RFK, Jr. and the End of Expertise

Robert F. Kennedy , Jr. insists he’s not anti-vaccine and that he just wants to ensure that vaccines are safe.

Julian Zelizer : Kennedy knows that his inflammatory statements about the dangers of vaccines will be more compelling to many people than dry recitations of rigorous studies demonstrating their efficacy and safety.

Zelizer says Kennedy either denies saying what he said, or misrepresents scientific papers.

Kennedy 's tortured responses to questions about vaccines have to be understood in light of his long involvement in bringing tort ligation cases against vaccine manufacturers.

While publicising bogus ideas about vaccination through his non-profit Children’s Health Defense , he has been recruiting new plaintiffs for these cases.

Kennedy implies that “natural immunity” acquired by infection is superior to immunity derived from vaccine.

Kennedy has just hired discredited researcher and vaccine conspiracy promoter to conduct a new study under the auspices of the CDC to reinvestigate the question of vaccinations and autism.

Many other studies (here, here, and here) have also examined the association and found no evidence of a link.

Vaccination against HPV is nothing less than a medical triumph that has the potential to virtually eradicate cervical cancer.