Autism, Vaccines and the CDC: The Wrong Side of History

by Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. and David Kirby

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-f-kennedy-jr-and-david-kirby/autism-vaccines-and-the-c_b_161395.html

Even as the evidence connecting America's autism epidemic to vaccines mounts, dead-enders at the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) -- many of whom promoted the current vaccine schedule and others with strong ties to the vaccine industry -- are trying to delay the day of reckoning by creating questionable studies designed to discredit any potential vaccine-autism link and by derailing authentic studies.

On January 12, a cadre of mid-level health bureaucrats left over from the Bush administration ignored Federal requirements for advance notice in order to vote to quietly strip vaccine research studies from funding allocated by Congress in the Combating Autism Act (CAA) of 2006. Members of Congress had said that this money should be used to study the vaccine-autism connection.

These rogue bureaucrats -- members of the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee -- held an unannounced vote to remove previously approved vaccine studies from funding under the CAA. Nearly all of the "Federal" members of the panel voted to remove the two studies, whose estimated cost was $16 million - or 1.6% of the billion dollars authorized by Congress for autism. The panel's civilian members, in contrast, voted nearly unanimously to retain the funding.

IACC's action to halt vaccine-autism research flies in the face of congressional intent. The bill's authors clearly stated that vaccine research should be funded. Even the esteemed Institute of Medicine has condemned CDC's methods. In 2005, an IOM panel condemned CDC for its "lack of transparency" in vaccine-autism research.

The bureaucrats responsible for this scandal are on the wrong side of history and it's hard to not attribute an obstructionist motive to their act since vaccine-autism research has already entered the realm of mainstream science. Serious scientists (except those tied to the vaccine industry) no longer debate whether vaccine-autism research should be done, but rather how it should be done, and by whom.

Please click here to visit the Huffington Post website to read this piece in its entirety.

Seizures and the Immune System

http://www.ageofautism.com/2009/01/seizures-and-the-immune-system.html

By Kent Heckenlively, Esq.

What causes seizures?

It’s a simple question, and a profoundly important one to people like me who have a child with seizures. The recent death of Jett Travolta from a seizure leaves parents like us feeling that may some day be our story, despite all our best efforts. Dan Olmsted’s recent article, “The Unnatural History of Seizures” appropriately places at least some of the blame on environmental factors, but leaves unanswered the question of exactly how such seizures are caused. However, recent research from New York University (NYU), and the Scripps Institute may answer some questions which have long eluded researchers. (“Peering Inside Skull of a Mouse to Solve Meningitis Mystery: Immune Cells Implicated in Fatal Seizures”, Science Daily, January 7, 2009)

In their series of experiments mice were infected with the lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV), a virus which is relatively harmless in humans, but which causes fatal seizures in mice. It has been known that the virus itself did not cause the seizures, but something in the immune system’s response to the virus did.

It was known that something set off a chain of events in which the leakage of fluid from the meninges (the protective covering of the brain and spinal cord), caused a swelling which led to seizures.

Using high-tech, intravital two-photon microscopy the scientists were able to observe that T-cells, the body’s virus fighters, were doing something very unusual. At first, the T-cells acted normally, making copies of themselves, migrating to the place where the virally-infected cells were located, but then things went awry. Instead of attacking the virally-infected cells and sticking tightly to them, it was as if they suddenly went blind. They didn’t attack the virally-infected cells, even though they were in close proximity.

But like a policeman called to a murder scene who can’t find a body, the T-cells called in reinforcements, specifically monocytes and neutrophils, two types of white blood cells which usually fight bacteria, not viruses. According to the Science Daily article, “Intravital microscopy showed massive numbers of these white blood cells breaking through the walls of blood vessels into the meninges, opening the floodgates for fluid to pour out and cause swelling.” And the swelling leads to seizures.

Problems with the immune system have long been associated with autism, but the exact mechanisms by which they cause their damage have been unclear. The authors of the report note that if they can inhibit the monocytes and neutrophils they will be going after the root of the seizures.

I would add a few extra questions to be addressed. What is blinding the T-cells to the
invaders in their midst? Could viruses and heavy metals have similar ways of blinding T-cells? Why have the body’s own guardians become the destroyers of the body? Rather than simply muting the misguided message of the T-cells to the monocytes and neutrophils it seems we should be figuring out how to restore the proper functioning of the T-cells. We need to discover how to return the guardians to their proper role.

The lives of many children, maybe even my own, hinge on the answers to these questions.

Kent Heckenlively is Legal Editor for Age of Autism.

http://www.ageofautism.com/2009/01/seizures-and-the-immune-system.html

Feds Rescind Congressionally Mandated Vaccine Research

PRESS RELEASE For Immediate Release: January 17, 2009

Contact: Rita Shreffler, NAA (Nixa, MO) 417-818-9030 Wendy Fournier, NAA (Portsmouth, RI) 401-835-5828

Feds Rescind Congressionally Mandated Vaccine Research Advocates Demand Conflict-Free Vaccine Safety Studies Washington, DC – In an unprecedented move on Wednesday, the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee (IACC) removed previously approved vaccine safety research from the Strategic Plan for Autism Research objectives. With apparent backing from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) representation, Committee chair and NIMH director Tom Insel implied that vaccine research conducted by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) would constitute a conflict given the involvement of Health and Human Services with ongoing autism cases filed in federal vaccine court. The committee's action is in direct opposition to the majority of its public members who support vaccine research, and to the Congressional directive of the Combating Autism Act of 2006 (CAA) which specifically called for research into “potential links between vaccines, vaccine components, and autism spectrum disorder.” In addition to the CAA's mandate for vaccine research, the legislation also called for the establishment of key research activities to arrive from “meaningful public involvement and advice” through the IACC which includes both government and private representatives. “Ignoring the Congressional mandate for investigation into links between vaccines and the development of autism is a slap in the face to both Congress and the citizens of this country,” said National Autism Association board chair and parent Lori McIlwain. “Even the most basic studies comparing health outcomes in vaccinated vs. non-vaccinated populations are consistently ignored despite increasing support for them from legislators, physicians, and parents.” “Dr. Insel's observation that the NIH is incapable of conducting conflict-free research supports what a growing number of parents believe,” commented Ms. McIlwain. “While the motivation for refusing to allow this critical research to go forward is likely more related to fear of what such studies would reveal, it's clear that the system managing our vaccine program and vaccine safety issues is corrupt beyond repair and needs a complete overhaul.” In 2006, US Senators Ted Kennedy, Mike Enzi, and Chris Dodd agreed that the potential link between vaccines and autism warranted further study. “I want to be clear that, for the purposes of biomedical research, no research avenue should be eliminated, including biomedical research examining potential links between vaccines, vaccine components, and autism spectrum disorder,” stated Enzi. Autism now affects 1 in 150 children. Last week researchers from the University of California at Davis concluded the dramatic rise in autism cases since 1990 cannot be blamed on population increases or the way the disability is classified or diagnosed. The study's authors, from the university's MIND Institute, called for a switch in research emphasis from a genetic cause to environmental triggers including chemicals, medications, fertility treatments and childhood vaccines. “It's no wonder parents around the country are questioning vaccines when government agencies refuse to investigate legitimate vaccine safety concerns,” said Ms. McIlwain. For more information about autism, please visit www.nationalautism.org.

Dr. Julie Gerberding Has Resigned

Dr. Julie Gerberding-the director The Centers for Disease Control, who stuck it to kids for the last fifteen or so years has according to government emails, resigned-good ridden to bad rubbish!!!

Associated Press

By MIKE STOBBE – 3 days ago

ATLANTA (AP) — The woman who led the nation's public health agency in a post-Sept. 11 world of bio terrorist fears is out, her resignation announced in a Friday night e-mail to employees.

Dr. Julie Gerberding has resigned as director of the Atlanta-based U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and will be replaced on an interim basis by a deputy as of Jan. 20, the day President-elect Barack Obama is inaugurated.

The e-mail obtained by The Associated Press that discloses the news was sent Friday night to employees of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the umbrella agency over CDC.

Although an HHS housecleaning has been expected with the new administration, Gerberding's fate was somewhat unclear. The first woman to head the agency, Gerberding led the CDC through a post-Sept. 11 world of bio terrorist fears and was considered an effective communicator with legislators and the public.

In a November e-mail to staff, Gerberding said she expected she might be leaving her job after the Bush administration left office. But colleagues said she quietly had held out hope she would be allowed to stay on in the job.

Speculation that she might remain was fueled by Obama's selection of Tom Daschle to as HHS Secretary. Daschle, the former Senate Democratic leader, is from South Dakota — like Gerberding. Last month, she issued a statement to the press praising Daschle and his "tradition of finding practical solutions to very tough problems."

But Friday's e-mail confirms she will indeed be leaving office, a CDC spokesman said.

"As part of the transition process, the Administration requested resignation letters from a number of senior-level officials, including Dr. Julie Gerberding. This week, the Administration accepted Dr. Gerberding's resignation, effective January 20," CDC spokesman Glen Nowak said in a prepared statement.............................

http://www.tacanow.org/enewsletters_archive/2009/enews-01-09-1.php#anchor6

Things Mickie Does

Every night before bed Mickie brings all his blankets out of his room and troughs them on the other side of the fence leading to the living room. They have to land just right and far enough from the gate, so he can't reach them- why? I don't know..........

Normally, it doesn't bother me much, but it's winter and some nights it gets really cold. A few weeks ago, when the heater broke and it took a week to get a repairman in, he still did it! I remember having to wear double socks, and pajama pants and I was still cold, so I can only imagine how he must have felt.

JOHN TRAVOLTA'S SON FOUND DEAD

I just found out about this and I'm so sorry for his parents. He is in a better place, but his parents must be devastated. I know that many reported that they were not doing anything to help him, but it's not true. I saw Mrs. Presley at a fundraiser for Thoughful House in Autin Texas. It's the hospital for children with autism ran by Dr. Wakefield. I don't know where it was written that they had to admit anything. So they didn't say publicly that he had autism, so what. It's no one's business.

This is part of the article from the New York Post:

John Travolta's 16-year-old son, Jett, died today while the family was vacationing in the Bahamas, police said.

The boy's body was discovered by his caretaker, Jeff Michael Kathrain, at around 10 a.m. in a bathtub in the Travoltas' suite at the Old Bahama Bay Resort Hotel on Grand Bahama island, local police chief superintendent Basil Rahming told The Post.

Attempts to revive him were not successful, officials said.........

http://www.nypost.com/seven/01022009/news/nationalnews/john_travoltas_son_found_dead_146914.htm