To get shot or not
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Updated: October 28, 2009 1:34 PM
The whole idea of vaccinations follows that old saying: An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
Makes sense, especially when cures for most viruses are so few and far between.
But there's always going to be those who shy away from prevention — vaccinations. And not just for fear of needles.
These types are afraid of something else entirely. Afraid of the government deciding what goes into our bodies. Afraid of injecting even just a small amount of a deadly virus into ourselves. Afraid of side effects. Afraid of getting sick despite the vaccine. And ultimately, afraid of creating super bugs.
But aren't bugs already superior to us?
As long as there has been man, there have been microscopic bugs capable of wiping us out. There has been smallpox and chicken pox, the Plague of Cyprian, the Black Death and the Bubonic plague, cholera, hepatitis and typhus, Dengue fever and yellow fever, measles and malaria, polio and the mumps, to name just a few.
But it seems that no other bug has been so pervasive through time as influenza. Who hasn't had the flu? Outbreaks are recorded throughout history, and now with the mainstream media, words like pandemic can strike fear in communities worldwide. Why? Because not all bugs are created equal.
And H1N1 is just a really strong bug, one we don't see very often. One, says the leading doctors around the world, that can be kept at bay with something as simple as a shot.
So, do you get vaccinated or not? We can't tell you that. But one thing is certain. It's getting harder and harder to say no, as deaths from H1N1 rack up around the province, and around Canada.
And nobody wants to be the next news story.
-Agassiz Observer
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