“Supposedly”

Supposedly.

I can’t think of an innocuous word which has garnered more revulsion than “supposedly”.

In the microcosm which is the battle against anti-vaccination misinformation , “supposedly” attracts more attention than any single word should: this single word is the clearest demonstration of the callousness, cruelty, arrogance, and wilful ignorance which is inherent in the ultra-denialist anti-vaccination movement in Australia.

Listen out for the word in this 3 minute video:

Here is the comment from Meryl Dorey which became one of the driving forces of Stop the Australian (anti) Vaccination Network. From the AVN Yahoo! discussion group April 30 2010. “Supposedly”:

This is the comment for which Steve Cannane was able to extract a notpology from Meryl Dorey. Dorey wasn’t really sorry. She “would be sorry” if any offense was caused.

Just to show that nothing has changed at the AVN, this comment appeared on the AVN Facebook page, on August 15 2012. The commenter is Tristan Wells, who also goes under the pseudonym Punter on other AVN fora. Wells is one of Dorey’s favourite go-to germ theory denialists.

These people deny that babies have died from Pertussis. They blame the parents, or they blame the hospitals. Anything but the deadly bacteria. All in the name of the faith of anti-vaccinationism.

This is the reason a group of people in Australia (Stop the AVN) decided that enough was enough. This group is still growing by the day.

Speak out against these anti-vaccination disease advocates. When you encounter them, hold them to account. Provide your friends and family with accurate, reputable information. Speak up, and speak up strongly. Comment in online fora. Ring radio stations. Write to newspapers.

Enough.