Last night, I was at the kitchen table, eating a small container of leftover pasta with pesto that I had made for dinner at 3:00pm and left on a warming tray for my helpers to serve for dinner while I worked from 4:00 - 7:30 teaching karate. Let me explain. I teach four nights a week. In order to do so, I have a team of kind, smart, funny, beautiful, caring, logical, intuitive helpers that I am able to hire with a budget through DDS here in Connecticut. They are well paid, well fed (ha  ha) and part of the fabric our our lives. Without them, I would never leave the house. No joke. I trust them with my daughters' psyches, well being, health and their very lives. 

At 8:41pm, my 26 year old with severe autism walked over and stood in front of me.  She usually brushes her teeth and tucks herself into bed when she feels tired. Last night was different. She took my hand.  Which told me she needed something. I walked with her to the bedroom she shares with her sister. I waited. She took my hand and looked at me. Not a word. She speaks with prompting. Short 2 or 3 word sentences. I looked at what she was wearing and knew right away what she needed. She got a pair of black sweatpants with a drawstring waist for Christmas. She needed me to tie a bow in the  dangling strings. I tied them. She got into bed. Content. Now, I know well enough never to buy pants with a drawstring. She wears yoga pants that do NOT need to be tied. She can not tie and frankly, I don't give two poops that she can not tie. I saw that goal on her IEP for 17 years. It's enough. But the person who bought her the sweatpants did not take into account that Mia does not tie, and that the untied strings would bother her. And that someone would need to help her. Me. Her Mom. It was a simple moment that brought the crushing weight of the responsibility I bear and that so  many of our readers bear. I had just read the story below. What of those children without Mom to know what they need. Or worse, monsters wearing the mask of staff, caretakers. But monsters down to their souls:

The story will sicken you. Scare you. More that any of us is already sick and scared. And we are. Sick of being ignored. Scared of dying and leaving our children behind. Because there will always be strings to tie. And monsters in masks. Always.

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Twenty Chester County Devereux staffers allegedly harmed children — or kept quiet about the abuse — since 2018. The company says it's continuing its reforms.

Note: At the beginning, in the middle and at the end of the day we are site about autism. Today I want to share Michelle Guppy's very personal update posted on From Hell to Hopeism, her blog that follows life with a severely affected adult son. Her handsome Brandon. Wracked with seizures. Tall. Blond. Smile that would fell a sorority house if he could ever have gone to college. He, like so many of our "kids,"  is home with Michelle and her husband. Every day. And COVID is taking a toll on them. 

The entire world changed literally overnight for COVID. For those of us who have been in the autism world for going on decades, it's a kick in the teeth knowing the government can effect change (for better or worse, and we won't go there today) while all of us have been left behind and not just ignored, but vilified. It ain't right.

###

By Michelle Guppy

I write this for me.

That I am sharing it with you is a miracle of sorts. There was only one other time I allowed my "vanity to vanish" in the face of such pain and darkness. That post can be found by clicking here.

I want to remember how I felt on this day, so that days, weeks, or months from now when I've healed, I will be able to look back and see what great works God has done.

I don't even think this picture does justice to the pain I've been feeling for a while now.

No, not that pain, that cruel, relentless, hideous, nighmarish pain of watching my son suffer in his vaccine injury "Life with Autism, Seizures, and a side of PANDAS".

Rather the pain my body is feeling from the chronic, continual, equally cruel stress of having absolutely no consistency. No balance. No me.

Yeah, that sounds pretty selfish. "No me".

I get it.

I've read the books where it says it's not about "me".

We warriors get that.

Trust me.

In fact, the past year has so not been about me, my body has rebelled.

It has said enough.

No more.

Problem is, there is more.

That's the beauty of this life with vaccine injury. It is a beast that keeps roaring. It doesn't understand enough. It demands more. More time, more money, more attention, more sacrifice. It demands everything you have, and then it demands even more.

And so I find myself in this state of such pain.

I feel a bit like Rizzo in Grease. Yesterday, for the first time in almost 15 years, we were shutdown on social media. Twitter blocked our post on the Centers for Disease Control having made a change to their website relevant to our core topic. 
Our information was accurate to a fault. I guess that was the problem.

I have copied below the COVID policy currently at Twitter.  This was our first offense, so the Tweet was deleted. I don't know how many violations the post ticked, and the policy is clear as mud. Who defines false or misleading uncontextualized info that can prevent the public from making informed decisions regarding their health, and puts individuals, families and communities at risk that could lead to harm?  Stopping information leads to more informed decision making? 

I don't feel confident we'll be around the Twitterverse much longer - The accumulation of multiple violations of this policy will result in suspension. Further, if we determine that an account is dedicated to Tweeting or promoting a particular misleading narrative (or set of narratives) about COVID-19, this would also be grounds for suspension.

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COVID-19 misleading information policy
Overview

You may not use Twitter’s services to share false or misleading information about COVID-19 which may lead to harm.

Even as scientific understanding of the COVID-19 pandemic continues to develop, we’ve observed the emergence of persistent conspiracy theories, alarmist rhetoric unfounded in research or credible reporting, and a wide range of unsubstantiated rumors, which left uncontextualized can prevent the public from making informed decisions regarding their health, and puts individuals, families and communities at risk.

Content that is demonstrably false or misleading and may lead to significant risk of harm (such as increased exposure to the virus, or adverse effects on public health systems) may not be shared on Twitter. This includes sharing content that may mislead people about the nature of the COVID-19 virus; the efficacy and/or safety of preventative measures, treatments, or other precautions to mitigate or treat the disease; official regulations, restrictions, or exemptions pertaining to health advisories; or the prevalence of the virus or risk of infection or death associated with COVID-19. In addition, we may label Tweets which share misleading information about COVID-19 to reduce their spread and provide additional context.

What is in violation of this policy?

Safeminds announced this Webinar on their website. We thought it might be of interest to some of our readers:

Free Event on March 2nd Examines How to Manage Your Child’s Most Challenging Behaviors

Register here.

Since many children with autism also present with ADHD symptoms, this new webinar from ADDitude Magazine may be helpful. In this webinar, you will learn:

How the pandemic has exacerbated the expression of ADHD symptoms
Techniques to increase positive interactions with your child or teen
Effective discipline strategies to manage problematic behavior at home
Suggestions for adapting discipline techniques to the challenges of online schooling

7:30am - Twitter just turned off our account because of this post.

Note: In 2010, JB Handley coined a phrase called feeding the hungry lie:

The “hungry lie” on autism is both maddeningly simple and simply maddening and goes something like this: “It’s been asked and answered, vaccines don’t cause autism.” As I’ve written about repeatedly, this is a huge lie, a critical lie, and a very “hungry” lie, because it constantly needs to be fed.

Below, Ginger Taylor takes you through history, dating back to 1943. I think Dan Olmsted would have been very proud of her work.

by Ginger Taylor

[Update: The day after this post was published and widely circulatd, January 26th, CDC replaced the Hungry Lie back onto their web site after five months.  Their position has nothing to do with science.]

This week it was announced that The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has removed from their web site what JB Handley deemed “The Hungry Lie”.

"Vaccines do not cause autism.”

Bowing to legal pressure from the three year campaign waged by the Informed Consent Action Network (ICAN), CDC quietly removed the false claim from their website on August 27^th, 2020. They did it so quietly in fact, that neither anyone at ICAN, nor the dozens of vaccine watchdog organizations, nor the tens of thousands of Americans that have been decrying the false claim even noticed, until someone at ICAN checked the site again on January 20^th, and found that The Hungry Lie was gone. A search of the Internet Archive shows the last day the fraud was posted was August 26^th, and it was gone on August 27^th.

ICAN deserves high praise for accomplishing the feat, the latest in a line of ongoing court victories. Their dogged legal team is led by Aaron Siri, the man who managed to get Dr. Stanley Plotkin, considered by the medical establishment to be the greatest living vaccinologist to admit that there is no research on the Pertussis vaccine and autism. Nor on any vaccine that is not the MMR.

This is of importance to me as my son regressed into autism after Pertussis, Hep B, and five other vaccines, none of which contained mercury, and he never received the MMR. So all the research that it thrown at me to prove to me that my son does not have vaccine induced autism, doesn't even apply to his case. Because there is no vaccine-autism research outside of MMR and Thimerosal that exists, other than the Hep B studies that find massive links, and health authorities don't like to talk about those.

ICAN's three year, Herculean accomplishment was met with joy, by the vaccine injury community, but also a bit of confusion. “But the page still says, "there is no link between vaccines and autism?” Thus I thought it was important to put their win into historical context.

Those of us who have become old fighting this fight have been front row to the changing and contradictory claims of of CDC and her sister “health authorities” as they try not to accurately answer the question of whether or not their vaccine program created the autism epidemic. Here I present a lengthy but incomplete history of how we got here, and why ICAN should be lauded for turning back the clock to the days where CDC even made a pretense of being truthful on this issue.

Let's start with the cover story for The Hungry Lie. The story that mainstream medical professionals are told is true, and can't understand why the public doesn't believe them. Let's call it The Desperate Lie:

“It's that scoundrel Wakefield's fault.”

The College of Physicians of Philadelphia says in their History of Vaccines,

“The story of how vaccines came to be questioned as a cause of autism dates back to the 1990s. In 1995, a group of British researchers published a cohort study in the Lancet showing that individuals who had been vaccinated with the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine (MMR) were more likely to have bowel disease than individuals who had not received MMR. One of these researchers was gastroenterologist Andrew Wakefield, MD, who went on to further study a possible link between the vaccine and bowel disease by speculating that persistent infection with vaccine virus caused disruption of the intestinal tissue that in turn led to bowel disease and neuropsychiatric disease (specifically, autism).”

No.

The story of how vaccines came to be questioned as a cause of autism dates back to the first paper describing autism in 1943.

1943 - Roosevelt Administration

In his disorder defining paper "Autistic Disturbances of Affective Contact," published in Nervous Child in 1943, Leo Kanner of Johns Hopkins University included the first report of vaccine induced autistic regression. In Kanner's case series describing the first 11 children documented to have the disorder, case number 3, “Richard M.” is reported by his mother to have begun his developmental regression following a smallpox vaccination. From the paper:

“Case 3. Richard M. was referred to the Johns Hopkins Hospital on February 5, 1941, at 3 years, 3 months of age, with the complaint of deafness because he did not talk and did not respond to questions.”

“Following smallpox vaccination at 12 months, he had an attack of diarrhea and fever, from which he recovered in somewhat less than a week.”

“In September, 1940, the mother, in commenting on Richard's failure to talk, remarked in her notes: I can't be sure just when he stopped the imitation of words sounds. It seems that he has gone backward mentally gradually for the last two years.”

The time line of Richard M, according to the paper, is thus:

November 1937 – Born

November 1938 – Vaccinated with Smallpox vaccine

September 1940 – Mother reports developmental regression beginning approximately two years previously, the autumn of 1938.

February 1941 – Referred to Hopkins for evaluation, and in 1943, becomes the third child to be described as autistic by Leo Kanner in his disorder defining paper, the first paper published on autism, 52 years before Wakefield.

NOTE: What kind of additional liability protection is this edict setting up?  Who defines an "exceptional situation?" We have no idea what mixing these two brand new vaccines could do. This seems like reckless and blatant human experimentation.  Remember the old drinking adages: Liquor then beer, never fear. Beer then liquor, never sicker. Here's a C19 take: Moderna then Pfizer you must believe the lies-a. Pfizer then Moderna you may never return-a.

###

From CNBC: CDC quietly changes Covid vaccine guidance to OK mixing Pfizer and Moderna shots in ‘exceptional situations’

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention quietly changed its guidance on Covid-19 vaccine shots, saying it’s now OK to mix Pfizer’s and Moderna’s shots in “exceptional situations” and that it’s also fine to wait up to six weeks to get the second shot of either company’s two-dose immunization.

While Pfizer’s and Moderna’s vaccines, which both use messenger RNA technology, were authorized to be given 21 and 28 days apart, respectively, the agency now says you can receive either shot so long as they are given at least 28 days apart, according to new guidance posted Thursday on its website.

Although “every effort” should be made to ensure a patient receives the same vaccine, in rare situations “any available mRNA COVID-19 vaccine may be administered at a minimum interval of 28 days between doses” — if supplies are limited or the patient doesn’t know which vaccine they originally received, the CDC’s new guidance says.

By Cathy Jameson

This memory is from an unfortunate event that happened back in 2015.  Meltdowns aren’t ancient history for us yet, which is why we continue to work hard to give Ronan the language he needs.  Communication is key.  It is key for so many reasons.

I shared some major gains that Ronan's been making with some people last weekend.  I might've jinxed myself for sharing all that awesome though.  What happened on Monday was not awesome.  

As we left the Big Box store that Ronan's been able to navigate in and out of like a boss lately, he melted.  Oh, how that child melted down.  Maybe it was because he didn't fall asleep until after 10:30 pm the night before.  Maybe it was because I had to wake him up early on a day that he normally gets to sleep in.  Maybe it was because I had to race him and his little sisters to the girls' school because I'd overslept and the girls missed the carpool.  Maybe it was because I later took him to a store he had no interest in going.  Maybe it was because we left the store through a different door.  Maybe it was because he didn't get the special treat he's been offered during other recent shopping trips.  Maybe it was because of all of those reasons.  

Maybe it was because of none of those reasons.  

Whatever the reason, Ronan had a meltdown that lasted for 33 minutes - ten of which were in the parking lot in front of a lot of other shoppers.  The other 23 minutes were in the car.  Those 23 minutes were not any easier.  

That's when things got a little carried away.  

Ronan was still not cooperating once he was in the car with me or with his therapists, so we continued to wait things out.  After several failed attempts at getting Ronan to communicate, I brainstormed another idea.  At this point, I was in the backseat trying to encourage and redirect Ronan to sit safely in his car seat.  He was in the car but not seated yet.  Since Ronan loves his movies so much, I thought if we could get him to request a movie, we could turn his behavior around.  But then I thought of something better.  Maybe if I turned on some music first, something he’s highly motivated by, he'd asked for me to change it.  I thought before I changed the song, I'd be able to encourage Ronan to sit.  If I could get him safely in the car seat, I could buckle him up.  If I could buckle him up, we could get going.  If we could get going, I could turn on his movie.  That sounded simple enough, but because the situation had already gone south, and quickly, I wasn't sure my plan would work. 

It didn't.  

I turned on a CD.  It’s a favorite of mine and one that I thought for sure that Ronan would immediately ask me (through sign language) to "change".  

He didn't.  

Instead of signing change or asking for a movie, Ronan relaxed.  Still firmly planted on the floorboard of the car, he quieted down, he leaned into me, and then, he actually enjoyed the music!

 
Yet again, I preface a post with, "We take no joy in this story."

On January 5, baseball and civil rights icon Hammerin' Hank Aaron publicly received his Covid vaccine in the hopes of instilling confidence in people of color. His heart was in the right place. Two weeks later, he has passed away "peacefully in his sleep." No mention of Covid or the vaccine. We’ll make the comment some readers are itching to type to save them the effort: “Correlation does not equal causation.” Rest in peace, Hank Aaron.

Source Buffalo News: ATLANTA (AP) — Hank Aaron, who endured racist threats with stoic dignity during his pursuit of Babe Ruth's home run record and gracefully left his mark as one of baseball's greatest all-around players, died Friday. He was 86.

The Atlanta Braves, Aaron's longtime team, said he died peacefully in his sleep. No cause was given.

Aaron made his last public appearance just 2 1/2 weeks ago, when he received the COVID-19 vaccine. He said he wanted to help spread the to Black Americans that the vaccine was safe.

Keep scrolling for photo gallery of Hank Aaron through the years

"I don't have any qualms about it at all, you know. I feel quite proud of myself for doing something like this," he said. "It's just a small thing that can help zillions of people in this country."

Read more:  Hank Aaron, Hall of Famer and former home run king, dies at 86 Hank Aaron, Hall of Famer and former home run king, dies at 86

Well jump into your Pinto and get your shots! California has opted to allow the Moderna vaccine that was temporarily halted due to severe adverse reactions back into the Covid game. Suit up, kid! If a bag of lettuce sickened four people in Montana, the company would pull the bags from every shelf from sea to shining sea in the abundantly cautious version of America. That's the America where companies are liable for injury. We're abundantly cautious when it comes to spreading Coronavirus. Masks. Closures. Businesses wiped out. Families separated as elderly are locked in their facilities and the disabled in theirs, as cruel as any cage on the border. We're abundantly cautious even as we throw kids' mental health and educations into the toilet. And as if under a spell, even those injured are racing back to Stockholm for a second dose.  In fact, the woman quoted in the article below, whose throat closed faster the crocodile's mouth on Captain Hook's hand, says that she is willing to risk a worse reaction to the second dose for her husband, because he has underlying conditions. I understand love and sacrifice. I am the 3 shift group home manager for 3 adults with autism. I would crawl through hell for my children. In fact, I have. But to take a product that has already hurt you badly is masochism. 

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California: OK to use Moderna vaccine after illness reports

California says it’s safe to resume using a batch of coronavirus vaccine after some people fell ill and a halt to injections was recommended

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- California on Wednesday said it’s safe to resume using a batch of Moderna coronavirus vaccine after some people fell ill and a halt to injections was recommended.

The decision frees up more than 300,000 doses to counties, cities and hospitals struggling to obtain supplies. The state Department of Public Health on Sunday urged a pause in the use of a specific lot after fewer than 10 people who received shots at a San Diego vaccination site needed medical care, possibly due to rare but severe allergic reactions.

But after a safety review and consultation with Moderna and local and federal health agencies, the state “found no scientific basis to continue the pause” and said vaccinations can “immediately resume,” state epidemiologist Dr. Erica Pan said in a statement.

“These findings should continue to give Californians confidence that vaccines are safe and effective, and that the systems put in place to ensure vaccine safety are rigorous and science-based,” Pan said, adding that some of her own family members had received it.

About 330,000 doses from the lot had been distributed to nearly 300 providers in California this month. Most had halted using it until receiving the all-clear.

Cheryl Brennan of Fallbrook was among those who fell ill shortly after being injected last week at Petco Park, home of the San Diego Padres.

“At 18 minutes, it was like my throat started closing,” she told KSWB-TV. “My blood pressure went to 185 over 125, which I guess is very life-threatening.” Help came immediately.

“They hooked up electrodes. They put ice packs on me. I had four EMTs and two nurses helping me and they brought my blood pressure back down within 45 minutes,” Brennan said.

Dr. Meryl Nass, MD wrote Covid-19: Doctors in Norway told to assess severely frail patients for vaccination/ Fitness for Vaccination in the BMJ Rapid Response system. Doctors here in the USA have been actively discouraged and punished for assessing and then writing a medical exemption when indicated. And yet, everyone who undergoes a surgical procedure has to have a "fitness to operate" exam here in the USA.  From this exam, the surgeon will know if the patient can survive the surgery. Because the surgeon can be sued. Vaccines, without any liability, instill no fear in medical professionals. They default assumption is the same for adults as it has been for infants and children since we started writing 14 years ago. Safe for everyone all the time. But we know that is not true. A description of what a Pre-Op appointment entails is  below Dr. Nass' Rapid Response. Following the deaths of dozens of elderly Norwegians, Dr. Nass poses what should be a question on everyone's lips to ensure SAFETY and HEALTH for all.

###

Re: Covid-19: Doctors in Norway told to assess severely frail patients for vaccination/ Fitness for Vaccination

Dear Editor

The deaths of frail elderly after vaccination , and subsequent guidance to Norwegian doctors to perform an assessment instead of issuing universal guidance on vaccinations for their patients, has reanimated an old medical concept: fitness for vaccination.

Vaccination used to be an individual decision, made jointly by patient and doctor, that the benefits of a vaccine for that patient exceeded the expected harms. Patients paid small sums to be vaccinated.

Payment systems changed, and the government or insurance companies took over paying for vaccinations. Then the Affordable Care Act in the US waived all copayments, allowing pharmacies and grocery stores to advertise "free" vaccinations while you shop. Pediatricians were given bonuses if they reached assigned target levels of "fully vaccinated" children, which could amount to tens of thousands of dollars.

via GIPHY

Onward!  We have work to do. As always.

Today is inauguration day here in the USA. Some are exultant. Others despondent. Over the last four years, autism has been ignored by the White House. We had a smidgen of hope the the exiting President would take on our issues. But no. The previous eight years did us no favors. I'm not entirely sure that's a bad thing. Red or blue - no one in Washington has ever sought to really help the autism community. We aren't something enough, and I'm not sure what the something is. We mostly just try to get through each day as best we can doing as much as we can.  I don't know what the next four years will bring. This article from Disability Scoop comes as no surprise to us.

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Autism Families Report Major Impacts From Pandemic

A new survey of thousands of families of those with autism across the country finds that the COVID-19 pandemic has prompted symptoms of the developmental disorder to worsen and “significant, ongoing disruptions to therapies.”

Over 3,500 parents and caregivers of individuals with autism participated in the survey conducted through SPARK, a research effort funded by the Simons Foundation Autism Research Initiative that’s collecting and studying genetic data from people with autism and their families. Findings were published this month in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.

Families were asked about their level of distress, access to services and other impacts of COVID-19 in two different questionnaires — one completed between late March and early April 2020 and a follow-up round in late April 2020.

Advertisement - Continue Reading Below

Most caregivers reported disruptions in services including special education and speech, physical, occupational and applied behavior analysis therapies.

The majority said their loved ones with autism no matter their age did not receive online or adapted services in place of most services. Among those who did, however, families indicated that there was minimal benefit.

Children with autism under age 5 were most severely impacted by the changes in services because they did not respond as well to telehealth, researchers said.

Meanwhile, 64% of caregivers said that the changes brought by the pandemic “severely or moderately impacted” their child’s autism symptoms, behaviors or other related challenges. And, three-quarters of parents said they felt extreme or moderate stress because of the disruptions to their lives.

“Overall, families with a child or dependent with ASD are experiencing major service disruptions and reporting feeling increased stress/distress due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” wrote researchers who noted that interventions need to be adapted for remote delivery and service providers should find ways to offer critical therapies in person with reduced risk. Read more here.

Note: As the C Vax is rolling out across the world, there are reports of serious snags, including this story from San Diego, California below, where the Moderna vaccine was paused. As a site populated by readers affected by vaccine injury, we take no joy in these reports.  Shattered trust and lost health is nothing to gloat over.

We took a look at the dosing instructions for the Moderna version. It's complicated. Where does, and will, human error come into play as more and more "civilians" are recruited to get as many doses into as many people as possible in the shortest amount of time? Do any vaccines simply become inert and benign if administered following incorrect storage or mixing? We know that if the multi-dose Thimerosal preserved flu vaccine is not perfectly shaken, the last doses can have far more than the 25 mcg dose of mercury stated on the label. The Moderna product requires a "gentle swirl." No really, that's the exact term used in the Moderna site. Perhaps James Bond could prepare the product consistently well....  Vaccinators are expected to inspect the solution which should be "white to off-white."  Benjamin Moore paint offers more than 150 shades of white. My off white might be your ecru. Fugu is a delicacy when prepared by an expert, otherwise, it's a gamble. Are these vaccines too technically detailed to be expertly dosed in a nation where "About one-third of Americans (global literacy rate: 34%) have Level 2 literacy. ... Half of U.S. adults can't read a book written at the 8th-grade level, according to the OECD. The average American reads at the 7th- to 8th-grade level, according to The Literacy Project."



California pauses Covid-19 shots from one lot of vaccine containing more than 330,000 doses By John Bonifield, CNN Health

Health officials in California are telling medical providers across the state not to administer doses from one lot of Moderna's coronavirus vaccine while they investigate possible severe allergic reactions last week in a number of people who got shots at a community vaccination clinic.

More than 330,000 doses from the lot were distributed to 287 providers across the state from January 5-12. Tens of thousands of doses may have already been administered, but the number of unused doses is unknown, according to Darrel Ng, a spokesperson for the California Department of Public Health.

Hello, AofA'ers. I'm feeling melancholy this week. Even a little bit alone. Although my house is rarely quiet and I'm almost never alone. This week marks the fourth anniversary of Dan Olmsted's death. I miss him. I miss his gentle voice, and steady guidance. I miss his stubborn streak.  I miss his email sign off that he sent whether you praised him or called him the worst person in the world, "We always enjoy hearing from our readers." The closures, quarantines and strife of the day are taking a toll on all of us, maybe more on those of with kids on the spectrum, of any age. So when, Laura Hayes, AofA contributor and matching gift angel sent me this interview by her friend Bonnie O'Neill, author of a book called Chronic Hope, it could not have come at a better time. Hope is a good thing.

Chronic hope. Isn't that what we are all about?  Pop on a headset and listen while you work. Or rest. Ha ha.....

Laura Hayes writes and speaks about the importance of healthcare/medical choice freedom and parental rights. She has been outspoken for many years regarding the urgent need to immediately: ban vaccine mandates; enact a moratorium on each and every vaccine, as not one has been tested or approved properly or ethically; repeal the 1986 Act; and fully restore individual and parental rights with regard to healthcare and medical decision making. You can read more of her work at the Age of Autism Exclusives.

By Cathy Jameson

I took Ronan's little sister to the hospital last week for two follow-up appointments.  [Before I go further, know that she’s fine, has no worrisome conditions like her brother has, and is one of the healthiest in our family.  That said, we sometimes go to the hospital for appointments because it’s easier to see the doctor there than at the smaller satellite clinic.]  The first appointment of the day was at 9am.  The second one wasn’t until 1pm.  Planning on staying on the hospital grounds for lunch, we both looked forward to lunch at the cafeteria.  Some people don’t like hospital food, but this group offers great meals, including ones that are made with clean ingredients.  Plus, who doesn’t love a lunch out and some mommy-daughter time? 

So, on Tuesday, we got ourselves to the hospital and got ready for the long day ahead.  Before we arrived, I’d been tipped off that things had changed again because of COVID.  A phone call the day before the appointments confirmed that things were still pretty intense there, “Mrs. Jameson, when you come to the parking garage, you’ll receive a card.  On it is a phone number.  After you park, call it.  The person answering will let you know when you can walk into the building.  Once you’re at the entrance, you’ll need to be mask up, get your temperature taken, and sanitize your hands.  Then, you will be asked to go directly to the clinic.  You’ll both receive a sticker to wear that shows you’ve been cleared to enter the building.” 

I’m used to that sort of instruction now having taken Ronan to several doctor’s appointments there, but if I had no idea what was going on in the world?  Those instructions sound like what you see in movies during some covert ops when someone breaks into a secret entrance of a classified area:  Use the password we give you.  Don’t draw attention to yourself.  Don’t look anyone in the eye.  Go in quickly.  Go in quietly.  Do the job, and get out safely. 

The young receptionist continued, “Now, before your visit, I need to ask you a few questions.  Have you or your daughter have

The Virus Formerly Known as Corona

The Virus?”

The Virus. 

I could toy with this young person and ask, “Which one?”

I could be super annoying, and say, “Yes,” because we’ve certainly come in contact with viruses on a daily basis. 

Or I could be compliant, not make any waves, and just say No.

I opted to keep things simple while on the phone and told her we did not.  No need to ruffle feathers before we even step foot into the hospital.  She then rattled off the extensive list of symptoms of The Virus asking if either of us currently have any of the following symptoms or had them in the past 48 hours:  Do you have a fever, chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing?  Do you have fatigue, muscle or body aches, or a headache?  Have you experienced a new loss of taste or smell?  Do you have a sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting, or diarrhea?  And finally, within the past 14 days, have you been in close physical contact with anyone who is known to have laboratory-confirmed COVID-19, or with anyone who has any symptoms consistent with COVID-19?

Insta Tags EVERYTHING with CDC...

Big news yesterday from ICAN: At the Informed Consent Action Network, you are the authority over your health choices and those of your children. In a medical world manipulated by advertising and financial interests, true information is hard to find and often harder to understand. Our goal is to put the power of scientifically researched health information in your hands and to be bold and transparent in doing so, thereby enabling your medical decisions to come from tangible understanding, not medical coercion.

Robert Kennedy, Jr was in "detention" for three weeks on Instagram. Robert. KENNEDY. Jr.  There's nothing else to add. In 2021.

Remember CDC Director Dr. Tom Frieden? Under his watch, the autism rate went from 1 in 88 to 1 in 54. Now he is CEO of "Resolve to Save Lives," with several Public Health initiatives.

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Former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Tom Frieden told CNBC on Thursday he believes making so-called Covid vaccine passports mandatory may be ill-advised because it could deter Americans from wanting to receive the shot.

"I think a vaccination certificate is something that you should have the right to have but not be forced to have," said Frieden, who led the public health agency under former President Barack Obama. Read more at CNBC here.

That is the actual verbiage sent by a school district in the Midwest to all of their staff. It was sent to Age of Autism via email and the source CONFIRMED. January, 2021, and schools know the Covid vaccines are a chimera. A bait and switch. A sham. A scam. Got any other names?

Gollygeewhillikers, sure wish we knew of a British gastroenterologist who could help us understand how so many illnesses including COVID keep coming back to a conversation about the gut...  Vitamin D and the microbiome could be superstars in preventing or recovering from COVID. But they are not.  Many of us in the autism community have been talking about the state of our children's guts for decades.  Teresa Conrick wrote dozens of articles about the microbiome over the years as well.

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Intestinal bacteria may affect severity of COVID-19, researchers find

From NY Post (of all places)

Although the coronavirus is primarily a respiratory disease, there is increasing evidence that suggests the GI tract is involved, scientists at the Chinese University of Hong Kong said.

The team studied samples from 100 patients treated at two Hong Kong hospitals to see how the so-called microbiome in the digestive system might affect recovery from the deadly bug.

“Gut microbiome composition was significantly altered in patients with COVID-19 compared with non-COVID-19 individuals irrespective of whether patients had received medication,” they wrote in the British Medical Journal’s publication Gut.

“Based on several patients surveyed in this study for up to 30 days after clearing SARS-CoV-2, the gut microbiota is likely to remain significantly altered after recovery from COVID-19,” they said. 

I saw on FB last night a post that the photo shown was from Old Orchard Beach in Maine. I went there as child. Take a good look. What do you see? In 1970 the Microbiome was intact. In 2021 it's attacked.

Eleven years ago, John Stone wrote Paul Offit’s 10,000 Vaccines and the Milgram Experiment.
 The Milgram experiment was, and is now a name for, a test of obedience to authority. Seems our entire world is engaged in a Milgram experiement right now.  That said, Yale University finds itself in trouble again regarding a study at its "world renowned” (renounced?) Child Study Center involving children with autism. 

For decades, we’ve been called terrible parents for using diet and supplements - unapproved, dangerous (!). At Yale, parents gave consent for scientists to perform this study.

The Milgram experiment has long passed into modern folklore. In 1961 a 28 year-old psychologist at Yale, Stanley Milgram, devised an experiment to test the preparedness of ordinary citizens to co-operate in performing inhuman acts. In the experiment volunteers were induced (as they believed at the time) into subjecting another party to ever larger doses of electricity: “The subjects believed they were part of an experiment supposedly dealing with the relationship between punishment and learning. An experimenter—who used no coercive powers beyond a stern aura of mechanical and vacant-eyed efficiency—instructed participants to shock a learner by pressing a lever on a machine each time the learner made a mistake on a word-matching task.

From Safeminds: Research on Emotional Regulation Draws Ethic Concerns

A new study from Yale University titled, “Attend Less, Fear More: Elevated Distress to Social Threat in Toddlers with Autism Spectrum Disorder” sparked a firestorm of criticism from thousands of people on social media. The unusual research investigated how toddlers (42 with autism and 22 neurotypical) responded to potentially threatening stimuli. Before embarking on their study, the researchers received approval from Yale’s Institutional Review Board and received informed consent from the toddler’s parents. The study’s methodology involved exposing toddlers to fake spiders, mechanical dinosaurs, as well as masked strangers. According to the study’s authors, their research aimed to examine and measure distress in toddlers. It also set out to investigate the level of visual attention these toddlers paid to the stimulus and how they tried to regulate their emotions after being exposed to a stressor. The researcher’s ultimate goal was to better understand the differences of emotional responses between toddlers with autism and neurotypical toddlers. However, since the study’s release, thousands of people have objected to the research on Twitter. The outrage even resulted in a Twitter poll posted by an adult with autism that received 1400 votes. Ninety-four percent of the respondents felt the study’s design was unacceptable. Many in the poll, including Yale students, worried that toddlers may have been traumatized by the research. This study received such an extraordinary amount of public scrutiny that Yale Medical School made a statement explaining the intent of the research.

Original Article YALE NEWS: Yale study on distress in autistic toddlers draws ethics concerns

Rose Horowitch 11:36 pm, Dec 18, 2020

A Yale study that deployed mechanical spiders to assess how autistic toddlers respond to emotional distress has drawn widespread criticism on social media for its methods of eliciting fear in the children.

The study, titled “Attend Less, Fear More: Elevated Distress to Social Threat in Toddlers with Autism Spectrum Disorder,” was published earlier this month and examined toddlers’ reactions to a variety of fear-inducing probes. Yale researchers Katarzyna Chawarska, Suzanne Macari and Angelina Vernetti conducted the study at the Yale Child Study Center with the goal, they told the News, of better understanding emotional difficulties in autistic children.

News of the study generated a firestorm on Twitter this week as people reacted in horror to its methods.... Read more.

Thanks to Ginger Taylor for posting this on hideyourFacebook from The American Civil Liberties Union:

Coronavirus 'Immunity Passports' are not the Answer

A system of immunity passports in the United States threatens to exacerbate racial disparities and harm the civil liberties of all.

As governments the world over seek ways to jumpstart economic activity, one proposal is a so-called “immunity passport” that would allow certain people who test positive for COVID-19 antibodies to return to work before others. We at the ACLU have serious concerns about the adoption of any such proposal, because of its potential to harm public health, incentivize economically-vulnerable people to risk their health by contracting COVID-19, exacerbate racial and economic disparities, and lead to a new health surveillance infrastructure that endangers privacy rights.

An immunity passport system is fundamentally different from a regime whereby employers routinely test workers for COVID-19 or screen for symptoms, to ensure that no one with active infection is entering a workplace. In the latter system, only contagious workers are prevented from going to work and only for the period of time in which they are contagious. Every worker is subject to the same screening rules. But an immunity passport system would divide workers into two classes — the immune and the non-immune — and the latter might never be eligible for a given job short of contracting and surviving COVID-19 if an immune worker is available to take the slot.  Read more at ACLU HERE.

By Dr. Meryl Nass, excerpted from her blog with permission. While we can, we must read everything about our healthcare choices, while they are still... choices. Dr. Nass is a physician in Maine, she was graduated from MIT and U Mississippi Medical School. Her curriculum vitae is here.

Maine EMTs being given false and frightening information they must sign to refuse a Covid vaccine

People have asked why am I not blogging about the Covid vaccines.  To be honest, I felt there was not enough information for me to be decisive, and I have been waiting for more information to become available.

However, someone called me this morning and told me about a lot of allergic reactions, including one anaphylactic reaction, at a local hospital after 30 doses were given. Staff were instructed to keep this quiet.

Today I watched a 9 minute Ben Swann video about the vaccines, in which he reads the "Declination form" that must be signed by EMTs in Maine who refuse the vaccine. It contained false and misleading statements, and I realized I should no longer delay discussing what is known about the vaccines.

1. Both the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines are made from messengerRNA and lipid nanoparticles containing polyethylene glycol (PEG).
2. MessengerRNA (or any RNA) can potentially be converted to DNA in the presence of reverse transcriptase.  That DNA potentially, or bits of it, could become linked to your native DNA.  While I have no idea how likely this is, I began to take the possibility seriously only after two members of FDA's advisory committee (the VRBPAC) asked about it during their meeting to approve the Pfizer vaccine on December 10.  (I watched the entire meeting and took copious notes.) Virologist tell us that much of our DNA is, in fact, originally viral DNAthat found its way in. 

I now consider the potential for vaccine RNA to be permanently inserted in my DNA a remote possibility--but one that I would like proven wrong before being vaccinated.

1. 70% of Americans have per-existing antibodies to  PEG.  FDA suspects that these PEG antibodies may be the cause of anaphylaxis post vaccination.  The UK recommends againstpeople with severe allergic conditions receiving the mRNA vaccines. The CDC, however, recommendeds people receive it regardless of their allergy history, only asking that those with severe allergies wait an additional 15 minutes (total of 30 minutes) in the clinic in case they need to be resuscitated.  Anaphylaxis is occurring at about 10x the rate it occurs after flu vaccine (if the early numbers released by CDC are accurate).  Therefore, getting the shot in a drugstore or anywhere that trained physicians are not close by to perform a resuscitation seems like a bad idea. READ MORE HERE.

2004?

Who ever thought an old school blog format would be "last man standing," as the world flocked to social media? Platforms that have been censoring us for many years are now widening the net. C'est la guerre. We’ve been feeling the squeeze of big tech for years. It’s a travesty of freedom. And yes, we’re on Parler if it’s still up. It’s a platform to reach familes. We were deleted from Pinterest years ago. Insta too.

So you know, I'm working on a few minor updates to make reading us seamlessly easier and as reliable as ever.  Google removed us from searches years ago. We used to  be indexed in Google News. Armies of editors have re-written our Wiki etc and to be honest, I can not keep whacking the mole.   Guess what? We're still here.  And you might have to click into a browser to read us.

Autism will always be our primary topic. We write about vaccine injury and medical freedom as an integral part of the epidemic but at the end of the day, and maybe the social media era, we are an autism site.  We write about vaccine choice because many of us had no choice or knowledge when our babies were born. And there are so many current issues to discuss. I don't want to over-expand or water us down because some folks who write about other topics of social importance actively dislike, mistrust and frankly, avoid us. We scare them. Vaccine injury is the last third rail.  Autism makes their donors nervous. (Not our warrior donors.) Tough noogies and adios. No thanks. We are the Age of AUTISM. 

I published this on our Age of Autism Facebook page on Saturday evening:

Why do we continue to write, publish and talk about the autism epidemic? Because, almost twenty years after this photo was taken, not much has changed for the better, has it? We have intense needs for our children, our loved ones and our adult friends with autism. It doesn't always matter HOW we got here. Vaccine injury, family history - we are HERE.

Age of Autism will always write from INSIDE the epidemic because this is where we live. I sure do. Mia, Gianna and Bella are each in their 20s now. Imagine that. Please, keep supporting us, read us, agree or disagree with what we publish - we'll never be all things to everyone. We're approaching the 4th anniversary of the death of our dear co-founder Dan Olmsted. I'm amazed and proud we have continued in his name. AofA isn't the same. I could never hope to match Dan's professional Yale journalism expertise. That said, I think we have a personality and voice that's unique online. And I think we are important.

You know we are real. Boy, oh boy, are we ever. I'm here every single day. A tired Mom of three adults on the spectrum. "And not the gifty kind" as I like to say. I'm here with Mark Blaxill our fierce co-founder, John Stone and Anne Dachel, who have remained with the ship so to speak. John moderates comments from people who think our site is their living room, or their octagon.....  Anne tracks the epidemic like a hawk following a rabbit on the ground. Cathy Jameson adds hope and humanity each Sunday. Contributors send us amazing content. So many of our readers are generous supporters as well. And without them, we're sunk.

So thanks, everyone.

I will point out that what many of us old timers hesitate to say, is that it gets MUCH MUCH WORSE in adulthood. The refusal of neurodiversity and previous administrations, including the current one that has now overfilled the swamp with sewage, to acknowledge and ACT on the epidemic beyond "acceptance" has meant no progress for adults and their families. Just as parents are aging, they find themselves with their adult children home with them. Behaviors that are expected at 5, tolerable at 15, are NOT ACCEPTABLE at 25 or beyond in polite society..... The discrimination against people with autism is rampant.

In a matter of months it seems, our governments added several new gender orientations to our forms, licenses, vocabulary in response to the demand for acknowledgement.  I'm waiting for the "EAM" category - exhausted autism mom.  My point is that we ARE capable of change to deeply embedded systems. Look at what's  happened (for better or worse) for COVID. We HAVE the ability, we have never had the will as a nation to look the never ending autism increase in the eye and say, "STOP." Who makes these decisions? Not us.  The company line has been to DENY the epidemic and the causes. Our loved ones do NOT fit into old models of day programs, job coaching and housing.

We remain on the "Island" with the train with square wheels and jelly squirt gun and polka dotted elephant. I'd share my HuffPo from ten years ago to explain that, but they deleted ALL of my content years ago as too controversial.

Kim

By Cathy Jameson

Taking a child to the hospital can be a little nerve wracking.  Taking a special needs child with medical complications during life with COVID to the hospital…well, the frustration level is a wee bit higher.  Our hands are tied this time as we wait for medical care to catch to the massive delays caused by restrictions put in place last year.  I know it should all work out, but I’m going to reread this old story again before I take Ronan to his next procedure, which is scheduled next month. 

I’ll need the motivation. 

That time, from start to finish, everything turned out well.  This time, it’s a new team of providers working with us.  They know where I stand on certain medical topics.  They know that I trust them and respect them.  Most importantly, they know that beyond a shadow of a doubt, that yes, I do know my son best.

---

Ronan has a procedure coming up this week.  He has another one scheduled in two weeks, too.  I'm getting lots of phone calls about those appointments as they get closer.  The nurse, the doctor, another doctor, a patient advocate, and now another nurse - quite a few people, including me, are checking and double checking on things.  That involves making sure that all of the paperwork is done, that all of the information is current, and that all of us are on the same page. 

I've experienced being on the same page with other providers.  It's a good feeling and actually quite comforting to know that someone else understands just how complicated Ronan's case is.  I'm grateful that they quickly include me in discussions and in pre-op work ups.  In the past, providers have told me that they appreciate what I have to offer.  They want to hear my thoughts, and they make sure to include me and update me as much as possible.  That makes appointments run smoother, and it makes treatment plans more successful.

Note: We know fully well that the NYT will never publish this letter to the editor. So here it is.

By Elizabeth Hart, Adelaide Australia

To the Editor of The New York Times:

Kerry Kennedy Meltzer says "Vaccines are safe, no matter what Robert Kennedy Jr. says", NYT Dec. 30, 2020.

Kerry Kennedy Meltzer also admits "Being a doctor does not make me a vaccine expert..." And yet The New York Times provides Kerry Kennedy Meltzer with a soapbox to push her poorly informed views on vaccine safety, and denies Robert Kennedy Jr. a right of reply.

What a dire situation we are in now, with people such as Kennedy Meltzer using her credentials as a 'doctor' to pontificate on a subject in which she self-admittedly has no expertise.

What does Kerry Kennedy Meltzer know about the US vaccination schedules for children and adults? Does she think people should be forbidden from questioning these ever-increasing vaccination schedules?

America has had quite a week.

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Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has prohibited the import of any Covid vaccines from the US and UK, questioning their efficacy and suggesting developers might be willing to “test” their drugs on foreign nations.

The announcement came in a televised speech on Friday, with the Supreme Leader going as far as to suggest that London and Washington might be seeking to “contaminate” other countries with their anti-coronavirus solutions.

Imports of US and British vaccines into the country are forbidden ... They’re completely untrustworthy. It’s not unlikely they would want to contaminate other nations.

Khamenei did not miss the opportunity to take further swipes at Iran’s arch-rival, stating that the soaring numbers of coronavirus infections in the US are the best proof why its medical products should not be trusted.  Read more here at RT News.

Thank you to Anne Dachel for working with Dr. Ken Stoller for this most interesting piece on AofA:

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Dr. Ken Stoller of San Francisco, a longtime advocate for medical freedom, recently sent me his opinion on mandating the COVID-19 vaccine.

Below is his advice as a physician. You’ll notice that his opening argument is that it’s not really a vaccine. The COVID-19 ‘injection’ does not do what we all assume a true vaccine should do.

You are not antivax if you are against the COVID-19 injections

You are not anti-vax because the COIVD injections are not vaccines.

Yes, they are being called vaccines, but this is to bypass the regulatory requirements for a medical device.

This ‘vaccine’ is actually a medical device that has never been used in humans before and rushed to market without any appreciation for what it will do either in the short term or long term.

This injection is also being called a vaccine to gain more acceptance,  because most people assume that all vaccines are safe and effective. That’s what the CDC tells us. So if it is a vaccine, it must be safe and effective for ending the pandemic.

Some sources have indicated the adverse event rate for COVID-19  injections is as high as 80 percent, and that would include all the minor adverse events.

But if the short-term adverse event rate is 80 percent, what is in store for the long term?

They honestly don’t know and really don’t care.

Politics and eugenics, not science or good public health practices, are what is driving this grand medical experiment dwarfing the Tuskegee incident by a billion-fold.

While this is an over simplification, a vaccine, as defined by the CDC & FDA, is procedure that introduces into the body a foreign protein or weakened virus or bacteria and activates the immune system to make antibodies to same. In theory, to be effective, those antibodies actually have to perform in a useful manner.

If it works as advertised, a vaccine gets in your body and programs itself to attack the infection should it cross your path. It has to stimulate both immunity and disrupt transmission by definition, but the COVID-19  injection does not encourage your body to program your immune system. Instead, it is the program.

Note: December 30th is now a week in the rearview mirror and the reports are mounting. Here's an anecdotal report: Yesterday, I was speaking with a friend who teaches Zumba. She is not in the vaccine injury community. We were talking about the state of the world and she asked me (me!) what I thought about the Covid vaccine. Then she went on to tell me that one of her students, a healthy, woman who was able to sail through a rigorous Zumba class had been part of the Pfizer trial. And she has fallen down twice in class, since the clinical trial. This will never be considered, let alone reported, as a "health impact event" formerly known as Prince - I mean an Adverse Side Effect. Perhaps we could come up with an unprounceable symbol to avoid the discomfort of saying anything negative about these products.....

Dated: December 30, 2020 by Sharyl Attkisson

CDC: More than 5,000 COVID-19 vaccine recipients have reportedly suffered "health impact event" Dated: December 30, 2020 by Sharyl Attkisson

 
Moderna reports significantly higher risk of common side effects

5,052 vaccine recipients suffered a "health impact event" as of Dec. 19

CDC defines "health impact event" as one that renders a patient "unable to perform normal daily activities, unable to work, required care from doctor or health care professional"

That's a rate of about 2.3% of vaccine recipients

CDC says a severe allergic reaction, anaphylaxis, was reported in 6 patients

James Lyons-Weiler, PhD

1/5/2021

AS ONE WHO UNDERSTANDS complex dynamic systems, and is admittedly puzzled by the death of bioethics in the United States over the last decade, and as one with first-hand direct experience witnessing the pressures placed on biomedical researchers that place bottom-line concerns over health outcomes, in honor of those individuals in medicine and public health who have stayed the course and not sold out, I am pleased to propose a new approach to Public Health in one of my two latest peer-reviewed publications. It is a blueprint for reason-based, reality-based public health and a return to the public good model of medical practice.

Due to suppression, please share this across diverse social media platforms and by email. Take it to those who say they represent you. We must succeed.

Lyons-Weiler, J. 2020. Plan B Public Health Infrastructure and Operations
Oversight Reform for America. Intl J Vacc Theor, Pract, Research 1(2):283-294.

Click here to read Lyons-Weiler, J. 2020. Plan B Public Health Infrastructure and Operations Oversight Reform for America. Intl J Vacc Theor, Pract, Research 1(2):283-294.

From The Defender:  New York Times Declines My Rebuttal to Defamatory Op-Ed on COVID Vaccines

On Dec. 30, 2020, the New York Times published an opinion piece by my niece, Dr. Kerry Meltzer. Although the piece contained factual errors and defamatory accusations, the Times declined to publish my letter to the editor correcting those false claims.

The “right of reply” — the opportunity to defend oneself against public criticism in the same venue where that criticism was published — is a constitutional right in some European countries and in Brazil. The BBC’s editorial guidelines state:

“When our output makes allegations of wrongdoing, iniquity or incompetence or lays out a strong and damaging critique of an individual or institution the presumption is that those criticized should be given a “right of reply,” that is, given a fair opportunity to respond to the allegations.”

Even where there is no legal right, respectable journalistic outlets, including the New York Times, have traditionally regarded it as their moral, ethical and professional obligation to publish the replies by people who have been criticized in their pages.

Dr. Andy Wakefield discusses the mRNA vaccines - m =  messenger.

From Brittanica (remember the encyclopedia folks?)

Messenger RNA (mRNA), molecule in cells that carries codes from the DNA in the nucleus to the sites of protein synthesis in the cytoplasm (the ribosomes). The molecule that would eventually become known as mRNA was first described in 1956 by scientists Elliot Volkin and Lazarus Astrachan. In addition to mRNA, there are two other major types of RNA: ribosomal RNA (rRNA) and transfer RNA (tRNA).

By Anne Dachel

Dr. Arthur Caplan is the head of the Division of Medical Ethics at NYU Grossman School of Medicine in New York. He is an ardent proponent of vaccines and strongly denies any link between vaccines and the development of autism.

Dr. Caplan has an interesting view on ethical issues and mandating the COVID vaccine, as shown in this piece, Considerations in mandating a new Covid-19 vaccine in the USA for children and adults from May 2020, co-authored with Dorit Reiss from the University of California, Hastings.

 Autonomy focuses on the right of individuals to govern their own behavior and requires both ability to comprehend the choice, the alternatives, the consequences, and freedom from outside limitations. Children generally have less autonomy than adults, because their capacity to make decisions is less. The autonomy in question here is that of parents to make medical decisions for their children and that autonomy is more limited, since the primary focus is on the child’s benefit, with the parent or guardian acting as their agent.

It is unclear what age COVID-19 vaccines will be recommended for, but if adolescents, there may be more of an argument for autonomy and in that case, it is worth considering not just a mandate, but the right of a minor to consent to a vaccine over parental opposition. …

While the risk to healthy children is less, healthy unvaccinated children who do not receive the vaccine can get—and transmit—the virus both to vulnerable classmates, for example, children with medical conditions that put them at high risk if they get COVID-19, and to high-risk teachers (such as the teacher, administrator, or janitor who is over 60 years old, those who are immunocompromised or have conditions like diabetes or heart disease). There may be additional risks not yet discovered, for example, recent findings from the UK suggest that COVID-19 may cause a severe but rare syndrome in children, though the data are yet too limited to be certain.

Vera Sharav, a medical activist, is the founder of the Alliance for Human Research Protection, and an activist against some practices of the biomedical industry, particularly in matters of patient consent and children.

Thank you to Anne Dachel for this detailed transcription.

###

Below is a transcription of Part Two of a video interview with health freedom advocate, Vera Sharav.

In Part One (HERE)  Vera called everyone to stand up against the growing forces bent on taking away our rights.  Here she expands on the topic with chilling examples of what’s at stake for all of us.

Vera very much echoes the words of Robert Kennedy, Jr.  when he said, recently,

These government agencies are orchestrating obedience and it is not democratic—it’s not the product of democracy. It’s the product of a pharmaceutical-driven, bio-security agenda that will enslave the entire human race and plunge us into a dystopian nightmare where the apocalyptical forces of ignorance and greed will be running our lives and ruining our children and destroying all the dreams and dignity that we hope to give to our children.

Part Two: Nazism, COVID-19 and the destruction of modern medicine - An interview with Vera Sharav

Hi, I’m Leah Wilson, executive director of Stand for Health Freedom , a nonprofit dedicated to protecting basic human rights.

Thank you for tuning in to part two of our exclusive interview with Vera Sharav, Holocaust survivor and renowned champion for human rights.

Vera is an expert on biomedical research ethics, and she has rare and valuable insight into the landscape of public health today and the government’s response to the coronavirus.

Shots Fired from Across The Pond!  Pfizer's COVID vaccine administration website says that the second dose should be given 21 days later. So why is the UK government now saying the second dose will be 3 full months not three weeks later? Could it be that the second dose provides the one-two punch of more severe side effects that are sure to turn OFF first dosers who may be in line?  By waiting three months, you may have tens of thousands of first doses administered, doses that may have been refused had citizens heard about second dose adverse events.

Participants were more likely to report such symptoms following the second dose of the vaccine.

“[The reaction to the second dose] tends to be a little more of an intense response, which does make sense, considering your immune system has been exposed already,” Heinz said.

“It gets hit with another dose of [the vaccine], and it has a sort of quicker and more robust response. That makes a lot of sense immunologically,” he added. Source: www.healthline.com/health-news/what-we-know-about-the-side-effects-of-pfizers-covid-19-vaccine#Fatigue,-headache,-muscle-pain

https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/covid-19/info-by-product/pfizer/index.html

From BBC News Coronavirus: BMJ urges NYT to correct vaccine 'mixing' article

The editor of the British Medical Journal has asked the New York Times to correct an article that says UK guidelines allow two Covid-19 vaccines to be mixed.

The US publication reported that UK health officials would allow patients to be given a second dose that is a different vaccine to their first.

Fiona Godlee pointed out in her letter to the NYT that it was not a recommendation.

She said the NYT's headline claiming UK guidelines say such substitutions "may happen" was "seriously misleading".

The UK has approved the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and the Oxford-AstraZeneca jab - but both require two doses which are now to be administered 12 weeks apart

Ms Godlee said the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) does not make any recommendation to mix and match - in other words, having a shot of one vaccine and then a different one 12 weeks later.

From John Stone

On January 2, 2021, Ecuador's highest court ruled the new state of emergency decree of December 21 2020 unconstitutional. HERE The Constitutional Court held that the reasons for the invocation of emergency powers - the allegation of increased "contagion" of Covid 19 and the future possibility of a new UK virus strain - were not sufficiently compelling to justify a one month state of emergency applying to the entire country. 

The court ruled that narrower measures tailored toward protecting public health are available using non-emergency governmental procedures, and furthermore that a new state of emergency cannot be declared based upon future not current conditions nor can it be based on the same set of facts used to justifiy the earlier states of Covid-related emergency last year, the last of which expired in August.  Although called a state of "exception," that is Ecuador's particular language for a state of national disaster which gives the President extraordinary powers to curtail citizens' constitutional rights including freedom of assembly and freedom of movement both of which had been restricted until yesterday's ruling. The Court's decision which was reported to have been signed six days ago, was not released until the evening of January 2.The front page article and the text of the full decision is in the Ecuadorian newspaper of record El Comercio today, January 3, 2021. The following link may or may not work anymore but the newspaper's website (below) should bring up this morning's article or at least a follow up. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1A_VDK9aHV1cS1XTepwsXFw-fmuvZkOGP/vie General link: www.elcomercio.com

By Cathy Jameson

The song Ronan shared from this memory came on the radio last week.  Besides remembering the connection my non-verbal son made, I instantly remembered the sadness that came over me the day that Dolores O’Riordan died.  A long-time fan of The Cranberries, I was devastated.  

This bands’ music was part of my life long before autism and vaccine injury rocked my world.  The day O’Riordan died happened to occur during a time we were struggling to control seizures.  

Already crying because of how helpless I felt as I tried to help Ronan, I cried a bit more thinking about the tragedy of losing her voice.  I’m grateful that it still has a way of creeping into not-so-random moments, like last week and in the memory I’ve shared below.  


Sometimes, I can't believe the music selections that Ronan chooses.  Other times, I realize that the songs he picks are spot on.  I shared one of those amazing discoveries years ago. The one I'm sharing today was, I thought, totally random.  Thinking that it was so totally random, I'd shared the link with some friends:

"Ronan's choice of songs tonight.  Little dude's music is amazing."  

I do not understand this thinking. A beautiful, young Mom who works in a nursing home facility in Canada suffered a serious adverse event after her Covid vaccination, and the subhead in the article is the takeaway that "Deborah Tilli says she still thinks people should get the vaccine." And she blames the "system", not the product.

Have you ever read a Yelp review? If a restaurant piles the French fries in the wrong direction on the plate, the reviewer trashes them. "Don't EVER GO HERE!" Nail salon files the tips square instead of rounded? "THEY ARE BARBARIANS! RUN! RUN FROM THEM!" I make decisions all the time based on whether or not my choice could negatively affect my children. My job is to stay alive to take care of them. We call that parenting.  I remember staying home one New Year's Eve many years ago because a snowstorm might make the roads dangerous. We never got the snow, and I was disappointed to miss the J. Geils Band. But my kids came first. This young Mom had a serious reaction, and BLAMES THE NURSE and her lack of training. There are so many things wrong in the story.  I hope she has a full recovery and at least a partial awakening. But I'm not holding my breath.....

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Hamilton PSW says allergic reaction to COVID-19 vaccine led to fainting, seizures and CPR
Social Sharing
Deborah Tilli says she still thinks people should get the vaccine
Bobby Hristova · CBC News · Posted: Dec 30, 2020 11:56 AM ET | Last Updated: December 30, 2020

A personal support worker feels the health-care system "failed" her after someone overlooked her allergies, she says, and let her get a COVID-19 vaccine. The vaccine triggered a severe reaction which she says caused her to faint, suffer multiple seizures, require CPR and still feel the effects almost a week later. 

Deborah Tilli, 27, is one of the few people to have had a severe reaction to the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. And while she doesn't want people to avoid the vaccine, Tilli says her case is a cautionary tale for those with allergies.

When she initially found out she was getting a vaccine, Tilli says, she was excited.

"I wasn't scared, I was excited. I was like, 'I'm going to be one of the first health-care workers in the city to get the vaccine,'" she said.

It came after nine gruelling months working during the COVID-19 pandemic, helping residents at Dundurn Place Care Centre who Tilli said "think their family doesn't love them anymore and they're not going to see their family again."

On Thursday at around 11:15 a.m., she was preparing to get vaccinated. She said she filled out consent forms and waited to be screened.

That's when Tilli noticed something was off. She said the nurse looking over her file lacked confidence about what they were doing.  READ MORE HERE FROM CBC News, Canada

From Children's Health Defense:

Breaking! Public Prosecutor Orders Investigation Into Vaccine Quality Control and Says Scientific Answers Are Needed (Italy)

The Italian citizens’ organization Corvelva has finally forced an inquiry into the quality of vaccine lots after having financed independent analyzes of different vaccines that showed many samples are not compliant with quality standards and health product regulations.

Corvelva just issued a press release of the decision made by the Public Prosecutor’s Office in Rome on December 28th. They proudly announced that our analyzes, which had led to a complaint to the Public Prosecutor’s Office of Rome, after a request for dismissal made by the Public Minister and with our subsequent opposition last year, were today considered worthy of further study. The judge in charge issued AN ORDER in which he indicates to the Public Prosecutor the need to proceed with investigations.

Particularly interesting is a quote of this decision that emphasizes the need to provide real scientific answers and not get away with administrative or legal arguments.  “It is believed that a merely formal response to the complaint is not sufficient to overcome the technical and scientific arguments of the exponent”. This sentence was written as a response to the Public Ministry who had motivated his request to dismiss, by arguing that the effectiveness of the controls of the Italian and European health agencies “cannot be questioned by the results of the analyzes carried out by private individuals”.

The order finds that arguments of the complaint are “detailed” and that it is therefore considered necessary to investigate what was reported.

Therefore there is an indication to proceed with independent analyzes by the health security police department to see if the findings can be reproduced.

Mattia Marchi a member of the Corvelva team summarizes the whole story: Read more here.

Amen. You know that saying, "May you live in interesting times."? Here we go!

Happy New Year.

Happy New Year's Eve. 2020 can't leave soon enough, though to be honest, I am a bit worried that 2021 could bring even more topsy turvies, and that's saying something. What are your plans for tonight? A bit of bubbly? Watch the ball drop in an empty Times Square? As upside down and inside out as this year has been,  my three beautiful daughters with autism have kept me grounded and firmly tethered to so many of our routines. How about you? We've seen the memes and heard the jokes about autism preparing us all for lock down mode. It's true.  Many of us have spent years and years staying home, altering plans, not visiting family, saying "no" to party invitations and trips here or there because of our kids needs. We're used to sacrifice. We live it. It's part of our love for our children, from tot to teen to twenty and beyond.

In our home, the calendar is a very big deal. One of my daughters is all about the day and date and the countdown to the end of the month.  December 31st is the granddaddy of countdowns - month and YEAR! Let's talk screen time. Is this a dream come true for our kids? We might as well look for the bright side.

I'd like to thank the teachers and day programming staff who have worked so hard to keep my daughters' lives somewhat on track. We're lucky to have a snug little house with good food, better desserts and more noise than most could imagine. Someone one said that my daughters bring "joy and chaos," and while I knew it was not a compliment, I get it.  I'll walk into 2021 with my eyes and ears open. Hopeful as ever, watchful and yes, doubtful too.

Happy New Year, friends and AofA family.

America, where a McDonald's coffee cup has to warn you that the coffee is hot. Where the frozen "chicken" nuggets have to say "NOT READY TO EAT!" on the bag. We have Corona virus vaccines that are so complicated in their distribution as to guarantee human error. When the vaccines are not mixed or stored 100% accurately, will we be told if they simply become "inert" or do they endanger recipients if administered?  If they are benign but ineffective, we'll have people thinking and acting as if they are protected.  Will hospitals, medical centers, public health offices be willing to throw thousand of dollars down the drain if they realize they erred? 500 Moderna doses may have cost close to $20,000. How many restaurants serve not quite fresh fish or meat or dairy, or vegetables with a touch of rot to save a dollar?

Some of our family and friends, people we love, will be to be eager to be vaccinated for their deeply personal reasons. They deserve transparency and the right to informed consent. Some will feel forced to be vaccinated. No matter the reason, how much more risk should they bear? 

In Somoa in 2018, two infants died following administration of improperly prepared MMR vaccine. Nurse error. Public confidence in MMR vaccination plummeted. Of course.  Here is an article on what happens to most vaccines on the pediatric schedule when improperly stored. Vaccine Accidentally Left Out of the Refrigerator? 5 Steps to Take

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GRAFTON, Wis. — Nearly 500 doses of COVID-19 vaccine thrown out at Aurora Medical Center-Grafton

Fifty vials of the Moderna vaccine were left out of a pharmacy refrigerator overnight over the weekend at Aurora Medical Center-Grafton.

Advocate Aurora Health said in a statement the Moderna vaccine vials "were inadvertently removed from a pharmacy refrigerator overnight."

Each vial contained 10 doses.

Some of the vaccine was administered to team members on Dec. 26 within the approved 12-hour post-refrigeration window but most had to be discarded because of temperature requirements, Advocate Aurora Health said.

An internal review determined the vials were not replaced after temporarily being removed to access other items.

A Wisconsin Department of Health Services spokeswoman said the state is not aware of this happening anywhere else in Wisconsin, but health officials have recently underscored the immense pressure in the vaccine's rollout.

"Distributing the COVID-19 vaccine is the most significant public health undertaking of our lifetimes," DHS Deputy Secretary Julie Willems said.

URGENT ALERT: Doctor Heinrich Fiechtner Warns: ‘It’s a Killer Vaccination’ (Must Watch)

Member of the state parliament in Baden-Württemberg, Dr. Heinrich Fiechtner slammed the German government and media for their endless propaganda, misinformation and fake news concerning the Chinese coronavirus. In an impassioned speech on the floor of the German Parliament, Dr. Fiechtner also warned the public of the dire consequences of the new “killer vaccination” and urged the public to resist the illegal government impositions.

Dr. Fiechtner, a licensed and trained hematologist and oncologist, explained that minutes after observing a national television report describing the coronavirus-strained capacity of hospital intensive care units (ICUs), he phoned his former hospital colleagues and learned that the hospital had not a single coronavirus patient in its ICU. Outraged by these irresponsible and politically motivated lies and exaggerations, Fiechnter lashed out at the fear mongering politicians and their media allies.

I called his hospital’s ICU and requested to speak with the chief physician on duty, with whom I spoke. I asked him, “How many COVID patients have been admitted to your Intensive Care Unit?”

This ICU has 19 beds, and as of yesterday there WASN’T A SINGLE PATIENT! With such half-truths and complete lies, the wool is being pulled over our eyes. These propagandists that are invited on these shows for the sole purpose of creating panic and fear among the population.

In addition, Dr. Fiechtner admonished politicians and the media for conflating the number of infected individuals by not distinguishing positively tested individuals from positive tests. More specifically, if the same person receives three positive tests in their medical care, the reckless media has been reporting triple the infection rate with three different infections.

URGENT ALERT: Doctor Heinrich Fiechtner Warns: ‘It’s a Killer Vaccination’ (Must Watch)

Hello. No matter what your thoughts on vaccine induced autism or even vaccine choice - surely we can all agree that when doctors mock autism in concert on social media, with the same derisive, dismissive tone - it's the nadir of medical etiquette.

We won't bother tracking down these nudniks. Skirko - who has a Masters in Public Health along with his MD - has already changed his name on his FB profile. He is a pediatric ENT and he repairs cleft palates and other facial deformities in children.  He loves children!  One commenter on our FB page made the best retort to these jerks: "It won't be autism. It will be Alzheimer's..." 

They say "Thank you, Science," as if it's a prayer.  Does anyone think either of these medical "professionals" have or would EVER report a vaccine injury? Not on their life, or yours.  God help us all.

Below is an excerpt from Developers of Oxford-AstraZeneca Vaccine Tied to UK Eugenics Movement The developers of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine have previously undisclosed ties to the re-named British Eugenics Society as well as other Eugenics-linked institutions like the Wellcome Trust.

2020 has been a year of impossible things. Is it too far fetched to wonder about a campaign to quietly decrease populations who.... do not contribute? Like my three adult daughters.  Before you pillory me - I do not think for one moment that my beautiful children are non-productive. They employ many people tangentially. They bring joy to many. They are teachers - they teach humility, gratitude, fortitude. My daughters are valuable members of society. They also cost the government a whole lot of money. Oh dear. As the autism epidemic Dan Olmsted and Mark Blaxill and the rest of us at Age of Autism have been clamoring about for going on two decades ages out, the burden is shifting from Mommy and Daddy to the states, here in the USA. 18 means adulthood and an application for Supplemental Security Income. That's about $800 a month at the top level. Add SNAP, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, dollars to the tune of a high end of $195 for a sole head of household, and let's say you're looking at $1000 a month per adult with autism as a minimum. Then add those who have the "luxury" of state DDS programs, budgets for day programs or residential care, each of which can run into six figures. Our kids are precious indeed. Perhaps "someones" have noticed the crushing burden that's coming. Perhaps "someones" have noticed that our "typical" children, boys and girls alike, are riddled with anxiety and mental illness, have lower IQs than their grandparents and are overwhelmed with college debt that hobbles them into their thirties and beyond? Less coming up. And the elderly living longer and longer "thanks" to the miracle of modern medicine. Living expensively in congregate care, not with their adult children as in past generations. Spending down to make Medicaid,. Turning Medicare on its head.

I think we have cause to worry. I'm reminded of the song Silver and Gold that Yukon Cornelius sings in Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer: "How do you measure it's worth? Just by the pleasure it brings us on earth?"

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...mainstream media has had little, if anything, to say about the role of the vaccine developers’ private company – Vaccitech – in the Oxford-AstraZeneca partnership, a company whose main investors include former top Deutsche Bank executives, Silicon Valley behemoth Google and the UK government. All of them stand to profit from the vaccine alongside the vaccine’s two developers, Adrian Hill and Sarah Gilbert, who retain an estimated 10% stake in the company. Another overlooked point is the plan to dramatically alter the current sales model for the vaccine following the initial wave of its administration, which would see profits soar, especially if the now obvious push to make COVID-19 vaccination an annual affair for the foreseeable future is made reality.

Yet, arguably most troubling of all is the direct link of the vaccine’s lead developers to the Wellcome Trust and, in the case of Adrian Hill, the Galton Institute, two groups with longstanding ties to the UK Eugenics movement. The latter organization, named for the “father of eugenics” Francis Galton, is the re-named UK Eugenics Society, a group notorious for its promotion of racist pseudoscience and efforts to “improve racial stock” by reducing the population of those deemed inferior for over a century.

The ties of Adrian Hill to the Galton Institute should raise obvious concerns given the push to make the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine he developed with Gilbert the vaccine of choice for the developing world, particularly countries in Latin America, South and Southeast Asia and Africa, the very areas where the Galton Institute’s past members have called for reducing population growth....  READ MORE HERE

Note: As if  New York does not have enough taxes, rules and penalties?  It's disingenuous to say that Covid vaccines will not be "mandatory." It's doublespeak. Gobbledygook. Sleight of hand, or mouth. LIES.  Sure, you don't have to get vaccinated, but......  then the penalties mount.

By Anne Dachel

Attention New Yorkers. Lawmakers are making plans. Notice the flat out contradiction:

Rosenthal emphasized that the bill is not the Legislature mandating that people receive the vaccine, but would give health experts the ability to make that call if necessary."It's to establish a process if there is not herd immunity," she said.
"Mandatory simply means you are going to be required to get this, and if you don't you’re going to face certain fines” or other repercussions.

Dec 24, 2020, Albany Times Union: New York ponders mandatory vaccinations if herd immunity fails
Competing bills on vaccinations emerge as health officials hope for an end to pandemic

Before there was even a campaign promise of an effective coronavirus vaccine, there were those who vowed not to get inoculated. ...

Legislation proposed earlier this month by Manhattan Assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal would give the health department the ability to require individuals or groups of individuals who are medically cleared to receive the vaccine if clinical data shows that “residents of the state are not developing sufficient immunity from COVID-19.”

Rosenthal emphasized that the bill is not the Legislature mandating that people receive the vaccine, but would give health experts the ability to make that call if necessary.

"It's to establish a process if there is not herd immunity," she said. "I'm very confident there will be."

Robert Rock, a partner at Tully Rinckey law firm in Albany, said a vaccination mandate does not mean New York is “going to go around and round people up, restrain them and give people shots.”

Much like other aspects of life — for example, it is illegal to drive a car without insurance and you can face fines and fees as a result — thwarting a vaccine requirement would have consequences, Rock said.

“Mandatory simply means you are going to be required to get this, and if you don't you’re going to face certain fines” or other repercussions, he said.

If there isn’t a sufficient percentage of the population getting vaccinated in order to keep the rest of the population safe, Rock said it would be reasonable for the health department to mandate the vaccine. The response, he said, must be measured, reasonable and proportionate to the problem. ...

It’s that concern and desire for bodily autonomy that prompted state Assemblyman John Salka, R-Brookfield, to introduce legislation that prohibits a mandatory vaccine.

“We thought it was incumbent upon us to come up with a bill that will give mature, rational adults the opportunity to do their homework and decide if they want to get the vaccine,” Salka said. “It’s a bill that allows people to make a rational decision on their health care.”

Salka emphasized the legislation is not “an anti-vaccine bill,” but rather allowing the public to make their own decisions regarding one’s health. ...

"I think every time there is discussion about a vaccine, whether it's the measles vaccine or the flu vaccine, you have to go over the facts that a vaccination does not cause Autism," she said. "The basic facts of what a vaccine is."

By Cathy Jameson

I shared this story several years ago with family and friends.  I thought of it again as I vacuumed that highly-trafficked rug area last week.  It’s due for a deep clean once more.  I’d love to make an appointment with this company, just to have the chance to catch up with the carpet cleaning guy. 

--

With as much traffic our floors and carpets get, I've often wondered if it would be wise to purchase a steam cleaner. During Ronan's de-robing phase a few weeks ago, I came to a conclusion that YES, we do need our own steam cleaner.

During that phase, I scrubbed Ronan's bedroom carpet daily.  The cleaner I got his carpet, the dingier other carpeting in the house started to look.  While trying to recall the last time we had them professionally cleaned, I remembered a conversation that the carpet cleaner guy and I had.  

We were talking about our kids, the summer ahead, and fun family things to do in town.  Halfway through the conversation, Ronan walked into the room where we were talking.  Boy was he was a sight!  Ronan had tried to put on a bathing suit over his shorts, two pair of swim goggles, and swim floaties--both of them on one arm.  

The carpet cleaner guy stopped mid-sentence.  Ronan, taking no notice of him, stood in front of him and then stared at me.  Signing 'swim, water, boat', his way of saying that he wants to go to the pool, Ronan reached for my hand.  I offered it to him but didn't leap into action.  Tugging on my hand, Ronan looked puzzled.  It would be at least another hour before the carpet cleaning crew was done.  That, and because it was raining, had us staying home with no plans to go to the pool that day at all.  

But Ronan didn't care.  

He wanted to go swimming.  

Now!  

What followed wasn't pretty.

A big thank you to everyone for helping us meet our $5,000 matching gift donor campaign!I have no plans to install an Age of Autism cee-ment pond here in our Connecticut "headquarters," but I can promise you that 10 grand is black gold and Texas tea toward keeping us up and running in 2021.  Letters and emails with IRS info are forthcoming.  What a year, eh?  We'll continue to follow Covid, the big V topic that gets us in so much trouble and cost us our ability to keep most sponsors (always thank you to Jennifer Larsen and The Holland Center for their unwavering support), and of course, first, last and always the AGEING of autism. We will never forget Dan Olmsted's mission.

Thank you so very much to Laura Hayes for her generous match. And if anyone one cares to start a match of their own - let me know!

With great affection,

Kim

Merry Christmas.  Here's an 8 hour video of lovely music. 8 hours. One shift of work. Except for most of us who work 3 shifts a day plus our "day job", right?  One shift of work for those of us whose adult children are in congregate care with staff. Covid has been brutal for all of us, those taxed with all of the work at home and those whose "kids" are in lockdown in group homes across the world.

I hope you can relax a little bit today. I hope someone brings you a cup of tea or coffee, or your favorite appetizer that you didn't have to make. Maybe you can sit down at the dining table to eat a full meal.  Possible or pipe dream, I hope we can all find way to continue traditions that have had to morph for autism first, and now, Covid on top of it.

My Christmas wish is that your family is safe and sound, content and well cared for, wherever they are.

Kim

Twas the 9th month of COVID and all over town

Not a business was open
They’d all been shut down

The masks were hung on each doorknob and chair
In the hopes that a vaccine soon would be there

My wife on her Zoom call
And I on Webex
We hug via Facetime
We’re afraid to have sex

When out on the street I swore I heard chatter
I crept from my chair to see what was the matter

I waited a moment until I heard more
Then I cautiously opened my rusty front door

When what to my wondering eyes should appear
But a couple on my doorstep with smiles so clear

“Who are you?” to each in horror I asked.
“And tell me right now why you are not masked?”

“Do you not know that the Covid is here?
Where is your caution? Your worry? Your fear?”

They laughed and assured me that they were quite healthy
And talked of last year when I was still wealthy

My company thriving, my children in school
We dined out! We saw friends! We swam in the pool!

After giving a nod, down the drive they did walk
I turned to my wife and said, “We need to talk.”

Covid has changed us. We can’t live like this.
Then I hugged her and held her and gave her a kiss.

Written with a wink, by Kim Rossi