My elder son contracted flu that has been going around in Ashburn. This morning we took him to the Pediatrician – an Indian lady named Jane – who certified his flu symptoms and told us that it is of type A; they classify types of flu. She said that he should be fine in 3 – 5 days and does not need anything more than a Mortrin to help him recover.
At the elementary school, a day before Friday, they had children vaccinated for the H1-11 (I think) flu, otherwise better known as the swine flu. We did not get our children vaccinated. Obviously, he contracted the flu before that date and obviously, the vaccine could therefore have benefited him.
His brother, for example, who has runny nose is fine.
The question, as it stands, is: to vaccinate or to not vaccinate?
You can have a very polarized discussion from the two sets of groups. Personally, I don’t feel strongly, as is generally the case, but I don’t believe in vaccination. Why? That is a good question.
For one, you get vaccinated against one strand of flu and it does not protect you against the others. Two, I think it is a money making scam, as is everything in this country, to help the pharmaceuticals. By the way, here is another theory of mine: I think that the U.S. – the country, that is – is like a giant casino, Caesar’s Palace, Mirage, Bally’s; pick the one where you lost least amount of money.
What I mean is that in every walk of life, the odds are stacked against you, the individual and always in the favor of the “organization,” just like in the casino. For example, the interest that you earn from the bank on your money is insignificant (around 1% to 2%) versus the interest you pay to the bank for your credit card loans (over 15%, at least). You pay for insurance on your car, but in a small accident, end up fixing the car yourself either because the yearly deductible is too high or you don’t want your insurance premium to go up: pathetic isn’t it!
Anyway, things are stacked against you, that is the point I am trying to make. And charging $40 (I saw the Ad at the Dr.’s) is good business. We are wrongly focused in getting our children to be doctors, thinking that they will make good money; we should be more focused in getting them to be owners of an insurance company or a pharmaceutical; there they will have doctors on the payroll.
I hear Michael Moore’s “Sicko” is about this topic. I guess I should avoid seeing it otherwise my opinions will become more polarized;-)