Paul begins with a powerful ridicule against people saying that people believed in magic as medicine when science was weak and religion strong, now they believe that medicine is magic at a time when religion is weak and science is strong (Offit, 2008, pg. 1). He maintains in his criticism of malicious people against his ideas. Many people have since used Autism as a basis for their campaigns against the vaccination procedures being done on children. Once a London researcher claimed that the famous MMR (Measles-Mumps-Rubella) vaccine was responsible for Autism. Following this assumption, some interested parents resolved that autism was caused by mercury found in preservatives of the vaccines. This led to a worldwide campaign to clean children of mercury in their systems that ended up catastrophic.
Paul in his book ‘Autism’s False Prophets’ was responsible for bringing to light this claims that had gone viral. As an expert on vaccines, Paul expresses an expert view of the problem detailing to what extent many people have gone to following the misconceptions. He is very critical of the involvement of prominent people for commercial gains to stop the use of vaccines. One straightforward idea he holds is that the vaccines reduce the number of deaths caused by this communicable diseases (Offit, 2008). From a personal point of view, this is enough to ensure that people receive vaccines.
Moreover, those who claim falsity on the issue should have used scientific means to prove their claims before moving quickly to action (Offit, 2008). Paul presents the story in an unbiased manner showing both sides of the coin which gives him credibility. He does not forget to mention the public relations criteria used by malicious people and organizations to feed on the innocence of the human brain, a tool he describes as the most powerful weapon (Offit, 2008).
Furthermore, as experts in vaccines, he is clear that his mission is to save lives which they do. One would not blame people for reacting in such a manner. However, those responsible are the ones who cause more harm and should be held to account. Otherwise the fact that the vaccines did their work preventing a bigger catastrophe puts to shame the claims of those uninformed persons, and his criticism could not have come at a better time. He is right in his criticism and with the harshness he presents it.
References
Offit, P. A. (2008). Autism's false prophets: Bad science, risky medicine, and the search for a cure. New York: Columbia University Press.
