Government plans to vaccinate us.

national | miscellaneous | opinion/analysis Saturday June 10, 2006 19:56 by coconut david.olaigheanain2 at mail dot dcu dot ie

More scaremongering? Will this be mandatory?

The government earlier this year announced the purchase of enough vaccine to "protect" 200,000 people against the H5N1 strain of avian influenza. An Tánaiste seems to think this is a good idea.

http://www.dohc.ie/press/releases/2006/20060224.html

The Tánaiste, Ms Mary Harney, T.D. today (24th February 2006) announced the purchase of H5N1 vaccine.

This vaccine, as yet unlicensed, could offer some protection against the H5N1 flu strain. International experts consider that a stockpile of this vaccine could be used as a first line of defence for key health care workers and other essential workers while a vaccine against the exact pandemic influenza strain is manufactured.

The Department of Health and Children has been actively pursuing the purchase of a limited supply of this vaccine. We can now confirm we have secured sufficient vaccine for 200,000 people (i.e. 400,000 doses) to cover priority groups as outlined above. The vaccine is scheduled for delivery in May and October 2006.

This purchase forms part of the award of contracts to Baxter and Chiron announced today by the English Health Minister, Rosie Winterton, for supply of H5N1 vaccine.

The Tánaiste, Mary Harney T.D, expressed her appreciation to the Department of Health in London for their co-operation and assistance in this context.

I am honestly ashamed to call myself an Irish citizen at the moment. This is yet another shambles by our government and I have no doubt it is but one more item on the scaremongering pile in order to convince us to accept such a vaccine.

Instead of offering us help on how to avoid becoming infected with diseases that the government claims to be the next pandemic, for example SARS and Foot and Mouth (both of which killed millions of peop... oh wait), yet again our untrustworthy politicians are trying to do the job for us by buying vaccines for people.

Forget helpful advice such as wash your hands immediately after handling poultry, cook your food thoroughly, keep surfaces clean (which are all just common sense anyway); we are told on the Department of Health's own website that there is a stockpile of 400,000 doses of vaccine to "combat" H5N1, enough for 200,000 people.

What's the point? How many people here are going to die from bird flu? There are two probable answers: none and few. There is not going to be a pandemic. Why isn't everyone running around screaming about rabies or human influenza? I don't know, maybe it's because the more I listen to the crap coming from the world's governments about bird flu the more I believe that they're trying to scare us, yet again, into submission.

Anyway, how do we even know this vaccine will work? We don't. Rather like that smallpox vaccine the American government tried to force people to take a few years ago. Luckily most were clever enough to refuse it - it was useless against weaponised smallpox anyway. If anything this will give us bird flu instead of protecting us.

In the event that this vaccination is somehow made obligatory (which is one of the hallmarks of a society without civil liberties), be sure to tell whoever is urging you to get it where to go.

I am not going to die from bird flu. You are not going to die from bird flu. I doubt anyone in Ireland will die from bird flu. People need to think independently and stop being scared by the government and media.