Daily Pennsylvanian (U of PA):

There is still no scientific evidence that links vaccines with autism.

Chief of Infectious Diseases at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia Paul Offit spoke at Huntsman Hall on Tuesday about the stigmatization of vaccines and its effect on society. He explained that vaccines have never been concretely linked to autism spectrum disorders.

In 1998, British surgeon and researcher Andrew Wakefield published a paper in the British journal, The Lancet, linking the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine to autism. His paper correlated with a drop in vaccination rates in Britain, while the number of measles cases soared. The paper was withdrawn in 2010.

Despite scientific studies that have since suggested otherwise, some parents still have the notion that their children's mental problems were caused by the vaccine. . . .

"There is a lot at stake here," Offit said. "And [science] shouldn't be politicized to the amount it is." He said that many scientific papers have been published in the last decade to support the safety of vaccines.

However, some vaccine dissenters now also link thimerosal - a compound used to preserve vaccines - and too many vaccines given early in childhood to autism.

No mention of Offit's huge financial gain from  the rota virus vaccine.  However the comments look great with all the videos.

Observer newspapers of Dutchess County (NY)

Anderson Center for Autism just celebrated its 90th anniversary with a community-wide kick-off birthday bash at Darby O'Gills in Hyde Park.

More than 120 staff, trustees, family and community members attended the Jan. 24 event, which commemorated the Staatsburg-based nonprofit's long history of achievements and progress made in the community, according to a news release.

State Sen. Terry Gipson was on hand to mark the occasion with a State of New York Legislative Resolution, Senate No. 2978. Dutchess County Comptroller Jim Coughlan and Chairman of the Dutchess County Legislature Robert Rolison also joined the celebration.

This autism treatment center has been around for 90 years. They're celebrating. They don't consider autism a crisis or even a real problem, despite the fact that autism is "a growingly pervasive disorder." They can only say good things about what's happening and the need to "broaden awareness."

I would like to ask Terry Gipson, Jim Coughlan, and Robert Rolison how New York is going to afford to care for all these disabled adults in the coming years. These are government officials. They shouldn't be celebrating an epidemic with no known cause or cure.

It should be pointed out that the Anderson Center for Autism is where one boy was reportedly abused.

According to a report in The Times Union, Michael and Lisa Carey, the parents of a 13-year-old autistic boy who died while in state care, have recently settled the lawsuit they had filed against a private facility the child had previously attended. The suit was brought against the Anderson Center for Autism, located in Staatsburg, Dutchess County, after the child's parents learned that health care workers had withheld food from their son, Jonathan, and discovered him naked in his room, covered in bruises and no longer toilet-trained. They immediately removed him from the Center.

And despite claiming that they've been treating autism for 90 years, that's not exactly true.

Through the years, Anderson Center has transformed from a school for emotionally and developmentally challenged students, to an agency dedicated to providing people on the autism spectrum with the highest quality programs; integrated support networks for families and guardians; and an enriched and positive climate for the children and adults.

KY3 Springfield, MO

It will affect one in every 88-children, but autism has no known cause and no cure.
Researchers at the University of Washington are looking for answers. Special glasses measure a toddler's eye contact, as a therapist prompts a little girl to look at her. The glasses record whether the child is looking at the therapist's eyes or her mouth. . . .

CAUSES: What causes autism? Not long ago, the answer to this question would have been "we have no idea." Researchers are now delivering the answers. First, we now know that there is no one cause of autism. Over the last five years, researchers have found a number of rare gene changes, or mutations, associated with autism. However, most cases of autism appear to be caused by a combination of autism risk genes and environmental factors that influence early brain development.

 Progress? What in this piece indicates anyone is making progress in understanding autism?  I posted a comment.

Fox News

Air pollution exposure has long been suspected to increase the risk of both heart and lung diseases, but another important organ may also be at risk of injury from this contaminated air: the brain.

Researchers at the American Association for the Advancement of Sciences (AAAS) annual meeting in Chicago recently detailed the impact that constant exposure to air pollution may have on the developing brain. According to the panel, a series of mouse models have suggested that constant inhalation of air pollution may lead to enlargement of the brain's ventricles - a hallmark of neurodevelopmental disorders such as schizophrenia and autism.

 No comment section here. 

Twelve years ago, a doctor told me about that my son "probably had an enlarged brain."  He said it was common in autism.  So, after 20 years of guessing about autism--blaming it mostly on bad genes and bad choices on the part of the mother--suddenly we're told that AIR POLLUTION IS LINKED TO AUTISM. 

And while toxins in the air are being blamed for autism in this case, the toxins like mercury, aluminum and formaldehyde regularly injected into babies and small children in their vaccines are perfectly safe.