--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Birtherism surely increased Americans'…" description: "\"Birtherism surely increased Americans' distrust of politics, though in ways that are hard to pin down. By contrast, when anti-vaxxers persuade parents ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/430/anne-applebaum-2544_death_birtherism-surely-increased-americans-di_3117164.png" --- # Birtherism surely increased Americans' distrust of… ![“Birtherism surely increased Americans' distrust of politics, though in ways that are hard to pin down. By contrast, when anti-vaxxers persuade parents not to vaccinate children, the result can be sickness and even death.” quote by Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/430/anne-applebaum-2544_death_birtherism-surely-increased-americans-di_3117164.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/430/anne-applebaum-2544_death_birtherism-surely-increased-americans-di_3117164.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/430/anne-applebaum-2544_death_birtherism-surely-increased-americans-di_3117164.png) > “Birtherism surely increased Americans' distrust of politics, though in ways that are hard to pin down. By contrast, when anti-vaxxers persuade parents not to vaccinate children, the result can be sickness and even death.” [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Birtherism erodes trust in politics; anti‑vaccine persuasion can cause health crises. **In simple terms:** Both political and health misinformation undermine public confidence and safety. Key Takeaway Promote factual information and critical thinking. Themes trust misinformation public health Mood concerned urgent Type analytical call‑to‑action When to use this quote - policy making - parental decisions - social media discourse Key Concepts media literacy political polarization health communication Questions to Reflect On - What strategies effectively rebuild trust after misinformation? - How can societies counter both political and health falsehoods? A Different Perspective Misinformation can be deeply entrenched and hard to correct. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Sickness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sickness/) [Vaccine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vaccine/) ## Related quotes > [Most parents vaccinate their kids. That is the bottom line.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vivek-murthy/most-parents-vaccinate-their-kids-that-is-the-bottom-line/) [Vivek Murthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vivek-murthy/) > [Republicans can't wring their hands about inflation while continuing to support anti-vaxxers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-auchincloss/republicans-can-t-wring-their-hands-about-inflation-while-continuing/) [Jake Auchincloss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-auchincloss/) > [I'm pretty happy not to be an insider anymore. There's just no common ground. I don't know if it's distrust or that the politics…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austan-goolsbee/i-m-pretty-happy-not-to-be-an-insider-anymore-there-s-just-no-common/) [Austan Goolsbee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austan-goolsbee/) > [Like Aristotle, conservatives generally accept the world as it is; they distrust the politics of abstract reason – that is, reason divorced from experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-wiker/like-aristotle-conservatives-generally-accept-the-world-as-it-is-they/) [Benjamin Wiker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-wiker/) > [Vaccines have played a fundamental role in eradicating terrible illnesses such as polio, diphtheria, and hepatitis. However, they bring a risk associated with side-effects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beppe-grillo/vaccines-have-played-a-fundamental-role-in-eradicating-terrible/) [Beppe Grillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beppe-grillo/) > [Reply when questioned on the safety of the polio vaccine he developed: It is safe, and you can't get safer than safe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonas-salk/reply-when-questioned-on-the-safety-of-the-polio-vaccine-he-developed/) [Jonas Salk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonas-salk/) > [“At the time, though, vaccination was controversial. Many were opposed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-wright/at-the-time-though-vaccination-was-controversial-many-were-opposed/) [Jennifer Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-wright/) > [This year, 1996, has been designated the 'Year of the Vaccine,' commemorating the 200th anniversary of Edward Jenner's vaccination of James Phipps with cowpox…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-c-doherty/this-year-1996-has-been-designated-the-year-of-the-vaccine/) [Peter C. Doherty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-c-doherty/) > [“From 1963 through 1965, a nationwide epidemic of rubella—German measles—caused thousands of women to deliver babies who were handicapped in some way:”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-ann-walker/from-1963-through-1965-a-nationwide-epidemic-of-rubella-german/) [Lou Ann Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-ann-walker/) > [The launch of phase 1 Ebola vaccine studies is a first step in developing a vaccine that could be licensed and used in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-launch-of-phase-1-ebola-vaccine-studies-is-a-first-step-in/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Paternalism is everywhere in our lives. We have to immunise our children unless we are upset about it. In India, it is the opposite.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-duflo/paternalism-is-everywhere-in-our-lives-we-have-to-immunise-our/) [Esther Duflo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-duflo/) > [I do know that I think children should be vaccinated because that affects the health of all the other children.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-peet/i-do-know-that-i-think-children-should-be-vaccinated-because-that/) [Amanda Peet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-peet/) > [Although it is still important to develop an HIV vaccine, we have significant tools already at our disposal that can make a major impact…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/although-it-is-still-important-to-develop-an-hiv-vaccine-we-have/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There are always potential side effects for every vaccine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-specter/there-are-always-potential-side-effects-for-every-vaccine/) [Michael Specter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-specter/) > [If you give us a safe vaccine, we'll use it. It shouldn't be polio versus autism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-mccarthy/if-you-give-us-a-safe-vaccine-we-ll-use-it-it-shouldn-t-be-polio/) [Jenny McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-mccarthy/) ## More by Anne Applebaum > [Quite a lot has been written, including by me, about the effect of social media on politics, and in particular the way in which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/quite-a-lot-has-been-written-including-by-me-about-the-effect-of/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [After Trump became president, it was really too late to investigate his dodgy investments in Azerbaijan or his links to Russian money laundering. Those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/after-trump-became-president-it-was-really-too-late-to-investigate/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [If Reagan and John Paul II were linked by anything, it was a grand, ambitious, and generous idea of Western political civilization, one in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/if-reagan-and-john-paul-ii-were-linked-by-anything-it-was-a-grand/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [Until the attack on Pearl Harbor, isolationism was an important, even dominant strand in U.S. politics. After the Second World War, this strand disappeared,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/until-the-attack-on-pearl-harbor-isolationism-was-an-important-even/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [The U.S.S.R. was a totalitarian state in which judges and prosecutors were controlled by the ruling party. The result was injustice, oppression and corruption.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/the-u-s-s-r-was-a-totalitarian-state-in-which-judges-and-prosecutors/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [One knows, of course, that Donald Trump behaves differently from the leaders of other countries, especially the leaders of other Western democracies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/one-knows-of-course-that-donald-trump-behaves-differently-from-the/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [As a nation, we are not good at long-term planning, and no wonder: Our political system insists that every president be allowed to appoint…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/as-a-nation-we-are-not-good-at-long-term-planning-and-no-wonder-our/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [Amazingly, quite a few people, even some American conservatives, are taken in by Russian tactics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/amazingly-quite-a-few-people-even-some-american-conservatives-are/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [Like wealth, or health, political freedom may simply be something that people don't value if they've always had it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/like-wealth-or-health-political-freedom-may-simply-be-something-that/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [Unlike most European countries, the police in the US are decentralized; even the FBI has regional offices. Amending the constitution is a long and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/unlike-most-european-countries-the-police-in-the-us-are-decentralized/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [The hard truth is that Trump was not exceptional. He was just another amoral Western businessman, one of many whom the ex-KGB elite have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/the-hard-truth-is-that-trump-was-not-exceptional-he-was-just-another/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [Politics in Slovakia had long been a battle between egotistical men. Caputova sought to be the anti-ego alternative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/politics-in-slovakia-had-long-been-a-battle-between-egotistical-men/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [European security may now depend on Germany, France, Britain and one or two others, and it's better to start planning now for the possibility…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/european-security-may-now-depend-on-germany-france-britain-and-one-or/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [Americans might not want to intervene in the outside world, but the outside world will still want to intervene in America.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/americans-might-not-want-to-intervene-in-the-outside-world-but-the/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [Romney was an excellent businessman with a strong record as a public servant - whereas Trump inherited wealth, went bankrupt more than once, created…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/romney-was-an-excellent-businessman-with-a-strong-record-as-a-public/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) [Explore all 161 Anne Applebaum quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) ## More Death quotes > [“He wondered how it was fair that your dying should depend so much on when you were born.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/he-wondered-how-it-was-fair-that-your-dying-should-depend-so-much-on/) [Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/) > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Most of us are convinced that we are our egos, which is who we think we are. The ego is part of our incarnation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/most-of-us-are-convinced-that-we-are-our-egos-which-is-who-we-think/) [Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/) > [I do not want to live at the cost of the life even of a snake. I should let him bite me to death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/i-do-not-want-to-live-at-the-cost-of-the-life-even-of-a-snake-i/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [“It was beautiful. He thought he had never seen anything so beautiful in all his life; that, having seen it, he could die content,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-grant/it-was-beautiful-he-thought-he-had-never-seen-anything-so-beautiful/) [Mira Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-grant/) > [Retirement? You're talking about death, right?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-altman/retirement-you-re-talking-about-death-right/) [Robert Altman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-altman/) > [With multiplayer, permanent death, and an ever-changing world to explore and conquer, 'A Valley Without Wind' might be the place you're looking for if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-manuel/with-multiplayer-permanent-death-and-an-ever-changing-world-to/) [Rob Manuel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-manuel/) > [“What did you see?” she asked gently. His brow furrowed, as if he could not understand the question. Then his eyes turned to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-anthony-torino/what-did-you-see-she-asked-gently-his-brow-furrowed-as-if-he-could/) J. Anthony Torino > [Those whose life is long still strive for gain, and for all mortals all things take second place to money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/those-whose-life-is-long-still-strive-for-gain-and-for-all-mortals/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [“I practice Dying--every night-- But have not learned to, still-- Though Talented--by Mortal bones-- For such a common Skill.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-w-powers/i-practice-dying-every-night-but-have-not-learned-to-still-though/) Alan W. Powers > [“You must understand the pain and grief of losing someone is nothing more than a function of survival.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-cooper/you-must-understand-the-pain-and-grief-of-losing-someone-is-nothing/) [Steven Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-cooper/) > [I am not a depressive person at all, but I reflect a lot on my life, and life in general, from the perspective of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/i-am-not-a-depressive-person-at-all-but-i-reflect-a-lot-on-my-life/) [Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/) > [“Death is a reality that calls the rest of life and all of our assorted strivings into sharp relief.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/death-is-a-reality-that-calls-the-rest-of-life-and-all-of-our/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [I love life. I love life to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmanuelle-riva/i-love-life-i-love-life-to-death/) [Emmanuelle Riva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmanuelle-riva/) > [I think when you’re dying you start looking for important things in the corners. You can’t let anything that seems even semi-important pass, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-crutcher/i-think-when-you-re-dying-you-start-looking-for-important-things-in/) [Chris Crutcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-crutcher/) [Browse all 39,127 Death quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Birtherism surely increased Americans' distrust of politics, though in ways that are hard to pin down. 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