Vaccines, Autism, and Politics

There is no medical evidence that vaccines cause autism. Yet many parents, including Jenny McCarthy (who says her son was "cured" of his autism), are convinced they do. A while ago, Sen. McCain suggested in an off-the-cuff remark that there may be a link; Sen. Obama recently acknowledged there is no evidence but maybe more research is needed.

Apparently, McCain agreed to meet with McCarthy in May 2008 and then cancelled after learning there's no hard evidence of the link. She feels snubbed, claiming a campaign manager explained, "We're ahead in the polls and this is a very, very touchy subject." I don't know what to believe, but if you want to, read McCarthy's story and a commentary from Discover's Bad Astronomy blog.