I think you're right on here, Wendy. "Choice" and "privacy" are the new words used to enslave young women. They're used to keep those that actually are concerned for the woman (their family) away from knowing what is going on in their children's lives.

Baby boomers (and their ilk) often seem to send the message that you can have ANY CHOICE, as long as it is the CHOICE I CHOOSE FOR YOU! God forbid that the choice you make actually raises the bar! Suddenly everyone is offended and thinks you are intolerant because you want something more for yourself than what the mainstream offers. There are plenty of choices for you out there, just as long as they are equally low. Democratic leveling at its best!

Hello from Bridgeport CT. We were one of the many cities that got federal money for doing The Big Read with a book about two daughters who had each lost their mother, and were raised very differently. One accused a man of sexual abuse; her name was Mayella. You will know it as "To Kill A Mockingbird." The main character, Scout, had three women to help her reach maturity. They were Calpurnia, Alexandra, and Maudie. I wonder if it is possible for writers (maybe you) to expand on this social arrangement that I call a "Calpurnian arrangement" wherein a child with only one parent gets - or is given by the storyteller - three nurturing adults to help them reach maturity. My wife is an English teacher and we have four daughters and one son. Feel free to use this idea, or coin this term. Will end here.

Ah Wendy... it would have been funny if it weren't so sad.

This 'choice' sounds much more like brainwashing and pressure to me.

Question: do doctors ask permission to give the measles vaccine, or the polio vaccine? Why specifically would they need special permission for the HPV vaccine? The aim of all those vaccines is the same- to prevent disease. Right? So what's the difference? Why has the choice to get HPV vaccine been so politicized? I find this reasoning very difficult to understand. Could someone elaborate?

Merck's whole HPV vaccine drive makes me LIVID. Furious. I am deeply offended by their "campaign" to stick little girls, who are still playing with "My Pretty Pony," with a vaccine for a sexually-transmitted disease. Is this empowering? No. It's harrowing. Don't you DARE shake a your pom-poms in my direction, Merck!!!!!!!!

Wendy....you go, girl.

I had to sign a consent for every vaccine I or my children have received.

The FDA has sped up the process for approving drugs.
You have heard about the lawsuits etc. etc.
I subscribe to the New England Journal of Medicine online, and there have been articles critizing the safety of new drug approval guidelines. From what I have read, the HPV vaccine was rushed to market. If it had not been, some would have said they did not care about women's health, however the reverse may be true. Our society wants cures NOW. Unfortunately demonstrating drug safety takes time.

The HPV manufacturer and FDA could have been more forthright by offering the vaccine with that information about it, letting people decide for themselves if they wanted to take the risk.

I had a lot of anxiety when I was pregnant, so I went to a counselor who said several times I should ask my doctor for an antidepressant that was safe for pregnancy. I thought to myself, I am going to counseling so I won't have to take drugs. Now there are birth defect lawsuits pending regarding the very drugs that were available when I was pregnant.

Think for yourself, if you can avoid a drug, especially one of the new ones, it could be a good idea.

I agree that waiting is a good idea on a new drug.

That isn't the whole issue I'm hearing regarding HPV. As an analogue, both of my daughters have been vaccinated for hepatitis b and you know, I'm really not planning on raising IV drug users who have unprotected sex with IV drug users but I have to admit, I don't exactly know. I will do everything in my power as a parent but I don't control my children after they're grown. And if they make those mistakes, I'd rather they had a chance to figure out they were the wrong choices without contracting a life threatening disease in the meantime.

And I guess that's the point. Even if it is the parent's choice to administer the vaccine (or not), the child's eventual choices will dictate whether or not the vaccine was necessary. So do we plan for the outcome where our children never make inappropriate choices, even after they are adults? Or do we make a contingency plan, just in case?

It worries me a little that so many of my friends seem to think they can predict with 100% accuracy how their kids are going to turn out. I think parents can do a lot to mold their children and set them on the right path but at some point you let go. And even good parents have kids who mistakes.

Besides all of that "you might get a disease" isn't the best reason I've ever heard not to sleep around. That certainly isn't where I'm going to start with my daughters.

I'd like to respond to Anna's question. I think the reason the HPV vaccine is such a hot-button issue is because HPV has to do with lifestyle whereas measles, mumps and the like do not. Since I have the ability to CHOOSE not to put myself in a position to contract HPV (i.e- remaining a virgin until marriage), who are you to tell me I have to get a vaccine for it. My decision should be a strong enough argument against it. Plus, it's brand new. There aren't any studies on it or its long-term effects. I think that might touch on what you were wondering- maybe someone else has another opinion.

Nice post, Raven....

Not having children, I really didn't know that doctors are required to get parents to sign a consent form for vaccinations. So in that sense, it seems the doctor who gave the girl the shot was in violation of the law. I still fail to see however, why Wendy thought this was a topic for her blog.

Is she really protesting because the doctor gave a somewhat experimental drug to a girl without her parents permission?

Or is the real issue here the fact that the drug is to prevent a sexually transmitted disease?

I think it's obvious that it's the latter. The real reason most people got up in arms about this vaccine is because they are uncomfortable facing the fact that their children WILL be sexual one day.

Anyway, I'll stop at that, because I think raven pretty much said it all.

Heidi, yes, doctors do need parental permission to administer other vaccines. In fact, the general rule is that doctors need parental permission for any treatment unless emergency treatment is necessary to save a minor's life. I have refused many routine (IMO, unnecessary) treatments for my children. It's all part of the fact that parents are ultimately responsible for our children's health and well-being.

There are many objections to the HPV vaccine. There are concerns that the HPV vaccine in particular was rushed through the approval process and is not proven safe like other drugs. And, of course, there is concern over legislation requiring the vaccine when abstinence and fidelity provide protection from HPV without drugs. (Successfully avoiding disease without drugs is always safer than taking drugs you don't need.)

But I think that the major concern in this particular case is the trend toward having the state or doctors make decisions for minors without the parents' consent if the subject is sexual activity. Engaging in sexual activity is a huge step for any person, especially minors, with consequences encompassing physical, emotional, and spiritual health. It is ironic that such an important and life-altering subject should be strangely alienated from the influence of parents. It is crazy that a prescription for cold medicine requires parental consent, but a vaccination for an STD, a prescription for birth control, or even an abortion does not. As MIntheGap commented, "choice" and "privacy" are code words for separating young women from the positive and healthy influence of loving parents. In this case, "choice" was less about what the young woman and her family actually chose, and more about what the medical establishment and society chose for them, just as many young women feel that "choice" in sexuality is more about what their friends and boyfriends think they should do, rather than what they actually want.

BTW, Annie, I understand that your fear of not having as much influence over your children's decisions once they are grown. However, back in March the Washington Times ran an article explaining that vaccinating preteen girls against HPV will offer them no protection as adults:

"Lawmakers looking to force preteen girls to take Gardasil, a new vaccine against a virus that causes cervical cancer, are targeting the wrong age group, cancer data shows.

Middle-school girls inoculated with the breakthrough vaccine will be no older than 18 when they pass Gardasil's five-year window of proven effectiveness -- more than a decade before the typical cancer patient contracts the sexually transmitted human papillomavirus (HPV).

Infectious disease specialists and cancer pathologists say the incubation period for HPV becoming cancer is 10 to 15 years -- meaning the average cervical cancer patient, who is 47, contracted the virus in her 30s and would not be protected by Gardasil taken as a teen."

(http://www.jillstanek.com/archives/2007/03/hpv_vaccine_tar.html)

Sorry, I missed this part. How does giving girls a vaccine encourage them to be sexually promiscuous? Would that be in the same way that taking an HIV test when I was pregnant encouraged me to go out and have unprotected sex with strangers?

Caitlyn, you raise a good point and I'd certainly have a problem with enforcement of a vaccine or medical treatment on anyone who didn't want it, and this whole Merck situation chills me- the more I look into it the more it seems like marketing and profiteering are driving the campaign, especially when I know how many senators receive large donations from pharmaceutical companies. However, I think it is worth noting that rape exists... how horrifying for a girl or woman to experience this and ALSO have to end up with a disease that could have been prevented.

I don't really know the ins and outs of how safe the HPV vaccine is, so I can't comment from that perspective. But assuming it is a safe vaccine, I think all young women should be required to have it just as they are the MMR.

I don't think this is expecting illicit behavior. But I have had several people close to me who have been raped and could have contracted awful diseases. We live in a fallen world, perhaps we can expect our daughters to make wise choices, but they are not in complete control.

Due to large number of people involved in drug abuse activities, many organizations have come into existence for providing absolutely free services to the people who can’t afford high cost of drug addiction treatment. These organizations also provide drug education to all the people.