AGE OF AUTISM

David Kirby on Autism and the Military: One Very Brave Captain

By David Kirby

I often receive letters from parents of children with autism, from all over the world. They are moving, gratifying, and powerful. They keep me going.

Yesterday, I received a letter that I will never forget. It was from a Captain in the U.S. Army, who has risked his life in the name of his country. He also has three sons on the autism spectrum, and he blames vaccines.

"To be honest, the vast majority of military families dealing with autism that I know, think that vaccines are the cause," Capt. Joe Mickley told me in a phone interview.

Olmsted on Autism: The Decline and Fall of (Almost) Everything

By Dan Olmsted

It's been quite the year, eh? Let's face it: We've reached the point where our government's failures -- to regulate financial institutions, protect the environment, avoid pointless wars and read the Constitution with comprehension -- are crashing into each other like cars on a foggy California highway. And the wreckage is still piling up -- crash, bang, boom! -- with no discernable end in sight. The moment of truth came for me when John McCain aired an ad in which he said, in these words or close, "Things haven't gone so well the past eight years, have they?" When the designated successor to the president of the United States says that, the verdict is unanimous and non-partisan.
 
This is not a political issue -- Age of Autism took no position in the presidential campaign, drawing some irritation from both sides, and we would be just as hopeful and eager to offer advice if John McCain had won. The real issue is that at this moment almost nothing touched by government -- or its inexcusable absence -- is working. People are actually paying the United States Treasury to hold onto their money, the last safe haven this side of a mattress.

Win an Imus Ranch & Greening the Cleaning Holiday Gift Basket!

WINNER! "MAUREEN" I've sent you an email.

Thank you to Deirdre and Don Imus for donating a fabulous holiday gift basket to a lucky Age of Autism reader!  Eat the yummy food and then clean up the mess with environmentally safe products!  Visit Imus Ranch Foods to see the full line of great products. 100% of all profits go to The Imus Cattle Ranch for Kids with Cancer in Ribera, New Mexico.

Enter your name and include your email address in the email line of the comment form! We'll announce the winner tomorrow, so make sure you check back.

Imus Ranch Foods Holiday Gift Basket!

4 Bags - Imus Ranch Foods Turquoise Buffalo Tortilla Chips
1 Jar - Imus Ranch Mild Salsa
1 Jar - Imus Ranch Medium Salsa
1 Jar - Imus Ranch Hot Salsa
1 Jar - Imus Ranch Black Bean Salsa
1 Bag - Imus Ranch Columbian Coffee
1 Bag - Imus Ranch Roast Coffee
2 Imus Ranch Mugs
1 Imus Ranch Special DVD

Plus the Greening The Cleaning Variety Pack!

1 Bottle - GTC Laundry Liquid
1 Bottle - GTC Dishwashing Liquid
1 Bottle - GTC All Purpose Cleaner
1 Bottle - GTC Glass Cleaner

Good luck!  Kim

Maple Syrup for Everyone! Vermont Ranks #1 in Health.

By Kim Stagliano

Well, pass me a mug of Green Mountain coffee and let's share a pint of Cherry Garcia for breakfast - with maple syrup! Vermont is the nation's healthiest state according to America's Health Rankings. 

That's kind of like being the prettiest girl at the ugly contest. Overall, the report says that America is an unhealthy nation. We're fat. We smoke. We lag behind 27 other industrialized nations in life expectancy. We're behind 21 industrialized nations in infant mortality. 

The study did point out that Vermont has one worry. You see, Vermont has a "low immunization rate for children ages 19 to 35 months."  Give them another pint of Chunky Monkey for that one. 

We pay more for healthcare than any other nation. Yet tens of millions of Americans are uninsured. Companies are staggering under healthcare costs for employees and retirees. Many smaller companies can't afford to offer healthcare at all.  Find me a doctor or a patient who is satisfied with the state of our healthcare insurance system.

Barbara Fischkin "The Autism Holiday Gift Conundrum"

Click HERE to read and comment on Barbara Fischkin's blog at Spectrum Publications. You can listen to Barbara on Autism One Radio as "Maverick Mama" too! Here's a sample:

It may be the kindest question any relative or friend has ever asked me about my son Dan.

"What kind of present could I get him?"

As in: What would he like?

My answer is usually quite articulate: Along the lines of "ummm?"

Think about it. As autism parents we go nuts when the rest of the world stares at our kids, or worse, dismisses them. Or when they act as if it's our fault. But when people ask something nice, we freeze.  And sometimes when we freeze, instead of thinking about what is being offered, we remember the worst.

On Media: Why I Hate the British Press

By Anne Dachel

On January 19, 2006, an eighteen month old toddler named George Fisher died in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England.  On December 4 this year, an official inquest declared that he died of "natural causes."   

Many people are asking what's natural about a child who was described as "healthy and robust" in the British press suddenly being found dead in his crib.  It seems that in Britain, things like this simply can't be explained, especially if all the alarming points of evidence are considered unrelated. 

What has the attention of the autism community is the fact that this toddler received an MMR vaccine just ten days before his death.  Not only that, four months earlier, he had a febrile convulsion following a fever.  The Daily Express (HERE) told readers, "His parents claim doctors failed to warn them about the potential side effects he faced after the injection.  They say doctors did not ask them about George's medical history or warn them that he should be monitored after the vaccination." 

DTaP Side Effect: Autism. Now You See It. Now You Don't.

Update: It seems some computers are cutting off the screen before you get to the "autism" listing. I saved the link to a word document so please try THIS.

Managing Editor's Note: Thank you to Angela Warner of Autism Salutes for making the discovery, putting together the timeline, and allow us to run her post. Yes, the DTaP vaccine information included autism in the list of possible side effects. For a while. Once "people" started writing and asking questions about it, the link to the site went into "under revision" mode. Fortunately, original pages always exist on the web.  Here's Angela's post:

The Vaccine Healthcare Center’s Network (VHCN), a collaboration of the Department of Defense (DoD) and Center’s for Disease Control (CDC), decided on December 5, 2008 between 5:35pm and 6:21pm (EST), that the original VHCN webpage (now a cached version) listing autism as an adverse event associated with the DTaP vaccine needed some revision. Click here to see autism listed as a side effect of DTaP. It's right there between and hypersensitivity and demyelinating diseases. Click here to see the page now "under revision".

Following is the continuation of “Evidence of Harm”.

On December 4, 2008, David Kirby wrote “The Pentagon – A Voice of Reason on Vaccines and Autism? HERE Later that day I wrote “The Army Fighting Autism? The Department of Defense?” HERE.

Below is a time line of my day (Dec. 5th) regarding the page now “under revision”. I have put all of the events down in EST, as that is where “disappearing act” took place.

Autism: Extreme Wallet Makeover

Managing Editor's Note: Bob Wright summed it up best on MSNBC last year. "Even if you're rich, autism makes you broke."  My husband lost his job last month. We have readers who've lost their jobs this year. And will likely see many more in 2009, I fear. Autism and unemployment is a particularly tough pairing.  I wish the Vardon's well.

Family fears they'll lose 'Extreme Makeover' home
11 hours ago

OAK PARK, Mich. (AP) — Four years ago, millions of television viewers watched as a deaf couple marveled at the renovations to their home that would help them better accommodate their blind, autistic son.

But now the couple, Judy and Larry Vardon, worry that the home could face foreclosure. They were featured in a two-hour episode of "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" that set a ratings record for the show when broadcast Nov. 6, 2004.

Anderson Cooper Feels a Chill?

UPDATE:  Comments are coming through the blog, including many of ours.  Good news!  Maybe they're just "blogged down?"  Jeez, if we can moderate comments 24/7 I should think CNN would have a few people to help out! At any rate, it's good to see the comments appearing.  KS

So what happened?

Anderson Cooper blogged David Kirby's DOD/CDC piece on his AC360 blog.  They only moderated in nine comments. Then they closed the post for comments altogether. Water too cold for someone?

Most us re-posted our comments HERE on this post.

“What Would One Want From A National Vaccine Plan?"

By Kelli Ann Davis

“What Would One Want From A National Vaccine Plan? A Predictable Regulatory Environment” – Philip Dormitzer, Novartis

Predictable: v. to state, tell about, or make known in advance, especially on the basis of special knowledge.

On December 1st, the Institutes of Medicine’s (IOM) Committee on Review of Priorities in the National Vaccine Plan held its Second National Stakeholder’s Meeting in Irvine, California; this pivotal IOM Committee has been given "carte blanche" marching orders from the National Vaccine Program Office (NVPO) for developing the National Vaccine Plan. (More detailed information at the end of this post.)

Among the invited attendees were pharmaceutical representatives Philip Dormitzer (Novartis), Edward S. Mocarski, Jr. (MedImmune), and Stanley Plotkin (Sanofi Pasteur).  Due to an audio telecast, many of us were able to hear various strategies promoted by these vaccine manufacturers which (more often than not) went virtually unchallenged by government officials; here are some highlights from the meeting:

Strategy 1: Push for Predictability

Dormitzer: When discussing vaccines for the market he states, “We don’t need incentive because it’s already there.”  He’d rather have a “predictable regulatory environment” which “while ensuring public safety one has confidence that the vaccine makes it through.”  And “communication with the public” is his key to making that happen.  But since “we’re not the best advocates because we have a financial incentive” he suggests “government agencies are the advocates” to get the job done.

Autism Sibling Finalist in CMT Contest: We're Mad about Maddie!

Managing Editor's Note:  This beautiful young woman needs our votes!

By Cindy Waelterman

Maddie Georgi is one busy (and talented) 16-year-old.  In addition to being a high school student (her schedule would boggle the mind of any parent, business person or person on the planet) Maddie is one of the final two contestants in CMT’s Music City Madness Contest.

Maddie, whose younger brother Jake was diagnosed with autism at the age of two, has typical feelings of a sibling to a child with autism – the frustration of wanting to help, but not knowing how and the angst at watching others being downright nasty to him affected her deeply.  She wanted to express those feelings and share them with others, so she picked up her guitar and wrote her first song.  “Take My Hand”.  (Visit her MySpace page at www.myspace.com/maddiegeorgi please.)

A Letter to the NJ Health Commissioner

Managing Editor's Note: Barbara wrote this letter to NJ Health Commissioner Heather Howard after the Vaccination Choice meeting held last week.  See a post on the meeting HERE.

By Barbara Majeski

Hi Heather:

Thank you for taking the time to meet with us yesterday to discuss our concerns with the NJ vaccination protocols.  The time you allotted for our immunization discussion was generous and we are most appreciative.  I believe we stand united in our commitment to protect the health of our citizens.

It is clear that we have a public health crisis.  The compliance rates for vaccinations are plummeting. Parents are declining the immunizations because they are confused, poorly informed and feel deceived and bullied into an aggressive vaccination schedule that includes questionable vaccines. We can work together to ensure public health safety if we continue to build a bridge of communication with the concerned citizens of New Jersey and our government officials.  Yesterday I believe we broke ground on building that bridge, however we have much more dirt to move and steel beams to stabilize.

Grandfather Warrior: Robert Emmett 1921-2008

By Adriana Gamondes

An aged man is but a paltry thing,
A tattered rag upon a stick, unless
Soul clap its hands and sing and louder sing
For every tatter in its mortal dress

Sailing to Byzantium, by W.B. Yeats

Just a short time ago, after nine years of flu shots, my father died. He’d survived the Great Depression; he’d survived life in an orphanage until the age of four and then life on the streets of gang-infested Irish Harlem. He’d lived through a march across the African front and Algiers in World War II and had survived a bullet at the Battle of Anzio.  But he couldn’t survive mainstream medicine. 

Child Warrior: Jack

Meet Child Warrior Jack, so named for Jenny McCarthy's book, Mother Warriors.  What a smile!

Tom Daschle, Here are Our Autism Healthcare Stories

Managing Editor's Note:  Ginger Taylor at Adventures in Autism shared this post with us. That's her son Chandler in the photo. Thank you, Ginger.

Tom Daschle is Asking For Your Health Care Stories

Tom Daschle is "asking anybody and everybody to share their health care experiences" HERE.

GO TELL HIM! (HERE)

I encourage you to begin your letter to him, as I have, "I am the _________ of a vaccine injured child". They need to be confronted with that sentence over and over again.

My letter:

I am the mother of a vaccine injured child.

My six year old son had early vaccine reactions, but instead of recognizing them for what they were, his doctors continued to vaccinate him according to the overly aggressive CDC vaccine schedule. After his 18 month shots he began to display the symptoms of Vaccine Induced Encephalopathy, but because his doctors had not been educated on how to look for vaccine induced encephalopathy (loss of eye contact, not responding to stimuli, seem disconnected from the world around them - according to HHS/VICP vaccine injury table [HERE]), his doctor called it "Autism", did no medical investigation of his case, and simply sent him for speech and behavioral evaluations.

Live from Madagascar 2 at the Bow Tie Theater

Diana Yeisley of Autism Speaks organized a private showing of Madascar 2 at the Bow Tie Theater in Trumbull, CT. The lights are up, the volume is lowered, and we could bring our own snacks. The theater is full of families with kids on the spectrum. It's wonderful! Time to watch the movie. KS

Child Warrior: Hunter

Meet Child Warrior Hunter, so named for Jenny McCarthy's book, Mother Warriors. Another beach cutie!

John Robison On Aloneness, Social Failure and Asperger's

Managing Editor's Note: John Robison, author of Look Me In The Eye (now available in paperback) wrote this entry about lonliness and sadness and Asperger's for the Psychology Today blog (Click HERE to read the original post and comment at Psych Today, the verbiage is below.)

If you haven't read Look Me In The Eye, I highly recommend it (click here to purchase) for an intimate and sometimes shocking glimpse into his childhood, teen years and adulthood as an "Aspergian."  The text books tell us that people on the spectrum do not have much emotion and that they enjoy being alone. Read this post and see for yourself.  John is an elegant writer, and I am proud to call him my friend.  Kim

For much of my life, I've carried a burden of sadness. It started when I was three or four, with my failures to make friends with the kids around me. At that age, I was a monkey face and a retard. As I got older, the name calling faded away, to be replaced by something else. I became the kid no one chose, when choices were made.All kids suffer social setbacks, but for those of us with neurological differences like Asperger's, social failure often proves to be the norm.

MMR and the Inquest into the Death of Toddler George Fisher

Editor's note: This story by Allison Edwards on jabs.org/uk is long, absolutely maddening, beautifully observed, heartbreaking -- and well worth reading. This is the way the medical and legal establishment turns away from the truth about vaccine damage -- in this case, the MMR, seizure and death. After reading it, you will not be surprised by this update: The coroner just ruled George Fisher's death was due to natural causes. This and other reports on the case are available HERE.  Our sympathies to the family. -- Dan Olmsted.

The Inquest into the Death of George Fisher

By Allison Edwards

On a dismal and bitterly cold December day, the outside of Gloucester's Shire Hall's was covered up, hidden behind shabby tarpaulin drooped over scaffolding. By the lunchtime break it might have occurred to anyone attending the Inquest into the death of little George Fisher, that some caring renovation work would not have gone amiss on the due process taking place inside the building.

Let me make it clear, procedure may be being followed but there is a distinct air of collaboration amongst the professionals who seek to cover their own backs. 

David Kirby on HuffPo: The Pentagon, A Voice of Reason on Vaccines and Autism?

UPDATE, 12/5 - I recently received a response to my query from Paul Stone, AFIP Public Affairs. He wrote that: "Dr. Centeno's presentation, entititled 'Mercury Poisoning: A Clinical and Toxicological Perspective,' did mention Thimerosal. However, its inclusion was specifically intended to point out that although there has been some speculation about a potential association between Thimerosal and Autism, currently there is no data or science to support such a claim. Neither the AFIP nor Dr. Centeno have been involved in or conducted research on Autism."

I have asked Mr. Stone to clarify why Methyl B-12, DMPS and glutathione GSH appear under the heading "treatments" on Dr. Centeno's thimerosal slide -- DK

Click HERE to read David Kirby's post at HuffPo: The Pentagon, A Voice of Reason on Vaccines and Autism?

When it comes to fighting autism, maybe we should send in the Army.

Autism and the military have a deep history together. Children of service members are reportedly almost twice as likely to have autism (1-in-88) than those in the general population (1-in-150). Meanwhile, the Department of Defense quietly spends millions in taxpayer dollars researching the possible causes of autism at far-from-the-spotlight centers around the country.

Recently, several documents have been brought to my attention which, when viewed together, suggest that the Department of Defense has legitimate concerns about vaccine injuries and their possible connection to autism, perhaps more so than other branches of the Federal Government...  Read the rest and please comment over at HuffPo (link above.)

Parents Meet with NJ's Health Commissioner

By Louise Kuo Habakus (2nd from left.)

Commissioner Howard met with us for two full hours.  Her staff continued with us for an additional thirty minutes.  They listened.  They asked a few questions.  And the Commissioner left us with these words (not verbatim):  "We had a productive meeting.  I am impressed by the commitment, thoughtfulness and passion demonstrated by the parents here today.  I respect the message and the way it was delivered.  As a mother, I was very moved to hear the personal stories you shared.  We want to work with parents to understand your concerns.  We will also work with the AAP to urge them to take a look at the vaccine schedules and… [interruption from secretary, the Governor is on the phone] now, I really have to go." 

But I'm getting ahead of myself.  Let's start from the beginning. 

Olmsted In Spectrum: Historical Epidemiology

Click HERE to read Dan Olmsted's "Eye on Autism" column in Spectrum Magazine.  Here's a taste.

Older parents, eldest kids: We've seen this show before.

If I were to make one criticism of the mainstream media's approach to autism-and Lord knows, there are so many problems to pick from-I'd say this: They've got no sense of history, and they don't have the sense to develop one. Worse, neither do the medical and scientific "experts" we're supposedly counting on to figure out what's causing autism and how we can treat it.

Deirdre Imus: How Do I Find a Green Pediatrician?

By Kim Stagliano

We talk a lot about finding the "right" pediatrician who will accommodate our kids' unique (ahem) medical needs. Today I found a great link at Deirdre Imus' website to the "Integrative Pediatrics Council" HERE which provides a list of "green" pediatricians throughout America (and one in Canada.) Turns out I have a green pediatrician less than ten miles from my home. Of course, I'll miss the four flu vaccine posters in my current practice's examination room and I might not need my Sharpie any longer... 

While I was at Deirdre's site, I saw that you can view the replay of the webcast HERE from her "Forum on Vaccines" at Hackensack University Medical Center, in October.  David Kirby was on the panel.

CNN's Anderson Cooper Blogs David Kirby's "CDC Missed the Memo" Piece

Update:  It seems Mr. Cooper's blogteam needs some moderation assistance. My comment has been sitting since 2:07pm yesterday afternoon.  I see that many of us are in mod limbo together.  Feel free to post your comments in OUR section. Let's hope AC360 isn't vetting the comments with their medical editor...

Click HERE to go into CNN's Anderson Cooper's blog. He picked up David Kirby's Age of Autism piece, DOD and CDC: Studies Suggest a Possible Link Between Multiple Vaccines and Injury. You can read the original (HERE).

Please do comment at Anderson Cooper's blog, won't you? Thanks.  KS

President Elect Obama: The Medical Director of the Autism Research Institute Speaks Out

Dear Mr. President:

As Medical Director of the Autism Research Institute, I add my voice to Mark Blaxill’s eloquent plea for you to “be that guy” who declares autism a national crisis and puts the same careful thought into strategies to confront this epidemic and work collaboratively to solve this crisis as you demonstrated confronting other crises throughout your campaign.

As founder of The Rimland Center, I have committed my professional life to educating clinicians that children with autism are sick and have medical problems that, when treated, often (but not always) lead to improvements in their autism symptoms.  Our center is named after Bernie Rimland (the visionary psychologist who debunked the refrigerator mother myth) and stands for Recovery Initiatives and Mentoring Linking Autism Networks and Discoveries. The waiting list at my center for new patients to be evaluated is over a year long.

Barbara Fischkin: Sex and the Single Young Man with Autism

Little boys and girls grow up to become young adults. And suddenly Thomas the Tank Engine and Zoe Monster aren't quite as interesting as the cute boy or girl who sits near you in speech therapy. Read Barbara Fischkin's take on her son Danny's desire for a girlfriend from her Spectrum Publications blog HERE.

Dan wants a girlfriend.

That he has wanted one for a long time is not news to me or to anyone in our immediate family. It's not news to his teachers or his speech therapist or to the autism consultants who run Dan's public school program and asked about it in the first place several years ago. It's not news to a certain psychologist friend, who around the same time, brought it up and told me I'd have to do something about this.

Me? Why me? Click HERE to read and comment directly to Barbara.

Follow-Up to the Trenton Vaccination Choice Rally

As Follow-Up to the Trenton Vaccination Choice Rally, Parents Meet With NJ Health Commissioner Heather Howard - Meeting Promised By Governor Corzine

December 3, 2008, Trenton, NJ – Four parents from the New Jersey Coalition for Vaccination Choice (NJCVC) are meeting with the Commissioner of the NJ Department of Health and Senior Services (NJDHSS) Heather Howard and seven senior members of her department this morning at 11:00 a.m. at the DHSS Main Building in Trenton.  This meeting was promised by Governor Corzine in September when he addressed a large group of parents gathered on the front lawn of Coalition member Louise Habakus in Middletown after attending a Democratic National Committee fundraiser in honor of then Senator Obama.

DOD and CDC: Studies Suggest a Possible Link Between Multiple Vaccines and Injury

By David Kirby

It looks like the CDC may have missed a memo to itself on vaccine safety.

One very contentious issue in the vaccine-autism debate has been whether a certain subset of genetically susceptible children is unequipped to handle the early and intensive US immunization schedule – including kids like Hannah Poling, who developed autism after receiving nine vaccines at once.

The theory is that some people with abnormal immune or metabolic systems might become overtaxed by the fever, inflammation and/or other stresses sometimes caused by multiple vaccines.

Many doctors and scientists scoff at the notion that someone could be injured by getting too many shots at once. They say that people of all ages, including babies, can handle multiple exposures at any given moment.

Autism One 2009 Highlights!

Managing Editor's Note: If you've been VERY good, maybe Santa will give you a special gift (we all know how hard it is to travel when you have a child on the spectrum) so you can go to Autism One this May! Here are some highlights of what you can expect from our good friends at Autism One.

Autism One 2009 Conference Overview
May 20-24, 2009, Chicago, IL

CHANGE HAS COME!

Did you wonder when change would come for your child?  Did you wonder when the media would begin to turn, when more mainstream doctors and the public would begin to shift their thinking, and when the cumulative body of science would gather steam in exponentially building upon itself?  Well, change has come.... and we are happy to present it at Autism One.

Some 2009 highlights
Selected symposiums, seminars, workshops, think tanks, and lectures
Pre-Conference, Wednesday, May 20 & Thursday, May 21
Introducing EBCALA: The Elizabeth Birt Center for Autism Law and Advocacy

Candace "Candy" Waters Artism Child Warrior

Managing Editor's Note:  Here's a Child Warrior named Candy Waters, so named for Jenny McCarthy's book, Mother Warriors.  Miss Waters is also an artist! You can purchase holiday cards featuring her designs. Her parents are Robert and Sandy Waters, Autism One Radio hosts. From her folks:

Here is the link for our beautiful redheaded eight year old daughter Candy's paintings made into Holiday cards.  They make great gifts for your family and friends for the Holidays!!!  Also, help a wonderful autism organization and support Candy's blooming artistic career. Order them at KINDTREE.ORG.

Sanofi Pasteur Wants Liability Protection for Vaccinating Pregnant Women

Managing Editor's Note:  Kelli Ann and many other Age of Autism readers listened into the 2nd National Stakeholders Meeting on vaccines today. Thanks to everyone who has been commenting and to Kelli Ann for this teaser of much more to come.  Dr. Stanley Plotkin has developed a number of vaccines and worked with Dr. Offit on RotaTeq (HERE.)

By Kelli Ann Davis

Today, during the Institute of Medicine’s (IOM) 2nd National Stakeholder Meeting on the Review of Priorities in the National Vaccine Plan, Stanley Plotkin, Executive Advisor to the CEO of Sanofi Pasteur and Emeritus Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Pennsylvania made a startling revelation: Sanofi Pasteur is lobbying members of the Senate for liability protection.

According to Plotkin, Sanofi Pasteur is concerned about the “legal issue of vaccinating while pregnant” and feels it is “important to keep non-negligence issues” out of the tort system; he stated, “it needs to be addressed” and then went on to say, “I don’t know how it should be done but it needs to be addressed considering what’s happening recently.”

Are Vaccines a Shot in The Arm for a Pediatrician's Bottom Line?

Managing Editor's Note: Pediatricians admit that vaccines bring patients through the door. But are they profitable?  Would you bring your baby to the doctor every couple of months if it weren't for "well visits?"  Bottom line for us? Find a family practitioner who is less dependent on vaccinations for his livelihood and still knows how to treat illness.  You won't get the vaccine hard sell that way, giving you the chance to follow the CDC statement that the AAP schedule is a only a guideline that parents and physicians can tailor to their child's health.

Most pediatricians are likely to keep giving vaccinations to kids, partly because of altruism and partly because giving shots drives business. "For us to give up vaccines would hurt our core business because that's why kids come in," Lessin said.

Calling all Readers! Nominations for the AOA AWARDS '08

Editor's Note: Again this year, Age of Autism will name the year's winners and warriors (and a few sinners) -- and we want your nominations. Please send them by Dec. 10 to me at olmsted.dan@gmail.com. There are several obvious categories involving people, events, publications and media moments. But true to our reader-inspired spirit here at AOA, we'll let you decide.

Past winners -- who are thus ineligible though much appreciated -- include Jenny McCarthy as Person of the Year, Michelle Cedillo as Child of the Year, Ashley Reynolds as Media Person of the Year. But think creatively -- what mattered most in '08 and who or what deserves to be honored? Tell us why, too, and we'll run many of your comments, along with winners and runners-up, over the year-end holidays. (Worst moments, lousiest books, dumbest quotes also are welcome! We wouldn't want to leave anyone off-it) -- Dan Olmsted