A close friend of mine has often commented on my loyalty. I take that as a great compliment.Therefore, it's difficult for me to confess how thoroughly disgusted I am with Gov. Rick Perry -- a man I have voted for every time he's been on the ballot.
His latest move using an Executive Order to call for the vaccination of 6th grade girls throughout Texas against the human papillomavirus is just about the last straw. In fact, even if this were the first straw from him (and it's not), it would be the last straw for me.
I won't use up valuable blog space to go into all the details of why this is wrong. You'll have no problem finding plenty of websites and online articles that go into that -- from conservative and liberal sources alike. But let me at least point out the following:
- The Governor has not answered the basic question as to why, in spite of other health issues that pose greater risks to more people, he chose to circumvent the legislative process of review and hearings and issued an Executive Order instead.
- In regards to the supposed need of urgency regarding this health issue, according to one state representative if they passed legislation it could take effect in June 2007 as compared with the effective date of the Executive Order, which is September 2008.
- The relatively small numbers of cervical cancer cases referenced (1,169 new incidents per year in Texas) are NOT entirely caused by HPV, as documented clearly by the Centers for Disease Control.
- Finally, check this out:
"Merck is bankrolling efforts to pass state laws across the country mandating Gardasil for girls as young as 11 or 12. It doubled its lobbying budget in Texas and has funneled money through Women in Government, an advocacy group made up of female state legislators around the country.
"Perry has several ties to Merck and Women in Government. One of the drug company's three lobbyists in Texas is Mike Toomey, Perry's former chief of staff. His current chief of staff's mother-in-law, Texas Republican state Rep. Dianne White Delisi, is a state director for Women in Government." (USA Today, February 2, 2007)
Tell me this ... can I form a picket line or start a petition and STILL be called a conservative Republican?
2 comments:
Governor Zoolander is a Sham. I voted for his for governor 4 years ago. I didn't this past time and I am proud I didn't. He is a RINO (Republican in name only).
But what has really irked me is his defense of this action. "I choose to be on the side of saving lives." What sanctimonious BS!!!
Tough on crime? Nope. Strengthening our borders (his big campaign theme)? Not even close.
His single biggest qualification for office is
He has good hair.
Am I the only person who knows the form of HPV that can lead to cervical cancer is a sexually transmitted disease? Catching it isn't like catching measles, mumps, rubella or tetanus. I know our modern American culture for the most part views pre-marital sex as acceptable, and I also know that teaching/preaching abstinence without tempering that conversation with quality sex education hasn’t proven particularly effective is reducing the spread of STDs, unwanted pregnancy, or emotional scaring.
That being said, it kills me that there is this attitude that nothing can be done to convince young people to wait to have sex and that the only answer is to vaccinate 12-year-old girls. I just wonder how impactful an ad campaign would be if it was as clever, focused and extensive as Merck & Co's Gardasil campaign – yet instead of saying, “Get a Vaccine!” it said, “Take sex seriously and think about waiting.”
Don’t get me wrong, I believe every sexually active woman needs to take advantage of every medical advance – wellness exams or vaccines – to ensure her health. The problem is legislated vaccinations for girls remove women - their mothers, mentors, etc. - from the equation placing these girls in significantly more dangerous situations.
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