Views: Should children be required to receive the swine flu vaccination?

Should children be required to receive the swine flu vaccination?

■ Wayne Clark, Marco Island: No, I don’t think they should. We sat down with our 12-year-old daughter, and discussed the dos and don’ts, the goods and bads about it, and she decided that she did not wish to take it, and we let that be her choice. She decided that she stays healthy, keeps her hands clean and that she can fight off the virus on her own. We stood behind her choice.

■ Lt. Dan Wilcox, Naples/Marco Island: No, I do not believe they should be required to do it. There’s controversy about it, and with that controversy, there has to be sensitivity to the issue. There are some bad things that are happening with it. So, I would say it should be completely discretionary. In fact, I think that is the law, even if the schools want to say it is absolutely mandatory. It is not. A child just needs a doctor’s signature, and can go right into school, without any of the vaccinations.

■ Beonna Beckett, Marco Island: We moved here from Meadow Bluff, Ga. in August. I have a 10-year-old daughter that goes to Tommy Barfield Elementary. I think they should be allowed to choose whether or not they get it. It should not be forced on them by a parent or the school. However, it does get pretty bad in the schools; sometimes they have to shut them down, and the children lose out on part of their education because they’re out of school so much. So, there are goods and bads either way, just like there are good and bad things about the vaccines. So, it’s hard to say. I personally did get it, and encouraged my child to do so, as well.