One of the clearest measures of a society can be found in its public
school system. For example, it is no accident that in totalitarian
states, such as North Korea, what may be taught comes directly from the
government. Children are indoctrinated early to believe their "Dear
Leader" never is wrong even though many do not have enough food to eat.
And in war-torn countries or those which are deeply divided by religious
differences there are few, if any, functioning public schools.
By contrast the United States has a proud history of public education
for all of its children. Or at least it did. I have watched as American
public schools have gone from generally good to abysmal because of the
many changes in our society and because of government meddling. From
forced school- busing to classes taught in every language except
English, to removing "Under God" from the Pledge of Allegiance, our
State and Federal Governments have been butting into the business of
local schools for more than 30 years and the schools are the worse for
it.
One of the latest developments in public education is that schools
believe they are the de facto parents of the children who attend them.
With so many children living with only one parent or two parents who
work, with who knows who looking after them, it is no wonder. Now some
States are trying to require girls entering the sixth grade to be
immunized against something called HPV (Human Papilloma Virus), a virus
that only can be transmitted through sex and which causes certain kinds
of cancer. What does that say about our public schools and about the
state of our culture?
There are so many things wrong with the idea -- and the fact that the
immunizations would be mandatory rather than voluntary -- that it is
difficult to know where to begin. However, I shall try. First, the
obvious: what do we know about the vaccine? We know it is made by Merck
& Company, Inc., a very large pharmaceutical firm that has been busy
hiring lobbyists and advertising the drug, called Gardasil (registered
trademark), in magazines and on television. We know that immunization
consists of a series of three shots at a cost of approximately $400.00
per child and that making the vaccine mandatory is a Merck goal. We know
that Merck lobbyists have descended upon State capitals throughout the
country and created a group called Women in Government, which has
samples of the "correct" legislation posted on its website. And we know
that the Federal Food and Drug Administration approved the vaccine late
last year.