Heckenlively's Fallacious Analysis of the Cedillo Appeal Decision Rebutted

Kent Heckenlively, Esq., a regular contributer to the AoA Collective posted his analysis of the Cedillo Appeal, and, as usual, got it completely wrong. How did he manage to be so wrong, considering that he is so educated?

A guest Blogger, PeterP, will explain:

Heckenlively claims to be a lawyer, like most lawyers his skill is therefore to cherry-pick the bits of evidence that suits him rather than looking at it all. This suits an adversarial court system but does not lend itself to finding the truth in science.

>Reading the decision in the Cedillo appeal gives me a greater appreciation
>of that story. It doesn't seem to matter what's presented, the Special
>Masters are still going to deny any connection between vaccines and autism.

Probably because no one has managed to show there is one. The Cedillo case certainly didn't.

>The Cedillo case depended a great deal of the identification of the measles
>virus discovered in an intestinal biopsy taken from Michelle Cedillo and
>analyzed by the Unigenetics Laboratory of Dr. John O'Leary. The court
>agreed that "the general reputations of Unigenetics and Dr. O'Leary are
>good." (P. 11) It also agreed that the reliability of the Unigenetics
>Laboratory was "the single-most critical issue in the case." (P. 10)

Having considered both the general reputation and specific work on measles it concluded :

"However, I conclude that the overall evidence weighs strongly in favor of a conclusion that, whatever the general caliber of the work of the O'Leary laboratory group, the group's measles virus detection work, done largely under the Unigenetics Ltd. name, simply is not reliable. The overall evidence specific to that measles virus detection issue is simply too strong to be outweighed by mere evidence of a good general reputation concerning other work.

In this regard, two further observations are relevant. First, as noted above, the measles virus detection work was done, at least for the most part, under the Unigenetics Ltd. name. Dr. Bustin testified that Unigenetics Ltd. was not accredited, and that Unigenetics Ltd. declined to participate in a quality control program, so that there was never any independent quality assessment made of any of the work that was carried out by Unigenetics. (Tr. 2034, 2057A.)

Significantly, petitioners never attempted to rebut that aspect of Dr. Bustin's testimony.

Second, the record also indicates that Unigenetics Ltd. is no longer in business, and there is no evidence that the O'Leary laboratory has ever published any work defending the reliability of the Uhlmann study, despite the criticism of that study. Thus, it seems that the O'Leary laboratory has not publicly defended the reliability of its efforts at measles virus detection during the early 2000s.

Accordingly, considering all of the evidence of record, I conclude that, regardless of whether the O'Leary laboratory might have a solid reputation with respect to its other work, nevertheless that laboratory's efforts to detect measles virus in the early 2000s were flawed and unreliable."

>There was discussion of other studies, namely the Uhlmann study which
>supported the finding of a measles infection in the guts of children with
>autism,

Using the same Unigenetics Lab as Wakefield. Remember also that Unigenetics was not a university laboratory but a private "for profit" company specifically established to test for an MMR/measles link on behalf of the UK MMR litigants. It was closed in 2005.

>On the issue of DNA contamination, though, the testimony was pretty clear
>that DNA contamination is an issue only if there are relatively low numbers
>of the virus detected. Michelle Cedillo's test results showed high levels
>of the measles virus, and thus even from the testimony, should not be
>something cited by the Special Masters in their review.

The testing was by PCR, I assume Heckenlively knows little about this procedure and how sensitive it is to contamination. To say that "DNA contamination is an issue only if there are relatively low numbers of the virus detected" shows remarkable ignorance.

One of the telling points against Unigenetics was that they produced positive results when it was simply impossible. They omitted the Reverse Transcriptase step in their tests. Measles virus exists as an RNA molecule. The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay amplifies DNA. Thus to detect an RNA molecule in a PCR assay, the RNA must first be copied (by the reverse transcriptase enzyme) into DNA, which can then be amplified. Bustin showed that the O'Leary lab reported positive results even when they could not possibly have detected an RNA molecule because they had left out the step to copy that RNA into DNA. Thus the positive results reported for such test were, without any doubt at all, false positives.

>On the issue of reliability, it's curious that while the court admits that the general
>reputation of the lab and Dr. O'Leary are good, they unaccountably failed in
>this instance.

See above. That they failed, and failed abysmally, is beyond question. Why they failed may have something to do with their sole source of funding. They were for example using older instruments, and on some of these faults were discovered by Bustin. For example there was a huge variation in the heating and cooling characteristics across the sample block producing variable results depending on where sample tubes were placed on the instrument.

>(Author's note - The U.S. government later hired Dr. John
>O'Leary to set up two labs for the Hornig/Lipkin study on the prevalence of
>the measles virus in the guts of children with autism. Amazing how one day
>the government is trying to destroy your reputation and soliciting your help
>on another.)

The US government did not "hire" O'leary, and by the time of Hornig/Lipkin Unigenetics had been closed. Three laboratories were utilised by Hornig/Lipkin, O'Learys Trinity College laboratory at Coombe Women's Hospital,. The Center for Infection and Immunity, New York; and the Measles, Mumps,Rubella, and Herpes virus Laboratory Branch, CDC, Atlanta.

>And this is where the independent judgment of the court is supposed to come
>in. One side says you didn't perform the tests the way you should. That's
>fair game and deserves to be explored. The other side says, you can't find
>the measles virus in the red blood cells of affected children, only in the
>gut which you can biopsy, or the brain, which short of an autopsy, is
>exceedingly difficult. You should consider that claim as well.

The fact was that no measles virus was detected in the gut. This was the conclusion reached by Chadwick, working with Wakefield, before Unigenetics came into being. As it wasn't the answer which was wanted the work was taken away from a University laboratory and given to a commercial one set up for the purpose.

As a matter of interest the vast majority of samples from autistic tested for MV by O'Leary in the Unigenetics lab in Dublin were from blood, not gut tissue.

>But that didn't happen in the Cedillo case. The Special Masters accepted
>one side, and paid no attention to the other. I acknowledge these are
>confusing issues, but where's the evidence disputing the claim that measles
>virus is not present in red blood cells, but only affected organs?

There is nothing confusing about there being no credible evidence that measles was in the gut. This is the simple fact that the author seems to ignore.

The Unigenetics findings were false. Unigenetics claimed to have found measles virus in _both_ blood and gut samples. Bustin's lengthy report clearly showed their results were as a result of poor laboratory practice. As Bustin, far more of an expert in PCR than O'Leary ever will be, aid :-

"My clear conclusion then was that O'Leary's results were caused by
defective experimental technique and inappropriate interpretation of
results, since he was detecting DNA, and measles virus does not exist
as DNA. "

> The
>Court acted as if these issues weren't even worthy of consideration. And if
>Dr. O'Leary's lab was so incompetent in detecting the measles virus, why did
>our own government later hire him to set up two such labs?

It didn't. He collaborated as a professor at the Department of Histopathology, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, not as Managing Director of the closed Unigenetics Laboratory Ltd. Unigenetics had some specific problems associated with trying to do things cheaply. Many of the "staff" were undergraduates. Unigenetics was also not an accredited laboratory and Unigenetics had no external quality controls.

>A similar narrowness of vision was present in other parts of the decision.
>The third criterion to be satisfied to obtain recovery is a "proximate
>temporal relationship between vaccination and injury." The medical records
>for Michelle Cedillo are actually quite compelling in establishing a short
>time period between her vaccinations and the development of her problems.

Actually, together with recordings of her made beforehand, they were very compelling in showing symptoms of ASD long before she received MMR.

>"A May 2, 1997 letter from an Arizona neurologist, Dr. William Masland,
>deserves particular mention. After examining Michelle Cedillo on May 2,
>1997, Dr. Masland noted that Michelle lost her speaking ability after her
>post-MMR fever episodes. He further stated 'it would appear that there was
>some neurological harm done at the time of the fevers.' He added, 'whether
>this was a post-immunization phenomenon or a separate occurrence, would be
>very difficult to say.' The Special Master concluded that Dr. Masland's
>letter, at most, speculated as to whether the MMR vaccine was causing
>Michelle's neurologic abnormality and did not constitute an opinion that the
>MMR vaccine caused Michelle's autism." (P. 20-21)

That's correct, it was an opinion of an observer. It could equally well have been made about the temporal association between visiting McDonalds and losing her speaking ability.

>I know this will be disputed by some, but the fault in Cedillo wasn't with
>the evidence, or the way the attorneys presented the case. The fault was
>with the Special Masters and may lie in a prejudice that even they don't
>fully appreciate.

However you try to spin it the evidence was overwhelmingly against the claimant. Look at the authors of the Hornig/Lipkin study :- Lack of Association between Measles Virus Vaccine and Autism with Enteropathy: A Case-Control Study Mady Hornig, Thomas Briese, Timothy Buie, MargaretL.Bauman, Gregory Lauwers, Ulrike Siemetzki, Kimberly Hummel, Paul A. Rota, William J. Bellini, ,John J. O'Leary, Orla Sheils, Errol Alden, Larry Pickering, W.Ian Lipkin O'Leary and Sheils are co-authors. If they were that convinced that their Unigenetics work was right why did they support this later studies conclusion which was :-

"This study provides strong evidence against association of autism
with persistent MV RNA in the GI tract or MMR exposure. "
Was it simply because they realised they had been wrong with
Unigenetics and this later, properly conducted, properly documented
and properly supervised work, clearly showed that?

Another Suppository of Ignorance

Not on the same par as AoA, so far, but this blog that calls itself Child Health Safety, is headed in that direction.

I posted in the thread using my Nom-de-Blog, FreeSpeaker, and was promptly outed by the blogger, since he posted my real name, which is no big secret.

I then posted a response, citing s/h/it's antics, and that post was removed.

I was responding to s/h/its comments:

ED: What a pile of drivel. So it looks like you are expecting the UK's GMC to acquit him. And just like The Sunday Glaxo you want to start all sorts of new unfounded accusations to keep the MMR controversy running forever? Smart move.

So when are you going to start accusing CHS of lying? Bowditch can hardly ever write a sentence without accusing people of lying and you normally do much the same.

Looks like someone eise is desperate that they thought sending in you two characters might be worth doing.]

He was responding to my comment:

Let’s see…you make a claim that the PCC ordered Deer to removethe articles, and, Peter Bowditch says that the PCC website does not mention it. Then, you personally attack Pter Bowditch. Sounds like you are desperate.

As for Wakefield, the testimony during the Omnibus hearings should be use to indict him for gross negligence, willful harming of children and being a lying quack in the first degree. I read the entire transcript, every single word, and listened to much of the testimony. The experts submitted by the government destroyed any pretense of objectivity and competence that Wakefield may pretend to have.

Clearly, this blogger does not have a clue as too truth or logic. Another woefully blinded supporter of Wakefield.

Now, here is a serious question...Does anyone know what Wakefield is doing behind closed doors at Thoughtful House in Austin, Texas? He does not have a license to practice medicine anywhere in the US, and hopefully, will not have one in the UK soon.

Oh, and I expect the UK's GMC not to acquit Wakefield, but to strip him of his license and publicly tar and feather him. This is Britain, you know. :)

UPDATE

I went back to this suppository of ignorance and found that yet, again, another response of mine was deleted. Thus, I wrote:

This is fast becoming a bastion of censorship. Now I have had two posts censored.
However, the purely ad hominem attack on Peter Bowditch remains, and the drivel from John Stone, where he tortures logic and twists the facts to blame The Times and Brian Deer, when it was the duplicitous Wakefield who broke the gentlemen's agreement, remains intact.

Yes, this blog has become another suppository of censorship, run by a pro-infectious disease merchant of disability amd death.

What are these people so damn afraid of? Why can't they engage in discussion?

What does the bull do after he stops?

Kelli Ann supplied them with the tag-line "The Bull Stops Here!"

This drove me to think? What does a bull do when he stops? After reading AoA, one can only conclude that he leaves his thoughts behind.

This merely demonstrates the quantity of the "thinking" of the AoA Collective. It in no way reflects that true lack of quality.

The AoA Collective

Clearly, recent postings to the cesspool of the AoA Collective demonstrate that they want to be more offensive that they usually are. Paul Offit is attacked, again, and Michael Fitzpatrick is attacked in an article that fails to mention that he is a parent of an autistic child.

They have tacitly announced their Spring Offensive, and the target is your mind. I will suggest some reading that is "mental kevlar."

This is clearly more AoA Collective "thinking", where they would love to have the opposition realize that refuting their male bovine excreta with facts is futile, and if you have the temerity to do so, you will be mercilessly attacked.

Recently, J.B. decided to put up another website where he uses his uncanny lack of intelligence and dearth of scientific knowledge to feebly discredit scientific studies which do not neatly fit into CollectiveThink. He calls it 14 Studies. I call it proof that the Collective Leader has no scientific knowledge what-so-ever. Both Steve Novella, and Dave Gorski eviscerate the site, with anyone who has a high school diploma, and stayed awake through biology and chemistry, can understand. That, of course, leaves out the Collective and their drones.

Read 14 Studies and then read Steve Novella and Dave Gorski. You will know why this blog is called the Age of Ignorance.

Honoring The Leaders of the AoA Collective

Shocking isn't it? AoI wants to honor the leaders of the collective? How could this be possible?

The idea came to me out of the blue. Well, out of the early morning sky. I have been a skywatcher since childhood. I recall watching for the ECHO passive communications satellite pass over head every two hours. For those who do not recall, or never heard of the ECHO satellite, it was a large aluminized mylar balloon which radio and television signals were bounced off. Being that large and reflective, it was clearly visible from the ground.

A few mornings ago, on one of our clear days in these parts, the ISS few overhead. A beautiful sight.

I read Phil Plait's BadAstronomy every day. He is a good writer and has a wonderful sense of wonderment about our universe. I could spend long nights with him watching the sky. In fact, when I went to his blog to get the URL, I found a great article which I read before coming back to continue to write this article.

Phil had several articles about the recent attempt at Space Piracy by the fans of Stephen Colbert. They attempted to hijack the vote for the name of a new node on the ISS, but NASA rejected their ploy, and, instead, named the node Tranquility, after the site of the first moon landing, which I watched live in black and white on TV at my cousin's house in Boston.

My original response, was how dare they do this? Then, I got to thinking and concluded that they deserved an appropriate response. I posted to BadAstronomy that the latrine aboard the ISS should be named after Colbert. It did not catch on, unfortunately.

Then, I read a few articles at AoA. This always gets me thinking. The brain wheels turned. The throught processes churned. It then struck me!

Anything aboard the ISS should be named after someone who has affected science. Now, how could the pure science of the ISS and the anti-science non-science of AoA merge into one? Galaxies merge. Companies merge. How could I blend the two just right? More thinking.

During one of humankind's morning necessities it came to me. I would say "out of the blue" but, I am not talking blue this time. The ISS was recently upgraded to allow for a larger crew.

Therefore, I hereby propose that the new liquid recycling system be named after the founder and GR Collective Leader, J. B. Handley. It should henceforth be referred to as the H.A.N.D.L.E.Y. or Human Automatic Node Detoxifying Liquids Even Yellow ones.

Of course, the HANDLEY needs input, so the newly upgraded latrine should also be named after one of AoA's most prolific lemmings. Therefore, the latrine should be named after Kim Stagliano, and henceforth be referred to as the S.T.A.G.L.I.A.N.O. or Simplified Toilet Accommodating Gravitational Levels In AbNormal Outlets.

There you have it. Honoring the most anti-science of the Anti-vaccination Collective in the most appropriate manner.

Next job: Petition NASA.

Banned!

The open minded Collective known as the AoA has apparently banned me from posting to their cesspool. Today, I tried to post to the yarn about 14 Studies, and could not. The "Send" button never operated.

Does this upset me? Nah. I feel honored.

You may post your congratulatory messages below.

14 Studies or 14 Words?

I just learned that I am banned from posting on AoA. I tried to post, and could not. I guess it is their Borg-like Collective Mentality that cannot handle contrary comments.

This was my post:

14 Studies or "14 Words"...with the lemmings of AoA and the Collective Mentality, I believe that it is more like the mind-set of 14 Words...

For a superb take-down of those studies...see Dave Gorski's article at Science Based Medicine.

Keep Looking Dan

Dan O, the big cheese editor at AoA wrote a series of articles where he wondered where the Autistic Amish were. He looked everywhere, and could not find them. Of course, he missed the Clinic For Special Children....

Pediatr Neurol. 2009 Apr;40(4):310-3.
Gene associated with seizures, autism, and hepatomegaly in an amish girl.
Jackman C, Horn ND, Molleston JP, Sokol DK.


Pediatrics section, Department of Neurology, Indiana University School ofMedicine, Indianapolis, Indiana.


A genetic defect causing autism and epilepsy involving the contactin associatedprotein-like 2 gene (CNTNAP2) has been discovered in a selected cohort of Amishchildren. These children were found to have focal seizures and autisticregression. Surgical biopsy of the anterior temporal lobe of two such childrenrevealed cortical dysplasia and a single nucleotide polymorphismmutation of this gene. The present case is that of a related but geographically distant probandwith a similar phenotype but a single-base-pair deletion in the CNTNAP2 gene.This patient exhibited the additional features of periventricular leukomalaciaand hepatomegaly.

I know that the ignorant at AoA will dismiss this as not being true, vaccine caused, autism, but, clearly Dan missed these people, too.

On Becoming a Born Again Parent

I have been giving a lot of thought to why AoA pisses me off as much as they do. I read an article, or one of the sycophant's comments, and my blood pressure rises, my face feels flushed, and I feel my heart pounding. I keep asking myself why?

A few days ago I read an article about healing. Iwish I could recall where, and post a link. Unfortunately, no matter how I rack my brain, nothing happens. Still cannot recall.

However, shortly after reading that article, it struck me why AoA so pisses me off. Those creeps are actually preventing healing of those parents who react most strongly to having a child with Autism (read that as any disability).

When my oldest son was five, we had his little brother. In the space of a few short weeks, we learned that my oldest has Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. We also learned that my youngest has cerebral palsy. We were devastated. We want to lash out and blame everyone and anyone. Did the OB do everything correctly? What mistakes were made? and so on and so forth.

Week after week, all we did was to discuss how angry we were, without ever mentioning that we were angry. We were hurting beyond belief. Two lifetimes of diability.

This went on for around a year. It was consuming all of our time, and thought. We spoke of nothing else. Our friends left us, because we discussed nothing else. Our anger became our reason for living.

Our oldest son completed his first year in school and seemed happy. Our youngest was in an early intervention pre-school program. Both made strides in dealing with their uniqueness. Slow, but steady.

This went on for over two years. One day we met an old friend, one we had not seen for a long time. He had lost his oldest son, a year before, who was the same age as our oldest. He appeared to be happy, though.

We began talking, and talking, and talking. He, too, wanted to blame someone for his tragic loss. He went to lawyers, doctors, and just about anyone who would listen, to discuss the death of his son.

Finally, he came to realize that no matter what he did, it would not bring his son back. His son was gone. Period. He was devastated but, moved on. He had other children, and they needed him. They all seemed rather happy and content. We were still angry and could not figure him out. Why was he not angry?

One day my older son comes to me and asks why we are spending so much time trying to "fix" him. He says that he is not broken, just different. He was angry that we took him to so many doctors, tried so many "treatments" and never seemed to be happy with him the way he was.

Although I assured him that I did not feel that he was broken, he made me start thinking. The following week, we decided to try something and we skipped his supplements, and there was no change in his behaviors. He still needed constant refocusing.

Gradually, over time, we stopped all the treatment, except for his medications, which even he agreed he needed. He had gone to school one day without them, and told me that he never wanted that to happen again.

Our younger son was also making progress. He was sitting up, using a cup with a straw, and was finger feeding. He seemed happy, and enjoyed physical and occupational therapy (we had great therapists). He liked his early intervention program, and was making friends.

We began to see the positives in both children. We began to see them as two kids with more opportunites for them to show us how much progress they are making. We began to take delight in their progress.

We stopped trying to find blame. We stopped using the boys as laboratory test subjects. We stopped being angry.

And, we were born again parents. Parenting was a joy. Hard work, but still a joy.

Addendum...

Now, why AoA makes me so angry....

AoA stokes the anger in parents to prevent them from moving on as we did. AoA NEEDS parents to look at themselves as victims. Without the victim mentality, AoA and their ilk would have no audience. None.

To think that this does not affect the children is just abhorent to me. My son, at his age, proved otherwise. What motivated me was the fact that he was comfortable enough with us to express his feelings. When a kid is treated like a lab rat, having useless treatments, running from this diet to the next, it eventually takes it toll on the child.

And, we moved on, and NEVER, ever, looked back.

The Blonde Boob

Regular readers of AoA know that it is the mouthpiece of GR and J.B. Handley. They have adopted the Blonde Boob, who has recently told Time.com:

I do believe sadly it's going to take some diseases coming back to realize that we need to change and develop vaccines that are safe. If the vaccine companies are not listening to us, it's their f___ing fault that the diseases are coming back. They're making a product that's s___. If you give us a safe vaccine, we'll use it. It shouldn't be polio versus autism.

This scientifically illierate moron is actually advocating that children become ill with serious diseases known to cause disability and death. She then blathered:

People have the misconception that we want to eliminate vaccines. Please understand that we are not an antivaccine group. We are demanding safe vaccines. We want to reduce the schedule and reduce the toxins. If you ask a parent of an autistic child if they want the measles or the autism, we will stand in line for the f___ing measles.

One has to wonder if she ever took even a junior high school science course? The Blonde Boob is incapable of understanding simple science, and is spreading, like a deadly virus, her bilge all over.

Her handlers have scheduled a whirlwind tour to promote her new book (no advertisement from me).

I will contact ever single one of them and tell them that they are culpable in fear mongering over vaccines, just as Wakefield did in the UK.

I hope every reader will do the same.

The expert will speak...

One of the mouthpieces over at AoA is David Kirby. He is the author of (NO)Evidence of Harm, one of the leading causes of the anti-vaccination fear mongering causing death and disability.

It appears that he has not had any recent employment other than spewing his anti-vaccination bilge there and at the HuffPoop blog.

Now, finally, he floats to the surface with this:

"the waste produced by ... cattle"

Finally, something Kirby is writing about as an expert. Can the Kennedy kid be far behnd?

That word...

Personal matters have kept me from posting. This is not about AoA, but, nonetheless, it expands on some ignorance.

There was an event this week that annoyed me, and Sullivan at LeftBrain/RightBrain posted which triggers this response from me:


Good post. However, it is not just a word, but an institutionalized attitude that needs to be addressed.

Most people think that handicapped sports is merely “cute.” Far from it.

My son was the pen-ultimate torch bearer in the USA for the 2000 Sydney Paraolympics. Was there any media coverage? Heck no.

One may ask when and where the Paraolympics are held? Most people do not know. The answer is simple, immediately following the Olympics on the same venue. Paraolympians have it easier, though. Smaller non-crowds, and those pesky cameras and media types just do not clutter up the landscape.

Every marathon in the US has three divisions, male, female and wheelchair. Do the winners of all three get invited to the Monday morning talk shows?

New York State sponsors The empire State Parks Games for the Physically Challenged at a world class facility (thank you Ted Turner for the now defunct Friendship Games). Come on down! No pesky media types to get in your way. Just 1500 athletes from around the region and Ireland competing. We used to have athletes come from Alabama, Boston, Philadelphia and other locales, but, the benign neglect under former governor George Pataki ended that.

As for Obama’s remark, it is merely an example of non-thinking. It is nothing new.

BTW my son’s bowling average is higher than Obama’s.

What annoyed me most is the fact that Obama was criticized by just those in the media who perpetuate ignoring the Special Athlete.

Hypocrites All.

February 13, 2009, Day 1 of the Post AoA Era

With the unanimous decisions of the "Vaccine Court" being handed down yesterday, the issue of vaccines causing autism has finally been decided.

Yes, I know that the there are vestiges of those who still want to promote the failed theory, but, anyone who actually reads the decisions will see that there is no tomorrow for the anti-vaccination junta and their lemmings at AoA. They have ceased being relevant.

It is now time to move on to actually helping parents and persons with Autism live better lives, and to stop throwing money at the failed hypothesis.

Dan, are you looking to get fired?

In today's edition of AoA, Dan Olmsted, the former journalist now turned propagandist for GRrrrrrr, wrote:

"Olmsted on Autism: He Shoots! He Scores! Fire the Coach!
By Dan Olmsted

I had a strange reaction to this week's story about the high school basketball team manager in Maine. As USA Today reported: "Patrick Thibodeau, who has Down Syndrome, trotted onto the floor Tuesday night for the team's final home game of the season. When the time came to shoot, he nailed a 3-pointer for the second basket of the game. He hit another at the final buzzer."

This reminds us of the awesome J-Mac, Jason McElwain, the team manager with autism who when he finally got the chance scored 6 three pointers in the last 4 minutes of the last game of his senior year. But here's my question: Let's say a third-string player on one of these teams hadn't been in a game all year -- or ever. Coach puts him in the last game. Just so mom and dad can cheer. Kid goes wild! Hits from DOWNTOWN!!! Is un-CON-scious! ... all those sportscaster phrases.

Wouldn't people say, What was this coach thinking? He had one of his best players sitting at the other end of the bench for four long years and didn't know it? Aren't we trying to win here? (We sure were back at Danville High School in Illinois.)

Maybe I'm missing something -- some health concern, some Title IX thing, some nuance. If so, tell me. But geez, if the kid can play, let him play, not pick up sweaty towels. Don't make inclusion on the court or on the field a "very special," made-for-TV story. Make it typical."

I was utterly shocked when I read this. Dan Olmsted, who could not find the Clinic For Special Children in Amish Country, has now found:

NEURODIVERSITY!

Dan, I hope you have a day job.

The Deafening Silence

The Grand Exalted One over at AoI runs a company that manufactures food products using soy. He clearly represents BigSoy. At least one blogger has had one product tested and reported:

A Genisoy Chunky Peanut Butter Fudge bar was submitted to this laboratory out of concern for levels of heavy metals in soy. Soy is known to have high levels of aluminum and cadmium. The found that this particular soy protein bar contained 8.5 ppb of mercury. The form of mercury in this bar is most likely methyl mercury the kind found in tuna and other fish. Mercury at any dose is unsafe according to mercury expert Dr. Boyd Haley of University of Kentucky and others. According to one expert contacted 8.5 ppb of mercury per Genisoy bar is approximately .5 microgram of mercury per bar.

We know that Dr. Haley speaks only the truth about mercury.

Now we have been told that the corn syrup that may be used in the manufacture of these products may also be laced with mercury.

Is there a cover-up?
Why is BigSoy silent?
Is this mercury somehow magically safer?

Vomiting

In a recent article posted on the AoA site, The Exalted One, gives lessons on how to vomit. He uses this to feebly attempt to discredit a study where the results do not neatly fit into his preconceived ideas.

I do defer to him as he is the Blogosphere's leading expert on vomit. He, and his lemmings do provide quite a bit of it.

One can always visit the AoA website and get their daily dose of vomit.

(NOTE: Come to think of it, I could have named this blog the Age-Of-Vomit since it discusses AoA.)

Balance from the UN-balanced...what are they thinking?

One of the things about "The Media" that constantly annoys the cleanse by-products out of me is their obsessive need for "balance". I am sure you have read articles where the reporter includes "both sides" of the issues addressed.


Sometimes, there is no need for "balance". for example, if the article is discussing the Holocaust, why would anyone need input from a Holocaust Denier? Their ideas have been totally discredited, and the historical event known as the Holocaust happened, whether they like it or not.

In my scientifically and fact based opinion, the same thing goes for the manufactured questions over the need for a robust vaccination program. To any intelligent sentient being, the history of vaccination proves that they are effective and have eradicated diseases such as small pox, and polio (from the western world). Balance is not required.

However, like I said, reporters need to report balance. That is what they do. If they did not, they would be "taking sides" and that is something that journalism schools frown upon. So, I do understand.

However, who do they go to for balance? Well, it seems to me that their favorite interview subject, the Exalted One of GR, is their favorite. Even the recent NY times article, Book Is Rallying Resistance to the Antivaccine Crusade, by Donald McNeil, quoted the EO. Let's take a look at the antics of the Exalted One...

Prior to publication of that article, Mr. O'Neil contacted the Exalted One to obtain his opinion on the issues the article would be addressing, and afterwards, the Exalted One, posted this article.

This article was then followed by a diatribe ostensibly written by the Spoiled Brat of Autism.


Since it is a given that ALL articles on AoA advance the purposes of the Exalted One, GRrrrr, and the Junta, there is no doubt that the Brat's article was published with their full blessings.


Further, the SBofA also takes a few nasty shots at Dr. Nancy Snyderman, the medical reporter from the Today Show. There is no doubt that the Exalted One, GRrrr and the Junta despise her to no end. After all, she uses facts to base her opinions on.


There is no doubt that being quoted in the New York Times, or, for that matter, in any reputable media outlet, gives credence to the person and their opinions. This is certainly true in their minds.

When Amanda Peet, an actress, expressed her personal opinion concerning vaccinations and those who refuse them, the Junta at AoA got on her case, and posted phone numbers and addresses of her agent, etc. and then encouraged the lemming to mail bomb them.

And, recently, one poster on the EoH Yahoo group did not like an article and posted the reporter's home address and phone number. The moderator of the group did remove it (however, it was up for a while, and, one can only wonder if he would have removed it had their not been an outcry?).

So, the question that begs to be asked is this:

Why is the media still quoting these vicious know-nothings?

I suggest freezing them out. There are anti-vaxxer who are, at least, civil.

The Fully Loaded 10CC Syringe Award

Since this blog has been needling the AoAers, they hangers-on and their lemmings, what is more appropriate than to award them the Fully Loaded 10CC Syringe Award? The syringe is loaded with rationality and sanity, thus, the dose will be appropriate for each recipient.

Note that I use a multi-dose vial, and that it is possible for a recipient to win more than once.

The 1CC Award

So many candidates, so little time.....and the winner is...

Jim Carrey, for starring in the role of second fiddle boob to his squeeze, Jenny McCarthy. Jimmy answered Arthur Allen's question about which vaccine could be skipped by saying that some parents are skipping the tetanus vaccine. Equally important was his claim at the Green Our Vaccines rally that he is an advocate disability but proceeded to make fun of people with when he called restless leg syndrome "lazy ass syndrome".

He has not yet proven he needs a full dose, yet.

The 2CC Award

Another difficult choice....and the winner is...

Cliff Shoemaker. The reasons are so varied, and each is a gem in it's own right. One of the most glaring was the ridiculous subpoena against Kathleen Seidel of neurodiversity fame. If you google ridiculous subpoena, the top three links are about that event. He wound up being sanctioned for his actions. Not a good day for him.

Then there is his strange billing practice, which has become so egregious that the Special Master's who are hearing these claims are willing to spend their valuable time checking his bills line by line. Cliff makes a list, and the SM's check it twice, deleting what they find that is naughty and not nice.

The 3CC Award

And the winner is....

Kim Stagliano for supporting a group that promotes autism as vaccine injury while having (correct me if I am wrong) at least one unvaccinated kid with autism.

Does anyone wonder why rational people consider AoA and their lemmings to be anti-vaccinators?

The 4CC Award

goes to Kent Heckenlively for his absolute refusal to accept the tests that show no evidence of mercury poisoning and chelating his kid for two years anyway.

This is surpassed by his amazing decision to pursue stem cell therapy with no idea of what it is supposed to do, and having his child's grandparents pay for it. What's more, he went to Central America for the therapy. Just how could he be so sure that what he pumped into his child were human stem cells?

Kent manages to demonstrate the fact that one doesn't need any understanding of science or the scientific method in order to teach science in U.S. schools.

The 5CC Award

AoA professes to be some sort of newspaper. There are two pseudo-journalists who hang out there, and occasionally post something that makes one wonder about whether they learned fact checking in journalism school.

The 5CC award goes to Dan Olmsted, for his tired efforts to retroactively cover his butt about his failure to find the Clinic For Special Children in Autism Country. I know he tried...

The 6CC Award

and the winner is....David Kirby, for his untiring efforts to post without checking his facts (when he finds some). Recently, David made two boo-boos in a three day period. At HuffPOOP, he posted an article where he imagined that the IACC meeting approved spending a couple of million dollars on vaccine research to prove the imaginary connection Autism. Strangely, no one else remembers this coming to a vote.

Kevin, at LeftBrain/Right Brain, also addressed some of Kirby's boo-boos.

The 7CC Award

Things are getting tougher to figure out who is deserving of a bigger dose. Let's face it, AoA provides so much "good stuff" that picking out the best is not an easy task.

However, the 7CC Award goes to Jenny McCarthy, who, admittedly does not post there, but, is the darling of the loonies. Jenny has done so much this year to garner this award, that it is nigh impossible for one blogger to list them all. However, some of her "accomplishments" include continuing to treat her son after she cured him of Autism, the Green Vaccine gambit, and gouging her main squeeze, Jim Carrey, for a cool $50,000,000.

I hope that Jenny adds this award to her her pathetic resume as an "actor" so that she can get her failed career back on track. Maybe if she was busy making movies, and flashing her boobs, no one would notice what a boob she really is.

The 8CC Award

This award does no go to a person, but to AoA itself for their practice of using Autistic children and their willingness to tolerate any parent turning their child into a lab rat to promote their false ideas.

The 9CC Award

goes to J. B. Handley. Who else has promoted the AoA party line, used offensive tactics such as threatening litigation, "outing", flooding emails and other disgusting tactics to feebly attempt to silence those who disagree with him. Handley has lead the charge to attempt to discredit Paul Offit, M.D., impliedly asked his lemmings, the AoA faithful to attack Amanda Peet by contacting her publicists and others, and has outed posters with whom he disagrees.

Being obnoxious appears to be his labor of love, and he labors long and hard. He would deserve a larger award.

The Fully Loaded 10CC Syringe Award

goes to none other than the AoA lemmings, their incredibly credulous commenters who will believe anything the AoA Junta claims to be true.

These lemmings are of great concern to me, as their utter lack of critical thinking skills, lack of basic scientific understanding, and their astounding willingness to abuse their children by having the kids undergo one after another useless treatments clearly justifies their being presented this award.

And, there you have it. Ten awards for AoA, which can now claim to be the most award winning blog in the blogosphere. Hmmm...the only thing I do not have is a cute little graphic for the award.

Just to "tease" my loyal and faithful readership, I will, during the next year, periodically award a "booster shot" from the same, multi-dose vial, when I see that AoAers are slipping. Does anyone know of a large warehouse where I can store a multi-gallon vial?