The Callous Face of Hubris

The video below has already been shared at Just the Vax and Respectful Insolence, but it is such a powerful and important message that I feel it should be shared as broadly as possible.



I don't think we have anyone quite as vile and despicable as Ms. Viera Scheibner in the U.S. At least, I hope not. This is someone who blames the parents if their child dies of a vaccine-preventable disease; someone who believes that all vaccines, without question, are bad and cause autism, and that diseases are, without exception, good. To anyone who is against vaccinations, watch this video and take a good hard look at your beliefs and the impact that they can have on those around you.

A Virus Poes an Anti-vaccine Band

This is too rich. As some of you may know, there is a group of viruses and bacteria on Twitter that are part of a group known as the #pathogenposse. One of those, @Rubeola, sent a tweet to a, for lack of a better term, rock band known as The Refusers. As Orac has pointed out over at Respectful Insolence, The Refusers are unapologetically anti-vaccine. They liken Big Pharma^TM and anyone who supports vaccines to Nazis. They equate vaccines with toxic sludge. They make absolutely no bones about it that they hate, hate, hate vaccines and believe them to be part of a grand conspiracy to maim and kill the populace.

So what did @Rubeola have to say to them and how did they answer?

That's right. The Refusers, a group adored by anti-vaccine groups like Age of Autism, appear to be quite proud that they are helping a dangerous virus spread.

Classy.

Because Preventing Child Deaths is a Bad Thing?

Coming up on June 13, 2011 in London is a fundraising conference organized by the Global Alliance for Vaccines & Immunisation (GAVI). GAVI describes itself as:

Launched in 2000, the GAVI Alliance is a global health partnership representing stakeholders in immunisation from both private and public sectors: developing world and donor governments, private sector philanthropists such as the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the financial community, developed and developing country vaccine manufacturers, research and technical institutes, civil society organisations and multilateral organisations like the World Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the World Bank.

Their goal is to provide rapid and affordable access to vaccines for poorer nations. With the conference, they are trying to raise funds to be able to provide immunizations for approximately 243 million children in poor and developing countries. By immunizing against pneumococcal disease, Hib and rotavirus (all of which are prominent causes of child mortality in the target countries), among other diseases, GAVI hopes to reduce the number of deaths caused by these diseases.

But it appears there are some people who aren't too happy about that.

Possible Measles Exposure in Maryland

On June 8, 2011, the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene put out a press release (PDF) about a person infected with measles who potentially exposed hundreds or thousands of others to the virus. This person was visiting for a high school graduation between May 31 and June 3. According to the press release, the individual may have exposed others at the following:

• Tuesday, May 31:
• Giant grocery store, 6223 Baltimore National Pike, Catonsville, MD between 5:00pm and 8:00pm
• Montgomery Plaza Liquors, 6225 Baltimore National Pike, Catonsville, MD between 6:00pm and 8:00pm
• Wednesday, June 1:
• Catonsville High School Graduation, UMBC RAC Center between 6:00pm and 11:00pm
• Thursday, June 2:
• Applebee's Restaurant, 8999 Ocean Gateway Drive, Easton, MD between 6:30pm and 11:00pm
• Friday, June3:
• Oriole Park at Camden Yards beginning at 7:00pm
• MTA Light Rail from 11:00pm until 1:30am Saturday, June4

Anyone who was at those locations should be vigilant about their health over the next couple weeks. Measles generally starts like a cold, with runny nose, watery eyes or conjunctivitis, cough and fever. Several days later, a rash begins to appear, starting around the hairline and gradually spreading down the face and neck and out, across the body to the arms and legs.

People who are particularly at risk are infants, pregnant women and those whose immune systems are weakened, as well as anyone who has never been immunized or infected before. If you begin to show symptoms, stay home and contact your health provider. Those who have been vaccinated or previously infected are most likely immune, though there is always a small chance that the vaccine or prior infection did not grant immunity.

For more information about measles, visit the CDC's web site on measles or view the CDC's Pink Book chapter on measles (PDF).

Wanted: Sculptor/Artist for a Project

UPDATE Oct. 26, 2011: Although I am no longer seeking artists for the development of this project, I encourage you to take a look at the unveiling taking place from October 28-December 2. The final pieces are digital works, rather than physical models. If you have an interest in helping to bringing the virtual into reality, please drop me a line. Thanks to all those who have sent me e-mails. I really appreciate your eagerness and interest!

I have a slightly unusual request of my readers. I have a project in mind, but I need the help of someone who is good at sculpting or modeling human figures, either in clay/plastic or CGI. If you or someone you know has these skills and is interested in helping me out, please contact me. If you have samples of previous work, please include it in your e-mail. Please pass this along and thank you for your help!

Update: I've received several inquiries from people interested in helping out. So, I thought I'd share a little bit more info here, in case anyone else is interested in lending a hand. The figures I'm looking to have created are action figure style, similar to those historic action figures of Edgar Allan Poe, Blackbeard, etc. Similar scale, each with a few props. The figures do not need to be posable, as I will just be posting pictures of the figures (though if you can create a posable one, even better!) here, with full artist attributions. I will not be able to pay the artists, so this is something that is more for fun and a chance to get your name and work out there.

Please, only serious inquiries. If you are interested and have the skills to create something like I've described, please feel free to contact me at the link above for more information.

Autism One: Pick Up Your Police Escort at the Reception Desk

Time to take a trip back to some subject matter that was at the creation of this blog: censorship, autism and anti-vaccination sentiments. It should come as no surprise to anyone who reads here regularly that I take these issues rather seriously. Generally speaking, censorship seems to go hand in hand with the anti-vaccination folks within the autism community (and let it just be said that the autism community is very broad, with the anti-vaxers representing a rather small minority, thankfully). Silencing dissent is a favored tactic, as evidenced by the "editorializing" favored by such luminary and (mis-)informative sites as Age of Autism, among others. Where truth and reality rear their ugly heads, there will always be a moderator close at hand to protect their quailing, fragile readers, making such reason-based comments disappear down the memory hole before a single electron hits the screen of an AoA reader.

Should you decide to attend an event organized by those with anti-vaccination notions, be not afraid of having your tender sensibilities bruised, for there will be an ever-so-polite and helpful event organizer to call the police to haul out any suspicious-looking persons. Yes, though they may be mild-mannered and behaving themselves, who knows when they will utter uncomfortable truths? Best to remove them, without any justification, before any charlatans or quacks can be challenged, before any parents, trying their best to cope with a child with a disability about which, frankly, not a great deal is known, can have the scales removed from their eyes and their wallets protected from expensive and utterly useless treatments. Fear not, for brave folks like Teri Arranga will quickly summon hotel security and police to deal with anyone she thinks may pose a threat to your delicate sensibilities.

Mark "Castrate 'Em" Geier's License Suspended - Part 2

On April 27, 2011, as you may recall, Dr. Mark Geier's license to practice medicine in the state of Maryland was suspended (PDF). A hearing was scheduled, and on May 12, the MD Board of Physicians upheld its ruling (PDF). I had noted that in addition to his license in Maryland, Dr. Geier also has licenses in California, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Missouri, New Jersey, Virginia and Washington.

Well, another state has just suspended his license.

Help! I have Polio!

I thought it was just after effects of exercising. I figured that I would be fine, that I would recover without any ill effects. In fact, I thought that my health would improve a fair bit overall: improve strength and stamina, more flexibility, improved balance. That's what I expected. But then I started doing some research and that's when I found out: I have polio. I mean, I have polio-like symptoms:

• Headaches
• Back pain
• Neck pain
• Muscle tenderness
• Fatigue

Based on this, I must clearly have polio. I mean, there is no meaningful distinction between "polio" and "polio-like symptoms." A recently published study by Holland, et al. (PDF), in the Pace Environmental Review stated the same thing for autism:

there is no meaningful difference between "autism" and "autism-like symptoms." (p. 493)

Now, there are some who might argue that there is a distinction, medically speaking, between polio and polio-like symptoms, but they are clearly held in the grip of Big Pharma^TM. Don't let them fool you. I know I have polio because I have polio-like symptoms. And since there is no meaningful distinction between the terms "polio" and "polio-like symptoms," then the only possible answer is that the cause of my distress is nothing else but polio. I'm sure the folks at Age of Autism will back me up on this one.

So, if you have any of the symptoms above, start planning out your last days, because you, my friend, have polio.
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It should go without saying that all of the above is satire. But, just in case someone didn't get it, it's satire! I do not have polio. Do not take any of the above as medical advice. If you have medical questions, ask your doctor instead of going by some faceless text on the internet.

Charges Levied Against Mark and David Geier

On April 27, 2011, the Maryland Board of Physicians issued an order for summary suspension of Dr. Mark Geier's license to practice in that state. He was investigated for prescribing Lupron to children with autism, using an unapproved chelating drug, keeping inadequate and incomplete patient records, inappropriately and incorrectly diagnosing patients and so on. Dr. Geier tried and failed to persuade the board to restore his license at a hearing on May 11, 2011. On May 12, the board issued an Order for the Continuation of Summary Suspension for Medical License, meaning that Dr. Geier's license is still suspended. He has until May 22 to file a written appeal.

In the original order, it was also mentioned in passing that Dr. Geier's son, David Geier, may have practiced medicine without a license. From reading the order, it appeared that Mr. Geier performed medical procedures, prescribed tests and made diagnoses. He does not have a medical degree, nor is he licensed to practice medicine in the state of Maryland (or any other state). Mr. Geier was also, inexplicably, appointed as a "diagnostician" in 2009 to Maryland's Autism Commission.

As Kathleen Seidel wrote at the Neurodiversity Blog, charges have been brought against both Dr. Mark Geier and Mr. David Geier.

Minnesota Measles Outbreak - A Recap

UPDATE: On June 8, 2011, the Minnesota Department of Health declared that the measles outbreak in Hennepin County is considered over. The outbreak involved 20 individuals who were all connected to a child who was infected in Kenya. In addition there were two unrelated cases reported this year.

I just thought that I would provide a brief update on the measles outbreak in Minnesota. According to the Minnesota Department of Health, as of this writing, the last update was on April 27, 2011. Here's what they report:

Situation Update (4/27/11)
There have been 23 confirmed cases of measles reported in Minnesota, ranging in age from 4 months to 51 years old.

Infection acquired:

• Twenty of the cases have been linked to a case that acquired infection in Kenya (21 total)
• One case acquired infection in Florida
• One case acquired infection in India

Vaccination status:

• Seven of the cases were too young to receive vaccine
• Nine were of age but were not vaccinated
• One was vaccinated
• One was vaccinated prior to the recommended age
• Five have unknown vaccine status

There have been fourteen hospitalizations and no deaths.