An Open Letter to Bill Moyers on When The Next Contagion Strikes
By Anne Dachel
Dear Mr. Moyers,
I'm writing this open letter to you in the hope that you'll address something this is one of the most heated controversies in health care today, namely vaccine safety. I see that you've recently talked about the issue of vaccine exemptions and I've also listened to your impassioned call for journalists to honestly and ethically report the news.
I've personally spent years monitoring how the press covers autism and I'm currently media editor at Age of Autism, the daily online source for news about the autism epidemic.
I read the March 1, 2012 piece, When the Next Contagion Strikes, Vaccination Nation written by you and Michael Winship and I noticed the strong message against exempting children from vaccines.
"With Contagion making such a powerful impression, for several days news articles seemed to keep popping up about contagious disease and the conflict between religious beliefs and immunization. There was nothing new about the basics: All fifty states require some specific vaccinations for kids, yet all of them grant exemptions for medical reasons - say, for a child with cancer. Almost all of them grant religious exemptions. And twenty states allow exemptions for personal, moral, or other beliefs.
"According to the February 15 edition of The Wall Street Journal, a number of pediatricians are dropping families from their practices when the parents refuse immunization for their kids. "In a study of Connecticut pediatricians published last year," the paper reported, "some 30% of 133 doctors said they had asked a family to leave their practice for vaccine refusal, and a recent survey of 909 Midwestern pediatricians found that 21% reported discharging families for the same reason."
The heated topic of vaccines and autism got a brief mention.
"But some parents still fear a link between vaccinations and autism, a possibility science has largely debunked."
The rest of your story was about the dangers posed by unvaccinated children and the threat we face from contagious diseases.
On your website I found more on the subject. HERE
Here are videos of you talking on the subject and a link to a Frontline show, Going Behind 'The Vaccine War' HERE.
I watched the short video that presented individuals from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention blaming the Internet for the vaccine safety concerns, labeling those concerns as "conspiracy theories" and "myths." Dr. Paul Offit and other experts were shown promoting vaccines and denouncing Internet information as "lousy and dangerous." On other side, Barbara Loe Fisher was included as head of the National Vaccine Information Center and as an advocate for vaccine choice with no mention of what the DPT vaccine did to her son. The non-vaccinating mothers in the video are described as a threat to herd immunity. We're shown a child with whooping cough and told about polio.
I kept going back to your dismissal of the vaccine-autism controversy as being "largely debunked." Debunked by whom? Have you ever looked into the web of financial ties between the vaccine makers and medical organizations, health officials, and the media? Have they ever looked into who funded those studies?
The Frontline video asks, "Why is it so hard for some Americans to embrace this communal aspect of vaccines?" Parents were interviewed about the question and it was all academic about parental choice.
A pediatrician on the video blames the media and the Internet for parents' concerns about vaccines. The whole issue seems to be, do parents have a right to exempt their children from recommended vaccines? The underlying message is, Vaccines are safe, vaccines save lives.
Mr Moyers, I also watched a video of your talk in Minneapolis June 7, 2008, 'Journalism in Profound Crisis' (Video).
You spoke to an audience of more than 3,500 at the National Conference for Media Reform. I learned a lot about this impressive group. The media reform movement is challenging "the stranglehold of mega-media corporations over our press" and it fosters "alternative and independent sources of news and information that people can trust."
At the root of this crisis, you said, is media consolidation.
"As conglomerates swallow up newspapers, magazines, publishing houses and broadcast outlets, news organizations are folded into entertainment divisions. The news hole in the print media shrinks to make room for ads, celebrities, nonsense and propaganda, and the news we need to know slips from sight."
We were told that the media is accountable to corporate boards, not the public. Democracy requires "honest information" and "accountability." Much of your talk was a call for honest and truthful reporting. You urged your audience to hold PBS accountable to their "high standards of excellence."
"All across the media landscape, the health of our democracy is in peril. .Without a truly free and independent press, this 250 year old experiment in self-government will not make it."
"As journalism goes, so goes democracy."
You explained how we were lied to about the Iraq War with the media being complicit because of their failure to ask questions and demand answers from people who need to be held accountable.
You told the audience that the Fourth Estate has been "colluding with the powers that be in a culture of deception that subverts the thing most necessary to freedom, and that is the truth."
You asked the question, "What do we need to know?
And you answered saying, "We need to know we're in trouble."
You listed examples of the deception all around us in government and business.
"You will search the dominate media largely in vain for journalism that tells the truth about the fading of the American dream."
"It's up to you to tell the truth about what's happening to ordinary people."
"It's up to you to write the story of America that leaves no one out."
Your speech in Minneapolis was a rare wakeup call on state of the American media. I can't say enough in support of your message. What is a mystery to me as someone who has long followed press coverage of the controversy over vaccines and autism, is your unwavering trust in health officials and mainstream medicine when it comes to vaccine safety.
There are two sides in this heated debate, and it isn't just parents vs. experts. There is a growing army of well-credentialed scientists and doctors who challenge the safety claims of the ever-increasing vaccine schedule. This is not just an academic debate over choice as you presented it. The autism vaccine controversy isn't something that can be hurriedly dismissed with a claim that it's "a possibility science has largely debunked."
What the public and especially a growing number of parents are acutely aware of is all the coverage that ignores what's happening to our children. At the heart of the debate is a nation of very sick kids no one can explain. Soaring rates of previously unheard of health problems now plague our children. Once-rare things like diabetes, seizure disorders, life-threatening allergies and asthma are now commonplace among children. One percent of our children now have autism and among boys alone, it's almost two percent. One in every six children has a diagnosis of a learning disorder. No one can explain why we have the most vaccinated children in the world and some of the sickest.
It's not just about the science.
Sources like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Academy of Pediatrics are looked at increasingly with suspicion. Neither of them has ever called autism a crisis. In the end, the experts are happy to leave autism a mystery and parents are simply left to struggle on their own.
What's left out of your coverage is anything about the possible conflicts of those who vouch for the safety of vaccines. The CDC, the agency that runs the vaccine program, is regularly given the last word on safety in news stories without anyone worried that the agency that approves, recommends, and vigorously promotes the vaccine schedule shouldn't also be in charge of vaccine safety. Hundreds of individuals at the CDC have conflict of interest waivers because they have financial ties to the vaccine makers. The last head of the CDC, Dr. Julie Gerberding, a long time denier of any link between vaccines and autism, is now head of the vaccine division at Merck.
The Frontline show presented Dr. Paul Offit dismissing any worries about vaccine side effects. He's often in the news telling us vaccines are safe and he's usually described as "the Chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia." This story, like most of others citing Offit, made no mention of his role in the development of a rotavirus vaccine which personally profited him millions of dollars.
In 2008, CBS News featured the story, How Independent Are Vaccine Defenders? which pointed out how organizations and individuals who promote vaccines are financially benefiting linked to the vaccine makers.
Mainstream medicine is failing our children.
Telling us that "science has largely debunked" a link between vaccines and autism begs the question, what science? Have you looked at the ties between the vaccine makers and the studies used as proof that vaccines aren't harming our children. Not one is them is an independent study. No one ever asks who funded the research. The media just happily accepts the latest CDC/AAP findings as unbiased and valid.
Parents are more and more skeptical about the ever-increasing vaccination schedule and the reassurances from officials and the media. They're also aware of all the science that isn't there.
Why should we believe that an ever-expanding, untested, one-size-fits all vaccine schedule is fine for every child? HERE
Where is the study comparing fully-vaccinated and never-vaccinated children to see if never-vaccinated kids also have a one percent autism rate? THERE ISN'T ONE. If people really wanted to end this fight right now, officials, doctors, and the press should all be calling for a comparison study. With so many parents now too afraid to vaccinate, the study group is out there. Why has this never been done?
Where are the studies that show that adding aluminum and mercury to vaccines is safe? THERE AREN'T ANY.
Where is even one study on the cumulative effect of the increasing number of vaccines in the childhood schedule? THERE ISN'T ONE. HERE
Why does the press try to spin this as if all the experts are on the side of vaccines?
Dr. Peter Fletcher, former Chief Science Officer in Britain, was in the Daily Mail in 2006. HERE saying this about damage from the MMR vaccine: 'There are very powerful people in positions of great authority in Britain and elsewhere who have staked their reputations and careers on the safety of the MMR and they are willing to do almost anything to protect themselves.' Nothing has really changed in the six years since Dr. Fletcher made this comment. We are routinely told about the latest study again showing no serious side effects.
Why do those in the media so easily ignore all the stories of regression? Thousands of parents report that their children were born healthy and were developing normally until they received certain routine vaccines. Suddenly they changed. Many stopped talking and lost learned skills, eventually ending up with an autism diagnosis. Doctors can only call this a mysterious coincidence.
Why do reporters not report on the well-credentialed experts from leading universities whose studies dispute the safety claims? These are just a few of them.
A Positive Association found between Autism Prevalence and Childhood Vaccination uptake across the U.S. Population. Delong G. J Toxicol Environ Health A. 2011 Jan;74(14):903-16. HERE
Infant mortality rates regressed against number of vaccine doses routinely given: is there a biochemical or synergistic toxicity? Miller NZ, Goldman GS. HERE
Do aluminum vaccine adjuvants contribute to the rising prevalence of autism?HERE
There are some stories that briefly get coverage and are subsequently ignored. Last year, HDNet TV exposed the fact that while health officials continue to tell us studies show no link, the federal government has paid out millions of dollars for compensation for vaccine injuries that included autism. Seeing these children who were born healthy and were suddenly and dramatically affected by their vaccinations should give us all pause. HERE
The federal government conceded the vaccine damage case of Hannah Poling, a young Georgia girl who regressed into autism following her vaccinations. See CBS News story from Sept, 2010. HERE Her case was called "rare" because of a genetic predisposition at the same time no bothered to find out how many other kids have the same condition.
Parents aren't going to passively comply with more and more vaccinations in the face of so many others who link vaccines to their child's disability. More and more voices are out there.
The short trailer to the new movie, "The Greater Good" on their website HERE makes it clear that there are experts on both side and a lot of serious questions that need to be asked. The medical community and health officials promote vaccines as the greatest achievement in modern medicine yet there is growing fear over vaccine side effects.
Claire Dwoskin from the National Vaccine Information Center and Leslie Manookian, producer of 'The Greater Good," talked about vaccine safety claims with NY talk show host Thom Hartmann on Nov. 21. HERE They discussed the poor design of the research used as proof that vaccines are safe.
Parents are getting informed. Take a look at just a few of sources on vaccines safety.
Vaccine Epidemic edited by Louise Kuo Habakus and Mary Holland HERE
A Shot in the Dark HERE by Harris L. Coulter and Barbara Loe Fisher
Make An Informed Vaccine Decision by Mayer Eisenstein, MD HERE
Vaccines: The Risks, the Benefits, the Choices, a Resource Guide for Parents HERE
Vaccines: What CD C Documents and Science Reveal by Dr. Sherri Tenpenny HERE
Vaccine Safety Manual for Concerned Families and Health Practitioners by Neil Z. Miller, Forward by Russell Blaylock, MD HERE
What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Children's Vaccinations by Stephanie Cave, MD HERE
Evidence of Harm: Mercury in Vaccines and the Autism Epidemic: A Medical Controversy by David Kirby HERE
Age of Autism by Dan Olmsted and Mark Blaxill HERE
Members of the press may not bother to read these books but parents do and what they're learning fuels the controversy. It's simply not true that false claims on the Internet are behind distrust in the vaccine program. In the real world, it's caused by too many sick children no one can explain and more and more courageous experts standing up to the pharmaceutical industry's hold on our children's health.
I sincerely want news sources to ask questions and demand answers on this issue. So far, that hasn't happened. That needs to change. The health of America's children is at stake.
Anne Dachel is Media Editor for Age of Autism.
I'm sorry if i offend anyone here...BUT WHAT ABOUT THE STUPID PARENTS THAT DON'T DO THE RESEARCH FOR THEIR CHILDREN. THEY ARE TO BLAME. YOU CAN BLAME THE DR'S ALL YOU WANT, BUT IT IS THE PARENTS THAT TAKE THEM TO THE OFFICE AND ALLOW THESE ASSHOLES TO STICK THEIR CHILDREN WITH SHIT.
I WILL NEVER VACCINATE MY CHILD. SHE IS PERFECTLY HEALTHY AND SMARTER THEN HER "VACCINATED" PEERS. HMMM, COINCIDENCE? I THINK NOT! I AM SO SICK OF THIS! STOP BEING RULED BY FEAR. YOUR CHILD WILL NOT DIE IF THEY DON'T HAVE A VACCINE. YOU HAVE MORE CHANCES OF BEING IN A CAR ACCIDENT THEN AN EPIDEMIC.
Posted by: JULIE | July 06, 2012 at 11:24 PM
Mitch Shame on you!
Shame on you for not caring one whit about kids suffering brain injuries from vaccine reactions.
Shame on you for not opening your heart or your mind to possibilties that many parents are telling you what they have witnessed.
You said 1000s of brain injuries from measles?????
I not only remember victims of polio, I also was around during measle epidemics too and I actually had both types. Where you there? How old are you? It makes me wonder?
So I have seen it all: polio, measles, mumps, chicken pox, and autism.
My district has a senator that suffered polio as a child and now he is the minority leader of the Senate.
So you are willing to exchange one affliction for another without a thought, a struggle, a whimper?
Telling a person to be ashamed when it should be you that should be ashamed.
Posted by: Benedetta | March 23, 2012 at 12:04 PM
Hurray for Bill Moyer and Dr. Offit ! They know what life was like when swimming was banned due to polio scares, rooms full of iron lungs for those too paralized to breathe, the thousands that suffered brain damage and even death at the hands of Measles.
And shame on you for still harping on Mercury while it's removal had no affect on Autism rates. And shame on you for not understanding basic statistics that explains how herd immunity works.
Posted by: Mitch | March 22, 2012 at 09:07 PM
And it isn't stopping with removing the right to choose regarding vaccines. California has side stepped parental rights by giving 12 year olds the right to choose to vaccinate themselves. In Michigan they continue to try to force the family of the little boy that previously had cancer to continue on with chemotherapy. That family has won TWICE in court to not continue with chemo because it isn't necessary and yet they continue to be harassed by the doctors and child welfare - as if the chemo drugs are harmless. See parental rights.org for specifics.
They can put "pink slime" in the meat because there is no proof it is harmful. They can effectively mandate vaccines. They don't have to label GMO in the food. They think they should make all of the medical decisions for your kids. We are certainly on a very slippery slope and anyone who thinks they won't be affected in some manner is going to be sadly surprised.
Posted by: Shelly | March 14, 2012 at 11:24 AM
Hilairious = "a number of pediatricians are dropping families from their practices when the parents refuse immunization for their kids" .
I and my family have dropped the doctors - we no longer go to them - we no longer trust them - We self diagnose and self treat (the way it should always have been).I have seen the best doctors the UK has to offer (Harley street the works - a total load of dumbasses at best , criminals and thieves at worst)
& Vermont better rise up and put these criminals in their place .
Posted by: NeSSuM 200 | March 14, 2012 at 06:44 AM
correction :
the three phases of truth:
1. First it's ridiculed.
2. Second it's fiercely and violently opposed.
3. Third, we see Offit\Salisbury et al in court for crimes agst humanity
Posted by: NeSSuM 200 | March 14, 2012 at 06:22 AM
Let's leave aside the various informed consent and human rights violations found scattered in compulsory vaccination. I don't know what planet these people are living on, or what country they are living in but the reasoning behind this whole "Get rid of the exemptions!" rhetoric is flawed to an extent I can't even express with words.
Even if vaccines were all just as safe and peachy as they would have us believe, the very WORST thing you could possibly do to a crowd who is already skeptical of vaccination and resists it would be to FORCE them to vaccinate. Sounds like an excellent way to double the "anti-vaxxer" movement overnight to me.
One wonders if they have thought this through.
Posted by: Mark | March 14, 2012 at 01:37 AM
the three phases of truth:
1. First it's ridiculed.
2. Second it's fiercely and violently opposed.
3. Third, it becomes self-evident.
Mr. Moyers, like many other dim-witted bum smooches of his generation... is still stuck in Phase 2. And why wouldn't he be? It's a safe place for scared little men like him, and hey.... it sure does pay well.
Phase 3 IS drawing closer, and scum bags like this guy will finally take their rightful spot in history. Along with all the other cowards who made a living from hiding behind the suffering of innocent children.
Posted by: Barry | March 11, 2012 at 03:47 PM
Another Bill (Maher) refers to the US Government as the "largest wholly owned subsidiary of the pharmaceutical industry". Why should PBS be any different? Moyer's attitude is a bit of an anomaly to me - if he has no problem recognizing that the 4th estate is being sold off to the highest bidder, why is it such a stretch to imagine any of the things that were once under it's watchful eye also going south?
Posted by: Shiny Happy Person | March 09, 2012 at 03:03 PM
and the ironic thing about those stupid "respectfully insolent" science bloggers is that vaccines have no solid safety testing ( a la something like the primate study) which is so ironic and infuriating.
Posted by: jen | March 09, 2012 at 11:19 AM
Well according to the "scientists" at respectful insolence, it's only because childhood mortality was higher and those kids never had the time to manifest autism. Yes, well a lot of us did actually have all those illnesses and didn't die AND we didn't manifest autism. Those people are losing it with their theories/excuses.
Posted by: Jen | March 09, 2012 at 10:10 AM
Bob,
As I said, when I saw Moyer's video I thought "Et Tu Brute?" (and felt very much sucker-punched.)
The parents/ grandparents of our kids spend every waking hour reading through the science for ways in which to help our kids, learning everything we can and see the things that help ameliorate our kids' symptons. If Moyers doesn't have a visceral connection to anyone in this tragic world of pain he may have no conception of what a whole-body, incompassing field of disaster their bodies and brains have been subjected to by the multiple vaccines they've been high-jacked by. Because he's not affected, his knowledge may be dirt thin and entirely derivitive. If he, perchance, reads Anne's letter and doesn't revisit the issue with an eye towards really investigating this situation, then he should be roundly condemned as a hack unworthy of any former respect we had for him. He would show that he, indeed, has become just another hack (and even more evil as he's been an intrepid truth-seeker on so many things so that people believe him and he holds sway). On the other hand, if he's gone off quite half-cocked this is his moment to redeem himself. Having waded into this river where our kids are being dragged down to the bottom, Moyers now has a moral obligation to offer them the lifejacket of a rigorous and honest investigation.
Anne's and your points are well-taken, and we well might should be cynical of his motives in the way he's come out on this issue. It certainly made me cringe. Yet, I want him to read Anne's letter and I want to hear what he has to say for himself, and if he's at all serious or not in getting to the truth of this situation.
Posted by: Julie Penny | March 09, 2012 at 12:47 AM
I appreciate your standing up for the vaccine injured, Ann, but I am not surprised that Bill Moyers doesn't. After all, as someone pointed out, PBS depends on funding from the Pharmaceutical companies. And this issue seems to be one of those that until it happens to you, you don't know it exists. I guess what surprises me is that Bill Moyers has reached his advanced age and level of experience without knowing that there are always two sides and that he didn't even bother to investigate the vaccine injured point of view. That says a lot about where he is coming from....a place closer to the wallet than the heart.
Posted by: Kapoore | March 09, 2012 at 12:29 AM
Thankyou!!!! Twenty years later and the media always sides with pharma that vaccines are the only medines without any negative side effects. I wonder if it will ever change. Thank you for your letter and work. My son will be twentyone this year. I thought by now we would have resolved out "mystery".
Posted by: nancy mcgrath | March 08, 2012 at 08:59 PM
Moyers did admit that, due to medical vulnerability, some people cannot be vaccinated.
It hasn't occurred to him, to doctors, to policymakers, that the pool of people who cannot be vaccinated is much larger than they realize.
And we don't know how big that pool of medically-unable-to-be-vaccinated-people is, because the aforesaid refuse to investigate -- which is both unscientific and inhumane.
Posted by: nhokkanen | March 08, 2012 at 08:49 PM
Anne, you’re a first class investigative journalist with uncompromised integrity. Although the respected Mr. Moyer may also be a first class investigative reporter, he certainly lacks in the integrity department. This may seem somewhat judgmental, yet it is impossible for someone with an open mind to ignore the mountains of scientific facts and evidence that you reference in your article, which will go largely ignored by Moyer, as well as our health agencies and medical practitioners.
You stated: “What is a mystery to me as someone who has long followed press coverage of the controversy over vaccines and autism, is your unwavering trust in health officials and mainstream medicine when it comes to vaccine safety.” It’s not a mystery, he’s been compromised. But of course, I realize you were being gracious. Likewise, it’s not a mystery what would happen if he were to speak against vaccines-- his career would be over. Maybe one day he’ll come forward with the truth as some retired generals have spoken out on previously undisclosed coverups and agendas. Sadly, they weren’t man enough to say something during active service. Moyer would fall into that same category.
Moyer using “Contagion” as a reference is clearly the same strategy employed by the CDC to promote public fear and panic to surge vaccine compliance. This was my take on the film in part 2 of an article regarding the “CDC’s Preparation 101: Zombie Apocalypse” propaganda:
“As if zombies coming directly out of the CDC weren’t bad enough, keep in mind the CDC also operates under the guise of film ‘entertainment.’ In a continuing effort to saturate your mind with images of viral pandemic horrors, a few of Hollywood’s finest were called to portray an updated bird flu version. The future release of ‘Contagion' comes just in time to wreak psychological pandemonium on audiences before the next flu season strikes. The film offers this line by accomplished actor Laurence Fishburne from the trailer of terror that the CDC is hoping you will ingrain in your brain: “Someone doesn’t have to weaponize the bird flu, the birds are doing that.” Sure. And someone doesn’t have to terrorize you to vaccinate for the flu, the CDC is doing that! Without a doubt, the plague of propaganda will be the only real ‘contagion’ in this movie.”
Then there is Moyer’s shameful investigative research that entirely misses the basis of herd immunity. Vaccinating to build herd immunity is a perversion of the early 1900s epidemiology study which was based on naturally acquired immunity, meaning people contracted the disease resulting with life-long immunity. The original study noted that if 68% of the population contracted the disease then no epidemic would result. It had nothing to do with vaccines. Vaccinationists latched on to this study and bumped up the requirement to vaccinate 95% of the population to attain “herd immunity,” which is based on nothing! There isn’t a single scientific study to support this claim. It’s entirely fabricated. Natural immunity provides lifelong protection where vaccines last only 2 to 10 years at best, if they “work” at all, and they “work” only 60-70% of the time according to Dr. Blaylock’s research.
Posted by: Doctorl | March 08, 2012 at 08:34 PM
Fantastic job Anne! Thank you so much. There are so many
smart, but misinformed people out there. Bill Moyers,Bill Gates etc. It's only through
persuassive, well thought out letters like this will we have a chance in hell at influencing these people!
Posted by: Maureen mMcDonnell | March 08, 2012 at 08:24 PM
Fantastic article. Thank you! Let's hope Mr Moyers listens.
Posted by: jan | March 08, 2012 at 06:58 PM
Great work as always, Anne!
How about letting Bill Moyers and the others who mention pediatricians who "fire" their patients know that there are probably just as many families who FIRE their doctors?! Who needs 'em? Personally I don't understand why ASD parents go back to these people who so profoundly damaged our children. I use a GP close to my house for our whole family--no vax pushing there! Guess his BMW payments aren't dependant on pushing poison into my children...
And as far as parents getting information from the big, bad Internet--thank the gods for that! If it were no for the internet, I would not have found out about low dose, frequent chelation and recovered my child. The Internet saved my son and our whole family, really.
Mr. Moyers is woefully out of touch!
"The great enemy of the truth is very often not the lie .. deliberate, contrived and dishonest, but the myth, persistent, persuasive and unrealistic. Belief in myth allows the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought".
John F. Kennedy
Posted by: Michelle | March 08, 2012 at 05:28 PM
@ julie
"Perhaps Mr. Moyers can start with a talk with Robert MacNeil (formerly of the PBS MacNeil, Leher News Hour), a compatriot of PBS who did an outstanding piece on his grandson and about vaccines (and who, of course, was dissed by the media for doing so.)"
Thanks for reminding me of Robert MacNeil's "outstanding piece on his grandson and about vaccines".
The cynic in me suggests that Moyer's recent comments on "Contagion" were a blatant attempt by PBS to reassure the "funding" foundations and corporations who were outraged by MacNiel's "conversion disorder" regarding vaccines and autism.
Why else did Moyers not immediately respond when MacNiel's "outstanding piece on his grandson" first aired?
Posted by: Bob Moffitt | March 08, 2012 at 05:25 PM
It looks as though "the next contagion" has done struck him! What a doofus! Does anyone have a BRAIN out there? You cannot inject mass quantities (or even one for that matter) of biological toxoids into BABIES (or children or adults for that matter either). This needs to be brought to The Hague. What are we waiting for?
Posted by: ioneskye | March 08, 2012 at 02:43 PM
When I saw the Bill Moyers’ video I thought—“Et Tu Brute?”
While I know PBS has long ago been co-opted by corporate America, I still held out hope for Moyers who, until now, came down on the right side of things. Since one can’t get to all the source materials surrounding all the issues, I’m thinking that in his old age, he’s been relying on information given to him by people he normally trusts. I’m praying he starts checking the sources himself and avails himself of all the studies that are studiously avoided by the mainstream media. Hope Moyers has the personal honesty and integrity I still think he possesses to dig deeper and so see his mistake. I pray he sees Anne’s beautifully thought out and laid out open letter to him with all the links. I hope someone can personally get her letter into Moyers’ hands. My plea to him is to please look into this himself and to interview folks in the autism community and the doctors, scientists, and researchers and dedicated minds who are trying to fight this plague with one hand tied behind them (more like 2 hands tied). Perhaps Mr. Moyers can start with a talk with Robert MacNeil (formerly of the PBS MacNeil, Leher News Hour), a compatriot of PBS who did an outstanding piece on his grandson and about vaccines (and who, of course, was dissed by the media for doing so.)
The money is now where Moyers’ mouth is. He has to take a look at why we’re having this plague of insane suffering that our kids and grandkids endure. He, himself, brought the concept of “Body Burden” to the fore when he had his blood tested by the “Environmental Working Group” in the early 2000’s and found about 80 man-made toxics in his system. Well Bill, there’s also toxics in vaccines—mercury, aluminum, formaldehyde. These days, infants are now born already polluted with dozens of different man-made chemicals in their systems. We add to this by shooting infants/babies up with unbelievable and unprecedented amounts of live viruses well beyond what their emerging immune systems can bear. Tell me, Bill—what’s wrong with this picture? You are a first class investigative journalist, we’re begging you to take an honest, in-depth look.
Posted by: Julie Penny | March 08, 2012 at 02:29 PM
Well done, Anne!
You are not likely to sway anyone as entrenched in pro-Pharma Propaganda as Moyers, but you nev know.
Someday, someone in HIS family will have an adverse reaction to vaccines, and only then will your letter make sense to him.
In the meantime, you stated everything that needed to be stated. It's out there for all to see.
Posted by: Taximom5 | March 08, 2012 at 02:22 PM
To your list of book references on vaccine history, science, and ethics---I would add Dr. Tim O'Shea's "The Sanctity Of Human Blood, Vaccination Is Not Immunization".... an excellent and unique perspective on this critically important subject.
Posted by: Dr. Febbraro | March 08, 2012 at 01:54 PM
Also, I wish someone would pen an open letter for all paretns to take to their peds asking the same questions. Like a did you know check off sheet? One of the Did you know questions should be, "Did you know that the journalist who put the spotlight on the Lancet paper worked for James Murdoch and that James Murdoch was on the board at GlaxosmithKlein. I hang out with lots of peeps in the medical field, and they never believe me.... It is so outrageously stupid that they immediately call me a conspiracy theorist and refuse to even check into the fact. aaaaaahahhahahhaha
Posted by: maggie | March 08, 2012 at 11:43 AM
Jake,
He needs to be called a hypocrit (sp) as that is what he calls others. I'm hoping with Moyers that he is one of the outsiders who just doesn't know one of these sick kids yet. It would be nice if he got to know the community. Invite him and and then if he doesn't take the time to be a journalist, then by all means write about hippocrits like him.
Posted by: maggie | March 08, 2012 at 11:37 AM
Very well written article Anne, My son was one of those children that stop talking about 16 months after the shots at 15 months. His last words was "bye bye baby, bye bye baby, bye bye baby" at that point my baby when bye bye. Thank You Anne Dachel you are awesome.
Posted by: Jeff Ransom | March 08, 2012 at 11:32 AM
The only way they will fear the public on this issue is turn your damn tv off.
Posted by: kathy blanco | March 08, 2012 at 11:10 AM
Thank you, Anne, an excellent letter. It deserves an equally thoughtful reply from Bill Moyers. And I have very high respect for Moyers - or at least I did until he came out with this, falling for the propaganda of the movie Contagion. Your juxtaposition of Moyers' highly laudable calls for an honest and accountable press, extolling "alternative and independent sources of news and information that people can trust," and his recent comments falling in line with the universally unquestioning mainstream view of the infallibility of vaccines, makes an excellent point, without directly accusing him of what seems obvious.
I especially laud you for pointing these issues, and the fact that many parents have first hand reasons to be concerned about vaccine safety, and many more good reasons for the same, without necessarily blaming vaccines for what ails so many. The truth is we really don't know yet, primarily because it is politically unacceptable to find out. Mr. Moyers is in a position to help, but on this topic, he is not yet helping. Perhaps we can help him and others too the light.
A current example to illustrate the point of media bias: According to both Google and Yahoo news, not a single US press outlet has yet reported on the exoneration yesterday of Dr. John Walker-Smith, and the corresponding condemnation of the UK's GMC conclusions regarding the research by him and Dr. Andrew Wakefield. But the US mediasphere exploded last year in response to the Brian Deer article in the BMJ claiming Wakefield had committed fraud. The contrast alone sends an unmistakable message.
Posted by: Sandy MacInnis | March 08, 2012 at 10:58 AM
Here's the contact page to Bill Moyer's show.
http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/about/feedback.html
Posted by: maggie | March 08, 2012 at 10:26 AM
The next "Contagion" is AUTISM and it is already HERE, 25 to 30 times more common than polio, now dropping about 1 in 50 boys, and our "elite medical intellects" have "no clue" as to the cause or how to stop it.
700,000 Autistic children and counting... many using between $500 and $1000 of pharma meds a month, in small home hospitals staffed 24/7 by one or two people...
A one hour episode of 60 Minutes or Dateline or Frontline on the Vaccine Court, the Simpsonwood meeting, the CDC/ Thorsen theft, the Dr. Offit Rotashield vaccine fiasco, and MMR vaccine viruses growing in the brain & gut tissue of autopsied children, would just about close down the successful farce of the "liability free" vaccine industry.
They could also briefly state that there are over 80 Gardasil death cases on the docket at the vaccine court, a vaccine still mandated for 9 year olds in the State of Virginia... a problem which has not yet reached the FDA/CDC "cantaloupe level" of concern.
Is a parent wrong to refuse the 4 dose hep b vaccine at birth in the US, when it is a two dose option in Canada at age 12 ???
Is a parent wrong to refuse a mercury preserved flu shot, that was banned in Russia, Denmark and Norway in 1992 ?
Sadly, the cause of the Autism epidemic can be located by simply looking in the only area that the CDC refuses to study.
Posted by: cmo | March 08, 2012 at 10:24 AM
Anne, send the same letter to Amy Goodman from Democracy Now. When Bush was in office she was brave enough to briefly report on the fact that Bush administration heads were chief officers at Eli Lilly. She reported on the Lilly Rider that was placed in the homelandsecurity bill, etc. But she hasn't reported on vaccine issues since. The time has come and gone for independent news to pick up the story for the people.
Posted by: maggie | March 08, 2012 at 10:02 AM
I'm curious as to why the Internet is to blame for the increase of concerned/educated parents who study and decide they would rather delay or aviod giving their children a boat load of vaccinations based on the evidence presented by other parents and medical professionals.
Doesn't the CDC, the IOM, the Vaccine Manufacturers, and pro-vaccine chearleaders all have web sites? Aren't those web sites spreading the gospel of safe vaccines and herd immunity? Are they not effective in spreading the vaccine point of view?
Maybe the problem is that as studies continue to be marched forth loudly proclaiming the complete and total safety of vaccines and the lack of connection to autism, the obvious need to continue the pseudo-scientific charade of safety has itself become the evidence of inadequacy in the vaccine program. If you feel the need to constantly tell people something is safe, despite mounting evidence to the contrary, and you need to resort to forced compliance, then you've lost all claim to the science, and the moral high ground.
Posted by: Just Curious | March 08, 2012 at 09:37 AM
Moyers is firmly entrenched in establishment reporting. Expect no help from him.
Posted by: Rae Nadler-Olenick | March 08, 2012 at 09:20 AM
Powerful, Anne; thank you!
Posted by: Rs Dad | March 08, 2012 at 08:57 AM
Excellent article, as suual. You never leave anything out that's important.
I recently sent David Gergon, of CNN, a copy of Dr. Wakefield's book. I've yet to receive a thank-you.
Maurine
Posted by: Maurine Meleck | March 08, 2012 at 08:22 AM
Fantastic job Anne.
Posted by: victor pavlovic | March 08, 2012 at 08:08 AM
Thank you, Anne. Your tireless efforts are much appreciated and we all look forward to Mr. Moyer's response.
Posted by: Zed | March 08, 2012 at 07:18 AM
Anne writes:
"You told the audience that the Fourth Estate has been "colluding with the powers that be in a culture of deception that subverts the thing most necessary to freedom, and that is the truth."
PBS is funded by many corporations .. including .. Glaxo-Smith Kline, Merck, Pfizer and Dow Chemical to name just a few. PBS is also funded by many "foundations" .. not the least of which is "The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation".
Herewith is an article in the Seattle Times on the Gates Foundation:
http://tinyurl.com/7xh4k4u
"The foundation's grants to media organizations such as ABC and The Guardian, one of Britain's leading newspapers, raise obvious conflict-of-interest questions: How can reporting be unbiased when a major player holds the purse strings?
"But direct funding of media organizations is only one way the world's most powerful foundation influences what the public reads, hears and watches.
"To garner attention for the issues it cares about, the foundation has invested millions in training programs for journalists. It funds research on the most effective ways to craft media messages. Gates-backed think tanks turn out media fact sheets and newspaper opinion pieces. Magazines and scientific journals get Gates money to publish research and articles. Experts coached in Gates-funded programs write columns that appear in media outlets from The New York Times to The Huffington Post, while digital portals blur the line between journalism and spin.
"The efforts are part of what the foundation calls "advocacy and policy." Over the past decade, Gates has devoted $1 billion to these programs, which now account for about a tenth of the giant philanthropy's $3 billion-a-year spending. The Gates Foundation spends more on policy and advocacy than most big foundations — including Rockefeller and MacArthur — spend in total.
"Much of the money goes to analyses of policy questions, such as the best way to FINANCE VACCINES FOR POOR COUNTRIES ..... (Caps mine)
The funding of PBS is just as tainted with "conflicts of interests" as is the funding of main-stream media. And .. Bill Moyers knows it.
Posted by: Bob Moffitt | March 08, 2012 at 07:08 AM