In what might be one of the most terrifyingly egregious displays of anti-constitutional rhetoric, Democratic lawyer and Harvard Law emeritus professor Alan Dershowitz now says the government has a “right" to "plunge a needle into your arm" and forcibly vaccinate you against your will.
Speaking to webcaster Jason Goodman on “Crowdsource the Truth” regarding a coronavirus vaccine -- which some lawmakers, particularly on the left, have said will be a necessary development before society can get back to “normal” – Dershowitz claimed that people “have no right not to be vaccinated" if the state determines it's in the interest of public health.
"Let me put it very clearly," Dershowitz said. "You have no constitutional right to endanger the public and spread the disease, even if you disagree. You have no right not to be vaccinated, you have no right not to wear a mask, you have no right to open up your business."
“If you refuse to be vaccinated [for a contagious disease], the state has the power to literally take you to a doctor's office and plunge a needle into your arm,” he went on.
"You have no right to refuse to be vaccinated against a contagious disease," Dershowitz added. "Public health, the police power of the Constitution, gives the state the power to compel that. And there are cases in the United States Supreme Court."
"That's what a democracy is about," he blathered on. "If the majority of the people agree and support that, for public health measures, you have to be vaccinated, you have to be vaccinated. They should give you an alternative. The alternative is to live in your home, don't get vaccinated, but never ever leave your home or live in a bubble. But if you want to interact with other people, you cannot become Typhoid Mary. The Constitution doesn't give you the right to spread your illness to other people."
While many states require certain vaccinations for children enrolled in public schools, daycares, or universities, no law mandates people must vaccinate themselves or their children, and all states include medical exemptions for those with weakened immune systems or medical conditions that make vaccination risky or impossible.
The decision to not vaccinate is also often intertwined with certain faiths and deeply held personal beliefs. Many Jews, as well as some members of Amish, Mennonite and Jehovah’s Witness communities, regularly decline vaccinations for religious or cultural reasons. Many Americans have also chosen to decline or delay vaccinating their children over health concerns or fear that the vaccine could cause developmental problems. While scientific studies have debunked many of the most common myths surrounding vaccines, no law allows for the state to forcibly drag anyone to a physician's office and e forcibly vaccinated against their will - no matter what dystopian universe some liberal lawyer wishes we all lived in.
But Dershowitz's comments, as ridiculous and terrifying as they may sound, do indicate a coming battle headed our way, as the push for a vaccine ramps up and some states promise to delay a return to normal until one is developed and widely distributed.