Although the campaign to eliminate certain childhood vaccines in the belief that they cause autism was most popular in the US, it has received plenty of attention around the world. That is why three verdicts that were handed down in a US court denying the arguments against foregoing vaccines should be paid attention to by everyone. As far as most credible doctors and researchers were concerned, there was never any serious evidence linking the mumps, measles and rubella vaccine to autism in children. A handful of researchers and a number of parents of autistic children who were looking for something other than nature to blame for their children's suffering, however, publicized their belief that vaccines containing thimerosal, a mercury-based preservative, caused autism. According to observers of the trial, the defense was far better equipped to prove the lack of a link between the vaccine and autism than the plaintiffs were in proving its existence. The defense called recognized experts while the plaintiffs called pediatricians with little serious experience in the study of autism. The plaintiffs, essentially children with autism, also exhibited problematic signs of something being wrong before being administered the vaccine. One child had a problem with attention and meeting the eyes of anyone who tried to interact with him. There was no evidence that the vaccine caused his autism. Thimerosal has now been removed from most vaccines for children, so there is no need for parents to fear whatever it may have, which, as was just proven, is negligible. But there must continue to be a vigilance against the kind of sham science that pushed the vaccine vs autism debate to the fore to begin with. Too often emotions cloud clear scientific reasoning and the uninitiated are easily swayed by poor evidence and bad reasoning. That was clearly the case here. Only the most die-hard believers in the debate will ignore these decisions and continue to clamor against vaccinating their children. In doing so, they continue to present a threat to the children of the world far more dangerous than the vaccines they are railing against. __
