In reading her blog, I became much more aware of the serious and large-scale "adverse vaccine effects" that were happening around the world due at least in part to the adjuvants used in vaccines to increase their potency, and the serious doubts about not only safety, but of the efficacy of these vaccines.

I wrote a letter to my local paper objecting to its editorial support of this proposed law. Several weeks later I was approached by an acquaintance who said she generally appreciated my letters to the editor, but who vehemently objected to my opposition to mandatory vaccines. She was a pediatric nurse and said she'd seen endless examples of how kids' lives had been saved from measles by the MMR vaccine, invoking the concept of "herd immunity." There wasn't time to get into the problems of that claim, and I realized I needed to have a more in-depth understanding of the issue if I was going to be able to respond to such claims.

This page might be considered a summary of some of the materials I've encoutered on that journey, of which I count the book Dissolving Illusions and several lectures by one of its authors, Dr. Suzanne Humphries, as a useful foundation. I don't present the pro-vaccine position here, because it is quite adequately and widely presented elsewhere in seriously flawed form. We are subject to it everywhere, and my interest is in helping people see the problems with it that are hidden by its supporters.

The "Anti-Vaxxer" Problem -- The term "anti-vaxxer" and "anti-science" are the broad-brush terms used by the pharma-financed mainstream and alternative media (and industry social-media trolls) to smear anyone who raises concerns about vaccine safety, no matter how thoroughly grounded in science. They are the equivalent of the term "conspiracy theory," the sole function of which is to put a dead stop to rational thinking and discussion. This has pushed many solid safety-concerned people, such as Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., to insist that they are pro-vaccine, but that vaccines must be safe. This is almost always interpreted as the removal of contaminants and metals (such as mercury, and aluminum adjuvants). While this is vital to safety, it is not the only concern. Most childhood-disease vaccines were introduced after mortality for their diseases having already gone to near zero. Many of the other vaccines (e.g., flu and HPV) have little or no effectiveness. The basic mechanism of infant immunization violates what science has come to know about the development of the immune system. This not only sets the stage for auto-immunity, but also replaces natural immunity, which is dependent on numerous encounters with disease antigens, with a temporary quasi-immunity that in the long term threatens the entire population with loss of immunity. The the edges of "anti-vaccination."

• the introduction to Dr. Suzanne Humphries and her case against vaccines (mp3), and
• the non-scientific fraud involved in the "eradication" of polio that is inevitably used as a sound-bite to defend vaccines (mp3).
• Some thoughts on several of the key issues involving vaccines
• Problems Surrounding Vaccine Safety

1. Books
2. Vaxxed (movie)
3. Trace Amounts (movie)
4. Simpsonwood meeting (transcript)
5. People and their resources
6. Organizations and websites
7. Articles, etc.
8. Vaccines and the Law

1. Books -- Links to both Barnes&Noble and Amazon provided, for those who don't appreciate Amazon's support of the pro-vaccine Washington Post
1. Dissolving Illusions: Disease, Vaccines, and the Forgotten History, by Dr. Suzanne Humphries and Roman Bystrianyk
1. The book (Barnes/Noble, Amazon) -- perhaps the best introduction to
• the reality that mortality (death) and morbidity (sickness) from the main communicable diseases was largely a product of filth and malnutrition and had been eliminated or vastly reduced in those diseases before the introduction of their respective vaccines,
• the actual dysfunctionality of vaccines,
• the mechanisms of their threats to health, and
• the corruption of the vaccine system in the U.S. and internationally.
2. The website -- includes, among other things,
• a comprehensive collection of historical graphs of vaccine usage and disease morbidity/mortality, and
• a detailed response to critiques of the book  (also my local PDF of this response for those who prefer paper, 54pp).
2. Thimerosal: Let the Science Speak (Barnes/Noble, Amazon), Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., ed.
   This book (excerpts) addresses the falsity of the claim that the "science is settled" with regards the link between vaccines and autism -- at least regarding mercury. With foot-noted references to hundreds of studies, it shows that, among other things,
   • the dangers of thimerosal have been known (and covered up) for decades
   • mercury exposure did not end with the removal of thimerosal from non-flu childhood vaccines
   • ethyl mercury (thimerosal) is at least equally (and perhaps as much as 50x more) toxic than the methyl mercury found in fish
3. The Virus and the Vaccine (Barnes/Noble, Amazon)
   This page-turner of a book covers
   • the history of the Salk and Sabin polio vaccines,
   • their production on monkey-kidney growth medium,
   • the discovery of a previously unknown virus in those kidneys -- simian virus 40 (SV40),
   • the discovery that this virus caused major cellular disruption in animal cells,
   • the discovery of its "Perfect War Machine" carcinogenicity in certain tissues,
   • the potential for SV40's role in the growing incidence of cancer, and, most significantly
   • the fascinating story, in incredible detail, of how each of these discoveries was suppressed by government/industry/academic scientists
   As a result, this book is one of the best illustrations of how this suppression, familiar to those working with the dangers of GMOs and electromagnetic fields -- among other things -- actually happens on a personal level.
2. Vaxxed -- The definitive movie on CDC fraud
   Vaxxed was scheduled to be shown at Robert deNiro's Tribeca Film Festival in New York in April, 2016. However, at the last month, deNiro, who has an autistic child and thus an interest in the vaccine/autism issue, pulled the film. He reported that many of the other directors threatened to withdraw their films if Vaxxed was shown, forcing his hand, though he still felt the film was important. In the firestorm of controversy that developed, the film was shown in sold-out venues across the country, becoming far better known than it would have otherwise.
   Through the testimony of Dr. William Thompson, the data manager for the 2004 CDC study investigating a possible link between the MMR vaccine and autism, the CDC's corruption and fraud in the manipulation and destruction of data is laid out very clearly. The actual data showed a clear relationship, particularly in African-American boys, and particularly in the time window the CDC recommends for the MMR.
   The DVD includes a number of bonus features, perhaps the most valuable of which is an interview with director Dr. Andrew Wakefield, a British gastroenterologist who was the first to notice and report a seeming correlation between the MMR and autism (though not with the individual component vaccines). He was hounded out of medicine in a massive attack of false accusations. This interview does a lot to clarify what actually happened, and IMHO exonerates him.
1. The movie website
2. My one-page summary of the film.
3. A 10-minute excerpt
4. CDC refusal to permit Dr. Thompson to testify in court  (1.5 mins)
3. Trace Amounts: Autism, Mercury, and the Hidden Truth -- The definitive movie on mercury (and to some extent aluminum) in vaccines
   The movie traces the research of Eric Gladen, who in the midst of having been disabled first by the mercury in a tetanus shot, recovered by chelation therapy, and then again disabled by exposure to mercury vapor from broken fluorescent bulbs, took it upon himself to cover the history of mercury poisoning and its relevance to vaccines, the latest biological/metabolic and epidemiological science on the topic, and the fact that complete or at least partial recovery is possible.
1. The movie website
2. The movie on YouTube
3. An excellent 12-minute excerpt, including some of the detailed metabolic information starting at 9:53
4. Interview with Eric Gladen (2hrs) -- video and local MP3
5. History of Thimerosal & Vaccines -- an excellent 13-minute segment from the above interview (local MP3)
4. Transcript of the Simpsonwood Meeting
   In June, 2000, the CDC held a 2-day "off-campus" (and thus supposedly off-the-record) meeting of vaccine stakeholders -- agencies, industry, and scientists (not the public) -- to discuss the studies by their scientist Dr. Thomas Verstraetten, from which they'd tried in vain to remove the clear "signal" of a thimerosal-autism connection. The first day showed recognition of the seriousness of the health problem, but by the second day the seriousness of the PR problem had overtaken it, and the vote was to hide the information from the public. They were unaware that the meeting had been recorded, apparently secretly, and this is the resulting transcript.
5. People and their resources
1. Dr. Suzanne Humphries -- a collection of links to videos, and MP3 audio files I've made from them.
2. Dr. Gary Null -- a collection of links to videos, and MP3 audio files I've made from them.
3. Dr. Meryl Nass
1. Anthrax Vaccine blog -- an ongoing compendium of documented insights and news of not only vaccine issues but a variety of other areas.
2. Interview with Dr. Joseph Mercola, November 2011  (PDF)
4. Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. -- Kennedy spent his career as an environmental lawyer, dealing primarily with mercury contamination of the environment. During his talks around the country, he was frequently confronted by women with vaccine-damaged children who pushed him to look at mercury in vaccines as a far more dangerous source of human injury. Once he read the science on the topic and realized the coverup and denial taking place, he devoted his work to eliminating mercury from vaccines.
1. California State House speech -- given during the 2014 consideration of mandatory vaccination, covering in particular the corruption endemic in the CDC's vaccine division.
2. Manifesto on mercury in vaccines (local: more easily printable PDF and full-page USA Today ad)
3. Deadly Immunity -- RFK's earth-shaking expose of the CDC thimerosal-autism cover-up
   It was originally published in Salon, then picked up by Rolling Stone (now archived behind an ID wall), which disappeared temporarily due to website problems. This caused a false claim to be made that Rolling Stone had retracted it, which Salon used to retract it and never replaced it.
1. The article on RFK's site  (local PDF)
2. Behind the scenes of the retraction (an extensive article)
3. RFK's original research paper on which Deadly Immunity was based (2004; local PDF)
5. Dr. Andrew Wakefield
   
   1. Andrew Wakefield in his own Words -- interview regarding his case before the UK's General Medical Council  (2011)
   1. video (YouTube)
   2. audio (local MP3)
   3. text (and times) of the questions put to him on text screens in the video, and thus not accessible on the audio
   2. Talk at Brave New Books in Austin, TX  (April, 2011)
   1. video (YouTube)
   2. audio (local MP3)
6. Dr. Bernardine Healy interviewed by Sharyl Atkisson, May 2008, on vaccine/autism link
   Dr. Healy was formerly NIH Director, Red Cross CEO, and US News & World Report health editor (4.5min)
1. video (excerpted from RFK $100K press conference)
2. audio (local MP3)
6. Organizations and Websites
1. National Vaccine Information Center
   For practical information on dealing with vaccination, the NVIC is probably the premier site on the web, covering
   • vaccine ingredients
   • vaccine law -- federal and state
   • vaccine reactions (including a searchable reaction database)
   and MUCH more.
2. Vaccine Awareness Network
   "V.A.N provides information about vaccinations that is fully sourced to enable parents to make a fully informed choice about their child's vaccinations." The U.K. site combines activism and an ongoing (see also their Facebook page) large compendium of documented studies on vaccines and associated risks. Its sidebar alone holds a wealth of links to the basic concepts needed to understand what is going on with vaccines, such as herd immunity and how the immune system works. (Caveat: having the sidebar always present is convenient, but the nature of a sidebar makes easy-to-find organization more difficult compared to a web page. The site currently says the site's format is being "modernized for usability.")
3. World Mercury Project
   Started by Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., as a focal point of removing Thimerosal from all vaccines.
1. RFK intro (YouTube)
2. $100,000 challenge -- 15 Feb 2017 Natl. Press Club press conference offering $100K to any reporter who can find a single study proving thimerasol in vaccines is safe.
1. video (YouTube)
2. audio (local MP3")
4. Put Children First
   Although out of date (2006) it is an excellent, well-organized repository of documentation on the history of CDC reaction to thimerosal in vaccines.
5. European Union countries' vaccine schedules
7. Articles, etc.
1. Neurotoxic aluminum transport to, and damage in, the brain   (February, 2017; local PDF; original)
   Due to aluminum's significant neurotoxicity, the aluminum hydroxide adjuvant used as a "booster" in many vaccines has long been suspected of being responsible for some or most of the neurodegenerative results attributed to vaccines. But it wasn't until relatively recently that research uncovered the mechanisms that transport aluminum from an injection site to the brain, and how it functions in creating childhood neurodevelopmental damage.
2. Why The American Press Does Not Want You To Read this Article -- RFK, Jr. (December, 2005)
   CENSORSHIP -- This piece goes into detail on the almost universal blockade in both the mainstream and "alternative" media against material referencing problems with vaccines. The situation does not appear to have changed significantly in over a decade since then, despite a great increase in the scientific understanding of the problems posed by vaccines.
3. Does the Flu Vaccine Matter? -- The Atlantic, Nov 2009  (local printable PDF, including a swine-flu followup article)
   This remarkably frank and factual article about the science of the flu vaccine leaves virtually no doubt about its questionable usefulness, despite implications to the contrary by the CDC. The one article's one grave omission is that it makes virtually no mention of the large number of injuries the vaccine has caused.
4. Chart: Debunking vaccine-thimerosal safety studies (local PDF)
5. To the Parent of the Immunocompromised Child Who Thinks My Kid is a Threat  (local printable PDF)
   In the aftermath of the Disneyland measles "epidemic" a lot of parents panicked about unvaccinated children exposing their own children to measles, despite the fact that there were almost as many vaccinated as unvaccinated children among those who contracted measles at Disneyland (and the status of half of them was not determined). In response to one mother (also allegedly a "pediatric health provider") who wrote an op-ed blaming her daughter's measles on an unvaccinated child, another mother wrote this very to-the-point reply.
6. Metals found in vaccines -- article, full PDF of study.
7. Vaccine Firestorm: Rand Paul, Chris Christie, Hillary Clinton and the Law by Judge Andrew P. Napolitano  (local printable PDF)
   Interesting op-ed on "balancing the rights of parents against the government's duty to maintain standards of public health."
8. Summary of the downsides of vaccines from the International Medical Council on Vaccination.
9. Ready to inject your child with "safe" vaccines from China?, Jon Rappoport, 2/5/2017 -- The massive 2016 Chinese improperly-stored-and-outdated vaccine scandal, combined with the increasing proportion of pharmaceuticals and components from India and China -- and the non-oversight of these by FDA -- raises serious questions about actual safety and efficacy, even for those who "believe in" vaccines.
10. Vaccine deaths -- a page devoted to the 3/5/17 "Empty Stroller" march, with links to a large number of stories of parents who have lost children to vaccine injury.
11. My 21 May 2015 letter to the editor of my local paper, the Mt. Desert Islander -- original and published (shorter).
    This letter was written in opposition to the Maine legislative proposal to remove the personal-belief exemption for vaccines. Its publication introduced me to the strong (wrong) opinions held by people, when I was approached by someone who said she liked what I write to the paper, with the exception of this letter, about which she, as a pediatric nurse having seen the MMR vaccine save countless kids from serious illness, was very angry. There was too much backstory to fill in in a short time to produce a rational conversation.
8. Vaccines and the Law
1. Vaccine schedules -- Recommendations / Requirements
1. CDC
2. States
3. European Union countries
2. Federal vaccine law and entities -- courtesy of the NVIC
   In 1986, in response to vaccine companies who were being hit hard with lawsuits and threatening to cease making vaccines, Congress passed the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act of 1986, which indemnified companies and doctors from any damages due to vaccines, and transferred the primary venue for such lawsuits to a new "court," the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program (NVICP). Despite its nickname "Vaccine Court," it does not permit discovery. Payouts ($3.5 billion so far) are paid for by taxpayers, and although intended to be non-confrontational, it has fought parents since Day One, recognizing only 25% of claims as valid. In particular, it denies autism as a vaccine injury, despite having paid our millions in three cases of autism.
   The Act also established a number of vaccine oversight committees, which have been identified in several government investigations as what RFK,Jr calls "cesspools of corruption," due to massive industry-related conflicts of interest among their members.