Vaccine skeptic hired to head federal study of immunizations and autism

A vaccine skeptic who has long promoted false claims about the connection between immunizations and autism has been tapped by the federal government to conduct a critical study of possible links between the two,
according to current and former federal health officials.

The Department of Health and Human Services has hired
#David #Geier to conduct the analysis, according to the officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation.

Geier and his father, #Mark #Geier, have published papers claiming vaccines increase the risk of autism,
-- a theory that has been studied for decades and scientifically debunked.

David Geier was disciplined by Maryland regulators more than a decade ago for practicing medicine without a license.

He is listed as a data analyst in the HHS employee directory.

Public health and autism experts fear that choosing a researcher who has promoted false claims will produce a flawed study with far-reaching consequences.

They fear it will undermine the importance of the lifesaving inoculations
and further damage trust in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The government’s premier public health agency has stressed vaccination as the safest and most effective measure to control the spread of some contagious diseases,
including the growing measles outbreak in Texas and New Mexico.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/03/25/vaccine-skeptic-hhs-rfk-immunization-autism/

Americans aren’t waiting for the Democratic Party to take on Trump

In February, anti-Trump demonstrations took place in all 50 states, part of the of 50501 movement (which stands for 50 protests, 50 states, one day).

On March 15, thousands of people marched in New York City under the banner of public employee unions against the Trump/Musk cuts to public services.

The arrest of pro-Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil, a green-card-holding Columbia University graduate who played a prominent role in anti-Israel protests last year, has sparked an uproar over whether the Trump administration is violating the 1st Amendment by targeting immigrants for their political beliefs.

And God bless New York Rep. #Alexandria #Ocasio-#Cortez, 35,
and Vermont Sen. #Bernie #Sanders, 83, who are on the road in Western states with their
“Fighting Oligarchy” tour, which has drawn thousands of people to arenas this week in Arizona, Nevada and Colorado.

There’s more.
“Missing member” events, for example, where voters are holding their own town halls because their Republican members of Congress are too afraid to face them.

In some cases, constituents step up to a microphone and pose questions to an empty chair.

In Wisconsin, Republican Rep. Derrick Van Orden did not show up at a town hall,
so a Democrat from a nearby district,
Rep. #Mark #Pocan,
came instead and spoke to 300 people next to an empty chair with Van Orden’s name on it.

Hundreds of healthcare workers demonstrated outside the Anaheim Hills office of Republican Rep. #Young #Kim the other day to protest expected cuts to Medicaid, the health safety net for more than 72 million low-income and disabled Americans.

And millions of Americans all over the country may answer the call on Saturday, April 5, for a
“Hands Off” protest organized by Indivisible,
the progressive grassroots group that got its start in 2017 when a handful of congressional staffers put together a handbook about peaceful, effective resistance to right-wing power grabs.

The “Hands Off” motto:
“They’re dismantling our country. They’re looting our government. And they think we’ll just watch.”
https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2025-03-23/donald-trump-elon-musk-democratic-party-resistance-oppositionr

Ich glaube, man sollte sich spätestens jetzt Gedanken über die weitere "Zusammenarbeit" mit #Mark #Zuckerberg von #Meta machen!

From: @heiseonline
https://social.heise.de/@heiseonline/113787469846426710