I Really Was Minding My Own Business … Vaccination Ignorance
The car dealership was a busy place with two waiting rooms in the service area: one for those who want quiet, one for those who want to talk and watch TV. (Who would have thought that a discussion about childhood vaccination would occur?)
I was in the noisy room. I had a deadline for the Tedd Koren Patient Newsletter and sometimes the background noise helps me focus.
I opened my laptop and started putting together the short articles I collected plus commentary. Deadlines can be intense and in the years I’ve been writing the newsletter we haven’t missed one yet. I was minding my own business when an older gentleman came up to me and asked, “Are you a member of Beth Or?”
Beth Or is a local synagogue. “Did we meet there?” I asked.
“Yes, we shared a table during a social event. I’m here waiting for my car to be repaired. By the way, I see you are pretty intent on writing. Are you a writer? Is that what you do?”
I gave my typical response to that question: “Have you ever met a doctor who can locate and release your deepest physical and emotional stresses, even if you’ve had them for decades, stresses that most other healers miss? That’s what I do. I’m a chiropractor. I practice KST.”
I always get a response such as, “That’s fascinating,” “Really? How do you do that?” or “That’s interesting, tell me more.” But this time I got no response. He just looked at me. Why didn’t my elevator pitch register?
Was I dealing with a different species of human?
“What do you do?” I asked.
“I’m a retired pediatrician.”
I was dealing with a different species.
“Great,” I said. “I really have to get back to my work.”
“I’ve always had a problem with chiropractors.”
So, what do you want from me? Go take a pill. Go see a psychiatrist.
OK, I didn’t say that. I was polite. I can be that way on occasion, just ask my relatives. On second thought, don’t ask my relatives.
“Have you ever been to a chiropractor?” I asked. I thought maybe he had a bad experience with one.
“No.”
“So why do you have a problem with chiropractors?”
“From things I’ve read in Consumer Reports.”
Oy! He really spoke to the wrong person. Maybe the right person.
“Funny you should mention it, the Consumer Reports article specifically mentioned me and my publishing company, Koren Publications.”
“Was it supportive?”
Was it supportive? The entire report was a hatchet job.
“No, it was a hit piece. The person Consumer Reports used as their chiropractic advisor had a long history of anti-chiropractic bias. In fact, I fought him in court over libel and beat him.” I was, of course, referring to the lawsuit in which Koren Publications and Tedd Koren, DC were sued by Stephen Barrett, MD, the Quackbuster-In-Chief. I’m the only DC to take Barrett head-on in court and beat him, four times.
“I didn’t know that the article was biased. But surely you don’t believe chiropractors can treat every disease.”
“I agree. Chiropractic is not disease-based, that’s a medical model. Chiropractors don’t treat any disease. Chiropractic’s purpose is to remove imbalances, distortions, interferences, also known as subluxations that prevent proper body function. The purpose of chiropractic care is to let the body function closer to its potential so it may heal itself. It’s a different approach and philosophy than that on which medicine is based.”
“Vaccination Ignorance”
I explained some of the differences between chiropractic’s vitalist/expressive approach and medicine’s mechanistic/suppressive approach. He softened.
“You sound very convincing,” he said.
I wasn’t expecting him to ask for an appointment, but his next question ended our civil discussion.
“What is your take on childhood vaccinations?”
Why me? Discussing this topic with a pediatrician is a losing battle. I mean, unless you are speaking with a student of Robert Mendelsohn, MD, the famous pediatrician who spoke out against vaccinations, pediatricians are too invested in this issue to see it rationally. But I was on a roll, the patient newsletter could wait.
“Every study that has compared vaccinated to non-vaccinated children reveals that non-vaccinated children are much healthier than vaccinated children. It’s true even if they are from the same family so genetics and environment are not factors.”
He stopped smiling. “Where did you get that from?”
“It’s in the medical literature. I could send you the journal article citations if you like.” I could tell he wasn’t interested in the medical literature. Why bring in annoying facts and research when you’ve got prejudice and bias?
“But your children were vaccinated, weren’t they?”
“No, they were not.” Why would he think that after what I told him?
Whenever you fight an emotional issue with logic and science, you always lose.
I continued: “It’s really a matter of epidemiology. Deaths from measles, mumps, whooping cough and other diseases dropped 98% before vaccination. There was no need to even start vaccination assuming the vaccines work, which they don’t.”
He was mute. This wasn’t a good sign. Maybe he was having a stroke. I could see the headlines: Chiropractor kills pediatrician with logic.
I decided to use a different perspective: “How about them Eagles? Think they’ll get to the playoffs?” Nothing. I didn’t have a glass of water to throw at him so I used shock tactics instead.
“OK, look at it this way. See how well vaccines worked against scarlet fever (scarletina)? It was a killing disease in the early 1900s and now deaths are practically down to zero.” I wondered if he’d take the bait.
“Wait a minute,” he said. “There was never a vaccine for scarlet fever.”
He took the bait.
“That’s my point, scarlet fever was a killer disease but it disappeared even though there was no vaccine for it, along with all the other childhood diseases – measles, mumps, pertussis, chickenpox – that were almost all gone before the vaccines ever came on the market.”
“I have to go,” he said getting up.
“I’ll be happy to continue this conversation at another time,” I said.
Rot in hell, you disgusting quack.
He didn’t say that. He said, “Yes, that would be good.” We shook hands but he didn’t ask for my contact information. How could I send him the medical citations? I don’t think he’ll chat with me again at Beth Or either.
Next time I go to the car dealership I’m going to wear a wig, dark glasses and watch porn. I’ll blend in perfectly.
Click here to find out more info on the dangers of childhood vaccinations.
Dr. Tedd Koren
Dr. Koren, originally from Brooklyn, NY, lives in Montgomery County, PA. A graduate of the U of Miami and Sherman College of Chiropractic, he writes, lectures and teaches in the US, Europe and Australia as well as takes care of patients and fights for healthcare freedom. Dr. Koren and his wife Beth have two children.
Love it, Tedd! As always, education with entertainment! The so called science based profession is very particular about avoiding facts that might negate the beliefs they defend! I found it so ridiculous when our leadership sent out memos to the profession, warning us to avoid any discussion about vaccination because we are not immunologists. They avoided the fact that pediatricians, doctors, nurses, public health officials, politicians who approve money to buy vaccines, and especially the staff at the local drug store, know nothing about vaccines, and certainly are not immunologists! It’s gratifying to have moms come to me and thanking me for helping them have healthy children, which includes not vaccinating!
Yes, parents are always saying to me, “I’m so glad I didn’t have my child vaccinated.” I’ve never heard a parent say, “I wish I had vaccinated my child.” Why can’t people see the obvious – vaccinated children are sicker, with more chronic illness – neurological and immunological than non-vaccinated children?
Tedd once again you leave me speechless! I thought Tanja and I were the only ones who could not avoid getting into conversations whenever we are waiting for something and end up talking about our work and what we do. Vaccinations are a common topic. Hell I had better rush off and get my flu shot as winter comes!@!!??? not likely
Thank you Terry. I think we’ve all attracted those types. Ugh!
This is a very entertaining blog posting. Some people just don’t want to know the truth!
When someone asks me if I “believe in vaccines”, my response is that I believe in health and what will produce the healthiest outcomes and then the fun begins!
Dr. Tedd the innate universe makes you a magnet for those well meaning albeit, ill informed on the true nature of health and healthcare!
Loved your article!
As always! Thanks so much Tedd for all you do! Great!
Dr. Koren,
Surely, your encounter with the retired pediatrician was a divine appointment that sparked your words and thoughts to multiply via your blog. I appreciate your teaching style.
I could not help but notice the clever left handed handshake in the photo and looked it up:
Urban Dictionary: Left Handed Handshake
“A term for an agreement that was never meant to be honored. Stands in opposition to deals sealed with shaking right hands.”
Keep us posted if something does develop from a future encounter at Beth Or.
Shalom,
Joy
Omigosh, Stephen Barrett? Really? This so-called “Quackbuster” is financed by the medical profession and has lost (so far as I know) every court encounter he’s had. In fact, I know he was thrown out as an expert witness on at least one occasion. How sad that this is what doctors are reading to back up their beliefs.
I AM WITH YOU ALL THE WAY!
IT IS OK TO BE A NON BELIEVER BUTIT DOES NOT MEAN WE CAN’T LIVE ON THE SAME PLANET.
DO LOOK US UP NEXT TIME YOU ARE IN MIAMI,
HI Martin, It’s been a while. I hope to see you again in the near future.
Another great story Tedd! I love it 🙂
Thank you!!!
This enlightening story is very timely Tedd. A couple of nights ago on our national CBC news in Canada was a story headlined, “Top doctor calls for sanctions against chiropractor for anti-vaccine video” and B.C. chiropractors’ FaceBook posts ‘pure, grade-A bunk,’ UBC nursing professor says. Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry says anti-vaccine rhetoric from chiropractors is an ongoing problem.
The complaint from the medical community is that Chiropractors educating their patients about flu vaccination are outside their scope of practice.
I shall pick up this challenge with Dr. Henry and the Premier of British Columbia on the basis of medical doctors prescribing opioid drugs that they know are addictive and have killed many people, 1,420 last year in BC, is within their scope of practice.
I’ll also throw some of the vaccination statistics in for good measure. It is astonishing to me, although no surprise, that neither the medical community, nor the pharmaceutical companies are taking any responsibility for this major health crisis in both of our countries. Oddly enough the CBC had a short radio story a few weeks ago from a young US journalist who had discovered a plan for one of the big pharma companies to ship 9 million opioid drugs to a small, one pharmacy town in West Virginia where most of the population of less than a 1,000 are senior citizens. There is lots on the web about this.
Thank you Tedd for all you do. You inspired me many years ago when we first met at a seminar we did together in Toronto where you opened up my mind to the vaccination debate and other issues surrounding the allopathic way of healthcare. Education is the key to almost anything and you continue to inspire me with ChiroHealthTV (formerly Brican) and our mission, “Chiropractic Care Everywhere”. My life changed forever when I found Chiropractic care after being told for years never to go to a Chiropractor.
You write well.
I wrote a similar piece about 20 years back about an experience I had when my wife and I were returning from a ski trip and someone a few notches up on the smarts ladder from Lenny Smalls began an earnest debate with me about chiropractic, medicine and vaccines. It was like talking economics with Bernie Sanders.
Charles Krieger, DC
Hi Charles, please forgive me for not writing back sooner. I loved your analogy with Bernie Sanders. Great. I gotta write some more articles for the blog. We stopped using it because of website issues and we can just now begin. I’ve got about 10 in the queue.
Great article!!
Love it! I can SO relate.
Robert
Awesome story as usual. I’ve been listening to you for a long time and I always enjoy. Thanks
Hi Tedd, I really enjoyed reading how you handled this. We non-vaxxers have these discussions all the time but not with a pediatrician. Keep fighting the good fight. Bruce
Well, I thought that went well! The MD can’t unhear what he heard you say and is forever changed. On some level. Somehow. Keep telling the truth. I, for one, have your back. ????
Hilarious Tedd!
You’re such a great writer!!
Omg Tedd! ????????????
Well written funny educational and demonstrative. Excellent article/ blog post. ???? ❤it!