School vaccinations: A MUST!

Justin Rivera17 said:Since it looks like everyone here is totally against "principles"... let me jump in as the counterpoint. 😉

Dylan, look—I think it’s just plain stupid not to get a tetanus shot. That vaccine has been around for a freaking eternity, and generations of people have basically proven it's "safe."

When I first read your post, I thought you were saying you didn't want to get this *new* vaccine. If that's the case, I am 100% behind you!!! But man, you gotta realize there is a massive difference between vaccines that have proven their "safety" over decades and these brand-new ones hitting the market. Your principle makes sense, though I'd personally prefer if you didn't use that word, since apparently "only idiots stick to principles."

Seriously ladies, you should've explained the difference between types of vaccines to the kid. And if he wants to hold onto a principle, we should be helping him figure out what that applies to, rather than being a bunch of nasty hens (no offense intended) typing stuff to an 18-year-old like, "hope you enjoy life in prison." Just paraphrasing here.

Zoe—shame on you. If anyone ever said something like that to my brother or my siblings while they were caught up in some teenage phase... they would have had a really bad time. Maybe go read a book on pedagogy; I seriously hope your job doesn't involve working with kids.

Anyway, back to the point: I got all my shots, except for the one for tuberculosis. Why? Because back in 2002, in my hometown, there were several cases of poisoning because the vaccine was handled totally wrong. Everyone in my age group who took it spent the next two years dealing with scars and pain. On the day the shots were given, I wasn't even at school, and then those "problematic, isolated cases" started popping up, so I just refused to get it. In the end, it turned out three kids hadn't gotten vaccinated—the doctor's son, the lawyer's son, and a local businessman's daughter 😁. Yeah, maybe that was a risky call, but for me, the risk of taking a botched vaccine was way higher.

I HAVE NOTHING AGAINST VACCINES THAT ARE PROVEN and used properly, but I honestly think only fools rush out to get every single new thing that hits the market. Just look at history... how many "miracle cures" ended up being things where women couldn't have kids, or kids had developmental issues...

Dylan, props to you for having a "principle," but please, get your tetanus shot (God forbid you fall off your bike onto a rusty nail and end up needing a leg amputation due to gangrene—something you could've avoided). Save the stubbornness for the stuff that promises the moon and delivers nothing.

Zoe should only feel bad if this were actually her own son.
At the end of the day, raising a kid is the parents' responsibility, not the community's or a bunch of random people on an internet forum.
So, let the parents be the ones feeling guilty
and deal with the fallout along with their principled son.
Plus, he's a high school senior, so he might already be an adult or almost there (which is probably why the parents aren't getting a lecture themselves), so he can just answer to his own conscience.
We really can't take responsibility for the choices of grown adults or try to raise them ourselves!
And hey, that young man will be heading to the polls to vote soon enough!😱

John Barnes said:I’m a high school senior, and about a week ago, my school held a vaccination clinic. I didn't get vaccinated. At first, I just told them no, but then I made up an excuse about having a fever, and they bought it, so I managed to dodge it for the moment.

Now, I’ve received a notice stating that I have to go to a nearby city to get vaccinated, otherwise, I'll face a fine from $333. Honestly, what kind of nonsense is this? How can anyone be forced to take a vaccine when we don't even know what's in it—especially with all the swine flu concerns lately? I refuse to get vaccinated on principle. Once things settle down like they did with the bird flu, maybe I'll consider it.

Now I’m stuck. It looks like this is actually mandated by law, so I’m wondering if there is any way to avoid this vaccination entirely? Is there a way to bypass it without facing a fine or, heaven forbid, jail time? Since I'm an adult now, I need to know my standing. Can someone offer some advice or perhaps provide an excerpt of the specific law if it exists? Because it seems pretty clear that it does.

Thanks,

edit: I did some digging online and found out that this vaccination is regulated by a specific statute. Apparently, the penalties could include $667, and they can even initiate misdemeanor proceedings or report me to public health or social services. So, the question remains: how can I avoid the shot without paying a fine? And if I do pay the fine, is that the end of it, or will more trouble follow?

You can find all the answers to those questions you were asking in that Alternative PDF; there’s at least 20 pages of deep dives in there if you really want to get into the weeds.

Honestly, it’s just kind of ridiculous to see people heading over to Reddit to hunt for advice on how to dodge the standard vaccination schedule just because they're obsessed with some weird James Dean principle or whatever.😕...

I'm just kind of spinning my wheels here...