A resounding thanks should go to the people of Maine.

By a vote of 73 percent to 27  percent you voted “no” to religious and philosophical exemptions from the vaccination law. You chose to refute emotion driven pseudo-science. While this may seem like a no-brainer to many, I have been astounded by the aggressive pursuit of convoluted arguments launched by the anti-vaxxers. Ranging from their right to individual freedom to the greed of big pharma, they were as vociferous as they were wrong.

We all have rights, but one of the greatest is our health, and herd immunity has eradicated several virulent diseases that once sickened, crippled and killed millions of Americans. The number of children who have adverse reactions to these vaccinations is miniscule in comparison to the harm done by an unvaccinated population.

Numerous studies have also debunked any connection between vaccines and autism. And, while big pharma is guilty of many sins, vaccines are actually not one of them. Most of the patents have long since run out on the common vaccinations, so they are not profit centers for the corporations.

Lastly, we need to respect science, but almost more importantly, we need to respect that we are not islands. We are interconnected and therefore must respect laws designed to protect all members of society even if we give up a few freedoms.