Universal vaccination may well be the greatest success story in medical history. Michael Specter More Quotes by Michael Specter More Quotes From Michael Specter Be sceptical, ask questions, demand proof. Demand evidence. Don't take anything for granted. But here's the thing: When you get proof, you need to accept the proof. And we're not that good at doing that. Michael Specter granteddemandneeds All the food we eat - every grain of rice and kernel of corn - has been genetically modified. None of it was here before mankind learned to cultivate crops. The question isnt whether our food has been modified, but how. Michael Specter cropscornmankind People wrap themselves in their beliefs. And they do it in such a way that you can't set them free. Not even the truth will set them free. Michael Specter atheistpeopleway Your dollar cheeseburger isn't a dollar if you factor in what it's going to cost in health care. Michael Specter dollarscostcare I started to write about science and medicine at the Washington Post, in the early days of the AIDS epidemic. Michael Specter epidemicsmedicinewriting Daily vitamins are of no value. Michael Specter vitaminsvalues It is not possible to assert publicly that Monsanto is anything other than venal without being accused of being a sellout, a fraud, or worse. Michael Specter being-accusedmonsantofraud I think it's too soon to say that, and I think, basically - most of the people that I ran across and most of the studies that I saw suggest people don't go to McDonald's to eat healthy food. They go to eat fries and cheeseburgers. Michael Specter mcdonaldspeoplethinking I think it is true that you can eat extremely healthy food at McDonald's, and you can eat amazingly badly at Chipotle. Michael Specter mcdonaldshealthythinking I understand the horrors of having no insurance, but, believe me, eight hours of sleep and good meals are NOT going to prevent you from getting sick. Don't gamble with your life; it's a stupid bet. Michael Specter stupidsleepbelieve In the Internet age, with the screaming on the radio, etc., it is hard to know what to believe and who is informed and who is not. Michael Specter radioagebelieve Vaccination is a public health issue because influenza is a highly contagious disease. If you don't vaccinate your child, his or her schoolmates are much more likely to become ill. That is why some places (New York, for example) are making the vaccine mandatory for school children. Michael Specter new-yorkchildrenschool Flu is easily transmitted, so if you are working with sick people - who are most at risk for getting seriously ill - you ought to be vaccinated. I am not really equipped to say whether it should be the law or not. Michael Specter sicklawpeople There are always potential side effects for every vaccine. Michael Specter side-effectsvaccinessides I have never earned one penny from any pharmaceutical company. I will never accept one penny from them either. Ever. Michael Specter pharmaceutical-companiesacceptingpennies Benjamin Franklin refused to have one of his children vaccinated against smallpox. The four-year-old boy died, and Franklin wrote later of how mistaken he was to expose him to the needless risk. Michael Specter boyschildrenyears When people say they prefer organic food, what they often seem to mean is they don't want their food tainted with pesticides and their meat shot full of hormones or antibiotics. Many object to the way a few companies - Monsanto is the most famous of them - control so many of the seeds we grow. Michael Specter growfoodpeopleway All the food we eat, whether Brussels sprouts or pork bellies, has been modified by mankind. Genetic engineering is only one particularly powerful way to do what we have been doing for eleven thousand years. Michael Specter doingpowerfulfoodway Humanity has nearly suffocated the globe with carbon dioxide, yet nuclear power plants that produce no such emissions are so mired in objections and obstruction that, despite renewed interest on every continent, it is unlikely another will be built in the United States. Michael Specter plantswillpowerhumanity It doesn't seem to matter how often vaccines are proved safe or supplements are shown to offer nothing of value. When people don't like facts, they ignore them. Michael Specter valueignorefactspeople
