Two Vaccines

From As I Please :

Recent news about the avian flu virus has raised concerns from main street to the White House. There is the possibility, even likelihood, that the virus will mutate into a form that can more easily infect humans.

As the president pointed out, a vaccine cannot be made until this evolution occurs.

This raises the concern that it may be impossible to create enough vaccine fast enough to protect all our citizens. But there is hope.

Gallup polls tell us that up to 45 percent of Americans don't believe in evolution. Since random mutation is the engine of evolution, these same people must believe that the virus cannot mutate.

Therefore, there is no need to waste vaccine on folks who believe there is no possible threat to themselves -- thus leaving a sufficient supply for the rest of us. Perhaps the president, given his doubts about evolution, may wish to demonstrate his leadership by foregoing vaccination.

And from Multiple Mentality :

A cervical cancer vaccine has been discovered. But social conservatives worry that it could increase teen sex.

Weakest. Argument. Ever.

Because the vaccine protects against a sexually transmitted virus, many conservatives oppose making it mandatory, citing fears that it could send a subtle message condoning sexual activity before marriage. Several leading groups that promote abstinence are meeting this week to formulate official policies on the vaccine.

I was unaware that cervical cancer was an STD. Fortunately, there’s an explanation:

The vaccine protects women against strains of a ubiquitous germ called the human papilloma virus. Although many strains of the virus are innocuous, some can cause cancerous lesions on the cervix (the outer end of the uterus), making them the primary cause of this cancer in the United States. Cervical cancer strikes more than 10,000 U.S. women each year, killing more than 3,700.

The vaccine appears to be virtually 100 percent effective against two of the most common cancer-causing HPV strains. Merck, whose vaccine is further along, plans to ask the Food and Drug Administration by the end of the year for approval to sell the shots.

So it doesn’t actually protect you from HPV, but it ensures that if you get HPV, you won’t get cancer from it. At least, that’s how I’m reading it.

This sort of thing is why I often have to hold my nose when labeling myself conservative. It’s a vaccination that could save lives, and doesn’t appear to have life-threatening side effects. Its social implications should remain at the bottom of the concern list, not near the top.

It's not just leftists who sometimes find those they're amongst a bit on the morally bankrupt side, or just plain ignorant.