Conspiracy Theories

charlotte989875 · April 2016

I had a student argue that cancer and HIV/AIDS researchers weren't really trying to find cures because it would stop their funding. It was a conspiracy of the government, hospitals, and non-profits to keep money coming in and finding a cure would cause that to stop.

They didnt seem seem convinced when I told them how much money these institutions would make if there was a cure.

themosthappy91 · April 2016

I actually really love conspiracy theories- I can't think of any major ones I believe in but there are several where I'm kind of like "huh, I can maaaaaybe see that" and I just think they are so fun to read about (when they aren't the harmful, offensive ones like Holocaust denial or something, of course).

One that I think is probably pretty flimsy when it comes to supporting evidence but very fun to read about is the phantom time hypothesis, which basically posits that 614 to 911 A.D. did not actually happen and everything that was supposed to have occurred in those years was fabricated. (If you want to know more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phantom_time_hypothesis)

[Deleted User] · April 2016

I ran into someone who thought that their digestive issues were caused by eating fruit in the afternoon/evening. Apparently it sits in your stomach on top of all the food from earlier in the day and then rots waiting it's turn to be digested. This person was also an anti-vaxxer. Some people aren't fans of science.

MCmeow · April 2016

LondonLisa said:

MCmeow said:

Me and my cousins lived for conspiracy theories growing up. Ok, my favorite is kinda crazy: Human beings are a hybrid of Neanderthals (Homo Erectus) and a specific breed of Aliens (Anunnaki). It's a pretty specific conspiracy, with evidence dating back 450,000 years. It's believed there's a planet from another solar system that comes close to our orbit every 3600 years. On this planet is the Anunnaki, Alien giants that are way more advanced than us who would come visit us when the planets come close and help us advance. It would explain sudden bursts of golden ages. Why the pyramids were so mathematically perfect for its age. Also explains some Egyptian paintings that describe the solar system to the detail we know of today, with the planets at the correct positions, including an extra planet (The alien planet? Hmmm), even some drawings showing space ships. The theory thinks it's why Humans started religion. It's a pretty heavy conspiracy, but so interesting to read about.

You know literally none of that it true. Like, not even 1 sentence. Not even touching the Alien nonsense, all the assumptions about what we do know are completely wrong.

Neanderthals aren't homo erectus, they're homo sapien neanderthalensis. The earliest proto HSN is 300,000 old. But most HSN as we know it are 100,000-30,000

Egyptian astronomy is pretty much just Babylonian astronomy and later Greek during the Ptolomeic period. It wasn't more advanced than really any other peer culture. They never had an "extra planet" represented as pretty much all unobservable planets can't be seen without telescopes. The Egyptians in no way described the planets as we know it today. Advanced for their time? yes. But they didn't even see anything past Jupiter (no telescopes). They observed well but were hampered by their technological limitations.

As for being 'mathematically perfect', some later ones were, but they also had hundreds of years of practice, just look at the step pyramids and the evolution of it. There are several wonky pyramids. Geometry really isn't hard- and after several trial and error pyramids, they got it right.

I love a good theory, but this has literally no basis in reality. I also think it's really stupid to bash non-western cultures as getting things from Aliens when they were just smart and organised.

ETA: I'm also pretty sure that is just the plot to the films 'Promethius' and 'The Fifth Element' jumbled together but maybe Ridley Scott is in the illuminati and he did it to warn the New World Order before their secret UFO meeting at Davos.

I know it's not true, that's why it's a conspiracy. It's more like reading science fiction to me (my favorite genre) but a lot of people believe this. I do believe aliens exist though, there's no way we're the only planet with life.

thisismynickname2 · April 2016

Shockingly, or hopefully not shockingly, I can't name a single person that believes in any big "conspiracy." Disagreeing about what to do about known science, sure- like "the globe goes through warming and cooling cycles so why bother worrying about climate change anyway."
The conspiracy aspect of aliens- that governments shush their very existence- is also something I don't believe nor does anyone I know, but I will say the sheer entertainment value of such a conspiracy is great. Those "history" channel shows showing probable evidence of alien existence on this planet are just plain fun to watch. And remember that mermaid one? (Yeah, government is covering up the existence of mermaids, y'all!) It's fun to wonder what-if.

short+sassy · April 2016

Oops! I lost my quote box. This is in reference to db1984's coworker who thinks G.W. Bush seeded the clouds over Louisiana during Katrina.

I live in NOLA now, and lived here during Katrina as well. I actually hadn't heard that one, lol. Just so many things wrong with her belief, I'm not even sure where to start. But it is not the only conspiracy theory related to this tragedy. Here are the other three:

The levee protecting the Ninth Ward was blown up during the storm, in order to purposely flood that area, which is predominantly a black community. That's the most outrageous version, reason-wise. Never mind that breech also flooded Arabi and Chalmette, two cities with a predominantly white population. Lakeview was also one of the most flooded areas. Was it a bomb there also? (Crickets chirping). What, no conspiracy theory there? Oh yeah, it's a predominantly white population.
The other version is the levee was purposely blown up to alleviate the Mississippi River building up and giving the water somewhere to go...other than the sacred French Quarter (ie taker of many tourist dollars). Now this one I'd almost buy, lol. But, seriously. No one blew up anything in the middle of a Cat. 5 storm. So bizarre.
The response to Hurricane Katrina aid was slow because the areas affected (Southern Louisiana and MS) are predominantly black. I'm sorry, have you met the U.S. Government? They're not exactly known for doing anything in the quickest and/or most organized fashion.

Never mind that G.W. Bush was in a neighboring state on vacation and couldn't even be bothered to visit any of the areas until days later. Not that I would have expected him to have made anything better, but Jesus H. Christ on a cracker, when we have one of the worst natural disasters in our country's history...what I expect the leader of my country to do is SHOW THE EFF UP. At least to the closest safe area.

But when Hurricane Wilma hit his brother Jebbie's state (FL) later that year? G.W. flew down from D.C. the next day. Lovely (sarcasm). I'll get off my soapbox now.

glasgowtolondon · April 2016

Wow, I've never heard the mermaids one. Some people have too much time on their hands - and I say that as someone messing around a damn wedding forum. I just don't see a world where mermaids wouldn't be held in a zoo, and monetised. I loved Splash! as a kid, I'd be all over that shit.

thisismynickname2 · April 2016

glasgowtolondon said:

Wow, I've never heard the mermaids one. Some people have too much time on their hands - and I say that as someone messing around a damn wedding forum. I just don't see a world where mermaids wouldn't be held in a zoo, and monetised. I loved Splash! as a kid, I'd be all over that shit.

@glasgowtolondon
For your enjoyment: http://www.animalplanet.com/tv-shows/mermaids/videos/mermaids-the-body-found-mermaid-sightings-throughout-history/

SP29 · April 2016

Spoonsey said:

I ran into someone who thought that their digestive issues were caused by eating fruit in the afternoon/evening. Apparently it sits in your stomach on top of all the food from earlier in the day and then rots waiting it's turn to be digested. This person was also an anti-vaxxer. Some people aren't fans of science.

That's a gem!

Sounds like the story my grandpa tried to get me to believe when I was 5- don't eat the seeds from a watermelon or else one will grow in your stomach!!

I get annoyed with the "drug companies are hiding the cure for cancer because then they won't make money". Finding a cure for cancer won't stop people from getting cancer- the drug companies will still make their money treating it.

glasgowtolondon · April 2016

thisismynickname said:

glasgowtolondon said:

Wow, I've never heard the mermaids one. Some people have too much time on their hands - and I say that as someone messing around a damn wedding forum. I just don't see a world where mermaids wouldn't be held in a zoo, and monetised. I loved Splash! as a kid, I'd be all over that shit.

@glasgowtolondon
For your enjoyment: http://www.animalplanet.com/tv-shows/mermaids/videos/mermaids-the-body-found-mermaid-sightings-throughout-history/

Well now I'm convinced!

randomslove · April 2016

FI's brother believes the whole "vaccines are mind-control, fluoride in the water is mind-control" stuff. Probably believes chemtrails are a thing, too. Vin Diesel posted a picture the other day and all the chemtrail believes when crazy over it. Apparently they think the government is spreading diseases and mind-control chemicals to poison everyone/keep us sedated?

One of FI's friends also believed that vaccines might have tiny microchips they're injecting us with, and that the government has mosquito-sized drones spying on us. FI had to convince him that, since he has a high security clearance and has never seen an indication that such technology is currently in our possession, these things are impossible. Drones that small wouldn't be able to relay anything as far as information is concerned. Microchips that small? Heck, the chips we put in animals only have a few lines of information in them and are larger than that by quite a bit. What would microscopic microchips do?

My step dad thinks there may be something to the whole LBJ/government cover-up of JFK's death, but views it as more of an interesting discussion topic than anything real.

Also, that mermaid mockumentary is awesome. As a "mermaid," I think it's sad some people were fooled by it.

madamerwin · April 2016

randomslove said:

FI's brother believes the whole "vaccines are mind-control, fluoride in the water is mind-control" stuff. Probably believes chemtrails are a thing, too. Vin Diesel posted a picture the other day and all the chemtrail believes when crazy over it. Apparently they think the government is spreading diseases and mind-control chemicals to poison everyone/keep us sedated?

Ugh. I know these people too. And people who think vaccinations are a conspiracy on the part of pharmaceutical companies with the sole purpose of making money, science be damned.

H's good friend and his wife are anti-vaxxers, and I made the HUGE mistake of bringing up vaccinations on a camping trip (before I knew how very anti-vax they were). I could not get them to shut up about it for the rest of the night. No matter how many times I tried to change the subject, they just kept pushing how vaccines were a conspiracy and that there was not reputable evidence for their effectiveness.

Other than that, they are very pleasant people, so I just avoid discussions about vaccines at all cost.

MairePoppy · April 2016

@glasgowtolondon If you have some spare time after you check out the Mermaid show, you might be interested in 'Finding Bigfoot:' http://www.animalplanet.com/tv-shows/finding-bigfoot/videos/caught-on-tape-squatch-raids-a-cooler/

I'd like to know how these guys conspired to get a job like this.

themosthappy91 · April 2016

Question- does "the U.S. government played a role in the death of MLK" count as purely a conspiracy theory, or does it have more weight given that an actual civil court found that to be true (though the verdict is controversial/contested)?

To me (being far from an expert on the subject) that's always been one of the more intriguing/plausible-seeming theories. Some of the things James Earl Ray said in his confession (referencing other parties being involved), plus the fact that King's family (and several people with him when he was shot) never bought that Ray was guilty, plus the fact that he was admittedly being surveyed by the U.S. military and had attracted the ire of some very high-ranking government officials... it all adds up to make me wonder.

Someone who knows more about it than me- is this just another crazy pants conspiracy theory or is it in any way verging on plausible?

For more reading- I know Wikipedia isn't the best source but to just get an overview of what the theory posits:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assassination_of_Martin_Luther_King,_Jr.#Civil_case_against_Jowers

kimmiinthemitten · April 2016

randomslove said:

My step dad thinks there may be something to the whole LBJ/government cover-up of JFK's death, but views it as more of an interesting discussion topic than anything real.

You're not a true American if a JFK conspiracy documentary hasn't made you at least question the story! It's okay to admit that you've rewound and replayed to watch the trajectory of the bullet.

etf spelling

LadyCatherineDB · April 2016

My favorite is that the moon doesn't exist. This is different from your run-of-the-mill we-didn't-land-on-the-moon theory. This is of course we didn't land on the moon because it's not real. Supposedly, those moon rocks we brought back are fake, and no one really knows how tides work. I have yet to get an answer as to what the big bright thing in the sky at night is if it's not the moon.

[Deleted User] · April 2016

SP29 said:

Spoonsey said:

I ran into someone who thought that their digestive issues were caused by eating fruit in the afternoon/evening. Apparently it sits in your stomach on top of all the food from earlier in the day and then rots waiting it's turn to be digested. This person was also an anti-vaxxer. Some people aren't fans of science.

That's a gem!

Sounds like the story my grandpa tried to get me to believe when I was 5- don't eat the seeds from a watermelon or else one will grow in your stomach!!

I get annoyed with the "drug companies are hiding the cure for cancer because then they won't make money". Finding a cure for cancer won't stop people from getting cancer- the drug companies will still make their money treating it.

When I was really little I told my older brother that watermelons would grow into his belly because he ate the seeds. He totally believed me and had this absolute look of horror on his face. It was a shining moment in my childhood because I tricked my older brother.

I don't really get how people can believe doctors are lying to them about something that is pretty basic human biology.... I've since looked it up, and people genuinely think this rotting fruit thing is real. I guess I understand skepticism for vaccines and cures for cancer existing because there's someone who clearly profits (according to the conspiracy theories, at least), but who profits from us eating fruit in the evening even though it's supposedly bad? Fruit lobbyists? You know that doctor who spent 4 years in med school and then specialized in gastroenterology, yeah, he's just pushing fruit, he knows jack shit about how digestion works.

WinstonsGirl · April 2016

This is such an entertaining thread. I haven't heard about most of these. The closest I ever get from people around me is my BIL assuming that every trades person and contractor is out to screw him over on work by over charging and doing a shitty job (even when they don't).

OliveOilsMom · April 2016

The people who believe the rotting fruit theory - do they not poop? Because if they didn't poop lots of things wouldn't be digesting properly!

badbnagdway · April 2016

thisismynickname said:

Shockingly, or hopefully not shockingly, I can't name a single person that believes in any big "conspiracy." Disagreeing about what to do about known science, sure- like "the globe goes through warming and cooling cycles so why bother worrying about climate change anyway."
The conspiracy aspect of aliens- that governments shush their very existence- is also something I don't believe nor does anyone I know, but I will say the sheer entertainment value of such a conspiracy is great. Those "history" channel shows showing probable evidence of alien existence on this planet are just plain fun to watch. And remember that mermaid one? (Yeah, government is covering up the existence of mermaids, y'all!) It's fun to wonder what-if.

On the mermaids - I was shopping a few years back with a good friend of mine who I consider highly intelligent. She said, "hey, what do you think about the mermaids? are they real and is the gov't covering it up?" I was like, WTF are you talking about?

She told me she had watched an Animal Planet documentary about the aquatic ape theory that indicated that mermaids are real and there was this thing about wale boops, etc. Anyway, I was fascinated so I watched the "documentary". My skepticism steadily climbed throughout but I also was like, well if friend thinks this is legit maybe it is. The whole thing is interspersed with this "found footage" from a cell phone from these boys on a beach where they seem to find this mermaidish thing. You realize for sure at the end that the whole thing is completely fake when the mermaid sits up and screams. I asked friend about it later and she confessed she fell asleep before the end and didn't realize it was made up. If you watch it with that lens (Mermaids: The Body Found") though it is extremely entertaining: http://www.animalplanet.com/tv-shows/mermaids/videos/mermaids/

There's a later follow-up "documentary" that is even more fake.

I like conspiracy theories like that - whimsical ones like, Elvis is alive, the government has alien space craft, and mermaids are real. I find conspiracy theories that try to explain away tragic events like the Holocaust and Sandy Hook completely gross and troubling.

short+sassy · April 2016

madamerwin said:

randomslove said:

FI's brother believes the whole "vaccines are mind-control, fluoride in the water is mind-control" stuff. Probably believes chemtrails are a thing, too. Vin Diesel posted a picture the other day and all the chemtrail believes when crazy over it. Apparently they think the government is spreading diseases and mind-control chemicals to poison everyone/keep us sedated?

Ugh. I know these people too. And people who think vaccinations are a conspiracy on the part of pharmaceutical companies with the sole purpose of making money, science be damned.

H's good friend and his wife are anti-vaxxers, and I made the HUGE mistake of bringing up vaccinations on a camping trip (before I knew how very anti-vax they were). I could not get them to shut up about it for the rest of the night. No matter how many times I tried to change the subject, they just kept pushing how vaccines were a conspiracy and that there was not reputable evidence for their effectiveness.

Other than that, they are very pleasant people, so I just avoid discussions about vaccines at all cost.

Do they mean, other than the fact that small pox, rubella, mumps, and all the other diseases we get vaccinations for have been largely eradicated throughout the world where these vaccines are common?

I could be wrong, but I don't think even most anti-vaxxers believe this. What I've usually heard is the belief that vaccinations can cause other health issues, especially autism, and are no longer necessary because these diseases have been...and I'll use my phrase again...largely eradicated. And THAT is despite the fact there is no reputable evidence that any of the vaccines cause autism.

MCmeow · April 2016

The MLK/JFK conspiracy theories are definitely believable (in my opinion). The establishment is powerful, when ideas change the minds of enough people they feel threatened. It's entirely possible they would easily kill a threat to the status quo. Plus MLK didn't just speak about racial issues, he brought up a lot of stuff the government didn't like.

princessleia22 · April 2016

SP29 said:

That's a gem!

Sounds like the story my grandpa tried to get me to believe when I was 5- don't eat the seeds from a watermelon or else one will grow in your stomach!!

I get annoyed with the "drug companies are hiding the cure for cancer because then they won't make money". Finding a cure for cancer won't stop people from getting cancer- the drug companies will still make their money treating it.

But, the drug companies make much more money with long, drawn out treatments than they would with a quick cure. If they actually cure it, then you no longer need any treatments, and therefore they make no more money. At least that's the justification in that thinking. DH doesn't 100% believe this, but he's mentioned it a couple times as a valid possibility.

short+sassy said:

Do they mean, other than the fact that small pox, rubella, mumps, and all the other diseases we get vaccinations for have been largely eradicated throughout the world where these vaccines are common?
I could be wrong, but I don't think even most anti-vaxxers believe this. What I've usually heard is the belief that vaccinations can cause other health issues, especially autism, and are no longer necessary because these diseases have been...and I'll use my phrase again...largely eradicated. And THAT is despite the fact there is no reputable evidence that any of the vaccines cause autism.

I definitely believe that vaccines are largely effective. But, there are also cases where they aren't and outbreaks still happen. Currently Harvard is having an outbreak of mumps. The people who have contracted it were all previously vaccinated before contracting it. There have been other outbreaks of it also. I'm assuming that there would be much larger outbreaks around the country/world if we weren't vaccinated, but cases like this do help fuel the anti-vaxxer mentality.

madamerwin · April 2016

princessleia22 said:

SP29 said:

That's a gem!

Sounds like the story my grandpa tried to get me to believe when I was 5- don't eat the seeds from a watermelon or else one will grow in your stomach!!

I get annoyed with the "drug companies are hiding the cure for cancer because then they won't make money". Finding a cure for cancer won't stop people from getting cancer- the drug companies will still make their money treating it.

But, the drug companies make much more money with long, drawn out treatments than they would with a quick cure. If they actually cure it, then you no longer need any treatments, and therefore they make no more money. At least that's the justification in that thinking. DH doesn't 100% believe this, but he's mentioned it a couple times as a valid possibility.

short+sassy said:

Do they mean, other than the fact that small pox, rubella, mumps, and all the other diseases we get vaccinations for have been largely eradicated throughout the world where these vaccines are common?
I could be wrong, but I don't think even most anti-vaxxers believe this. What I've usually heard is the belief that vaccinations can cause other health issues, especially autism, and are no longer necessary because these diseases have been...and I'll use my phrase again...largely eradicated. And THAT is despite the fact there is no reputable evidence that any of the vaccines cause autism.

I definitely believe that vaccines are largely effective. But, there are also cases where they aren't and outbreaks still happen. Currently Harvard is having an outbreak of mumps. The people who have contracted it were all previously vaccinated before contracting it. There have been other outbreaks of it also. I'm assuming that there would be much larger outbreaks around the country/world if we weren't vaccinated, but cases like this do help fuel the anti-vaxxer mentality.

I may be wrong, but don't you need booster shots for MMR as a teen/adult for it to remain effective? There are a number of vaccines that require additional doses later in life, but a lot of people never get them.

banana468 · April 2016

There are a lot of issues with these outbreaks:
-vaccines have efficacy rates. Something like the pertussis vaccine has reduced efficacy as you approach the need for a booster. Therefore you can be vaccinated and if there's an outbreak you could come in contact with the disease and get it. Think of the flu shot. I get it every year and knock on wood I'm OK. Others can get the shot and still get the flu. Getting the shot isn't full proof. You can't compare it to saying that the window is closed to the rain can get in.

-If you haven't received a booster, you could get the disease.
-If you have a compromised immune system, ditto.

My hunch is that if you're in a higher living institution with plenty of people who are from out of the country and / or children of anti-vaxxers, if those institutions do not have robust vaccination policies (plenty of people talk about how they claim a religious exemption with ease) then you're setting up the living arrangements to be quarantine units.

badbnagdway · April 2016

banana468 said:

There are a lot of issues with these outbreaks:
-vaccines have efficacy rates. Something like the pertussis vaccine has reduced efficacy as you approach the need for a booster. Therefore you can be vaccinated and if there's an outbreak you could come in contact with the disease and get it. Think of the flu shot. I get it every year and knock on wood I'm OK. Others can get the shot and still get the flu. Getting the shot isn't full proof. You can't compare it to saying that the window is closed to the rain can get in.

-If you haven't received a booster, you could get the disease.
-If you have a compromised immune system, ditto.

My hunch is that if you're in a higher living institution with plenty of people who are from out of the country and / or children of anti-vaxxers, if those institutions do not have robust vaccination policies (plenty of people talk about how they claim a religious exemption with ease) then you're setting up the living arrangements to be quarantine units.

I am not a scientist or doctor so I may be wrong but my understanding of how the flu shot works is that there are 300+ strains of the flu (categorized into three basic Types and subject to constant further mutation) and that every year scientists guess what strains will be common and compile a vaccination based on that guess. Getting a flu vaccine does not vaccinate you against all strains of flu you may encounter and therefore is not 100% effective against the flus you encounter.

I think most other compulsory vaccinations (like MMR) are against organisms that are much more predictable in their genetic makeup than the flu, so they fail for the other reasons you mentioned.

arrippa · April 2016

madamerwin said:

princessleia22 said:

SP29 said:

That's a gem!

Sounds like the story my grandpa tried to get me to believe when I was 5- don't eat the seeds from a watermelon or else one will grow in your stomach!!

I get annoyed with the "drug companies are hiding the cure for cancer because then they won't make money". Finding a cure for cancer won't stop people from getting cancer- the drug companies will still make their money treating it.

But, the drug companies make much more money with long, drawn out treatments than they would with a quick cure. If they actually cure it, then you no longer need any treatments, and therefore they make no more money. At least that's the justification in that thinking. DH doesn't 100% believe this, but he's mentioned it a couple times as a valid possibility.

short+sassy said:

Do they mean, other than the fact that small pox, rubella, mumps, and all the other diseases we get vaccinations for have been largely eradicated throughout the world where these vaccines are common?
I could be wrong, but I don't think even most anti-vaxxers believe this. What I've usually heard is the belief that vaccinations can cause other health issues, especially autism, and are no longer necessary because these diseases have been...and I'll use my phrase again...largely eradicated. And THAT is despite the fact there is no reputable evidence that any of the vaccines cause autism.

I definitely believe that vaccines are largely effective. But, there are also cases where they aren't and outbreaks still happen. Currently Harvard is having an outbreak of mumps. The people who have contracted it were all previously vaccinated before contracting it. There have been other outbreaks of it also. I'm assuming that there would be much larger outbreaks around the country/world if we weren't vaccinated, but cases like this do help fuel the anti-vaxxer mentality.

I may be wrong, but don't you need booster shots for MMR as a teen/adult for it to remain effective? There are a number of vaccines that require additional doses later in life, but a lot of people never get them.

Yes, I just had my booster shot last year. My dad had Rubella (the R in MMR) and was hospitalized and almost died. After that I made sure my booster shot was up to date. You don't want to get it as an adult.

madamerwin · April 2016

arrippa said:

madamerwin said:

princessleia22 said:

SP29 said:

That's a gem!

Sounds like the story my grandpa tried to get me to believe when I was 5- don't eat the seeds from a watermelon or else one will grow in your stomach!!

I get annoyed with the "drug companies are hiding the cure for cancer because then they won't make money". Finding a cure for cancer won't stop people from getting cancer- the drug companies will still make their money treating it.

But, the drug companies make much more money with long, drawn out treatments than they would with a quick cure. If they actually cure it, then you no longer need any treatments, and therefore they make no more money. At least that's the justification in that thinking. DH doesn't 100% believe this, but he's mentioned it a couple times as a valid possibility.

short+sassy said:

Do they mean, other than the fact that small pox, rubella, mumps, and all the other diseases we get vaccinations for have been largely eradicated throughout the world where these vaccines are common?
I could be wrong, but I don't think even most anti-vaxxers believe this. What I've usually heard is the belief that vaccinations can cause other health issues, especially autism, and are no longer necessary because these diseases have been...and I'll use my phrase again...largely eradicated. And THAT is despite the fact there is no reputable evidence that any of the vaccines cause autism.

I definitely believe that vaccines are largely effective. But, there are also cases where they aren't and outbreaks still happen. Currently Harvard is having an outbreak of mumps. The people who have contracted it were all previously vaccinated before contracting it. There have been other outbreaks of it also. I'm assuming that there would be much larger outbreaks around the country/world if we weren't vaccinated, but cases like this do help fuel the anti-vaxxer mentality.

I may be wrong, but don't you need booster shots for MMR as a teen/adult for it to remain effective? There are a number of vaccines that require additional doses later in life, but a lot of people never get them.

Yes, I just had my booster shot last year. My dad had Rubella (the R in MMR) and was hospitalized and almost died. After that I made sure my booster shot was up to date. You don't want to get it as an adult.

I have no clue when I last had my booster shots. I should probably look in to that.

I did, however, have blood work done last year as part of fertility screening, and it turns out that I was not immune to chicken pox. I had chicken pox as a kid, but it was a very light case. So I did get the vaccine for that, because adult chicken pox is no joke.

short+sassy · April 2016

Sorry to go a little on a tangent, but since we are talking about vaccinations anyway, I watched an interesting documentary about them.

To maintain "herd immunity", roughly 80% of an area's population needs to be immunized. France has historically had one of the lower immunization percentages in Europe. Hovering around 80-85% in the 1980s, though it is much improved within the last 5 years. In 2008, there was an outbreak of measles in that country that afflicted over 22K people. 5,000 were hospitalized and 10 died. Of the people afflicted who had vaccination records reported, 80% had no vaccinations. Of the remaining 20%, most of them had only had the MMR1 vaccine, but not the MMR2. Only a handful (318 people) had both vaccines.

Here's a link from the CDC talking about this particular epidemic:

http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/19/3/12-1360_article

CMGragain · April 2016

I had a student tell me that Doctors could cure cancer, but they don't because they can make more money with the drug companies by selling treatments.
Yeah, I have stage 4 cancer - and it's all a conspiracy, right? I thoroughly embarrassed that young lady in front of her friends, and I'm not one bit sorry!

Conspiracy Theories

Re: Conspiracy Theories

Choose Another Board

Search Boards