A FORMERLY SELF-DESCRIBED ANTI-VAX CROCKPOT
AND MOTHER OF THREE IS CHANGING HER TUNE AFTER EVERYONE IN HER
FAMILY INCLUDING HER THREE FAMILY CHILDREN CONTRACTED A
VIRUS THAT IS PAINFUL.
JUST TO GIVE YOU GUYS A LITTLE BIT OF
BACKGROUND ON THE ANTI-VACCINE MOVEMENT.
SO, THE WOMAN NOW IS
SPEAKING OUT.
SHE SPOKE OUT WITH GOOD MORNING AMERICA.
SHE WAS
ABLE TO REASSESS HER POSITION AND EXCEPT THAT THE INFORMATION
ABOUT VACCINES IS WELL BASED WITH A SOUND SCIENTIFIC BACKING.
A LOT OF EVIDENCE SAYS THAT WE SHOULD BE VACCINATING OUR KIDS.
I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS SORT OF TRACTION, THE ANTI-VAX
MOVEMENT, HAS GOTTEN.
WHAT YOU THINK IS BEHIND THIS?
>>THERE WAS A LAWYER BACK IN THE DAY WHO BASICALLY SAID HEARING
NO SIDES OF A CASE IS AS BAD AS ALL SIDE OF THE CASE.
THE POINT
IS THAT WE NEED TO HEAR ALL
SIDES.
IF SOMEBODY IS TELLING
YOU, AND I HAVE FRIENDS ARE VERY MUCH AGAINST VACCINES.
THERE IS
A RANGE OF REASONS WHY SOME PEOPLE ARE AGAINST VACCINES.
IT'S
NOT A MONOLITH.
THERE IS A LOT OF DIFFERENT IDEOLOGIES BEHIND
IT.
WHEN YOU DON'T GET THE VACCINES, YOU ARE DEFINITELY
ENDANGERING YOUR KIDS.
YOU THINK YOU MIGHT BE ENDANGERING THEM IF
YOU ARE GETTING THEM, BUT IT'S A CERTAINTY IF YOU ARE NOT
GETTING THEM.
>> THERE WAS A CERTAIN POINT WHERE ALL DISEASES WERE
ELIMINATED.
NOW ALL OF A SUDDEN LOOK IT'S SMALLPOX.
I THINK THIS
IS AN EXAMPLE THAT GOES MUCH LARGER THAN THE VACCINATION
THING.
IS SO EASY TO LIVE IN THIS BUBBLE AND HAVE AN ECHO
CHAMBER OF HEARING EVERYTHING YOU WANT TO HEAR, ESPECIALLY ON
THE INTERNET.
IT'S NOT JUST RIGHT-WINGERS, THE LEFT IS DOING
IT TO NOW.
THIS ELECTION CYCLE AS A BERNIE SUPPORTER I FOUND
MYSELF GETTING LED TO WEBSITES WHERE I WOULD SAY WHAT?
WHO IS
SAYING THIS?
I WOULD HAVE TO DO THE LEGWORK AND SEE WHERE THE
QUOTE WAS COMING FROM.
IT'S VERY EASY TO SURROUND YOURSELF WITH
WHAT YOU WANT TO HEAR.
YOU SEE THIS EVERYWHERE FROM
HOMESCHOOLERS WHO HAVE AN ENTIRE LINE OF TEXTBOOKS EXPLAINING WHY
CREATION IS NOT TRUE AND THERE IS SUCH A THING AS CLIMATE
CHANGE.
>> I THINK YOU MAKE A GOOD POINT
ABOUT SHE USE THE INTERNET TO DO
WHAT SHE SAYS "ON THIS JOURNEY."
THIS RESEARCH SHOULD NOT BE A
MONSTER JOURNEY TO JUST FIND OUT WHAT SHE WANTS.
IT IS ABOUT
TRUSTING YOUR DOCTOR.
IT SHOULDN'T BE DOING WHATEVER SORT
OF JOURNEY YOU WANT TO DO ONLINE BECAUSE THEN EVERYONE THINKS YOU
ARE A DOCTOR.
YOU NEED TO GET CREDIBLE SOURCES TO BACK UP THE
RESEARCH YOU ARE DOING.
>> SHE HAD A CLARIFYING MOMENT.
VOMITING, DIARRHEA WILL DO THAT
TO YOU.
SHE GOT IT, HER HUSBAND GOT IT.
MORE IMPORTANTLY HER
DAUGHTERS ARE ALL UNDER THE AGE OF SEVEN.
ONCE YOU PUT YOUR KIDS
IN DANGER LIKE THAT YOU SEE THEM WITH ALL THOSE THINGS.
ALONSO
WAS RIGHT, IT CAN HAPPEN TO ANY OF US, OR ALL OF US.
THERE ARE
MORE AND MORE BUBBLES ON THE INTERNET THAT JUST KEEP
REINFORCING THE THINGS THAT WE BELIEVE.
I TRY TO BREAK OUT OF
THAT BUT I'M SURE I AM GUILTY OF IT IN PLENTY OF WAYS AS WELL.
THE REPUBLICANS LIVE IN AN ALTERNATE REALITY WHERE THIS IS
ON A DIFFERENT SCALE. 65% OF DONALD TRUMP SUPPORTERS BELIEVE
THAT OBAMA IS MUSLIM, 59% BELIEVE THAT HE WASN'T BORN IN
AMERICA.
THAT IS NOT EVEN REMOTELY TRUE.
AND THOSE ARE GIANT NUMBERS.
>>THOSE ARE PROVABLE FACTS.
IT IS AN ACTUAL FACT THAT OBAMA IS
BORN IN THE UNITED STATES, NOT A MUSLIM.
YOU ARE RIGHT, THEY DO
IT WORSE OR BETTER DEPENDING ON HOW YOU LOOK AT IT.
>> WE ONLY BRING POLITICS INTO IT IN THIS DISCUSSION IN THE
BUBBLES THAT ARE CREATED ONLINE.
IN THIS CASE THERE ARE PLENTY OF
LIBERALS THAT ARE IN THE ANTI-VACCINATION CROWD.
THERE
ARE ALSO PLENTY OF CONSERVATIVES THAT ARE IN IT.
THE MICHELE
BACHMANN'S OF THE WORLD.
IF YOU ARE IN THE ANTI-VACCINATION
CROWD, I BESEECH YOU TO DO THIS, INSTEAD OF SAYING NO ONE SHOULD
GET VACCINATED THAT IS AN INDEFENSIBLE POSITION.
YOU SHOULD ARGUE TO MAKE VACCINATIONS BETTER IF YOU
THINK THAT THERE'S SOMETHING WRONG WITH THEM TALK
>>AND MORE TRANSPARENT.
>>GO IN THAT DIRECTION.
YOU ARE GOING TO GET A WIDER AUDIENCE
AND YOU ARE ALSO NOT GOING TO MISLEAD PEOPLE.
LOOK, THEY WILL
LIVE.
WE DID A STORY ABOUT HOW MUSLIMS WERE SAYING THAT
VACCINATIONS ARE AN AMERICAN PLOT.
THEN THEIR KIDS STARTED
GETTING POLIO AND SOME OF THE THINGS THAT ARE JUST HORRIBLE,
LIFE ALTERING DISEASES ETC.
THIS GRANDMOTHER IS CRYING SAYING WHY
DID I BELIEVE IT.
NOW MY GRANDDAUGHTER IS NEVER GOING TO
WALK AGAIN.
JUST BE SUPER CAREFUL, THESE ARE YOUR KIDS.
DO
MORE RESEARCH, DO ANYTHING YOU HAVE TO DO TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU
ARE MAKING THE RIGHT DECISIONS.