AGE OF AUTISM

CONTACT INFO FOR DR. HEALY

By Anne Dachel, Media Editor

I received word that anyone wishing to contact Dr. Healy at US News and World Report where she is Health Editor can send email to Dr. Healy to letters@usnews.com with the subject
line "Attn: Dr. Bernadine Healy."

THEORIES AND HYPOTHESES ABOUT AUTISM

(NOTE: Dr. Schaffner may have to "reconsider" his words after Dr. Bernadine Healy stated today that doctors have purposefully ignored and disparaged research that points a causal finger at vaccines. Anne Dachel provides proof here.)

By Anne Dachel

On May 12, 2008 ABC News put out the story, Court to Hear Families on Vaccine-Autism Link by Dan Childs.  In it we hear (click here to listen) that it's only a theory that thimerosal or the MMR vaccine cause autism and that these theories are opposed by mainstream medicine. 

Dr. Boyd Haley from the University of Kentucky is cited by Childs and described as "a vocal proponent of a vaccine-autism link" who thinks that "the current studies are flawed."  Dr. Haley tells us that these cases being heard in the special court "are indeed the result of an underlying genetic vulnerability being triggered by the mercury."

Dr. William Schaffner, professor at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn., challenges Dr. Haley and refers to his claim as "one of many hypotheses behind the development of autism in some children.  Some of these hypotheses. . . are being investigated. But none so far. . .  have the weight of scientific proof. "

AUTISM COVERAGE AT THE NYT: SINS OF OMISSION

BY ANNE DACHEL

In the April/May issue of SPECTRUM (HERE), a magazine for families and individuals with autism and developmental disabilities, Robert Kennedy Jr. describes what it's like dealing with the New York Times when the subject is autism.   In the article, "RFK, Jr., His crusade
continues," by Sarah Bridges, Ph.D., we hear about a meeting that was supposed to include Kennedy and the editor of the Times to discuss Kennedy's editorial submission on vaccines and autism.

The meeting wasn't what Kennedy expected.  He described it like this:

"I expected a discussion with the editor of the Times, but when I went in to meet, they had assembled a group of science editors that were so hostile and antagonistic, it was like talking to a brick wall."  As far as the Times was concerned, the issue was closed.  Kennedy said, "They were absolutely determined that there would be no public discussion in their paper about mercury and neurological disorders."

This was a striking example of the malaise when the subject is autism.

MORGAN FOGARTY & FOX CHARLOTTE GET AUTISM STORY RIGHT

By Jack Russell

I don’t normally pay too much attention to the local news promos. But as I walked past the TV on my way to take out the trash in between Idol Gives Back segments I heard something that caught my attention. 

“Did they just say they were having a segment (HERE) on vaccines and autism?” I asked my wife.  We watched for more promos and sure enough they were.  And not only that, it seemed from the promos that the piece would be a good one.  The tag lines were questions along the lines of, “Are vaccines dangerous?”and “Can vaccines cause autism?  One local mom says yes.” 

It turned out the piece wasn’t running until the following night but they hyped the story again during the newscast.  It sounded too good to be true.  I started to worry.  I started to get nervous.  All the next day I wondered what the piece would say.  Would they open by posing the question, “Are vaccines dangerous?” and follow it by merely flashing the word “NO” in big red letters a thousand times.  Would the “one local mom” be made out to be an idiot? 

On the edge of my seat I watched and my excitement and surprise grew throughout the segment.  They talked about the continuing presence of thimerosal.  They talked about diet and recovery.  They talked about religious exemptions. 

CNN'S DR. GUPTA INTERVIEW W/ DR. JON POLING

FORBES.COM: 1 in 50 AT RISK?

Forbes.com picked up the NAA press release on mitochondrial disease and autism. You can see their site HERE.

ABC HAS NO SHAME

By Anne Dachel

To back up Dr. Johnson (see a post on the ABC/Tim Johnson story HERE), ABC NEWS also gives us Dr. Peter Hotez and more false claims.

February 29, 2008: Fallout From Vaccine Fear Hits UK Kids (HERE.)

In the article, we're told about parents not vaccinating in the UK over fears about the MMR and the question is asked: "Could it happen here?"

IMUS AND BRIT HUME TODAY

By Anne Dachel

This from Don Imus's radio program this morning:

IMUS:  Interview with guest Brit Hume, Foxnews

IMUS:  Let's talk about John McCain.  He's talked about something that I've talked about for years now.  The link between thimerosal, a mercury preservative in vaccinations, and autism.  There's a body of evidence saying there is a link and a body of evidence suggesting they can't find a link.  Anyway, McCain said, I believe down in Texas some place, that he felt there was a link.  Have you heard anything about that?

THE PARENT IS ULTIMATELY RESPONSIBLE

By ANNE DACHEL

I recently came across something that really said it all.  It was in a report from WAPT-TV in Jackson, MS, called Parents Contest Mandatory Vaccinations. At issue was a proposal in the Mississippi state senate to allow a doctor to write a medical exemption if he or she feels vaccines could harm a child.  A parents support group wants "religious and philosophical exemptions added to the bill. Mississippi and West Virginia are the only states without the exemptions."

A lot of what was in the story was standard.  A father explained that his son developed the signs of autism after his two-year vaccinations.

We were of course given the usual disclaimer that the CDC and FDA point out there's no evidence of a connection.

We also heard from UMC pediatrician William Sorey, who made dire predictions of outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases if kids aren't vaccinated, as if that was also proof that vaccines are safe.

HANDING OUT WHITE CANES AND GUIDE DOGS

By ANNE DACHEL

I watched the news video and read this report from ABC 30-TV in Fresno, CA. Autism: PLAY Project (Click here.) It's all about productive play for young autistic children starting at 18 months up to five years.  I noted the phrase, "the number of cases are growing at an alarming rate," yet with no explanation for why this might be happening.

We hear lots of exciting things about Dr. Rick Solomon, Autism Expert, and his play therapy which can turn non-verbal, unresponsive children into ones who speak and interact. This is the best Dr. Solomon can say about why we have all the affected kids everywhere: "There's no doubt that it's gone from being recognized from one in 10,000 to one in 150. And among boys it's one in every 88. So something seems to be going on."

So what is Dr. Solomon telling us here?  The word "recognized" brings up the "better diagnosing-greater awareness" myth, as if we finally figured out what was really wrong with these kids. Then he says "Something seems to be going on."  SEEMS TO BE?  Could we be more specific?  New parents or parents-to-be have got to be worried.  Could my child be next? Why isn't everyone scared to death?  What if kids were going blind at this sudden increased rate? Would we just be teaching them to read in Braille and handing out white canes and guide dogs?

That's what we're doing with autism.
--
Anne Dachel is Media Editor of Age of Autism

ACTUALLY DR. ORR, PARENTS HAVE BIG WORRIES

By Anne Dachel

In his opinion piece "Parents have no need to fear kids' vaccines" in the Eagle Tribune, North Andover, MA, Dr. Brian Orr dismisses the claim that vaccines like the MMR and mercury-containing ones have anything to do with a child developing autism.  He's got the usual official studies to tell us about.  He writes, "In fact, there has never been a verifiable research study supporting an autism-vaccine link. Many international medical groups have conducted research using vaccine data and have continually concluded that vaccines do not cause autism. There is no link between the MMR vaccine and autism nor between mercury in vaccines and autism. Yet, the rumors regarding vaccines continue."

The reason the rumors continue is because all these official studies are not proof that vaccines are safe.  Dr. Orr needs to realize that this is not about pure science.  It's about who'll be held responsible if it is clearly shown that through complete oversight failure, a generation of children has been exposed to dangerous and damaging vaccines.  Lots of individuals, agencies, and organizations have everything at stake in denying a link.

MISUNDERSTANDING THE ABC's OF THE AUTISM EPIDEMIC

By Anne Dachel

I watched the ABC Nightline "SEE ABC CARES ABOUT AUTISM" piece in which reporter John Donvan investigates how autism affects girls.  We see 8-year-old Kaede Sakai on the news video.  Donvan speaks in soft, concerned tones, expressing his understanding of the struggles faced by this young girl.

Kaede has problems at recess, interacting appropriately with the other students.  She doesn't possess the social skills to get along like most kids.

The question is raised about the rate difference between boys and girls with autism.  Why are boys more likely to have autism than girls?  We're left with the idea that it's easier to recognize autism in boys than In girls.

ABC Nightline produces Brenda Myles, "one of the lead researchers specializing in the quite narrow field of girls with autism. "  This expert tells us that the disparity is because "autism can be more difficult to detect in girls."  We're told "girls are under-diagnosed" and that Myles believes "social skills are not as ingrained in boys as they are in girls."

So what is the lesson ABC Nightline is trying to teach us here?

THE SAD STATE OF THE CALIFORNIA COVERAGE

By Anne Dachel

The findings of the latest autism study out of California should be cause for serious concern.  Autism is still on the rise in that state and no one can tell us for sure why children continue to be diagnosed with this devastating condition.
 
There seems to be a media frenzy to report on the latest news from California, but no one is sounding an alarm or demanding answers. The important thing about this research is that it's being cited as more proof that the mercury-based vaccine preservative thimerosal doesn't cause autism.   Researchers are running the numbers and saying that since thimerosal was removed from childhood vaccines starting in 2001, we should be seeing a noticeable drop in autism rates. Since this isn't happening, thimerosal can't be at fault.

ZILCH FROM ZETIA

By Kim Stagliano

From the New York Times: "A clinical trial of Zetia, a cholesterol-lowering drug prescribed to about 1 million people a week, failed to show that the drug has any medical benefits, Merck and Schering-Plough said on Monday."

You've seen the gorgeous ad campaign for Vytorin, which is Zetia and Zocor together.  Heck, I can hear the tooty little song in my head right now, with the people who resemble food.  Read the full article from The Times HERE. You no longer have to pay for The Times online, but you might have to sign up.

How many of you are on this drug? Your parents? Grandparents? A million prescriptions a week and it does nothing? I expect medical doctors across the country to express their outrage at having duped their patients into thinking they were getting medical treatment.  Come on, AMA. I'm waiting.

Kim Stagliano is Managing Editor of Age of Autism, a writer, blogger and the mother of three children with autism.

DO FINANCIAL TIES AFFECT STUDIES?

Study "Disproving" Mercury-Autism Link Published in Journal with Financial Ties to Vaccine Manufacturers. The Journal is the AMA's Archives of Psychiatry. Read the full post from NewsTarget HERE.

Shouldn't immunologists, toxicologists, gastroenterologists, neurometabolic specialists and other doctors be tackling the myriad questions about autism, mercury, vaccinations, viruses, etc. instead of psychiatrists? The refrigerator theory died over 40 years ago. It's time for the psychiatrists to release their hold on autism and hand it over to the big boys who can do something about it.

HARVARD FUMBLES THE AUTISM STORY

By Anne Dachel

I read the cover story, A Spectrum of Disorders, The urgent search to understand the biological basis of autism, by Ashley Pettus in the current HARVARD MAGAZINE for January - February 2008. I printed out the eight page article and looked through it for details about autism. 

Ashley Pettus writes about the "urgent search to understand" autism, but what we were given in her report hardly indicates that autism is anything to really be concerned about.  Lots of theories are mentioned at length with impressive-sounding terms like "genomics," "spontaneous genetic change," and "cognitive deficit," but if readers picked up the article thinking that they'd learn anything new to explain why autism is now an epidemic, they'd be sadly disappointed.

"TODAY'S MAN" FILM FOLLOWS ASPERGIAN NICKY GOTTLEIB

Check your local listings (right here) for the "Independent Lens" film called "Today's Man." airing on PBS this month.

From the Independent Lens site: TODAY’S MAN tells the story of Nicky Gottlieb, a former child genius who, at age 21, is diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome. People with Asperger’s, which is a form of autism, tend to be highly intelligent—often geniuses in certain subjects—but are unable to pick up on social cues. The subtleties of body language, facial expression, tones or gestures are lost to Nicky, and his own behavior can be considered by others to be bizarre and inappropriate.

PBS PRESENTS: THE MEDICATED CHILD

PBS's Frontline presents THE MEDICATED CHILD on Tuesday, January 8th at 9:00pm. Check your local PBS listings to confirm the time.  They will examine both sides of the debate over the use of powerful drugs in children.   

We ask, "Why are children being diagnosed with profound mental illness (bi-polar!) at such young ages?" Yes, we need to look at the efficacy and safety of the drugs, that's a given. But who will have the courage to demand WHY are our kids so sick?

In recent years, there’s been a dramatic increase in the number of children being diagnosed with serious psychiatric disorders and prescribed medications that are just beginning to be tested in children. The drugs can cause serious side effects, and virtually nothing is known about their long-term impact. “It’s really to some extent an experiment, trying medications in these children of this age,” child psychiatrist Dr. Patrick Bacon tells FRONTLINE. “It’s a gamble. And I tell parents there’s no way to know what’s going to work.”

In The Medicated Child, airing Tuesday, January 8, 2008, at 9 P.M. ET on PBS (check local listings), FRONTLINE producer Marcela Gaviria confronts psychiatrists, researchers and government regulators about the risks and benefits of prescription drugs for troubled children. The biggest current controversy surrounds the diagnosis of bipolar disorder. Formerly called manic depression, bipolar disorder was long believed to exist only in adults, but, in the mid-1990s, bipolar in children began to be diagnosed at much higher rates, sometimes in kids as young as 4 years old. “The rates of bipolar diagnoses in children have increased markedly in many communities over the last five to seven years,” says Dr. Steven Hyman, a former director of the National Institute of Mental Health. “I think the real question is, are those diagnoses right? And in truth, I don’t think we yet know the answer.”

NJ DOC VS. PARENT: COMMENTARY ON VACCINES

By Anne Dachel

Last week, the Courier Post in New Jersey had two commentaries in the opinion section that are a stunning example of what the controversy over vaccines and autism is all about.  One of the pieces was from a physician, Dr. Meg Fisher, and the other was from a mother, Holly Masclans, who is also a member of A-CHAMP (Advocates for Children's Health Affected by Mercury Poisoning.

With the title, Vaccinations Are Still Needed for Kids, Dr. Fisher gives readers a list of over a dozen diseases that she says have been eliminated by vaccinations.  It seems the doctor's comments were in response to the heated argument that grew out of the mandate for four new vaccines in the childhood schedule in New Jersey. 

AGE OF AUTISM AWARD: BEST MEDIA

By Anne Dachel

AGE OF AUTISM AWARD FOR BEST REPORTING: ASHLEY REYNOLDS, KOMU-TV

BY ANNE DACHEL

Over the last six years I've spent a great deal of time writing to reporters who cover autism.  I've done this for one reason:  The truth about the damage being done by vaccines and the cover-up by officials will continue until the public is made aware of the facts.  It's that simple.  We can have endless statistics and scientific research about vaccines and autism, but unless the press tells the public, the lies will just go on.  People trust the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention when they say there is no link.  I've found the press does too.  It takes a lot of courage to stand up to the medical establishment and to the CDC, and few reporters or editors can do it. 

AGE OF AUTISM AWARD: WORST MEDIA

AND NOW, THE AOA AWARDS FOR BAD MEDIA STORIES

By ANNE DACHEL

I was asked to write on the worst autism coverage in the news over the past year.  At first, that seemed like a daunting task.  There were so many times over the last year when people in the news wrote absolutely outrageous articles on autism, especially on the cause of autism.  It was so hard to continually read articles that casually said that while autism affects one in every 150 children and one in every 94 boys, there's no need to worry.  It's always been like this, we just didn't have doctors smart enough to know autism when they saw it.  (This claim is especially ludicrous considering the American Academy of Pediatrics recently called for pediatricians to do autism checks so these kids aren't missed.  What happened to the idea that doctors were already doing a great job finding kids with autism?)

CDC AND AUTISM PREVENTION

By Anne Dachel

This week came another installment of the Combating Autism From Within series from KOMU-TV Columbia MO.  This one was called, "Possible Prevention."

Right away I thought that's a term you rarely hear in connection with autism.  Preventing doesn't get coverage since the claim is often made that autism is a genetic disorder. 

DOC VS. DOC OVER FLU VACCINE IN NEW JERSEY

By Anne McElroy Dachel, Media Editor

I don't think it was the intention of the New Jersey Public Health Council to stir up the heated debate over vaccines and autism that's getting coverage everywhere in the press.  The story about mandating four new vaccines for preschoolers and children in day care in NJ is even in the New York Times.  This publicity only serves to fuel the already contentious claim that unsafe vaccines are linked to the epidemic of autism among our children.

I'LL NEVER GROW UP: THE LOOMING EXPLOSION OF ADULTS WITH AUTISM

By Anne Dachel, Media Editor

An Associated Press STORY came out on Dec. 3 that was published in the Enterprise-Record in Chico, CA.  The headline, "Autism Explosion Due in Part to Expanded Defintions" is what got my attention. We were assured once again that while it may seem that there has been an "autism explosion" in the U.S., that couldn't be farther from the truth.

THE CDC RESPONDS: LISTENING TO DR. WHARTON

By Anne Dachel, Media Editor

Late Tuesday night a news story came out on the Internet from WXIA TV in Atlanta called  Autism Controversy: The CDC Responds.  Just the title was intriguing since I've heard from a number of reporters that officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention don't do on camera interviews about the vaccine-autism controversy.  They usually just refer members of the press to the CDC website for answers.  There reporters are resoundingly told that exhaustive studies show no link between the vaccines our children receive and autism.

(From Kim: Hey! How about a contest! Write a caption for this photo in CDC style. In the movie, Dr. Evil is saying, "La-ser" in a manner that connotes "big fat lie."  So have at it!)

MICHELE GILLEN, CBS4: TO VACCINATE OR NOT?

The purpose of the media is to ask hard questions, whether politically and fiscally expedient or not. Michele Gillen, from CBS4 in Florida does a terrific job HERE.  You can send Michele an email HERE.  Thank you, Michele.

Here's a taste:

"When asked if the decision to vaccinate or not could put a child in danger, (Dr.) Ryndland responded, "Absolutely. The vaccines sometimes are the straw that breaks the camel's back. The question is if the immune system is overloaded with too many vaccines over too short a period of time, or sometimes, in some cases where children are very susceptible, even one vaccine might cause a problem."

Rydland says there are many theories of why the mercury based preservative thimerisol captured headlines and was, according to the CDC, removed at their request from most childhood vaccines. Ryndland says it might not be the mercury but injections of multiple viruses into young children who may have compromised immune systems that could present a possible risk of triggering a variety of neurological problems."

FIRING BACK AT MICHAEL FUMENTO

By Anne Dachel, Media Editor

Sometimes when people report in the news that there isn't an increase in autism, that all the children called autistic overwhelming our schools have always been here, I know it's because that's the official explanation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.   And when these reporters tell us that the cause of autism is still unknown, but studies show that there's no link to the vaccines children received, I realize that's also the information that's out there from federal health authorities.  It's a complex subject and a reporter taking a brief look into autism goes to the CDC for answers because they get billions of dollars to run health care in the U.S.

Michael Fumento doesn't have this excuse. Looking through his writing over the last several years, it's obvious he's familiar with those who are sounding an alarm over the autism epidemic and who believe that vaccines are the cause.  To Fumento, scientists like Dr. Mark Geier and his son David, along with Dr. Boyd Haley of the University of Kentucky are "anti-vaccinationists."  Others who are writing on the subject like Robert Kennedy Jr., Jenny McCarthy, and David Kirby are also grouped together under the heading "vaccine conspirators."

THE WEEK THAT WAS: FIRST SKIRMISH IN THE FORCED-VACCINATION WAR

By Anne Dachel, Media Editor

The events of the past week put vaccines in the spotlight.  It seemed the line was being drawn and the sides are clearly shown. 

The New York Times piece, Study Indicates Benefit of Vaccines on Tuesday, gave us the results of another new CDC vaccine study.  We were told, "The agency has never before searched historical records going back to 1900 to compile estimates of cases, hospitalizations and deaths for all the diseases that children are routinely vaccinated against."   

The article couldn't say enough good things about the success of the vaccine program: "Death rates for 13 diseases that can be prevented by childhood vaccination s are at all-time lows in the United States, according to a study released yesterday."

US AUTISM AND ASPERGER ASSOC. NAMES NEW CHIEF MEDICAL OFFICER

Salt Lake City, UT – US Autism and Asperger Association (USAAA), one of the largest voluntary autism and Asperger organizations in the United States and a world leader in providing education for interventional treatment options, today announced the appointment of Phillip C. DeMio, M.D. as Chief Medical Officer.

This position is the Association's most senior clinical advisor, providing management oversight of the organization's research, surveillance, epidemiology and international programs. The Chief Medical Officer frequently serves as chief spokesperson regarding medical and scientific policy issues for this global nonprofit association.

HANDS OFF OUR KIDS

By Anne McElroy Dachel

The American Association of Physicians and Surgeons has put out an alert to their members about the tactics being used to force parents to vaccinate their children in MD.  In the principles of this medical organization it states, "A physician's first professional obligation is to his patient, then to his profession"  and the AAPS is living up to their claim.

The AAPS announced, "IMMEDIATE ACTION NEEDED TODAY FROM HANDS OFF OUR KIDS COALITION Stop Imprisonment of more than 1600 Maryland parents In vaccine roundup."

Jenny McCarthy Bares All in CDC Call!

By Kim Stagliano

I knew that headline would encourage you to read the article....

The beautiful, funny, autism Mom/best selling author/actress named Jenny McCarthy called the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) LIVE during her presentation at the National Autism Association Conference last weekend in Atlanta.

Age of Autism has the five minute phone call on videotape! CLICK HERE! 

You'll need the free Apple Quicktime software to watch the clip.The clip takes a few seconds to download and the audio synch is a bit off, but you'll get the jist of her call. 

Jenny is NOT letting the CDC off the hook when it comes to vaccines and the autism epidemic.  She has the brains, the beauty and a platform that's even higher than her heels to get her message out. 

A couple of weeks ago, an autism Mom sort of rolled her eyes when I mentioned Jenny's book Louder Than Words and asked me, "Do you think she's the real deal?" Yes I do. She spent three days at the conference, meeting parents, signing books and DVD's and made time for the many kids with autism who were there with their parents.

You know, another big name in autism likes to say, "Autism knocked on the wrong door." But Jenny McCarthy has put her MOUTH where her money is. (And what a mouth it is!) My money (what little is left after caring for my three children with autism) is on Jenny McCarthy.

Go, Jenny, go! And thank you, "Sweetie."

CLICK HERE for weekly updates on Jenny's media tour. You'll want to meet her when she's in your area.

(Thank you to the folks at Life is My Movie Entertainment Company for creating the file for Age of Autism.)

Schools Policing Vaccination Rates

By Kim Stagliano

Here's my take on the Prince George's County situation.

If you think reproductive healthcare is a hot topic, check out THIS STORY on a court in Prince George's County, Maryland calling in parents of children whose vaccination records are incomplete and who do not have exemption paperwork.

No matter what your opinion on the safety of our national vaccine program, do you want your school district or a judge telling you which medical decisions you must make for your child? 

The school district sent these parents to court. It's rather ironic that the schools, who are so often out of compliance on our children's IEP's and the basic tenets of IDEA, are sending parents to court for being out of compliance on their vaccine policy.

Where is the ACLU? What about Parents' Rights?

  By Anne McElroy Dachel

It truly caught me by surprise yesterday to read this Fox News story and watch the video on FOX 5 News in Washington DC.  The story was titled, "Parents Of Teens Lacking Immunization Called To Court."


The public heard about parents who were getting the required vaccines for their children to attend school.  We were told that officials had done everything to try to get them to have their children immunized; now a judge was ordering them to court where they would have to have their kids vaccinated or face jail time and a fine.

NYT HEARTS CDC

By Dan Olmsted

The New York Times reports today that "Death rates in 13 diseases that can be prevented by childhood vaccinations are at all-time lows in the United States, according to a study released yesterday." The study is from the CDC, whose pronouncements the NYT treats with a reverence usually reserved for utterances from Mount Olympus. Sure, the agency is entitled to trumpet that information -- although the fact that many of these diseases were in precipitous decline due to better hygiene before vaccines were used might have provided useful context.

But must the Times continue to show its bias at every opportunity?

Vioxx and vaccines

By Anne Dachel
Media Editor

Last Friday it was announced that Merck Pharmaceutical Company would pay $4.85 billion to settle the 60,000 personal injury lawsuits involving Vioxx.There were reportedly more than 27,000 stroke and heart attack deaths in the U.S. resulting from the arthritis medicine. This news may not seem to have a connection to the autism epidemic, but I could instantly relate it to the controversy linking vaccines to autism.

The Associated Press Story "Merck settles Vioxx lawsuits" that I read left me with a question: How could something that brought pain relief to millions of people around the world have had such disastrous side effects? What went wrong? The fact that so many people died or were injured makes us wonder about things like FDA oversight and the ethics of the pharmaceutical industry.

The Merck disaster does relate to the controversy over vaccines and autism. Vaccines are universally praised as lifesaving. Many feel they're the greatest medical achievement in history -- truly the sacred cow of health care. Anyone claiming that vaccines are also doing damage comes under immediate attack. Those of us who call vaccines into question find ourselves up against the medical community and the federal health agencies.

Anne McElroy Dachel Questions Mike Stobbe

By Anne McElroy Dachel

The story that autism hasn't increased, that the skyrocketing number of children with the disorder are nothing new is getting coverage everywhere in the media.

AP writer Mike Stobbe assures us that "many experts believe these unsociable behaviors were just about as common 30 or 40 years ago. The recent explosion of cases appears to be mostly caused by a surge in special education services for autistic children and by a corresponding shift in what doctors call autism."

I would like to ask Mike Stobbe this question: "If these kids with autism have always been here, but mislabeled as something else, then what did we do with them?"

As a parent and a teacher, I can tell you that it's very hard to miss an autistic child, even a mildly affected one.  We would have had to provide help for their special needs, even if they weren't labeled "autistic."   Why are our schools overwhelmed with so many children with special needs who weren't here twenty years ago?