Gov. Baker wants to force every school child to get one
By Jeffrey T. Kuhner
Massachusetts is taking a big step toward liberal fascism. Gov. Charlie Baker and his administration seek to compel every student to take a flu vaccine—whether they or their parents want to or not.
The state Department of Public Health has recently said that all students attending school—public, private or parochial—will be mandated to take a flu vaccine prior to Dec. 31, 2020. If they don’t, then they will not be allowed to go to school.
The order covers the ages of children as young as 6 months up to adults who are 30-years-old. It applies to kids in child care, pre-school, kindergarten, K-12 elementary and secondary education, as well as college students and even university graduate programs. The only exemptions are for medical or religious reasons.
Baker says a vaccine mandate is necessary to combat the coronavirus.
“I would hope people understand that this is an important part of how we continue to fight the virus here in Massachusetts,” he said.
The problem, however, is there is no evidence—not a scintilla—that the flu vaccine is effective in curbing the spread of COVID-19. Baker is simply using the coronavirus as a pretext to scare parents into accepting his latest diktat.
Moreover, he is lying. Health and Human Services Secretary Marylou Sudders has admitted the new requirement will remain even after COVID-19 is eliminated.
“It’s not just this year, it’s on a going-forward basis,” she said at a recent press conference.
In other words, the vaccine mandate will not be temporary, but permanent. This is beyond outrageous. Baker’s authoritarian requirement is wrong for numerous reasons.
There is a growing body of literature that challenges the safety and efficacy of flu vaccines. For the record: I am not “anti-vaccine.” My wife and I have had all of our shots; so have our kids. But we are not talking about the Polio vaccine, which has a long, documented history of being both safe and effective.
The flu vaccine is a very different animal. It contains numerous toxins that some experts say could have long-term health consequences—at least, for some people. It also often doesn’t work. It sometimes uses a flu strain that differs from the flu affecting the larger population. For example, five years ago I took a vaccine. It failed. I still got the flu. Ever since, I refuse to receive one. Guess what? I haven’t gotten sick.
More importantly, the decision of whether your child should take a flu vaccine should be left to the parents. The mandate is a fundamental assault upon parental authority and choice. Its implication is clear: Big Brother knows what’s best for your child—not the parent. As George Orwell warned in his classic novel, 1984, a major characteristic of a totalitarian society is that the all-powerful state supplants the independence (and sovereignty) of the family.
Yet, the drive toward a flu vaccine mandate is more than about power and control. It paves the way for our progressive elites’ ultimate goal: a universal coronavirus vaccine mandate. The logic is inexorable. If the government can force you to wear a mask or insert a vaccine into your child against your will, then it can compel you to take a COVID-19 vaccine.
Already, political leaders are admitting this is the end game. Australia’s Prime Minister Scott Morrison said that, when a coronavirus vaccine is ready for market, it should be compulsory for almost every Australian citizen to take. Last week, he told a radio station in Melbourne that getting the vaccine should be “as mandatory as you can possibly make it.” (Morrison later walked back his statement, but only after a massive public backlash.)
In Virginia, Health Commissioner Dr. Norman Oliver said he will force all Virginians to take a COVID-19 vaccine once it is created and widely available. Under Virginia state law, the commissioner of health has the “authority to mandate immediate immunizations during a public health crisis if a vaccine is available.” According to Dr. Oliver, if he’s still the health commissioner next year, then he “intends to mandate the coronavirus vaccine.”
This is authoritarian progressivism. And it must be stopped. I will not take a coronavirus vaccine (and neither will my family)—whether it’s mandated or not. Big Pharma is set to make untold billions from any COVID-19 vaccine; it is being fast-tracked to market; and pharmaceutical companies are largely exempt from product liability. I don’t care if it’s approved by the Food and Drug Administration. I will not be a guinea pig for a vaccine that may likely have dangerous long-term health consequences. It is my body, my choice.
The flu vaccine mandate is a Trojan horse, which will set the stage for a compulsory coronavirus vaccine. It is no accident that the Baker administration has deep ties to the public health-industrial complex. Big Pharma are major donors to Baker and his cronies. He couldn’t care less about your health or that of your family. Just ask the over 5,000 elderly victims slaughtered because of Baker’s criminal negligence, in which he deliberately sent infected COVID-19 patients into the nursing homes.
It’s time for citizens to take a stand. Opponents of the flu vaccine mandate are planning to hold a rally on Sunday, August 30, starting at 10:00 am EST (and lasting until noon) on the steps of the State House. I urge everyone to attend. Baker must be told—loudly and clearly—that our children do not belong to the government. They belong to us: their parents.
-Jeffrey T. Kuhner is host of ‘The Kuhner Report” on WRKO AM-680 in Boston. His daily show airs 6:00-10:00 am EST. He can be reached at: JeffreyKuhner@iheartmedia.com
(PHOTO: Getty Images)