January 31, 2022

In a recent discussion with a blog reader, the question arose about the value of the vaccination mandates being forwarded by the Biden Administration and the courts’ seeming unwillingness to go along. In the course of that discussion, the polio vaccine question arose as well. In 1954, was the Salk vaccine mandated? Answer, it didn’t have to be. People couldn’t get the stuff into their kids’ arms fast enough. I still remember being taken downtown to Bridgeport, Connecticut to get my first shot. I stood in a long line with many children who were brought there by anxious parents to try to stave off the threat of a crippling disease. No one had to encourage anyone to get the shot and there were no protests that I recall. Yes, there were adverse side effects, but this predated the existence of Institutional Review Boards and detailed protocols for clinical research, not to mention the FDA’s authority over the effectiveness of vaccines. Why is it so different now?

In a word—trust.