Book Review - "Master Manipulator" - By James Ottar Grundvig
By Kent Heckenlively, J.D.
I wanted to spend some time praising James Ottar Grundvig's wonderful new book, "Master Manipulator: The Explosive True Story of Fraud, Embezzlement, and Government Betrayal at the CDC" because I think it is something unique in the canon of autism literature. (Read more at Amazon and if you've read the book, please leave a review.)
We have had the personal stories of families dealing with autism, and we have had some fine books dealing with various medical and scientific issues, but we haven't really had a book which examines at length the political culture in which this epidemic has been allowed to happen. Many of you are aware of Poul Thorsen, the Danish researcher who worked for the CDC and is now a federal fugitive for embezzling more than a million dollars to generate studies exonerating vaccines from causing autism. But what you don't know is how that happened behind the scenes at the CDC.
The Thorsen depicted in this book is certainly an intelligent man, figuring out how to data-mine a rich vein of medical information in the Danish health registry. But there is also something else in Thorsen's personality, a need to ingratiate himself to powerful patrons, and give them what they want. It is not an uncommon failing, and may be something particularly American. Grundvig makes the argument that more than anything else, Thorsen wanted to make it big in America, and saw pleasing his superiors at the CDC as just the way to do it. And he also wanted to live large, buying a limited edition Harley, Audi Quattro, Honda SUV, as well as a half-million dollar home in a tony suburb of Atlanta. That money should have been spent doing honest autism research.
Grundvig has a nice, easy to read style, and at a little more than 250 pages it is a quick read. I believe this is an important story which needs to be widely read in our community and beyond. I encourage people to read it, not to be depressed about how we have been betrayed, but to understand how fragile the facade is which keeps our children in their autism prisons. I'm reminded of what one teacher jokingly told me one day. She said, "You know, there's more than a thousand kids at this school, and only fifty of us. If they decided to stop listening to us, we'd be screwed."
People should read this book to understand one simple fact: Our enemies aren't that strong. They have been flailing for years, trying to keep this story from breaking, and I don't think anybody is more surprised at their success than they are. They know that eventually they will lose. We just need to keep the pressure on. I also have to commend Grundvig for his easy-going, even humorous story-telling. He seems like the kind of guy you'd want to hang out with, have a beer, and swap some stories. If Thorsen represents the worst of America, Grundvig's honest reporting represents the best of American traditions.
Kent Heckenlively is Contributing Editor to Age of Autism. Kent's new book, INOCULATED: How Science Lost Its Soul in Autism is currently out at major publishers. The book is represented by Johanna Maaghoul of the Waterside Literary Agency, the world's #1 agency for New York Times bestsellers.
I will definitely buy the book, and order more for friends. Bring it!
Posted by: Joe | June 20, 2016 at 10:40 PM
Note Orac’s choice of words here from his most recent post at RI –
‘Yes, the pertussis vaccine is imperfect and immunity can wane, but it’s still quite protective. As for the measles vaccine, it’s quite effective. The efficacy of the flu vaccine does fluctuate from year to year, depending on the match between the types in the vaccine and what is circulating, but it’s still better to receive it than not.’
Both the DTaP and the MMR are ‘quite’ protective and effective. Not ‘very’, nor ‘highly’, nor even ‘reasonably’, but just ‘quite’. ‘Quite’ tends to range from ‘not very good at all’ to ‘pretty good’ – and that, coming from the most vitriolic of PVE’s.
If I had to balance out my position of vaccine effectiveness with integrity of judgement, I’d be drawn to ‘quite’ as well. It is the only term available short of betraying serious misgivings about their effectiveness.
Posted by: Eddie Unwind | June 20, 2016 at 08:26 PM
I also read Master Manipulator by James Grundvig and would recommend it. I have been reading about the autism spectrum epidemic since the mid-90s and so like everyone else I was aware of Thorsen's fraud, although I couldn't tell you how he juggled the numbers to erase the linkage of vaccines to autism's rise.
What James Grundvig adds is context. From the book I got insight into the role the CDC played after 9 11 and the "anthrax attack." I got the sense that before 9 11 the CDC was just your regular old bureaucracy and then President George Bush gave it a lot of power, appointed Judie Gerberding, who quickly rose in the ranks. Also I think it was from this book that I realized that Colleen Boyle was the one who invented the fraudulent method of cooking the numbers. She comes off in the Congressional Hearings as this whiny do gooder who only cares about children. Huh!! Nothing could be farther from the truth. She is steeped in criminality. I also realized how deferential the Danish academy was to the U.S. because the U.S. was throwing around money (that is, tax payer money) as if there was no tomorrow. And, apparently, the CDC is still oblivious to tax payer money because they don't seem to care at all that this guy could walk off with a million and "oh well..." like stuff happens. From the sound of it, no one took any of the research they were doing seriously as if it might have a serious impact on the children: our children, the children of other people, the children of our nieces and nephews, a generation of children... It's as if the "war on terror" was all that mattered and somehow the CDC was now along with the newly formed Homeland Security guys part of the inner workings of a government in a permanent state of war. So...context is important. The book is low pure science but then if someone is curious about that end of things there is always pub med where a person can get dozens and dozens of articles on aluminum toxicity without batting an eye. There is a serious deficit of research on the MMR, though, because supposedly that was the CDC creating the illusion that this vaccine has been literally researched to death....by such geniuses as Thorsen who managed to do zero or nearly zero research...something else you find out in this book. CDC's science is vague, its research is vague, literally everything to do with CDC research is tainted by the Boyle method of deception and the Thorsen fraud. So read this book if you have ever wondered who the culprits really are and if you want hard science find it elsewhere.
Posted by: kapoore | June 20, 2016 at 06:40 PM
Isn't this guy a Huffington Post writer? If they took Lance Simmons credentials what are they going to do to him?
Posted by: Sean | June 20, 2016 at 03:44 PM
@ Ronald
"That's like talking about a STAIN on the CDC's reputation. Lennie Bruce had it right when he stated: 'In the Halls of Justice, the only justice is in the halls'!"
Old movie starring Richard Gere as a lawyer .. talking to a client over lunch or something .. Gere's character says (paraphrasing here .. Gere's language XX rated)
"If you are looking for justice ... go to a whore house.
If you are looking to get screwed (XXX'd) .. go to a court house.
Posted by: Bob Moffit | June 20, 2016 at 01:41 PM
Ordered this book the other day, and I look forward to reading it! Thank you so much, J.O. Grundvig, Skyhorse Publishing, and Bobby Kennedy jr, for bringing us more of the very important news that mainstream media ignores!
Posted by: Twyla | June 20, 2016 at 11:40 AM
Bob Moffit,
"That Poul remains free is a STAIN on the US Justice Department's reputation that will never go away until Poul "faces a jury of parents and grandparents" in an AMERICAN COURT OF JUSTICE."
That's like talking about a STAIN on the CDC's reputation. Lennie Bruce had it right when he stated: 'In the Halls of Justice, the only justice is in the halls'!
The CDC, DoJ, and all the other Federal agencies are all tentacles of the same octopus. Their leaders are all appointed by the two political parties, both of which are mainly funded and wholly owned by industry's special interests. Likewise with the Congress; they are wholly owned by their sponsors. These two 'bought' organizations, Executive Branch and Congress, jointly appoint the Federal judiciary. In effect, all three branches of government are owned by, and report directly to, their corporate sponsors. They act hand-in-hand to provide what their sponsors want. So a few branches will pursue Snowden and Assange to the ends of the Earth, while allowing other fugitives from justice to prosper in lands near and far.
Posted by: Ronald Kostoff | June 20, 2016 at 11:35 AM
Bob:
"Poul must have FRIENDS in really HIGH PLACES within the US Justice Department."
IMHO Thorsen was an insider who, even though spent time ingratiating himself he also spent a lot time, I would bet, gathering information on the very people he wanted to impress, just in case. Insurance it's called. He knows where all the bodies are. The reason he remains free is obvious to to me. Merck and the CDC are paying off people in the justice dept and are also financially supporting Thorsen in Denmark. I read he's not in hiding and I believe he's published some papers since his return to the homeland. Thoersen doesn't need friends in high places but Merck, Julie Gerberdng and the CDC do.
Posted by: Danchi | June 20, 2016 at 08:50 AM
"Many of you are aware of Poul Thorsen, the Danish researcher who worked for the CDC and is now a federal fugitive for embezzling more than a million dollars to generate studies exonerating vaccines from causing autism."
Unfortunately .. Grundvig's book only furthered my anger that he REMAINS free .. apparently somewhere in Denmark .. subject to a "22 count .. 2011 indictment by the US Department of Justice for wire fraud and money laundering in connection with more than $1 million in research grants that he pilfered from the CDC while he ginned up fraudulent studies to "prove" that vaccines don't cause autism. His crimes have won him a mug shot on the US Department of HHS .. "most wanted" list.
How in God's name does this man remain FREE??? In my humble opinion .. the ONLY answer to that "mystery" is ... Poul must have FRIENDS in really HIGH PLACES within the US Justice Department.
Grundvig's book is well worth reading .. makes the failure to prosecute Thorsen and those in the CDC who turned a blind eye to his thievery, who may have facilitated his very convenient escape from the US to Denmark .. thereby avoiding Thorsen's "sworn testimony" at a trial in the US which may have led to many indictments within the CDC itself.
That Poul remains free is a STAIN on the US Justice Department's reputation that will never go away until Poul "faces a jury of parents and grandparents" in an AMERICAN COURT OF JUSTICE.
Posted by: Bob Moffit | June 20, 2016 at 07:07 AM
I must disagree with this recommendation.
I think people who will purchase this book are in for a major disappointment.
(I'm no troll, the opposite).
I've read the book and stopped reading after about 100 pages - it was that bad. Some of the book's shortcomings:
- It doesn't bring almost any new information on the Thorsen affair.
- Obviously, the author couldn't interview the main characters (Thorsen himself, Diana Schendel), so he just speculates about events in their life (e.g. the later's reasons for marrying and divorcing two husbands).
- At some parts, the text is utterly tasteless. Even offending, I should say.
If you are an avid followers of the vaccines-autism link, etc, then this book will probably won't add much to what you already know.
Posted by: Jeremy | June 20, 2016 at 06:57 AM