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| September 24, 2007 |
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In the past couple of days, I have closely watched the news reports and appearances of actress Jenny McCarthy. She discussed her son’s autism, what she thinks caused it, and how she has dealt with it. In particular, she believes that her son’s MMR vaccine shot tipped him into autism. In something that is painful to watch, she describes how she raised the autism concern with her son’s doctor right before he administered the shot. The doctor condescendingly dismissed her concern and even swore at her. Soon after, she says, the boy’s “soul disappeared from his eyes” and he withdrew into the autistic state. She described how she subsequently interviewed many women who had endured a similar experience, with the same result…a clearly discernable change in their child’s spirit following a vaccine shot and a slide into autism.
As a parent of a 2 ½ year old daughter who was and remains very concerned about the possible effects of vaccine shots, her story resonated deeply with me. The medical profession is resolute that there is no empirical connection between autism and vaccine shots. Yet the anecdotal evidence strongly suggests otherwise. In our case, our daughter had serious problems in her delivery and nearly died. We felt there were real benefits to certain vaccines, but we also believed the risks were very real. The solution we arrived at was to take control over the content and schedule of her vaccines, selecting only certain vaccines and staging them very slowly over the first 2 ½ years of her life, instead of following the very aggressive standard vaccine schedule. In this way, we allowed her to grow and increase in strength and immunity over time, and never overwhelmed her immune system with a vaccine that could tip her into autism. Fortunately, we have a doctor who respects our wishes and follows our schedule, even helping us to structure the program in a way that will provide the most benefit to our daughter. He doesn’t agree with our assessment of vaccine risk, but at least he respects our differing opinion.
But my empathy for McCarthy is profound. I can see many, many parents with valid concerns being steamrolled into a vaccine program that ultimately harms their child and then having to live with their regret about not standing up to their doctors. I really respect how McCarthy has taken the lead on this issue. She isn’t broadly dissing vaccines. Rather, she is advocating against the one-size-fits-all institutional approach and in favor of a customized, conservative approach for each child. She may well get the attention of western medicine and save many people from a really challenging fate. It is not easy to take on an institution. Thank you, Jenny! |
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| I want to thank Lee Bollinger, President of Columbia University, for sticking to his guns and hosting Iranian President Ahmadinejad today. It goes almost without saying that much of what Ahmadinejad stands for (e.g., denial of the Holocaust, advocating the elimination of Israel, developing nuclear weapons, supporting terrorist cells, denying human rights to Iranian citizens) is reprehensible, but I am astounded at how harshly Bollinger was criticized for providing him a platform. On television this morning, I saw national news personalities visibly fuming over the fact that Ahmadinejad would be allowed to speak. This is America! Free speech lies at the heart of this nation! How can anyone who really understands American history and the essence of the American experience say we should suppress one’s voice, even a reprehensible foreign leader? I applaud Bollinger for his display of self-definition and courage in defending a basic American right. |
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| September 20, 2007 |
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According to the New York Times, San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders yesterday abruptly reversed his public opposition to marriage for same-sex partners and revealed that his adult daughter is a lesbian. He signed a city council resolution supporting a challenge to California's gay marriage ban. He previously promised to veto it. In a press conference, he fought back tears as he said he wanted his adult daughter, Lisa, and other gay people he knows to have their relationships protected equally under state laws. "In the end, I could not look any of them in the face and tell them that their relationships -- their very lives -- were any less meaningful than the marriage that I share with my wife Rana," Sanders said.
Up for re-election next year, Sanders faces an electorate in which 62% endorsed a statewide measure in 2000 to restrict marriage to a union between a man and woman. I don’t know a lot about Mayor Sanders, but I like this display of courage! |
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I’m a Sirius satellite subscriber and love the service! Far fewer commercial breaks (some channels have none), great programming, huge selection of content, excellent sound quality, and all at a very reasonable price. As you know, they are trying to merge with XM, the other satellite station. It is causing quite a debate in Washington. Those opposed claim the merger will create a monopoly in satellite radio and that will be bad for consumers. Those in favor claim the market to be considered for purposes of determining the presence or absence of a monopoly is not satellite radio but the much broader market of terrestrial radio and even the Internet. Thus, they argue, there is nothing approaching a monopoly. The combined company would be a tiny player in the overall market and the combination of the two would do nothing to stifle market competition. In fact, the combined, stronger entity would increase competition in the broader market. In the end, consumers would not suffer by the combination.
I completely agree with those favoring the merger. I believe those opposed to the merger are doing so because they are aligned with the corporate media interests that own and control terrestrial radio and are terrified that satellite’s superior product will increasingly eat into their market share over time. In short, those opposed are trying to stifle competition, the exact opposite of what anti-trust laws exist for.
Now, for the really shitty part. Senator Kohl of Wisconsin has been one of the most vocal opponents of the merger. Kohl, however, owns the Milwaukee Bucks. And the Milwaukee Bucks have worked out a deal with the terrestrial radio station that covers its games (WTMJ-AM) in which the Bucks sell their own advertising when their games air. Thus, Senator Kohl directly earns revenue from Bucks broadcasts on terrestrial radio, and is financially motivated to see that satellite radio does not take market share from terrestrial radio.
It gets even more interesting. Sirius has the exclusive satellite rights to broadcast NBA games. If the merger goes through, XM's eight million subscribers will be able to listen to Buck's games over satellite and don't have to listen to WTJM's broadcast. Senator Kohl's revenue is even more at risk.
Again, where the hell is our outrage? Kohl needs to recuse himself from the debate and shut the hell up. And Wisconsinites, you elected this dude. Call him on the carpet! He’s not worthy to lead you. He’s more interested in leading himself to even more personal riches. |
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| September 13, 2007 |
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Safeway CEO Steve Burd was steeped in mainstream corporate culture for three decades. The kind of culture that says, "Government, leave us alone. Let the free market work."
But when he learned in 2004 that Safeway's health care expenditures exceeded its net income, his eyes opened wide. He tried every solution he could think of, things like wellness and preventive care programs, and finally concluded that the government has to rescue the national health care program. He is now a forceful leader in that movement. And he has a big fight on his hands. The Bush Administration, as well as about every conservative group around, vow to stop any movement toward a national plan. Meanwhile, expect that within 10 years, one in every five dollars spent in this country will go to health care. |
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| September 12, 2007 |
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Astonishing! A NY Times/CBS News poll released yesterday, the sixth anniversary of 9/11, showed that 33% of Americans still believe Saddam Hussein was personally involved in the terrorist assault. This depite the fact that neither the 9/11 commission nor any other intelligence has ever supported such a connection.
What we are seeing here is Bush continuing to sell a lie to the American people. To this day, he continues to try to link the insurgents in Iraq to al-Qaida. It is no conincidence, of course, that 67% of Americans have no confidence in Bush. |
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| September 7, 2007 |
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| In the August 20 and 27, 2007 issue of Business Week, uber-executive recruiter, James Citrin, describes his belief that the model of the CEO needs to evolve to that of the specialist. Depending on the type of company, a CEO might be a BRAIN (e.g., Arthur Levinson of Genentech, Reed Hastings of Netflix; using their extraordinary brains to drive innovation); an AMBASSADOR.g., Rupert Murdoch of News Corp., Indra Nooyi of PepsiCo; deep experience in emerging markets); a DEALMAKER (e.g.,Ed Whitacre, formerly of AT&T; selling off non-core assets and buying what is needed strategically); a CONDUCTOR (e.g., A.G. Lafley of P&G; networking externally and fostering collaboration internally); and a CASTING AGENT (e.g., Anne Mulcahy of Xerox; attracting, retaining, and positioning the best people). I like it. I think he's onto something. |
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| September 3, 2007 |
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| Contrary to my earlier post, GOPs forcing Senator Craig's resignation but letting Senator Vitter slide has a lot more (actually, everything) to do with the fact that Idaho has a Republican governor who will appoint Craig's replacement and Louisiana has a Democrat governor who would replace Vitter if he were to resign. Not to say the Democrats wouldn't act in the same, self-serving way if confronted with the same situation, but it's frustrating. Neither has the credibility to serve. Both should be out. |
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