In public health bill, a contagion of fear

The Boston Globe reports:

The banner, bold and provocative, was tattooed with a syringe, skull and crossbones, and a call to action: “Say no to forced vaccination.’’

The message, delivered last week on Beacon Hill, was aimed at a seemingly prosaic piece of legislation that aims to better define - and, in some respects, restrict - the emergency powers of the state’s public health officials.

Within the bill’s arcane language, a 16-month-old activist coalition sees government authority run amok: mandated vaccinations, quarantines, arrests, fines. Swine flu, they warn, will be the virus that opens the door to the public health police.