THE BATTLE OF THE VACCINE
THE BATTLE OF THE VACCINE
Henry Clay addressing the House of Representatives
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.
By Christopher C.L. Custer, MD
The road to Covid vaccination has been a rocky one. Two of the reasons have been state rights and religious exemptions. Once again States Rights issue are in the forefront. This time over Covid-19 vaccinations. Or more precisely who has the rights, the States or the Federal government, to dictate how and if the Covid-19 vaccines are to be given and the consequences of not getting one. At first it would seem clear, vaccination should be the domain of the States, the Constitution says nothing about vaccinations. The kicker is the word,” people.”If refusing Covid-19 vaccination is the will of the People, so be it. A referendum would give us the answer. Additionally, the issue of states rights has a long history in the U.S. The flaws in the Articles of Confederation, were flaws in state rights. The inability to tax or the lack of executive power. The creation of the Constitution was to solve these problems. Yet the Constitution gauranteed states were assured of their power by the 10th amendment, which said, "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people"(1).
States rights were important in causing the Civil War. While the issue of slavery was the ultimate reason for the war, the Southern States argued that their rights had been infringed on by the Federal government. Think the Dred Scott decision and the Law of Compact and statements from the Declaration of Independence were all used to justify sucession, such as,"when government becomes destructive, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it and establish a new government.”
Now, states rights are taking issue of who sets the rules for Covid-19 vaccinations. States or the Federal government? The message is clear ten states are suing the Federal government for overstepping their authority(2). They want the right to tell people what to do, concerning vaccination- to be able to mandate who can and should get the the Vaccine when in essence that’s exactly what the Federal government wants to do. short it is a political turf war. What is the problems about laws or mandates being enforced. Most people didn’t mind mandates on other vaccines or laws on child seats in cars. These are used when the common good exceeds certain individual rights.
Yet, some mega churches have bought into these myths and one evangelist is giving out religious exemptions for a suggested “donation" of $ 25.
Personal greed has no boundaries.Another sticking point about Covid-19 is due to religious exemption is largely due to preconceived myths with anti- vaxers using religious exemption masquerading for personal right to choose. They prioritize personal choice over the common good, despite the harm they are causing. These myths include the vaccine uses aborted fetal cells- unequivocally not true. The vaccine doesn’t use any cells, let alone fetal cells, as a vector to infect healthy cells. It uses bits of genetic material-RNA synthesized in a lab. Even the Catholic Church recognizes this fact and recommends all catholics to get the Covid-19 vaccine(3). Yet, some mega churches have bought into these myths and one evangelist is giving out religious exemptions for a suggested " donation" of $25 (4). Personal greed has no boundaries.
REFERENCES
1)https://constitution.congress.gov/constitution/amendment-10/
2)https://mail.aol.com/mb/folders/1/messages/AInBkfBdgv0EYXyL1AIi4Gubjrs?.src=ym&reasomyc&showImages=true&offset=
03)https://scd.org/n3ews/catholic-moral-teaching-and-tradition-covid-19-vaccines
4)https://anntyler.wordpress.com/2021/09/24/what-are-the-requirements-for-a-vaccine-religious-exemption/
5)https://mail.aol.com/mb/folders/1/messages/AInBkfBdgv0EYXyL1AIi4Gubjrs?.src=ym&reason=myc&showImagttps://link.medium.com/FjjyxTTqqfb