A couple of times over the years, very young children have died of malnutrition after being fed grossly inadequate diets, and media reports have referred to those diets simply as "vegan." It infuriates me because, while there is a tiny grain of truth in the sense that veganism excludes meat, dairy, and other animal-derived products, that is a very different thing from feeding a child a diet so deficient in calories, protein, essential amino acids, vitamins, and minerals that starvation and malnutrition result.
A properly planned vegan diet is not a starvation diet.
That brings me to the Samoa tragedy.
There is, again, a grain of truth. Two infants really did die after receiving measles vaccines. But they died because the vaccines had been prepared incorrectly. According to the official investigation, they were mistakenly mixed with an expired muscle relaxant rather than the proper diluent. In other words, they did not receive properly prepared vaccines any more than those neglected children received a properly planned vegan diet.
Yet that tiny grain of truth proved enough to fuel a mountain of misinformation.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. subsequently visited Samoa at the invitation of anti-vaccination activists and publicly questioned vaccine safety. Whether or not his actions alone changed enough minds to matter can never really be known, but vaccination rates fell dramatically, and when measles arrived, scores of children died who, according to the overwhelming consensus of medical experts, would almost certainly have survived had they been properly vaccinated.
Kennedy has denied responsibility.
Perhaps he sincerely believes he bears none.
But we also know from his own public statements and testimony that he has repeatedly misunderstood or misrepresented important aspects of vaccine science. At some point, ignorance ceases to be an excuse when one continues to promote claims that experts overwhelmingly reject.
I met Robert F. Kennedy Jr. once, roughly thirty years ago, when he was working to protect the Hudson River. He struck me as thoughtful, articulate, and entirely rational.
Something seems to have changed.
I rather like eccentric people. Some of the finest naturalists, artists, and scientists I have known were delightfully odd.
But there is a profound difference between being eccentric and spreading misinformation that may cost lives.
To me, that difference matters. Bobby is bad for your health.
This excellent News Brief is why I am a paid subscriber. Thank you for your work.
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Thank you for all of the good work that you do. I appreciate it. <3
I am a vegan.
A couple of times over the years, very young children have died of malnutrition after being fed grossly inadequate diets, and media reports have referred to those diets simply as "vegan." It infuriates me because, while there is a tiny grain of truth in the sense that veganism excludes meat, dairy, and other animal-derived products, that is a very different thing from feeding a child a diet so deficient in calories, protein, essential amino acids, vitamins, and minerals that starvation and malnutrition result.
A properly planned vegan diet is not a starvation diet.
That brings me to the Samoa tragedy.
There is, again, a grain of truth. Two infants really did die after receiving measles vaccines. But they died because the vaccines had been prepared incorrectly. According to the official investigation, they were mistakenly mixed with an expired muscle relaxant rather than the proper diluent. In other words, they did not receive properly prepared vaccines any more than those neglected children received a properly planned vegan diet.
Yet that tiny grain of truth proved enough to fuel a mountain of misinformation.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. subsequently visited Samoa at the invitation of anti-vaccination activists and publicly questioned vaccine safety. Whether or not his actions alone changed enough minds to matter can never really be known, but vaccination rates fell dramatically, and when measles arrived, scores of children died who, according to the overwhelming consensus of medical experts, would almost certainly have survived had they been properly vaccinated.
Kennedy has denied responsibility.
Perhaps he sincerely believes he bears none.
But we also know from his own public statements and testimony that he has repeatedly misunderstood or misrepresented important aspects of vaccine science. At some point, ignorance ceases to be an excuse when one continues to promote claims that experts overwhelmingly reject.
I met Robert F. Kennedy Jr. once, roughly thirty years ago, when he was working to protect the Hudson River. He struck me as thoughtful, articulate, and entirely rational.
Something seems to have changed.
I rather like eccentric people. Some of the finest naturalists, artists, and scientists I have known were delightfully odd.
But there is a profound difference between being eccentric and spreading misinformation that may cost lives.
To me, that difference matters. Bobby is bad for your health.