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Antivaccine nonsense Autism Medicine Quackery

Mercury in vaccines as a cause of autism and ASD: A failed hypothesis

Unfortunately, as we have been dreading for the last four months or so since her relapse was diagnosed, my mother-in-law passed away from breast cancer in hospice. She died peacefully, with my wife and the rest of her family at her side. As you might expect, I do not much feel like blogging. Because I […]

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Antivaccine nonsense Entertainment/culture Medicine Quackery Skepticism/critical thinking Television

Brian Deer responds to Keith Olbermann

Last night, I lambasted Countdown host Keith Olbermann for having been played by the antivaccine movement and having unjustly slimed British journalist Brian Deer. Clearly, Olbermann was so blinded by his hatred of Rupert Murdoch that all chief apologist for the antivaccine movement, former freelance journalist David Kirby, had to do was mention that The […]

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Antivaccine nonsense Autism Clinical trials Complementary and alternative medicine Entertainment/culture Medicine Quackery Television

Andrew Wakefield: Worst person in the world

I’m not as big a fan of Keith Olbermann as I used to be. Indeed, sometimes he strikes me as the liberal version of Rush Limbaugh, not to mention a blowhard. However, occasionally, he still has it, and when he’s on, no one skewers the dishonest better than he does. For instance, after a media […]

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Antivaccine nonsense Complementary and alternative medicine Entertainment/culture Medicine Quackery Skepticism/critical thinking

Autism quackery invades my hometown, part II

Not again. I have no way of knowing if the media in my hometown happen to be more credulous when it comes to pseudoscience than average, but, given the number of stories referred to me emanating from Detroit and its surrounding suburbs, you’ll forgive me if I’m very depressed right now. For instance, we have […]

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Antivaccine nonsense Autism Entertainment/culture Medicine Politics Popular culture Quackery Television

The Hannah Poling case: Autism rebranded again

Damn you, mercury militia. I had had another topic entirely in mind for this week’s post, but, as happens far too often, news events have overtaken me in the form of a story that was widely reported towards the end of last week. It was all over the media on Thursday evening and Friday, showing […]