who asked about a recent story that the U.S. Court of Federal Claims and the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program had issued a judgment in favor of an unnamed child whose family claimed regressive encephalopathy and symptoms of autism were caused by thimerosal.

This is all stemming from morons who cannot understand that the so-called "concession" the vaccine court made was nothing about vaccines and autism.

The story is that a child had an underlying mitochondrial disorder that was undiagnosed. The child got vaccinated and things went south. She had brain swelling and some other issues; her problems "manifested with symptoms like autism" or something like that.

Originally this case was part of the omnibus trial, but it was pulled out because the child's issue was an underlying disorder. the family was compensated. Now all the anti vaccine people are claiming this is some big victory for them.

YOu can read more about it where it was first "reported":
link to crap piece on this

[Molyneux]

Well, there goes the last lingering shred of respect I could have mustered for the man. Hope he gets his ass kicked, though he's still better than Huckabee.

[Drooling Iguana]

McCain said, per ABC News' Bret Hovell, that "It’s indisputable that (autism) is on the rise amongst children, the question is what’s causing it. And we go back and forth and there’s strong evidence that indicates that it’s got to do with a preservative in vaccines."

Isn't this more a case of the diagnoses of autism increasing, autism that may have been there all along in the general population in similar percentages, just never noticed, or misdiagnosed?

There's also the fact that the definition of autism was changed a few years back (I believe it was part of the switch from DSM-III to DSM-IV) so that many people who wouldn't be considered autistic under the old system now are.

[K. A. Pital]

McCain once again shows that his worth is streaming towards a negative value.

[Vehrec]

Seriously McCain. You didn't have much respect in my books to start with. I'm going to have to go to town on you for this one though. Vaccinations are the best thing to come out of the past 200 years of medicine, in terms of lives saved. Do you understand this McCain? Smallpox, Polio, Measles, Mumps, Chicken Pox, influenza all are lethal to some of their hosts. Do you want to have people playing cargiver to these rouge DNA fragments again McCain? Not all life has a right to it.

[Havok]

Are there any links to what McCain actually said? The full questions and responses.

[Napoleon the Clown]

That's it. Mandatory IQ testing for all presidential candidates.

Or not, but still, what the fuck? You're a fucking politician, not a medical expert. If you don't know what you're talking about, shut the fuck up.

[Spin Echo]

Well, at least most of the media coverage I've seen has been calling bullshit on McCain as opposed to cheers him on as the maverick willing to defy the evil corporate medical empire.

[Admiral Valdemar]

Perhaps the mothers who accepted the whole MMR conspiracy as fact got to McCain and warped his mind.

[CmdrWilkens]

Seriously what constituency does this play to? Is he that desperate to get the "hick in the woods teaching the kids with nothin but the bible cause its the only truth out there" vote?

[Adrian Laguna]

That's it. Mandatory IQ testing for all presidential candidates.

McCain was a fighter pilot, his IQ is probably above average. And for all Bush's intelligence is mocked, his IQ is probably also above average. High IQ is no guarantee that the person isn't an idiot.

[Gil Hamilton]

McCain was a fighter pilot, his IQ is probably above average. And for all Bush's intelligence is mocked, his IQ is probably also above average. High IQ is no guarantee that the person isn't an idiot.

I sincerely doubt Bush's IQ is above average, when we have more than enough evidence to the contrary.

[Darth Servo]

Well, he's won the nomination. I guess he doesn't realize there's another step to the election process that he needs to go through before he can safely reveal his true inner moron to the world?

[Gerald Tarrant]

It's unfortunate, but the scope of the responsibilities that US legislators affect is probably beyond most people's ability to properly assimilate all the data. This is the collection of laws passed by 104th Congress, just clicking through them I got this

104-1 42 pages
104-2 2 pages
104-3 1 page
104-4 25 pages
104-5 1 page
104-6 20 pages... and so forth

and I found 333 separate passed and signed laws. I have no idea of the above is representative, but it's a randomly selected year (so I see no reason why it wouldn't be).

I'd be astonished if somewhere in there all the candidates didn't have a little bit of junk science floating around in their heads. I'm sure McCain supporters who knows what they're talking about in this area are yelling at lower level spokespeople. McCain's stupid comment is just the result of speaking extemporaneously, he remembers some random article he read purporting a link between autism and vaccines, and when questioned about it he sites the only information he has, which is wrong. McCain's bailiwick is foreign policy, give him some time and he'll have on staff someone who's job it is to fill the gaps in his scientific literacy. If he doesn't issue a retraction or an apology in a week or so then I'd worry.

Seriously I think this is the best explanation of the gaffe

2. The vast expansion of the state means that we expect our representatives to have opinions on everything from missile defense to flame-retardant pajamas. No one could possibly learn about every subject we expect them to know, even if he were not spending sixteen hours a day doing the grip-and-grin with voters, lobbyists, donors, and other politicians.

Link

[Big Orange]

McCain was a fighter pilot, his IQ is probably above average. And for all Bush's intelligence is mocked, his IQ is probably also above average. High IQ is no guarantee that the person isn't an idiot.

I sincerely doubt Bush's IQ is above average, when we have more than enough evidence to the contrary.

Didn't Bush serve in the US Air Force's Guard?

I doubt McCain is quite as relentlessly dimwitted as W. Bush, even though his recent comment about vaccinations supposedly causing autism is a foolish comment but does he believe in Creationism, is vehemently against abortion, and thinks Global Warming is a fairy tale? If not, then McCain is certainly better than nothing by default, so him fretting over a medical misconception is a small mistake in comparison to the other mouth breathing ideas that are disconcertingly popular among Republicans (but "better than nothing" is also not good enough if America needs to fix most of the Wonder Chimp's blunders).