Category: Public Health
MAHA and “soft eugenics” revisited: The “autism tsunami,” Dr. Oz, and your “patriotic duty” to stay healthy
Two weeks ago, I referred to the "soft eugenics" of RFK Jr. and MAHA. This week, he and Dr. Oz provide new examples, one about autism, the other about public health.
How bad is it? RFK Jr.’s extinction-level threat to science-based federal health policy and public health is here
Five months ago, I called RFK Jr. an "extinction-level" threat to US biomedical science and public health. That extinction is under way.
Measles, MAHA, and “soft eugenics”
I've long said that the antivax movement is borderline eugenicist (or at least social Darwinist) in nature. Now that a second child has died of measles, it's time for me to take a look at the "soft eugenics" of the antivax movement and, more generally, the MAHA movement.
“Make America Healthy Again”: The new Lysenkoism
Trofim Lysenko was a Soviet scientist whose dogmatic science denialism led to mass famine when his ideas were applied to agriculture. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is a lot like Lysenko in his science denial. Will his results be as disastrous?
Vitamin A Does Not Treat or Prevent Measles
It didn’t take long for concerns about RFKs unscientific ideological approach to healthcare to manifest. We are in the middle of a measles outbreak – the exact kind of situation for which we need a strong federal response. The person in charge of that response, RFK Jr., is a notorious anti-vaccine crank who is not a scientist or healthcare expert, even though...
Misinformed refusal: What antivaxxers are really promoting when they invoke “informed consent”
Our new Secretary of Health and Human Services wants to change CDC messaging about vaccines to emphasize "informed consent." What he really means is misinformed refusal.
Paul Thacker relitigates criticisms of Dr. Jay Bhattacharya and the Great Barrington Declaration
"Journalist" Paul Thacker defends Dr. Jay Bhattacharya and the Great Barrington Declaration by rehashing the same old deceptive rhetoric that was easily debunked when it was first employed.
Looking Back 5 Year Later – Were Lockdowns Worth It?
An excellent article on the BBC gives a good overview of the continuing controversy over universal lockdowns as a pandemic mitigation strategy during COVID. We now have significant data about how various countries around the world fared compared to their mitigation strategy. Interestingly, this data is unlikely to resolve the controversy. But it can inform our decisions for the next pandemic –...
So it begins: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is confirmed as HHS Secretary and immediately starts dismantling US federal science infrastructure
The nightmare has come true. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has been confirmed as HHS Secretary and didn't wait long to start dismantling federal science and health programs. The White House even formed a "MAHA commission" to draw up a battle plan.
MAHA: Echoes of The Secret
When you look at Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.'s "Make America Healthy Again" movement, there is a notable echo of an idea once promoted by Oprah Winfrey, namely The Secret, combined with antivax and alt-med tropes.