On the flu shot shortage.

What do we really know about the flu shot shortage? Do we know that the flu shot is successful in preventing the spread of the disease?

The answer is no, at least according to the Centers for Disease Control.
The chief of the CDC's influenza branch states that: "There is no systematic follow-up to see, to document whether the general population who receives a flu vaccine is infected by a flu virus, because it's an impossible task. I mean, we have 80 million doses or 70 million doses given and it would be impossible to follow up."

How well does the flu shot protect the "at risk" groups then? Last year there were 152 deaths among children caused by the flu. Is this a historical low? Has increased immunization led to a decrease in the number of children killed by the flu? The CDC answers: "Because the number of influenza deaths in children has not been tracked before, it's not possible to compare the number of deaths in children this year with previous years."

If you think these admissions by the CDC are shocking take a look at these numbers. In 2002, the CDC claimed that 20,000 people nationwide could be killed by the flu. Even though it does not track the effectiveness of the vaccine, the CDC was still inspired to make a prediction for 2003: 36,000 people would die of the flu. What caused this huge leap in their estimates remains a mystery. Even Ms. Cox states that "most cases of flu-like illnesses – about 80% – in fact are caused by 'many other pathogens.'" So, the CDC has no evidence that the flu shots prevent anything. The CDC follows their amazing lack of research by admitting that many of the deaths they attribute to the flu may, in fact, be caused by something else. Still, some CDC advisors boldly predict this year that up to 70,000 could be killed.

The CDC is intent on hyping the flu epidemic. Apparently, the goal is to just vaccinate everyone, even if they have no proof of the vaccine's effectiveness. The CDC is obsessed with marketing the flu shots. In order to "inspire" everyone to get a flu shot, they hype un-researched numbers. A presentation by Dr. Nowak, the Associate Director for Communications of the National Immunization Program describes "recipes" (his word, not mine) for generating interest in the flu vaccine program. In the recipe, Dr. Nowak notes that the "perception or sense that many people are falling ill" or the "perception or sense that many people are experiencing bad illness" is an important part of generating demand for the vaccine.

The CDC admits that it does not have the science to back its claims that the flu vaccines are essential (especially beyond "at risk" groups). Yet the CDC, along with the national and local media, seem intent on spreading fear about the flu and spreading a false sense of confidence in the efficacy of the vaccine.

If the "needle pushers" were to let science dictate reality and restrain themselves from scaring the public needlessly, we would not have an "artificial crisis". I guess the CDC does not trust people to make their own, educated choices.

The fear mongering about the flu vaccine is a wonderful example about the mentality of the bureaucrat. Even though they have little to no information to back up their claims, they still think they know better than the average person and they are not afraid to use the coercive power of the government to enforce their "ideals". My prediction: soon children will be prevented from attending classes unless they have proof of a flu vaccine.

J. Thyme Matz