Rate this book

Deadly Choices: How The Anti-Vaccine Movement Threatens Us All (2010)

by Paul A. Offit(Favorite Author)

4.18 of 5 Votes: 5

ISBN

0465021492 (ISBN13: 9780465021499)

languge

English

genre

Nonfiction

publisher

Basic Books

review 1: Engaging writing makes what might otherwise be statistics into a gripping read. The writer speaks eloquently and passionately about the importance of vaccination, as well as the societal threat posed by widespread non-vaccination. As a side note, while reading this I realized that there are some subjects in which the "both sides of the debate" culture is not only bogus, but actually harmful. Vaccination is one such subject, and climate change is another. On subjects like these, the "both sides" doctrine of the media and our society gives crackpots a platform and sows confusion amongst the lay public. Every subject you can think of has crackpot viewpoints. The irony is that the more solid the science is on a subject, the more that crackpot views will get a lot of airtime. W... morehy? Because there really isn't any debate, so there isn't any middle ground. For example: 2 + 2 = 4, and virtually everyone agrees on this except that somewhere out there is someone who will insist that 2 + 2 = 16; there is no one who has a middle ground viewpoint that 2 + 2 probably equals 4, but it might be a bit more or a bit less. Why? Because the body of evidence is so overwhelming for the sum to be 4. But a journalist looking for the mandatory opposing viewpoint has to some up with someone, so guess who they go to? Yup, 16-guy. And he gets equal airtime. In the case of critical issues with societal/global impact, the opposing view can sow enough confusion amongst the lay public so as to cause indecision or even irrational opposition, resulting in significant harm.Anyway, this made me realize that there are some issues where I will no longer quietly roll my eyes and/or bite my tongue when someone is espousing diehard crackpot views, but I will instead call bullshit. Vaccines ar one of these subjects, where the bullshit of the crackpots threatens all of us.
review 2: This is something everyone should read. There is a lot of misinformation out there on a lot of issues. Vaccines is one of those things where there is a lot of misinformation & unnecessary fear. I found the book to be very straightforward & honest. It doesn't just go on about the successes of vaccines & their creations throughout history but also the failures & tragedies as well. I think that is something that should be required when trying to evaluate whether a source is honest or not. It goes into the history of the anti-vaccine movement, which goes back a couple hundred years & shows the similarities it has with the modern movement. It doesn't just show where their notions are flawed but also how they are wrong without bogging the reader down with too much jargon. The author explains how the misinformation is spread & where people are either outright lying or mistaken. It's a very important book to read because of the importance of everyone being protected from preventable diseases. It's something that affects the community as a whole & I think that is a great reason for everyone to gain some knowledge on the subject whether they are familiar with it & it's (unnecessary) baggage or not. It's informative & can only help one make good decisions in regards to our health, which is a very important aspect of our lives. less

Download links for: Deadly Choices: How the Anti-Vaccine Movement Threatens Us All

Advertising