When Hillary Clinton stepped into the vaccine debate fray yesterday with this simple yet awesome message, it helped give the vaccine movement the boost it needed:
The science is clear: The earth is round, the sky is blue, and #vaccineswork. Let's protect all our kids. #GrandmothersKnowBest
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) February 3, 2015
Clinton’s tweet came on the heels of Rand Paul’s comment on Monday when he said “that parents should be allowed to decide whether their children needed to be vaccinated, and that he had heard from parents whose children had suffered ‘profound mental disorders’ after being vaccinated,’ ” according to this report by the New York Times.
Paul was joined this week by none other than New Jersey Governor and presidential hopeful Chris Christie, who said parents had a “measure of choice” in matters such as this.
On Tuesday, Paul backtracked a bit, getting a hepatitis A booster and saying that he felt “science was definitive on the matter and that vaccines were not harmful.”
Regardless, this vaccine debate rages on. See some of the best (and by best, we mean backed by science, no cheap shots) tweets below:
#Measles kills. It causes irreversible brain damage and physical injury. #Vaccineswork http://t.co/i6A8iNZC83 @MeaslesRubella @NFID
— Rebecca Martin, PhD (@DrMartinCDC) February 4, 2015
And from Columbia University:
Dr. Melissa Stockwell debunks 7 myths about #measles. #vaccineswork http://t.co/QpTVIddhtE
— Columbia University (@Columbia) February 4, 2015
And this one, which retweets Melinda Gates’ response:
#Vaccineswork “We take life-saving medicine for granted in the US.” @MelindaGates response to skeptics on @voxdotcom: http://t.co/apXpgXCKCY
— Sue Desmond-Hellmann (@SueDHellmann) January 28, 2015
Or maybe this?
The saddest story Roald Dahl ever wrote about his daughter's death from #measles is worth reading today http://t.co/ZRPYIPXGqq #vaccineswork
— Orin Levine (@OrinLevine) February 2, 2015
And a link to one great video about the recent worldwide spread of preventable diseases:
In this epic battle between science and “affluent California liberals,” as Jon Stewart so eloquently put it, why are we backtracking on a disease that was practically eradicated? All we can say is, Team Science.