This is refreshing!
Just Pray It: The Happy Marriage of Prayer and Medicine
As a doctor, Larry Dossey arrived early to pray for patients. As an author, he put spirituality in medical care.
Dr. Larry Dossey first broke into American consciousness in 1993. He offered a simple but powerful message in the form of a best-selling book, “Healing Words.”
“I wanted people to realize the power of prayer in the practice of medicine,” says Dossey in recent sit-down interview with CarePages.com. “I set out to make the connection of science to prayer’s healing powers. There were some good studies I included in the first book. These days, I can point you to more than 250 studies showing how prayer and faith life can heal patients and ease pain, plus allow us to live longer no matter what our medical conditions.”
Perhaps it is no small thing that Dossey bypassed one career choice, becoming a minister, to serve as an M.D. While researching his first book, Dossey started arriving early at his medical office each morning to pray for his patients coming for a visit that day.
Let that sink in for a minute. A doctor. Prayers. Arriving early to spend “time” with patients hours from arriving.
More than a decade later, Dossey is certainly not basking in the success of his staunch and ongoing campaign about prayer and healing, but he does allow today’s physicians can more easily pray with patients and caregivers in doctor’s offices, hospital rooms, surgery pre-op, you name it.
“Back then [1993], three medical schools out of 125 accredited American programs taught any course including how spirituality and prayer can affect patients,” said Dossey. “Now I’m happy to say more than 90 schools teach spirituality and medicine classes. Plus, every new medical student in this country is required to know how to take a spiritual history.”
And here’s the intrigue of Dossey’s decision to write the first book. In December 2004, the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York conducted a study of 1,087 physicians to get their views on prayer and miracles. The survey shows the majority of today's doctors respect prayer's role in the healing and recovery process—and they didn’t flinch at mention of miracles.
Some of the findings from the Jewish Theological survey:
About three-quarters of the doctors said they believed prayer could be effective in helping to heal patients.
Fifty-nine percent of the doctors said they prayed for individual patients.
Half of the physicians made a regular habit of praying collectively for their patients.
Fifty-five percent of the MDs said they had observed miraculous recoveries in their own practices.
All of these numbers add up to one important tally for patients and caregivers alike: Don’t be afraid to ask doctors, especially those you admire and connect with, to pray with you and loved ones. There can be great power in such moments, Dossey said, calling upon not only all medical treatments available but also a higher power.
An important step is praying with intent and love. Sounds impossible with your doctors? Maybe not, in fact, probably not, if you absorb the Jewish Theological survey findings. Don’t forget, ask your doctor for not only a prayer but the focus (translation: an extra minute or three) to offer a prayer of “care.”
"I've had the opportunity to talk with a lot of healers who do the praying or intending or whatever you want to call it," Dossey explained. "Those healers say if you want prayer to work, there has to be a compassionate connection. You have to care, not just pray."
By no accident, Dossey’s wife, Barbara, has co-pioneered the prayer and medicine campaign with her husband through her professional calling as a holistic nurse. She has tackled the difficult question of how to separate any “possible confusion” between how spirituality and prayer can positively improve patient care as opposed to the use of organized religion. The rabbi and best-selling author Harold Kushner When Bad Things Happen to Good People, has long contended that “Spirituality brings us together and organized religion tears us apart.”
“Nurses [and others] can share and express their spirituality without using traditional religious language,” says Barbara Dossey.
For example, Barbara Dossey suggest that nurses, doctors and, yes, especially caregivers, can encourage patients to explore some spiritual questions devoid of required denominations. You can easily imagine the healing that each question—and answer—can produce in caregiving situations:
What do I feel good about?
With whom do I feel most free to "be myself"?
What is the hardest thing about my illness for me and my family?
What helps me "from within myself and from outside"?
What worries me most?
What am I afraid of?
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
No Punishment for teen skipping school to play Halo
This is rediculous! Oh Pullleeeze! If that were my kid, he would have gotten detention! Skipping school over a game???? What about education??? Have parents gone nuts??? Save the game playing for after school and after homework is done already! If this boy was ill, it was probably because he stood in line all night long out in the elements. Sorry, but this doesn't sound logical to me. It's just a stinking game!
Our kids and society are already becoming too desensitized enough over these games. Like they say, everything in moderation.
No punishment for teen who skipped school to play 'Halo'
02:02 PM PDT on Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Associated Press
AP
Bill Gates hands over an autographed copy of Halo 3 to the first customer, Ritesh David, 17, of Bellevue, Wash., at the midnight release of the video game at the Bellevue Best Buy.
SEATTLE - A teen who bought one of the first copies of "Halo 3" and was filmed shaking Bill Gates' hand early Tuesday morning isn't going to get in trouble for skipping school to play the new game.
Officials with the Issaquah School District say a note from Ritesh David's parents claimed he was ill that day.
David told KIRO Radio Wednesday morning that he was fearful he would be put in detention or suspended.
But school officials say David won't be punished for his bout of "Halo fever."
Our kids and society are already becoming too desensitized enough over these games. Like they say, everything in moderation.
No punishment for teen who skipped school to play 'Halo'
02:02 PM PDT on Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Associated Press
AP
Bill Gates hands over an autographed copy of Halo 3 to the first customer, Ritesh David, 17, of Bellevue, Wash., at the midnight release of the video game at the Bellevue Best Buy.
SEATTLE - A teen who bought one of the first copies of "Halo 3" and was filmed shaking Bill Gates' hand early Tuesday morning isn't going to get in trouble for skipping school to play the new game.
Officials with the Issaquah School District say a note from Ritesh David's parents claimed he was ill that day.
David told KIRO Radio Wednesday morning that he was fearful he would be put in detention or suspended.
But school officials say David won't be punished for his bout of "Halo fever."
Cupcake Ban???
Thank goodness that cupcakes are not banned at Noahs school or I will have a very disappointed little boy. Noah turns 6 next week & Ive already checked with the teacher if it was okay to bring in individially wrapped cupcakes. We don't make it a habit of buying these regularly, but Noah looks forward to them to celebrate his birthday with his classmates.
Don’t Even Think of Touching That Cupcake
By SARAH KERSHAW
THE cupcake is at something of a crossroads. Edible icon of Americana, frosted symbol of comfort and innocence, it may not have faced such an identity crisis since first appearing in cookbooks sometime in the 18th century.
As we know, cupcakes have had a whopping resurgence: they are retro-food chic, the thing to eat for people in the know.
But cupcakes have also recently been marched to the front lines of the fat wars, banned from a growing number of classroom birthday parties because of their sugar, fat and “empty calories,” a poster food of the child obesity crisis. This was clear when children returned to school this month to a tightening of regulations, federal and state, on what can be served up between the bells.
And it has led some to wonder whether emotional value, on occasion, might legitimately outweigh nutritional value.
Schools trying to bring parents to the table in efforts to root out fat and sugar have faced what Marion Nestle, a professor of nutrition at New York University who strongly supports limiting sweets in schools, calls “the cupcake problem.”
When included on lists of treats that parents are discouraged or forbidden to send to school — and when those policies are, say, put to a vote at the P.T.A. — “cupcakes are deal breakers,” Professor Nestle said. “It sounds like a joke, but it’s a very serious problem on a number of levels. You have to control it.”
While the merits of banning goodie bags filled with Reese’s and Skittles seem obvious — especially at a time when the risk of childhood diabetes is high for American children — many parents draw the line at cupcakes.
This could have something to do with the fact that in the modern age, the cupcake may be more American than apple pie — “because nobody is baking apple pies,” Professor Nestle explained.
The confection is so powerfully embedded in the national consciousness — and palate — that its future is quite possibly the only cause to unite Texas Republicans and at least some left-wing foodies behind a singular mission: keep the cupcake safe from harm.
“I think the wholesale banning of parents’ bringing cupcakes as a legal issue is over the top,” said Rachel Kramer Bussel, a former sex columnist for The Village Voice who founded the Web site “Cupcakes Take the Cake” three years ago.
The Texas Legislature agreed, in spirit, when it passed the “Safe Cupcake Amendment,” in 2005, in response to new federal child nutrition guidelines and lobbying from parents outraged by the schoolroom siege on cupcakes.
After the amendment passed, a blogger on Homesick Texan wrote: “i don’t think it necessarily warrants all the hubbub, or the intervention of legislature to intervene on behalf of the cupcake. ... but then, another part of me is screaming ‘CUPCAKES!!!’ because they just make people happy.”
Hillary Clinton perhaps was aware of this when on David Letterman’s show recently she listed as No. 9 of her Top 10 campaign promises, “Each year on my birthday everyone gets a cupcake.”
As Ms. Kramer Bussel, who organizes monthly cupcake meet-ups in New York City, said, “If you bring cupcakes to a party, you are so popular.”
Until the late 1990s, the cupcake often shared the mental dessert pantry with canned peaches and ambrosia; it was nostalgia food, mom-in-an-apron food, happy food.
But then cupcakes took a very chic turn. Trend-setting bakeries like Magnolia, the Greenwich Village cupcake empire, arrived on the scene; by 2005, a parody music video on “Saturday Night Live,” which was later viewed more than five million times on YouTube, included the lyrics, “Let’s hit up Magnolia and mack on some cupcakes.”
And now the new cupcake, having drifted so far from Betty Crocker, is facing fierce competition from the retro cupcake, which is the new, new cupcake that is really the old cupcake.
Americans still find time to whip up some batter and slide a tray in the oven. It’s easy, and the appeal is multifaceted. Cupcakes are portable, cute and relatively inexpensive. They are also “feminine and girlie,” Ms. Kramer Bussel said, so the majority of cupcake bakers and fans are women.
Cupcake is a term of endearment, but it can also be a rather mean-spirited word. “Cupcake teams” in sports are said to be soft and easily crushed. As food, though, cupcakes are democratic; everyone gets one. And they are libertarian; individual and independent compared with communal cakes, which may not have enough slices for everyone.
Across the Atlantic, where cupcakes have become increasingly popular in the last few years, some bakers said they were perplexed by word of an American cupcake crackdown.
“Over here people think it’s a bit like this innocent cake,” said Jemma Wilson, owner of Crumbs and Doilies, a new cupcake bakery in London. “And it seems more dignified and civilized to eat one portion, unless you kind of eat 10, which obviously happens a lot.”
A sub-debate within the cupcake debate has revolved around whether the meaning of cupcakes has been lost — and it’s not pretty.
Can the cupcake loyalist support the sale of a chocolate Guinness cupcake with green-tea cream-cheese frosting? Has the cupcake been stolen from the people by the baking aristocracy?
For a sense of how charged the subject is, consider what happened in July, when Magnolia Bakery, having vaulted to fad status by an appearance on “Sex and the City,” was briefly shut down by the city health department for not having enough sinks at its Greenwich Village establishment.
“At last!” said a blogger posting on Eater.com. “We neighbors get relief from cupcakistas who don’t realize Duncan Hines makes better-tasting cupcakes.”
After a long debate thread, another blogger wrote, “You people need to go back to the suburbs ... Seriously, bunch of grown up New York City residents obsessing over a cupcake shop. I miss the gunfire and crackheads.”
Don’t Even Think of Touching That Cupcake
By SARAH KERSHAW
THE cupcake is at something of a crossroads. Edible icon of Americana, frosted symbol of comfort and innocence, it may not have faced such an identity crisis since first appearing in cookbooks sometime in the 18th century.
As we know, cupcakes have had a whopping resurgence: they are retro-food chic, the thing to eat for people in the know.
But cupcakes have also recently been marched to the front lines of the fat wars, banned from a growing number of classroom birthday parties because of their sugar, fat and “empty calories,” a poster food of the child obesity crisis. This was clear when children returned to school this month to a tightening of regulations, federal and state, on what can be served up between the bells.
And it has led some to wonder whether emotional value, on occasion, might legitimately outweigh nutritional value.
Schools trying to bring parents to the table in efforts to root out fat and sugar have faced what Marion Nestle, a professor of nutrition at New York University who strongly supports limiting sweets in schools, calls “the cupcake problem.”
When included on lists of treats that parents are discouraged or forbidden to send to school — and when those policies are, say, put to a vote at the P.T.A. — “cupcakes are deal breakers,” Professor Nestle said. “It sounds like a joke, but it’s a very serious problem on a number of levels. You have to control it.”
While the merits of banning goodie bags filled with Reese’s and Skittles seem obvious — especially at a time when the risk of childhood diabetes is high for American children — many parents draw the line at cupcakes.
This could have something to do with the fact that in the modern age, the cupcake may be more American than apple pie — “because nobody is baking apple pies,” Professor Nestle explained.
The confection is so powerfully embedded in the national consciousness — and palate — that its future is quite possibly the only cause to unite Texas Republicans and at least some left-wing foodies behind a singular mission: keep the cupcake safe from harm.
“I think the wholesale banning of parents’ bringing cupcakes as a legal issue is over the top,” said Rachel Kramer Bussel, a former sex columnist for The Village Voice who founded the Web site “Cupcakes Take the Cake” three years ago.
The Texas Legislature agreed, in spirit, when it passed the “Safe Cupcake Amendment,” in 2005, in response to new federal child nutrition guidelines and lobbying from parents outraged by the schoolroom siege on cupcakes.
After the amendment passed, a blogger on Homesick Texan wrote: “i don’t think it necessarily warrants all the hubbub, or the intervention of legislature to intervene on behalf of the cupcake. ... but then, another part of me is screaming ‘CUPCAKES!!!’ because they just make people happy.”
Hillary Clinton perhaps was aware of this when on David Letterman’s show recently she listed as No. 9 of her Top 10 campaign promises, “Each year on my birthday everyone gets a cupcake.”
As Ms. Kramer Bussel, who organizes monthly cupcake meet-ups in New York City, said, “If you bring cupcakes to a party, you are so popular.”
Until the late 1990s, the cupcake often shared the mental dessert pantry with canned peaches and ambrosia; it was nostalgia food, mom-in-an-apron food, happy food.
But then cupcakes took a very chic turn. Trend-setting bakeries like Magnolia, the Greenwich Village cupcake empire, arrived on the scene; by 2005, a parody music video on “Saturday Night Live,” which was later viewed more than five million times on YouTube, included the lyrics, “Let’s hit up Magnolia and mack on some cupcakes.”
And now the new cupcake, having drifted so far from Betty Crocker, is facing fierce competition from the retro cupcake, which is the new, new cupcake that is really the old cupcake.
Americans still find time to whip up some batter and slide a tray in the oven. It’s easy, and the appeal is multifaceted. Cupcakes are portable, cute and relatively inexpensive. They are also “feminine and girlie,” Ms. Kramer Bussel said, so the majority of cupcake bakers and fans are women.
Cupcake is a term of endearment, but it can also be a rather mean-spirited word. “Cupcake teams” in sports are said to be soft and easily crushed. As food, though, cupcakes are democratic; everyone gets one. And they are libertarian; individual and independent compared with communal cakes, which may not have enough slices for everyone.
Across the Atlantic, where cupcakes have become increasingly popular in the last few years, some bakers said they were perplexed by word of an American cupcake crackdown.
“Over here people think it’s a bit like this innocent cake,” said Jemma Wilson, owner of Crumbs and Doilies, a new cupcake bakery in London. “And it seems more dignified and civilized to eat one portion, unless you kind of eat 10, which obviously happens a lot.”
A sub-debate within the cupcake debate has revolved around whether the meaning of cupcakes has been lost — and it’s not pretty.
Can the cupcake loyalist support the sale of a chocolate Guinness cupcake with green-tea cream-cheese frosting? Has the cupcake been stolen from the people by the baking aristocracy?
For a sense of how charged the subject is, consider what happened in July, when Magnolia Bakery, having vaulted to fad status by an appearance on “Sex and the City,” was briefly shut down by the city health department for not having enough sinks at its Greenwich Village establishment.
“At last!” said a blogger posting on Eater.com. “We neighbors get relief from cupcakistas who don’t realize Duncan Hines makes better-tasting cupcakes.”
After a long debate thread, another blogger wrote, “You people need to go back to the suburbs ... Seriously, bunch of grown up New York City residents obsessing over a cupcake shop. I miss the gunfire and crackheads.”
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
New Techniques Discovered to Reverse Autism.
I am always trying to keep up with the latest news regarding Autism on the net. Noah is becoming my science lately & I am always on the lookout for anything that will help our son toward recovery.
I found this article to be informative-- especially cause Noah has a lazy right eye. We will definately be checking into getting his eyes checked sometime this Fall!
New Techniques Discovered to Reverse Autism
SANTA MONICA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Santa Monica, California based HOEFFLIN I6S Child Education Institute (“I6S”), a non-profit corporation, specializes in analyzing the many complex problems facing children and their families who have Learning Disabilities and Developmental Brain Disorders (DBD).
I6S will develop a simple, highly effective, minimal cost solution and teach it to the mothers/caretakers who so often feel helpless and want to be knowledgeable and active in helping their child.
Autism is a neurological “BELT” Syndrome consisting of Behavioral Disorders, Eye-Visual Disorders, and Language Disorders, and it Takes a child away and into their own world.
Studies show, 1 in every 65 families has a child with Autism.
Over the last 6 years, “I6S” has been performing specific research on assisting those mothers/caretakers who may be the only one that is helping their Autistic Child. The work has revealed some groundbreaking techniques that have shown how to stop the progression and often reverse Autism.
Autism is caused by loss of left brain function. Four new techniques are used to stop and reverse the loss by using: (1) “Right Brain Sensory Patching,” (2) “Left Brain Sensory-Motor Hyperstimulation,” (3) A very effective special community based learning environment called “PEDS-NET” (Parent Education Directed Schooling in a Neighborhood Educational Training Program) where 3-4 “Lion Pride Mothers” and their child cubs train together in a special secure home environment and (4) A unique “Focused Stepladder Training Program.”
The major part of the program is based on the success at stopping and reversing another child’s neurological disorder. Up to 80% of Autistic children have one crossed eye (Strabismus). Over several months the eye will lose vision unless an “Eye Patching Program” is started. This can stop and actually reverse the visual loss. Likewise, as soon as a child is diagnosed with Autism, a “Brain Patching Program” is started and it too can stop loss of left brain function and actually reverse Autism.
In order to increase the effectiveness, the mothers will also hyperstimulate the 5 sensory and 2 motor nerve impulses going to the left brain. The mothers perform this by using continuous eye stimulation with visual wavelengths of light, continuous music to one ear, stimulating odors and tastes to one side of the nose and tongue, and tickling, stimulating and moving the right arms and legs. When there is a lack of speech, communication is started in a “Focused Stepladder Program,” first by silent gestures, silent pictures, and then oral sounds, then using a different part of the brain to sing letters, words, and then singing sentences.
Unfortunately up to 50% of Autistic children have significant visual disorders that go undiagnosed. As an example, children do not make eye contact with their mothers because the poorly functioning left brain causes a central blind spot. Dr. Hoefflin states that, “One can see how this looks by raising the tips of both index fingers up in front of both of your pupils and then move them until you touch your eyelids. You will not be able to see through the center of your vision, but just around the sides.” Therefore, children cannot see centrally in order to see their mothers, unless they bend or turn their heads. These various eye disorders also explain other Autistic behavior such as rocking, fixation on a spinning object, tip toeing, compulsive organization so they can easily see their own objects, fear and anxiety with changes and tantrums when they are moved.
Dr. Steven Hoefflin, “I6S” founder and main benefactor, began his work 32 years ago when his younger son was born with severe neurological disorders. He began a successful intensive home training program and has developed many very unique learning techniques. Over the last 3 decades, he has shared these with hundreds of mothers in 30 countries who had children challenged by severe learning disorders and Developmental Brain Disorders (DBD). Dr. Hoefflin is currently completing a five volume text/DVD program titled: “The Reversal of Autism: New Prevention, Early Detection, and Successful Treatment.” The Second Volume is titled “Learn How to Learn, Think How to Think, and Become an Intellectual Genius.” It is a unique 1 year, very specialized, animated learning program based on the Doctor’s discovery of how Savant Geniuses learn and think. Clearvision Productions is currently formatting and producing instructional DVDs and animated films for the mothers and children.
For more information, visit the website hoefflin.com and click on the link www.i6s.org.
I found this article to be informative-- especially cause Noah has a lazy right eye. We will definately be checking into getting his eyes checked sometime this Fall!
New Techniques Discovered to Reverse Autism
SANTA MONICA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Santa Monica, California based HOEFFLIN I6S Child Education Institute (“I6S”), a non-profit corporation, specializes in analyzing the many complex problems facing children and their families who have Learning Disabilities and Developmental Brain Disorders (DBD).
I6S will develop a simple, highly effective, minimal cost solution and teach it to the mothers/caretakers who so often feel helpless and want to be knowledgeable and active in helping their child.
Autism is a neurological “BELT” Syndrome consisting of Behavioral Disorders, Eye-Visual Disorders, and Language Disorders, and it Takes a child away and into their own world.
Studies show, 1 in every 65 families has a child with Autism.
Over the last 6 years, “I6S” has been performing specific research on assisting those mothers/caretakers who may be the only one that is helping their Autistic Child. The work has revealed some groundbreaking techniques that have shown how to stop the progression and often reverse Autism.
Autism is caused by loss of left brain function. Four new techniques are used to stop and reverse the loss by using: (1) “Right Brain Sensory Patching,” (2) “Left Brain Sensory-Motor Hyperstimulation,” (3) A very effective special community based learning environment called “PEDS-NET” (Parent Education Directed Schooling in a Neighborhood Educational Training Program) where 3-4 “Lion Pride Mothers” and their child cubs train together in a special secure home environment and (4) A unique “Focused Stepladder Training Program.”
The major part of the program is based on the success at stopping and reversing another child’s neurological disorder. Up to 80% of Autistic children have one crossed eye (Strabismus). Over several months the eye will lose vision unless an “Eye Patching Program” is started. This can stop and actually reverse the visual loss. Likewise, as soon as a child is diagnosed with Autism, a “Brain Patching Program” is started and it too can stop loss of left brain function and actually reverse Autism.
In order to increase the effectiveness, the mothers will also hyperstimulate the 5 sensory and 2 motor nerve impulses going to the left brain. The mothers perform this by using continuous eye stimulation with visual wavelengths of light, continuous music to one ear, stimulating odors and tastes to one side of the nose and tongue, and tickling, stimulating and moving the right arms and legs. When there is a lack of speech, communication is started in a “Focused Stepladder Program,” first by silent gestures, silent pictures, and then oral sounds, then using a different part of the brain to sing letters, words, and then singing sentences.
Unfortunately up to 50% of Autistic children have significant visual disorders that go undiagnosed. As an example, children do not make eye contact with their mothers because the poorly functioning left brain causes a central blind spot. Dr. Hoefflin states that, “One can see how this looks by raising the tips of both index fingers up in front of both of your pupils and then move them until you touch your eyelids. You will not be able to see through the center of your vision, but just around the sides.” Therefore, children cannot see centrally in order to see their mothers, unless they bend or turn their heads. These various eye disorders also explain other Autistic behavior such as rocking, fixation on a spinning object, tip toeing, compulsive organization so they can easily see their own objects, fear and anxiety with changes and tantrums when they are moved.
Dr. Steven Hoefflin, “I6S” founder and main benefactor, began his work 32 years ago when his younger son was born with severe neurological disorders. He began a successful intensive home training program and has developed many very unique learning techniques. Over the last 3 decades, he has shared these with hundreds of mothers in 30 countries who had children challenged by severe learning disorders and Developmental Brain Disorders (DBD). Dr. Hoefflin is currently completing a five volume text/DVD program titled: “The Reversal of Autism: New Prevention, Early Detection, and Successful Treatment.” The Second Volume is titled “Learn How to Learn, Think How to Think, and Become an Intellectual Genius.” It is a unique 1 year, very specialized, animated learning program based on the Doctor’s discovery of how Savant Geniuses learn and think. Clearvision Productions is currently formatting and producing instructional DVDs and animated films for the mothers and children.
For more information, visit the website hoefflin.com and click on the link www.i6s.org.
A little Inspiration from Starbucks
Joel and I had a early morning on Sunday, serving in the City Kids 8am service-- so we decided to share a Venti on the way home. I really liked the quote on the back "You can choose between being a victim of destiny or an adventurer who is fighting for something impossible". I know that I refuse to be a victim of circumstance, even though life has thrown me some twists and turns along the way. After all, life is what we make it... and in life... Attitude is everything.
We can't change our circumstances, however.. we can change the way we approach our circumstances. As for me...I choose to go through the positive door of life. :)
Monday, September 24, 2007
How to Embrace Jesus Without Religion
I really appreciated this article that I found on crosswalk.com, since there always seems to be confusion between Christianity & religion these days.
How to Embrace Jesus without Religion
Whitney Hopler
The veneer of religion can sometimes distort our view of Jesus. Underneath all the religious traditions, what was He really like? What can we learn about Jesus when we strip away the veneer and look at the unvarnished truth about Him?
Here’s some of what you can learn when you embrace Jesus without religion:
Jesus didn’t come to a Christmas card world.
Despite the sanitized images of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph we often see during the Christmas season, Jesus actually entered a fallen world in a dirty stable and began living a gritty life. Understand that Jesus decided to trade the glories of heaven for the struggles of our world, and that His life here was not comfortable in any way. Know that very few of our Christmas traditions have their roots in the Gospels. Rather than focusing just on holiday traditions (like decorating Christmas trees or baking gingerbread cookies), devote plenty of time to meditating on the wonderful implications of Jesus’ decision to visit Earth.
It’s okay for Jesus to shock you.
Jesus meant to jolt people out of the status quo and inspire them to turn to Him for complete transformation. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that Jesus just wants to be nice to you, no matter how many benign images you see of Him in religious traditions. Realize that He wants to change you. Expect that the radical grace Jesus offers will sometimes shock you because He loves everyone without conditions. Ask Him to help you stop judging other people and start seeing them as He does so you can love them, too.
Jesus reveals your cravings.
Jesus isn’t just a distant religious figure. He knows you better than you even know yourself, and He has a unique way of making you think about what’s most important to you. As you pray, let His voice drown out all the noise of distractions in your life and help you focus on your true motivations. What do you really want, and why? Is it what God wants for you? If not, are you willing to lay it down so you can pursue what God wants? Do you trust that God knows what’s best for you? Ask Jesus to change your heart so you want for yourself what He wants for you.
Jesus didn’t speak in sound bites.
Rather than simplifying Jesus’ messages as religion sometimes tries to do, realize that there’s a purpose behind the fact that Jesus’ messages aren’t always easy to understand. By speaking in parables, Jesus allowed people who are truly seeking God to unlock the meaning while keeping it hidden from those who aren’t yet ready to hear it.
Jesus is much more than a great leader or wise teacher.
Instead of including Jesus in the list of the world’s great religious leaders (along with Mohammed, Buddha, and others), recognize that He is much more than just a great leader or wise teacher. Remember that Jesus claimed to be God, and take Him seriously. Never compare Jesus to religious figures who were merely human, because He is altogether different.
Jesus didn’t come to put on a show.
Even though religion sometimes aims to feed people’s appetites for the sensational, Jesus Himself never tried to do that. He could easily have performed any kind of miracle just for the sake of showing off, but He refrained unless there was a specific purpose for granting a miracle. Understand that Jesus wants you to look beyond a desire for miracles to the One who is behind them. Expect that Jesus will sometimes choose to perform a miracle to encourage faith in those who are humble, but that He doesn’t intend for miracles to become substitutes for deeper faith.
Evil is a reality, and a relationship with Jesus gives you the power to fight it.
No matter how much we may focus on inspiration through our religious traditions, we can’t ignore the reality that evil exists. Never become so sophisticated in your religious traditions that you forget the simple truth that you need to fight evil in our fallen world. Ask God to give you the courage you need to use your authority as a Christian to engage in spiritual warfare whenever necessary.
Jesus doesn’t want to just heal you; He wants to know if you really want to get well.
Although religious rituals often present healing as a matter of magically receiving an answer to prayer, understand that there’s more to it. Jesus is not a divine vending machine who simply grants or denies requests; He wants to change you in the process. Before asking Jesus to heal you (physically, emotionally, mentally, or spiritually), first ask yourself if you truly want to get well – no matter what it costs to do so. For example, if you want to be healed of an addiction to alcohol, are you truly willing to make the sacrifices you’ll need to make to start living a healthy lifestyle? Rather than expecting Jesus to magically heal you without any effort on your part, decide to cooperate with Him in the process.
Jesus can seem foolish.
Despite religion’s attempts to explain Jesus, He is beyond human comprehension. Sometimes His wisdom will seem foolish to us because we can’t understand it from our perspective. Don’t worry about not being able to explain Jesus’ ways. Instead, let His mystery draw you closer to Him to constantly learn more and more.
Jesus isn’t bound by the limitations of our culture.
Recognize that, while religious traditions often vary across cultures, Jesus is the same for people from all cultures at all times in history. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that Jesus is like our cultural images of Christians (for example, Jesus isn’t a Republican who lives in the suburbs with a large family). Take off your cultural glasses so you can see Jesus more clearly.
Jesus isn’t to blame for Christians’ hypocrisy.
While Jesus grieves the way His followers have sometimes failed to represent Him faithfully, He’s not at fault for it. Look beyond the mistakes of imperfect human beings to the perfection of Jesus Himself, who always stands ready to forgive and help people grow. Don’t use the sins of Christians as an excuse for spiritual lethargy. Know that we’re all accountable to God for our own choices.
Jesus’ Crucifixion and Resurrection stand at the center of all time.
Although religious traditions have made stories about Jesus’ Crucifixion and Resurrection seem familiar to you, don’t take them for granted, thinking that you don’t have anything new to learn from them. Give those events your fresh attention on a regular basis. Realize that they form the climax of all of history because of what they accomplished – the salvation of the world.
Jesus doesn’t just promise redemption; He actually delivers it.
No religious practice (no matter how promising) has the power to give you the ultimate need of every person – redemption. But Jesus can and will redeem you if you place your trust in Him. Don’t waste your time trying to gain redemption from religion. Instead, turn to Jesus Himself for what you need.
Adapted from Jesus without Religion: What Did He Say? What Did He Do? What’s the Point?, copyright 2007 by Rick James. Published by InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, Ill., http://www.ivpress.com/.
Rick James is a campus missionary for Campus Crusade for Christ and the publisher of CruPress. He is the author of Postcards from Corinth: A Study in Discipleship.
Find this article at: http://www.crosswalk.com/spirituallife/11554085/
How to Embrace Jesus without Religion
Whitney Hopler
The veneer of religion can sometimes distort our view of Jesus. Underneath all the religious traditions, what was He really like? What can we learn about Jesus when we strip away the veneer and look at the unvarnished truth about Him?
Here’s some of what you can learn when you embrace Jesus without religion:
Jesus didn’t come to a Christmas card world.
Despite the sanitized images of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph we often see during the Christmas season, Jesus actually entered a fallen world in a dirty stable and began living a gritty life. Understand that Jesus decided to trade the glories of heaven for the struggles of our world, and that His life here was not comfortable in any way. Know that very few of our Christmas traditions have their roots in the Gospels. Rather than focusing just on holiday traditions (like decorating Christmas trees or baking gingerbread cookies), devote plenty of time to meditating on the wonderful implications of Jesus’ decision to visit Earth.
It’s okay for Jesus to shock you.
Jesus meant to jolt people out of the status quo and inspire them to turn to Him for complete transformation. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that Jesus just wants to be nice to you, no matter how many benign images you see of Him in religious traditions. Realize that He wants to change you. Expect that the radical grace Jesus offers will sometimes shock you because He loves everyone without conditions. Ask Him to help you stop judging other people and start seeing them as He does so you can love them, too.
Jesus reveals your cravings.
Jesus isn’t just a distant religious figure. He knows you better than you even know yourself, and He has a unique way of making you think about what’s most important to you. As you pray, let His voice drown out all the noise of distractions in your life and help you focus on your true motivations. What do you really want, and why? Is it what God wants for you? If not, are you willing to lay it down so you can pursue what God wants? Do you trust that God knows what’s best for you? Ask Jesus to change your heart so you want for yourself what He wants for you.
Jesus didn’t speak in sound bites.
Rather than simplifying Jesus’ messages as religion sometimes tries to do, realize that there’s a purpose behind the fact that Jesus’ messages aren’t always easy to understand. By speaking in parables, Jesus allowed people who are truly seeking God to unlock the meaning while keeping it hidden from those who aren’t yet ready to hear it.
Jesus is much more than a great leader or wise teacher.
Instead of including Jesus in the list of the world’s great religious leaders (along with Mohammed, Buddha, and others), recognize that He is much more than just a great leader or wise teacher. Remember that Jesus claimed to be God, and take Him seriously. Never compare Jesus to religious figures who were merely human, because He is altogether different.
Jesus didn’t come to put on a show.
Even though religion sometimes aims to feed people’s appetites for the sensational, Jesus Himself never tried to do that. He could easily have performed any kind of miracle just for the sake of showing off, but He refrained unless there was a specific purpose for granting a miracle. Understand that Jesus wants you to look beyond a desire for miracles to the One who is behind them. Expect that Jesus will sometimes choose to perform a miracle to encourage faith in those who are humble, but that He doesn’t intend for miracles to become substitutes for deeper faith.
Evil is a reality, and a relationship with Jesus gives you the power to fight it.
No matter how much we may focus on inspiration through our religious traditions, we can’t ignore the reality that evil exists. Never become so sophisticated in your religious traditions that you forget the simple truth that you need to fight evil in our fallen world. Ask God to give you the courage you need to use your authority as a Christian to engage in spiritual warfare whenever necessary.
Jesus doesn’t want to just heal you; He wants to know if you really want to get well.
Although religious rituals often present healing as a matter of magically receiving an answer to prayer, understand that there’s more to it. Jesus is not a divine vending machine who simply grants or denies requests; He wants to change you in the process. Before asking Jesus to heal you (physically, emotionally, mentally, or spiritually), first ask yourself if you truly want to get well – no matter what it costs to do so. For example, if you want to be healed of an addiction to alcohol, are you truly willing to make the sacrifices you’ll need to make to start living a healthy lifestyle? Rather than expecting Jesus to magically heal you without any effort on your part, decide to cooperate with Him in the process.
Jesus can seem foolish.
Despite religion’s attempts to explain Jesus, He is beyond human comprehension. Sometimes His wisdom will seem foolish to us because we can’t understand it from our perspective. Don’t worry about not being able to explain Jesus’ ways. Instead, let His mystery draw you closer to Him to constantly learn more and more.
Jesus isn’t bound by the limitations of our culture.
Recognize that, while religious traditions often vary across cultures, Jesus is the same for people from all cultures at all times in history. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that Jesus is like our cultural images of Christians (for example, Jesus isn’t a Republican who lives in the suburbs with a large family). Take off your cultural glasses so you can see Jesus more clearly.
Jesus isn’t to blame for Christians’ hypocrisy.
While Jesus grieves the way His followers have sometimes failed to represent Him faithfully, He’s not at fault for it. Look beyond the mistakes of imperfect human beings to the perfection of Jesus Himself, who always stands ready to forgive and help people grow. Don’t use the sins of Christians as an excuse for spiritual lethargy. Know that we’re all accountable to God for our own choices.
Jesus’ Crucifixion and Resurrection stand at the center of all time.
Although religious traditions have made stories about Jesus’ Crucifixion and Resurrection seem familiar to you, don’t take them for granted, thinking that you don’t have anything new to learn from them. Give those events your fresh attention on a regular basis. Realize that they form the climax of all of history because of what they accomplished – the salvation of the world.
Jesus doesn’t just promise redemption; He actually delivers it.
No religious practice (no matter how promising) has the power to give you the ultimate need of every person – redemption. But Jesus can and will redeem you if you place your trust in Him. Don’t waste your time trying to gain redemption from religion. Instead, turn to Jesus Himself for what you need.
Adapted from Jesus without Religion: What Did He Say? What Did He Do? What’s the Point?, copyright 2007 by Rick James. Published by InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, Ill., http://www.ivpress.com/.
Rick James is a campus missionary for Campus Crusade for Christ and the publisher of CruPress. He is the author of Postcards from Corinth: A Study in Discipleship.
Find this article at: http://www.crosswalk.com/spirituallife/11554085/
Friday, September 21, 2007
America's Great Moral Disconnect
I was watching a movie last night called "Time Changer"
"http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0295725/ & I was interested in finding out more about our culture has been desensitized by the worlds values that was spoken about in the movie.
We were having a discussion one night at dinner & it was commented the way the world appears to be "messed up" & we wonder why????
I know that posting this might cause a debate (I agree with it, btw) but I found it to be a great article. :)
The Entertainment Industry and Our Culture of Violence: America's Great Moral Disconnect
By Michael L. Brown
If you needed a diversion from watching the news about the tragic campus massacre at Virginia Tech last week, you could have been entertained by any number of movies on TV, like Scream 3, the ever-popular blood fest which aired two nights after the killings. Or you could have made your way over to the theater and taken in the double feature Grindhouse, hailed as the most violent chick-flick of all time. If you weren’t in the mood for movies, you could have lost yourself in a video game like Grand Theft Auto, rated Mature for “more intense violence or language than products in the Teen category.”
Yes, it is a tragic irony of our contemporary culture that we can be so traumatized by violence in its murderous, real life incarnation – rightly so – while at the same time be so titillated by extreme violence on TV, the movies, and our computer screens. The moral disconnect is massive.
Today, young people in particular are entertained by an endless barrage of scenes depicting bloodshed, torture, mutilation, and gore, scenes which create an appetite for more extreme forms of violent entertainment, and the entertainment industry is only to happy to comply. Yet it is considered off limits even to talk about the deleterious effects of this violent bombardment. To raise the subject is to evidence an extreme form of prudery, to be out of touch with reality, to advocate censorship.
But this is not a question of censorship or prudery. It is a question of common sense. According to an April 23, 2000 news release, “Playing violent video games like Doom, Wolfenstein 3D or Mortal Kombat can increase a person’s aggressive thoughts, feelings and behavior both in laboratory settings and in actual life, according to two studies appearing in the April issue of the American Psychological Association’s (APA) Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.”
Does it take the APA to tell us that a constant saturation of extremely violent images “can increase a person’s aggressive thoughts, feelings and behavior”? Isn’t this perfectly logical?
A ten year-old boy watches an NBA playoff game and then dons the jersey of his favorite player and runs to the nearest basketball court, wanting to be just like his hero. A teenage girl watches American Idol and says to herself, “That’s going to me next year,” as she sings and shimmies in front of her mirror. And in 1999, two unstable high-school students in Littleton, Colorado watch Natural Born Killers over and over again and say to themselves, “We’re going to do that one day too” – and they did.
Yes, it is no secret that the Columbine killers, whose murderous acts preceded the Virginia Tech massacre by almost eight years to the day, immersed themselves in video games like Doom and Mortal Kombat. They were also infatuated with movies like Natural Born Killers, and, in the massacre, they may have acted out a murderous school scene from The Matrix.
In the aftermath of the massacre at Blacksburg, some were raising the inevitable questions about gun control legislation, but I found myself wondering, “What kind of movies did the killer watch? Did our culture of violence help fuel the fires of an already sick mind?”
It appears that the demented young murderer was enthralled by the South Korean production Oldboy, an ultra-violent movie which featured themes like incest and sadistic revenge. In one scene, the movie’s chief protagonist pulls out the teeth of his former captor using a claw hammer. (Not surprisingly, Oldboy was hailed by critics at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival.) Did images like this influence an already unstable psyche, helping to push him over the edge?
To be sure, the entertainment industry did not slaughter thirty-two people on the Virginia Tech campus. It was a mentally ill killer who pulled the trigger and was guilty of the horrific crime. But we are sticking our heads in the sand if we refuse to ask ourselves whether there is a connection between the extreme violence of the entertainment industry and the desensitizing of our youth.
Followers of Jesus are not exempt from this process of hardening, and if we allow ourselves to be entertained by all kinds of violence and sex, we too will become desensitized. Christian parents, what are you kids watching? What kind of games are they playing? And what is entertaining us as adults? What images are filling our hearts and minds?
We do well to heed Paul’s warning to the Ephesians: “So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more” (Eph 4:17-19). Hardening of the heart can be fatal.
Recent Hollywood releases include movies like Saw III, with the MPAA list of offensive elements including “strong grisly violence and gore, sequences of terror and torture, nudity and language.” Yet as one website noted, “Parents read this as a warning, kids as a come-on. “‘Terror and torture’? I’m there!” Can’t see it? Must see it.”
An online review for parents describes Grindhouse scenes including, “faces melting, martial arts kicking, flesh-biting/eating, dismembering, and bashing with metal poles. Heads and chests explode, spewing goo and blood.” Another website warns of disturbing images in the movie, including a sex scene in which the woman realizes that the man has been decapitated. Yet a review on the Bloody-Disguting.com website raves about Grindhouse and its “three hours of car crashes, car chases, explosions, blood, guts, gore, slime, knife fights, sex scenes, fake trailers and more action than you’ve seen all year.” As expected, Grindhouse has been a smash box office hit.
In 1968, the ultra-liberal, child educator Benjamin Spock wrote, “[A nursery school teacher told me] her children were crudely bopping each other much more than previously, without provocation. When she remonstrated with them, they would protest, ‘But that’s what the Three Stooges do.’ This attitude did not signify a serious undermining of character. But it certainly showed me that watching violence can lower a child’s standards of behavior” (Baby and Child Care).
What would he say today?
"http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0295725/ & I was interested in finding out more about our culture has been desensitized by the worlds values that was spoken about in the movie.
We were having a discussion one night at dinner & it was commented the way the world appears to be "messed up" & we wonder why????
I know that posting this might cause a debate (I agree with it, btw) but I found it to be a great article. :)
The Entertainment Industry and Our Culture of Violence: America's Great Moral Disconnect
By Michael L. Brown
If you needed a diversion from watching the news about the tragic campus massacre at Virginia Tech last week, you could have been entertained by any number of movies on TV, like Scream 3, the ever-popular blood fest which aired two nights after the killings. Or you could have made your way over to the theater and taken in the double feature Grindhouse, hailed as the most violent chick-flick of all time. If you weren’t in the mood for movies, you could have lost yourself in a video game like Grand Theft Auto, rated Mature for “more intense violence or language than products in the Teen category.”
Yes, it is a tragic irony of our contemporary culture that we can be so traumatized by violence in its murderous, real life incarnation – rightly so – while at the same time be so titillated by extreme violence on TV, the movies, and our computer screens. The moral disconnect is massive.
Today, young people in particular are entertained by an endless barrage of scenes depicting bloodshed, torture, mutilation, and gore, scenes which create an appetite for more extreme forms of violent entertainment, and the entertainment industry is only to happy to comply. Yet it is considered off limits even to talk about the deleterious effects of this violent bombardment. To raise the subject is to evidence an extreme form of prudery, to be out of touch with reality, to advocate censorship.
But this is not a question of censorship or prudery. It is a question of common sense. According to an April 23, 2000 news release, “Playing violent video games like Doom, Wolfenstein 3D or Mortal Kombat can increase a person’s aggressive thoughts, feelings and behavior both in laboratory settings and in actual life, according to two studies appearing in the April issue of the American Psychological Association’s (APA) Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.”
Does it take the APA to tell us that a constant saturation of extremely violent images “can increase a person’s aggressive thoughts, feelings and behavior”? Isn’t this perfectly logical?
A ten year-old boy watches an NBA playoff game and then dons the jersey of his favorite player and runs to the nearest basketball court, wanting to be just like his hero. A teenage girl watches American Idol and says to herself, “That’s going to me next year,” as she sings and shimmies in front of her mirror. And in 1999, two unstable high-school students in Littleton, Colorado watch Natural Born Killers over and over again and say to themselves, “We’re going to do that one day too” – and they did.
Yes, it is no secret that the Columbine killers, whose murderous acts preceded the Virginia Tech massacre by almost eight years to the day, immersed themselves in video games like Doom and Mortal Kombat. They were also infatuated with movies like Natural Born Killers, and, in the massacre, they may have acted out a murderous school scene from The Matrix.
In the aftermath of the massacre at Blacksburg, some were raising the inevitable questions about gun control legislation, but I found myself wondering, “What kind of movies did the killer watch? Did our culture of violence help fuel the fires of an already sick mind?”
It appears that the demented young murderer was enthralled by the South Korean production Oldboy, an ultra-violent movie which featured themes like incest and sadistic revenge. In one scene, the movie’s chief protagonist pulls out the teeth of his former captor using a claw hammer. (Not surprisingly, Oldboy was hailed by critics at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival.) Did images like this influence an already unstable psyche, helping to push him over the edge?
To be sure, the entertainment industry did not slaughter thirty-two people on the Virginia Tech campus. It was a mentally ill killer who pulled the trigger and was guilty of the horrific crime. But we are sticking our heads in the sand if we refuse to ask ourselves whether there is a connection between the extreme violence of the entertainment industry and the desensitizing of our youth.
Followers of Jesus are not exempt from this process of hardening, and if we allow ourselves to be entertained by all kinds of violence and sex, we too will become desensitized. Christian parents, what are you kids watching? What kind of games are they playing? And what is entertaining us as adults? What images are filling our hearts and minds?
We do well to heed Paul’s warning to the Ephesians: “So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more” (Eph 4:17-19). Hardening of the heart can be fatal.
Recent Hollywood releases include movies like Saw III, with the MPAA list of offensive elements including “strong grisly violence and gore, sequences of terror and torture, nudity and language.” Yet as one website noted, “Parents read this as a warning, kids as a come-on. “‘Terror and torture’? I’m there!” Can’t see it? Must see it.”
An online review for parents describes Grindhouse scenes including, “faces melting, martial arts kicking, flesh-biting/eating, dismembering, and bashing with metal poles. Heads and chests explode, spewing goo and blood.” Another website warns of disturbing images in the movie, including a sex scene in which the woman realizes that the man has been decapitated. Yet a review on the Bloody-Disguting.com website raves about Grindhouse and its “three hours of car crashes, car chases, explosions, blood, guts, gore, slime, knife fights, sex scenes, fake trailers and more action than you’ve seen all year.” As expected, Grindhouse has been a smash box office hit.
In 1968, the ultra-liberal, child educator Benjamin Spock wrote, “[A nursery school teacher told me] her children were crudely bopping each other much more than previously, without provocation. When she remonstrated with them, they would protest, ‘But that’s what the Three Stooges do.’ This attitude did not signify a serious undermining of character. But it certainly showed me that watching violence can lower a child’s standards of behavior” (Baby and Child Care).
What would he say today?
Thursday, September 20, 2007
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
What Are You Saying???
"Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen." Ephesians 4:29
I came across this verse today & thought about the way the world is today. If you have taken a look at the media lately, there is a lot of what I call, "verbal slamming" going on. Every where we look, individuals seem to be having a field day with bad verbage. People's words can either become their enemy or their friend.
So-- what is it that we are really saying? As humans, it is so easy to just pop off at the mouth. Now it is really clear to see why God gave us only one mouth, but he also gave us two ears. Are our words either...Helpful or Unhelpful...Edifying or Unedifying????
In other words, think before we speak... cause once words have left our mouths, it makes a great impact & regretfully, we can't take them back.
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Monday, September 17, 2007
God Is Perfecting!
(I got this little devotional from http://www.freshoutlookmag.com/ & found it to be inspiring)The Lord will perfect that which concerns me
Psalm 138:8
There are two words that are spelled perfect, each is pronounced different and have a different meaning. PER-fect refers to flawlessness or sinlessness. Per-FECT is a verb whose bible definition means completion or termination. So, when this verse says ‘ the Lord will per-FECT that which concerns you’, it is literally saying He will complete it or terminate it.
Every area of your life is a state of development. Everyday is a learning process. The Lord brings us along day by day according to His timing and plan. We are not spinning our wheels, regardless of how it feels, we are making progress.
Isn’t it wonderful to know that whatever is going on in your life, God is perfecting those things that concerns you – He is literally bringing it to pass or removing it from your life – the things that are good and pure and His will, He is completing those things and on the other hand, those things that are not according to His will or plan for you, He is removing or terminating those things. I think this is an awesome promise and so liberating, to know that good or bad, it is in His hands.
That leaves us totally free to simply trust and love our God.
Saturday, September 15, 2007
Before & After Living Room Pics
Our living room Before (above)
Our Living room AfterWe replaced our old sofa (that was on its last leg... literally!) with a new sofa & loveseat set. My husband, Joels parents had just bought a new sofa-- so they graciously blessed us with their old set. The new living room set amazingly still looks like new, and they've had it since the late 80's! :)
Since we've been married for the last 7 years, this is the first time that we've had a complete living room set, so we are feeling really blessed right now!
Friday, September 14, 2007
Fruitfulness Of our Words
It speaks in the Bible of "Fruits of the Spirit" and having a fruitful life.
I have been contiplating the "Fruitfulness" of our words & actions in our lives for awhile now. It is common for an individual to speak ill of another in order to build their self esteem up, say things in haste because we didnt think before we spoke, or just out of spite and revenge. Nevertheless, words are hurtful!
Recently, a friend of my 17 year old son's parents said something very unfruitful to their son. They refused to celebrate and acknowledge the date of their son's birthday due to his chosen sexuality. I can't even begin to imagine the effect that it had on this young man.
Instead, I felt in my heart that I would take this young man under my wing and make the day better for him. My son, invited him over, along with a few friends after school & we celebrated his birthday with a pizza party. I wanted so much to undo the effect that his parents had done, after all, this young man sought what we all do.... simple love and acceptance.
It made me think of my own life & the words that I speak. As I prayed one day, I asked the Lord was I being fruitful in my words and actions & to search my heart and to make it clear to me if I wasn't, so I could change course (or repent) of my actions.
The dictionary defines fruitful as:
fruit·ful
adj.
1.
a. Producing fruit.
b. Conducive to productivity; causing to bear in abundance: fruitful soil.
2. Producing something in abundance; prolific: a fruitful author of fiction.
3. Producing results; profitable. See Synonyms at fertile.
Even though I mess up on occasion, I pray that I will think before I speak... and ask myself... are my words "fruitful" to my listener?
It is said that our Thoughts become Words...
Words become actions...
Actions Become Habits...
Habits become character...
and Character becomes our destiny!
I know that I am still work in progress, but I pray these words will pave the way for others to do the same. :) After all, a fire starts with a tiny spark. :) (wink)
I have been contiplating the "Fruitfulness" of our words & actions in our lives for awhile now. It is common for an individual to speak ill of another in order to build their self esteem up, say things in haste because we didnt think before we spoke, or just out of spite and revenge. Nevertheless, words are hurtful!
Recently, a friend of my 17 year old son's parents said something very unfruitful to their son. They refused to celebrate and acknowledge the date of their son's birthday due to his chosen sexuality. I can't even begin to imagine the effect that it had on this young man.
Instead, I felt in my heart that I would take this young man under my wing and make the day better for him. My son, invited him over, along with a few friends after school & we celebrated his birthday with a pizza party. I wanted so much to undo the effect that his parents had done, after all, this young man sought what we all do.... simple love and acceptance.
It made me think of my own life & the words that I speak. As I prayed one day, I asked the Lord was I being fruitful in my words and actions & to search my heart and to make it clear to me if I wasn't, so I could change course (or repent) of my actions.
The dictionary defines fruitful as:
fruit·ful
adj.
1.
a. Producing fruit.
b. Conducive to productivity; causing to bear in abundance: fruitful soil.
2. Producing something in abundance; prolific: a fruitful author of fiction.
3. Producing results; profitable. See Synonyms at fertile.
Even though I mess up on occasion, I pray that I will think before I speak... and ask myself... are my words "fruitful" to my listener?
It is said that our Thoughts become Words...
Words become actions...
Actions Become Habits...
Habits become character...
and Character becomes our destiny!
I know that I am still work in progress, but I pray these words will pave the way for others to do the same. :) After all, a fire starts with a tiny spark. :) (wink)
Refuse Bitterness
I really liked the devotional that arrived in my email box this morning. So many people carry around grudges, bitterness & unforgiveness in their hearts. By doing this, it puts them (and not the other person that wronged them) in their own personal emotional prison.
Its amazing to me that when we refuse to forgive, that the Lord can't even hear our prayers. Its sad that so many people are missing out on what the Lord wants to bless them with, if only they would release that burden of unforgiveness over to Him.
Sounds like freedom to me & this reminds me to have the Lord search my heart and turn over any offenses to Him & he will right my wrongs! I've learned by personal experience in my walk with the Lord, to be quick to forgive-- cause I know that He has forgiven me first.
Wouldnt the world be a better place, if everyone followed this? I know that it is easier said than done. After all, we are all human & we were born with a sinful nature.
I think by taking the first step of forgiving-- we would be one step closer to the person that the Lord wants us all to be! :) :)
Refuse Bitterness
Today's Scripture
“Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice” (Ephesians 4:31 NIV).
Bitterness is an extremely destructive force. It seeps into the depths of your heart when you choose not to forgive someone. When you harbor unforgiveness, it closes the door to God’s working in your life. The Bible even tells us that if we choose not to forgive others, God cannot even hear our prayers.
Thank God that He has empowered us to forgive and release bitterness! You have the choice to get rid of bitterness so you can live in freedom! You may have been through unfair situations, but it’s not over until God says it’s over. God always has the final say, and He is a God of justice. God sees every wrong that’s ever been done to you. He sees every unfair situation. If you will stay in faith and keep your hopes up, He will make your wrongs right.
He’ll bring justice into your life. Your attitude should be, “It may have been unfair. They may have done me wrong. But I refuse to get bitter. I know my time is coming.” As you choose forgiveness and keep your thoughts focused on the Word of God, you will walk in complete freedom in every area of your life!
A Prayer for Today
Heavenly Father, today I refuse bitterness. I refuse to allow the past to keep me stuck. Right now I forgive those who have hurt me. I pray blessing on them, that they would come to know Your Truth. Father, thank You for setting my heart free today. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Its amazing to me that when we refuse to forgive, that the Lord can't even hear our prayers. Its sad that so many people are missing out on what the Lord wants to bless them with, if only they would release that burden of unforgiveness over to Him.
Sounds like freedom to me & this reminds me to have the Lord search my heart and turn over any offenses to Him & he will right my wrongs! I've learned by personal experience in my walk with the Lord, to be quick to forgive-- cause I know that He has forgiven me first.
Wouldnt the world be a better place, if everyone followed this? I know that it is easier said than done. After all, we are all human & we were born with a sinful nature.
I think by taking the first step of forgiving-- we would be one step closer to the person that the Lord wants us all to be! :) :)
Refuse Bitterness
Today's Scripture
“Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice” (Ephesians 4:31 NIV).
Bitterness is an extremely destructive force. It seeps into the depths of your heart when you choose not to forgive someone. When you harbor unforgiveness, it closes the door to God’s working in your life. The Bible even tells us that if we choose not to forgive others, God cannot even hear our prayers.
Thank God that He has empowered us to forgive and release bitterness! You have the choice to get rid of bitterness so you can live in freedom! You may have been through unfair situations, but it’s not over until God says it’s over. God always has the final say, and He is a God of justice. God sees every wrong that’s ever been done to you. He sees every unfair situation. If you will stay in faith and keep your hopes up, He will make your wrongs right.
He’ll bring justice into your life. Your attitude should be, “It may have been unfair. They may have done me wrong. But I refuse to get bitter. I know my time is coming.” As you choose forgiveness and keep your thoughts focused on the Word of God, you will walk in complete freedom in every area of your life!
A Prayer for Today
Heavenly Father, today I refuse bitterness. I refuse to allow the past to keep me stuck. Right now I forgive those who have hurt me. I pray blessing on them, that they would come to know Your Truth. Father, thank You for setting my heart free today. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Thursday, September 13, 2007
Those annoying email Chain letters
I get alot of these "Chain emails" in my email box daily. I usually look them up on http://www.snopes.com or http://www.breakthechain.org/ to see if they are legit or not.
The most recent chain email said, if I forwarded onto 8 friends, something good will happen to me in 8 minutes. What the heck??? I just don't understand why forwarding on a chain email will change the way that the Lord already plans to bless me & not because I forwarded on the so called chain email or not???
Here is the what Breakthechain.org has to say:
Don't want the junk!
There are all sorts of junk e-mails floating around the Internet, but perhaps the most offensive is the junk we send each other: bogus virus warnings, urban legends, offers of easy cash, letters that promise to help sick kids... the list goes on.
BreakTheChain.org tries to educate the world that e-mail is an unreliable medium for sharing information and that the first step to reducing the amount of junk out there is to stop sending it yourself. The more junk you send, the more you will get. Don't want the junk!
The most recent chain email said, if I forwarded onto 8 friends, something good will happen to me in 8 minutes. What the heck??? I just don't understand why forwarding on a chain email will change the way that the Lord already plans to bless me & not because I forwarded on the so called chain email or not???
Here is the what Breakthechain.org has to say:
Don't want the junk!
There are all sorts of junk e-mails floating around the Internet, but perhaps the most offensive is the junk we send each other: bogus virus warnings, urban legends, offers of easy cash, letters that promise to help sick kids... the list goes on.
BreakTheChain.org tries to educate the world that e-mail is an unreliable medium for sharing information and that the first step to reducing the amount of junk out there is to stop sending it yourself. The more junk you send, the more you will get. Don't want the junk!
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Sargent Jason Thomas: Sept 11th Hero
I did a little more research on Sgt Thomas after seeing him & his family receive a new home on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. It finally clicked that the Marine in the movie "World Trade Center" was actually Sgt. Thomas. I just wanted to say that the world is a better place, because of people like Sgt Jason Thomas. I wanted to dedicate this blog to the heros that sacrificed alot on the day of 9/11.Even though the Twin Towers are gone, your kindness & sacrifice will live on in our memories & hearts.
Thank you!
Mystery 9/11 Rescuer Reveals Himself
NEW YORK, Aug. 14, 2006
For years, authorities wondered about the identity of a U.S. Marine who appeared at the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001, helped find a pair of police officers buried in the rubble, then vanished.Even the producers of the new film chronicling the rescue, "World Trade Center," couldn't locate the mystery serviceman, who had given his name only as Sgt. Thomas.The puzzle was finally solved when one Jason Thomas, of Columbus, Ohio, saw a TV commercial for the new movie a few weeks ago as he relaxed on his couch.
His eyes widened as he saw two Marines with flashlights, hunting for survivors atop the smoldering ruins."That's us. That's me!" thought Thomas, who lived in Long Island during the attacks and now works as an officer in Ohio's Supreme Court.Thomas, 32, hesitantly re-emerged last week to recount the role he played in the rescue of Port Authority police officers Will Jimeno and Sgt. John McLoughlin, who were entombed beneath 20 feet of debris when the twin towers collapsed.Back in New York to speak of his experience and visit family, Thomas provided the AP with photographs of himself at ground zero.
As further proof of his identity, the movie's producer, Michael Shamberg, said Thomas and Jimeno have spoken by phone and shared details only the two of them would know. Thomas, who had been out of the Marine Corps about a year, was dropping his daughter off at his mother's Long Island home when she told him planes had struck the towers.
He retrieved his Marine uniform from his truck, sped to Manhattan and had just parked his car when one of the towers collapsed. Thomas ran toward the center of the ash cloud."Someone needed help. It didn't matter who," he said. "I didn't even have a plan. But I have all this training as a Marine, and all I could think was, 'My city is in need.'"Thomas bumped into another ex-Marine, Staff Sgt. David Karnes, and the pair decided to search for survivors
.Carrying little more than flashlights and an infantryman's shovel, they climbed the mountain of debris, skirting dangerous crevasses and shards of red-hot metal, calling out "Is anyone down there? United States Marines!"It was dark before they heard a response. The two crawled into a deep pit to find McLoughlin and Jimeno, injured but alive.Jimeno would spend 13 hours in the pit before he was pulled free. Thomas stayed long enough to see him come up, but left due to exhaustion before McLoughlin, who remained pinned for another nine hours, was retrieved.
Thomas said he returned to ground zero every day for another 2 1/2 weeks to pitch in, then walked away and tried to forget."I didn't want to relive what took place that day," he said. Shamberg said he apologized to Thomas for an inaccuracy in the film: Thomas is black, but the actor cast to portray him, William Mapother, is white.
Filmmakers realized the mistake only after production had begun, Shamberg said.Thomas laughed and gently chided the filmmakers, then politely declined to discuss it further. "I don't want to shed any negativity on what they were trying to show," he said. As for his story, Thomas said he is gradually becoming more comfortable telling it."It's been like therapy," he said.
On the Net:World Trade Center film: http://www.wtcmovie.com/
9-11 Remembrance: A Turning to Good Deeds
I just wanted to share this article--cause I strongly believe that Good will always triump over evil!
In 9/11 remembrance, a turning to good deeds
By Alexandra Marks
http://news.yahoo.com/s/csm/20070910/ts_csm/adogood
Mon Sep 10, 4:00 AM ET
On Sept. 11, Jacob Sundberg of San Antonio has pledged to make eye contact and smile at everyone he meets. Kaitlin Ulrich will bring goody baskets to the police and fire departments in and around Philadelphia. And 100 volunteers from New York – 9/11 firefighters and family members among them – are going to Groesbeck, Texas, to rebuild a house destroyed by a tornado last December.
This is a minute sampling of the hundreds of thousands of people who have pledged to memorialize those killed on 9/11 by doing something good for others.
The heroic acts of all those killed trying to save others that September morning has spawned a growing grass-roots movement. The goal is to ensure that future generations remember not just the horror of the attacks, but also the extraordinary outpouring of humanity during the days, weeks, and months that followed.
"It was the worst possible day imaginable, and in some ways, a remarkable day, too, in the way in which people responded," says David Paine, cofounder of myGoodDeed.org. "We need to rekindle the way we came together in the spirit of 9/11: It would be almost as much a tragedy to lose that lesson."
Sept. 11 has inspired dozens of philanthropic efforts – from groups dedicated to building memorials to foundations designed to improve education in the Middle East. But my GoodDeed has a more universal goal: to turn 9/11 into a day dedicated to doing good – from small, simple things like Lisa Scheive's pledge to help stranded turtles cross the road in Pompano Beach, Fla., to lifesaving efforts, such as John Feal's decision in New York to donate one of his kidneys to help a seriously ill 9/11 worker.
The idea has been endorsed by members of Congress, and at myGoodDeed's urging, President Bush for the first time this year included a call for volunteering in his annual 9/11 proclamation.
After major disasters, Americans have historically tapped a deep reserve of compassion and reached out to others. But in the months and years that follow, those compassionate and civic urges tend to recede. Studies at Harvard's Saguaro Seminar on Civic Engagement in America found that in as few as five months after 9/11, most Americans had gone back to their daily lives and were not more engaged as they said they'd hoped to be. Part of the goal of turning 9/11 into a national day of service is to remind Americans of the inherent joy of giving and to hopefully spur volunteering and charitable acts throughout the year.
"I don't know of any research that's been done on one day of service, but studies have shown that people who do volunteering in high school are more likely to volunteer throughout their lives," says Thomas Sander, executive director of the Saguaro Seminar.
The idea of turning 9/11 into a day of service, charity, and good deeds came from the family and friends of one man: Glenn Winuk, a volunteer fireman and lawyer who worked a block and a half from the World Trade Center. After he helped evacuate his Broadway law offices, he grabbed a medic's bag and ran toward the smoke pouring from the South Tower. That's where his remains were found after the towers fell. Mr. Paine and Glenn's brother Jay had been friends for years. They decided that turning 9/11 into a day of service was best way to memorialize Glenn.
"It completely reflects the way my brother lived his life, and it also specifically reflects how he died," says Mr. Winuk, myGoodDeed.org cofounder. "He laid his life on the line for other people that day."
In 2002, Paine and Winuk sent e-mails to friends and family and suggested they do a good deed, such as donate a day's pay on 9/11. Then the idea evolved, and they founded myGoodDeed.org. In 2004, 100,000 visited their website and pledged to do a good deed on 9/11. This year, those pledging number more than 250,000.
"A lot of people don't know what to do on 9/11," says Paine. "This hits people in their heart and their soul. It connects with something that's fundamental."
Sunday, September 9, 2007
Friday, September 7, 2007
Autism and Stress
I was looking at videos on the topic of Autism on youtube and happened to run across this one.
I was amazed to see Bill Gates in this video & was amazed to find out when I did some research that he is speculated to have the characteristics of Asbergers (even though it isnt diagnosed)
Here is the article that I found:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7899821/
I was amazed to see Bill Gates in this video & was amazed to find out when I did some research that he is speculated to have the characteristics of Asbergers (even though it isnt diagnosed)
Here is the article that I found:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7899821/
The Mean Kitty Song! :) LOL
Our 5 year old son just loves this video!
For all you cat owners, isnt it the truth though?? LOL
For all you cat owners, isnt it the truth though?? LOL
Thursday, September 6, 2007
Back to School Transitional Challenges
Well... yesterday-- our 5 year old son, Noah's first day at kindergarten went okay, but not as I hoped for. Looks like we'll be having to break in a new teacher after Noah has been used to his preschool teacher for a straight 3 years, though. He cheerfully got on the bus when it came, but unfortunately when it was time to get off the bus & to go into the school building-- the principal had to come and get Noah off the bus. He was scared & overwhelmed with the new surroundings already. :(
After school....When I went to go pick him up, they were already lined up outside. I met Noahs teacher--a nice, older lady in her late 50's. :) She said that Noah wrote his name well, but didnt sit criss cross applesauce for circle time. He prefered to lay on the floor instead. :(
I told her that sometimes he needs to warm up to new environments and once he gets to know her and the new classroom better, he'll be just fine. She asked me if they had explained to me the difference between the special ed class and intergrated class??
(Yep, I am totally familiar!!... this wasnt anything new to me!)
I told her that Noah was in an intergrated preschool class for the last 3 years and thrived with his preschool teacher and the structured enviroment.
I mentioned that I had a copy of his Autism diagnosis, and was taking it to the office for his file. She said that she didnt see the Autistic characteristics in Noah. (I thought to myself why do people tend to stereotype children with Autism?? They are all different, even though they share common characteristics in the Autism spectrum. Noah happens to be in the higher functioning end of the Spectrum scale, so of course, it won't be as apparent... but, it does exist)
I shared with her that he has the characteristics at home & will be more apparent as she works with him. I got the impression that I might have to be Proactive to get Noahs needs across.
Im praying that Noah will adapt well... the transition from preschool to elementary is terrifying for any child who has autism.On the other hand, Im looking forward to working with his new teacher and the intervention team.:)
After school....When I went to go pick him up, they were already lined up outside. I met Noahs teacher--a nice, older lady in her late 50's. :) She said that Noah wrote his name well, but didnt sit criss cross applesauce for circle time. He prefered to lay on the floor instead. :(
I told her that sometimes he needs to warm up to new environments and once he gets to know her and the new classroom better, he'll be just fine. She asked me if they had explained to me the difference between the special ed class and intergrated class??
(Yep, I am totally familiar!!... this wasnt anything new to me!)
I told her that Noah was in an intergrated preschool class for the last 3 years and thrived with his preschool teacher and the structured enviroment.
I mentioned that I had a copy of his Autism diagnosis, and was taking it to the office for his file. She said that she didnt see the Autistic characteristics in Noah. (I thought to myself why do people tend to stereotype children with Autism?? They are all different, even though they share common characteristics in the Autism spectrum. Noah happens to be in the higher functioning end of the Spectrum scale, so of course, it won't be as apparent... but, it does exist)
I shared with her that he has the characteristics at home & will be more apparent as she works with him. I got the impression that I might have to be Proactive to get Noahs needs across.
Im praying that Noah will adapt well... the transition from preschool to elementary is terrifying for any child who has autism.On the other hand, Im looking forward to working with his new teacher and the intervention team.:)
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
Back to School Joy!
My boys headed back to school today. Our youngest is in kindergarten this year & my middle son, 17 year old, Jeremy started his first day of the school year officially as a Senior. Bittersweet! :)
The morning started out at 6AM-- as I woke up to make the boys waffles. Jeremy gave me a hug and jokingly asked if I was going to take his picture getting on the bus. What a goofball! :)
He left to catch the bus at 6:45AM, so I climbed back in bed to snooze a bit before Noah woke up to start this Sunny, September day--which it still feels like Summer outside, as it did on the First day of school last year as well. :)
As for Noah, Since he is starting a new school today.... I originally told transportation that he wouldn't be taking the bus on the First day, as I wanted to meet his teacher & taking in school supplies. Well-- our Noah is such a routine kid that breaking that routine had hindered the morning into a chorus of "I dont want to go to school" when he thought that Mommy was going to drive him. (He had taken the bus for the 3 years of Preschool with no issues)
After calling Daddy at work, and him trying to give him a pep talk... we both concluded that Noah taking the bus would be the best option. It was. I called transportation back and told them the situation. Noah cheerfully walked to the bus stop with me as have done for the last 3 years & got on the bus with no problems.
I think Ive learned my lesson today. Even though Noah started Elementary School, its best to step back a bit--special needs or not :) Im expecting Noah to be all smiles when I go to pick him afterschool --as I told him that we would stop at the store to get M&M's to make cookies. :)
Monday, September 3, 2007
The great thimerosal cover-up: Mercury, vaccines, autism and your child's health
Long, but a very informative article.
http://www.newstarget.com/011764.html
The great thimerosal cover-up: Mercury, vaccines, autism and your child's health
by Dawn Prate
You have probably seen your nurse insert a syringe into a large vial, extract some liquid, and then leave a substantial amount of vaccine in the original container. If you've witnessed this seemingly benign procedure, you've seen how vaccine manufacturers are saving money at the expense of public health. In order to store larger amounts of vaccine at a lower cost, companies began offering "multi-dose units" while adding preservatives to prevent contaminations. That way doctors can open and close a vaccine container, inviting germs into the once-sterile solution, while assuring the public that those contaminants are quickly killed by the preservative.
Sound familiar? It's the same story of corporate America's love affair with preservatives. It saves them money, while posing an undue risk to your health. But like many toxic preservatives found in food, a vaccine preservative kills more than just bacteria and fungi; it can lead to extensive neurological damage in your children, and has even been implicated in autism.
Thimerosal
Thimerosal is the preservative of choice for vaccine manufacturers. First introduced by Eli Lilly and Company in the late 1920s and early 1930s, the company began selling it as a preservative in vaccines in the 1940s. Thimerosal contains 49.6 percent mercury by weight and is metabolized or degraded into ethylmercury and thiosalicylate. Mercury, or more precisely, ethylmercury, is the principle agent that kills contaminants. Unfortunately, mercury also kills much more than that.
The Department of Defense classifies mercury as a hazardous material that could cause death if swallowed, inhaled or absorbed through the skin. Studies indicate that mercury tends to accumulate in the brains of primates and other animals after they are injected with vaccines. Mercury poisoning has been linked to cardiovascular disease, autism, seizures, mental retardation, hyperactivity, dyslexia and many other nervous system conditions. That's why the FDA rigorously limits exposure to mercury in foods and drugs. Some common sources of mercury include dental amalgam fillings, various vaccines and certain fish contaminated by polluted ocean waters.
The toxicity of mercury has never been in question. The real question is precisely how much mercury-laced thimerosal is toxic, and what are the possible consequences for our children at low doses?
Eli Lilly and Co. supposedly answered this question for us back in 1930. Concluding thimerosal to be of "a very low order of toxicity . . . for man," the company hired its own doctors to perform thimerosal experiments in Indianapolis City Hospital on meningitis patients during a severe outbreak in 1929. This 60-year-old evidence was still quoted on the company's brochures as recently as 1990. Andrew Waters, who is involved in a lawsuit against Eli Lilly, claims that most critical studies on the toxicity of thimerosal were suppressed by the company until now.
Banned around the world, but not in the United States!!!!!
That might explain why thimerosal was eliminated in many countries 20 years ago. In 1977, a Russian study found that adults exposed to ethylmercury, the form of mercury in thimerosal, suffered brain damage years later. Studies on thimerosal poisoning also describe tubular necrosis and nervous system injury, including obtundation, coma and death. As a result of these findings, Russia banned thimerosal from children's vaccines in 1980. Denmark, Austria, Japan, Great Britain and all the Scandinavian countries have also banned the preservative.
Eli Lilly stuck to its "scientific" facts, but the truth began slipping between the cracks in 1999. After the number of immunizations rose to 12 to 15 per child, the public finally became privy to the possible dangers of thimerosal. One 1999 study revealed that some infants, due to a genetic or developmental factor, lack the ability to eliminate mercury. Trace amounts of mercury in these infants, when accumulated over several vaccines, could pose a severe health risk. Some vaccines, such as vaccines for hepatitis B, contained as much as 12.5 micrograms of mercury per dose.
That's more than 100 times the EPA's upper limit standard when administered to infants.
Hepatitis B vaccines aren't the only immunizations under suspicion. According to Burton Goldberg in Alternative Medicine, scientists are finding stronger and stronger links between thimerosal and neurological damage. One report by Dr. Vijendra Singh of the Department of Pharmacology at the University of Michigan found a higher incidence of measles, mumps and rubella vaccine (MMR) antibodies in autistic children.
The National Vaccine Information Center in Vienna, Virginia, has noted a strong association between the MMR vaccine and autistic features. Reporting similar findings, the Encephalitis Support Group in England claims that children who became autistic after the MMR vaccine started showing autistic symptoms as early as 30 days after vaccination. The diphtheria, pertussis and tetanus vaccine (DPT) given at two, four and six months has triggered autistic symptoms, as well.
When the FDA finally formally released this information in 1999, the news came too little too late for some parents. The damage had already been done.
Links between autism and thimerosal
Autism affects 500,000 to 1.5 million Americans and has grown at an annual rate of 10 to 17 percent since the late 1980s. California found a 273 percent increase in autism between 1987 and 1998. Maryland reported a 513 percent increase in autism between 1993 and 1998 and several dozen other states reported similar findings. Some scientists say the estimated number of cases of autism has increased 15-fold –1,500 percent – since 1991, when the number of childhood vaccinations doubled. Whereas one in every 2,500 children was diagnosed with autism before 1991, one in 166 children now have the disease.
This increase in reported autism cases eerily parallels the increase in the number and frequency of thimerosal-containing vaccinations administered to infants. As of today, children are given as many as 21 immunizations in the first 15 months of life. After a number of scientists and concerned activists noticed the correlation, an investigation was launched to get to the heart of the matter.
Statistical evidence links thimerosal with nervous system disordersIn June 2000, federal officials and industry representatives were assembled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to discuss the disturbing evidence. According to Tom Verstraeten, an epidemiologist who had analyzed the data on the CDC's database, thimerosal appeared to be responsible for a dramatic increase in autism and other neurological disorders. Verstraeten told those at the meeting that a number of earlier studies indicate a link between thimerosal and speech delays, attention-deficit disorder, hyperactivity and autism.
Verstraeten offered no possible cause for this correlation, but held that the statistical evidence linking vaccines and neurological disorders was strong. Dr. Bill Weil, a consultant for the American Academy of Pediatrics, and Dr. Richard Johnston, an immunologist and pediatrician from the University of Colorado, presented similar concerns to the group. However, given no causal relationship, the CDC and industry representatives were quick to discredit the evidence.
Consequently, the CDC paid the Institute of Medicine (IOM) to conduct another study on thimerosal. According to Robert F. Kennedy Jr., this study was fixed in order to "whitewash" previous findings. In its 2001 report, the IOM's Immunization Safety Review Committee did conclude that the link between thimerosal and neurodevelopmental disorders was biologically plausible, though the evidence neither proved nor negated it. The Committee stated that phasing out thimerosal from vaccines was “a prudent measure in support of the public health goal to reduce mercury exposure of infants and children as much as possible.” However, these findings offered no imperative. The data presented at the 2000 meeting was withheld from publication and the link between thimerosal and autism remained "inconclusive."
But what does "inconclusive" mean? Well, that depends on who you talk to. According to the FDA, these "inconclusive" findings negate the risk of a causal relationship between thimerosal and autism. Even Tom Verstraeten, one of the presenters of epidemiological evidence at the CDC meeting, seemingly changed his tune a bit. In 2000, Verstraeten vigorously campaigned against thimerosal based upon his "inconclusive" correlation, but after he was hired by GlaxoSmithKline, the doctor changed his position. The same evidence from 2000, in Verstraeten's eyes, became "neutral" in 2003. After criticism for this apparent flip-flop, Verstaeten wrote a letter to the editor of Pediatrics in 2004 backing the CDC's actions and his own research methods.
Merck continues selling vaccines with thimerosal
Without an imperative to eradicate thimerosal immediately, vaccine manufacturers like Merck & Co. seemingly took their time in reducing thimerosal levels in vaccines. After a large public outcry in 1999, Merck & Co. began decreasing or eliminating the amount of thimerosal in its vaccines. In September 1999, Merck announced that its new line of vaccines were preservative-free, but still continued to distribute the remainder of thimerosal-preserved vaccines until 2001. Only after a congressional inquiry in 2002 did they stop distributing their stockpile. Rep. Dave Weldon, R-Fla., called Merck's actions "misleading."
While officials at the Center for Disease Control claim evidence is lacking to support the possible risks of thimerosal, Dr. Mark Geier, a Maryland geneticist and vaccinologist, along with his son and research partner David Geier, says the CDC has chosen to ignore the science. According to Dr. Geier, more than 5,000 articles have been published that question the safety of thimerosal in vaccines.
The Geiers analyzed the data and determined that the more thimerosal a child receives, the greater his or her chances are of being autistic. The CDC says the Geiers misused information from a CDC database that was not intended to help prove theories. Given no real causal mechanism linking thimerosal and autism, the game seems to have become one of slanting the data to suit the needs of government and industrial interests. Even Verstraeten has admitted that these "inconclusive" findings certainly don't rule out the possibility of finding a link in the future.
Grassroots action against vaccine manufacturersGiven the dearth of health organizations owning up to the dangers of thimerosal, many parents followed their gut instincts and took legal action against vaccine manufacturers. More than 4,200 families have filed lawsuits claiming thimerosal caused injuries to their children. These lawsuits often have two goals: First, to seek reparations for the loss of consortium (basically meaning that an autistic child creates emotional and psychological burdens on their family life), and second, to ensure that these companies exercise more concern for public health and less concern for their own bottom line.
The lawsuits are slow in producing results. The first constraint on these lawsuits is the National Childhood Vaccine Act of 1986. This act stipulates that victims cannot seek redress in the courts without first filing a claim for recovery in the federal Vaccine Court. The statute of limitations for this is within three years of "the first symptom or manifestation of onset or of the significant aggravation of a [vaccine-related] injury."
In the cases of many thimerosal victims, the link between autism and vaccines didn't appear until six years after the first vaccine was administered. While this statute has stopped some claims against vaccine manufacturers, including such big firms as Aventis, GlaxoSmithKline, Merck and Johnson & Johnson, many judges are now allowing suits against Eli Lilly, the maker of thimerosal, to stand. While the Vaccine Act shields vaccine manufacturers, one judge reasons that the legislation does not protect the production of thimerosal because it is a "component."
The burden of proof in court is also extremely problematic for most of these suits. Given the supposed lack of scientific data, lawyers are hard-pressed to prove the link between thimerosal and autism. In what seems like an underhanded move, the CDC sold its data to a private company, ensuring that lawyers could not access it under the Freedom of Information Act.
In the past five years, Congress has also aided vaccine manufacturers, supposedly for "security" reasons. In 2002, a mysterious piggyback on the 2002 Homeland Security bill freed drug companies of liability in lawsuits regarding thimerosal. Called the "Eli Lilly Protection Act" by outraged parents and activists, the then-House Majority Leader Dick Armey told CBS News he snuck the amendment in to keep vaccine-makers from going out of business. Armey claimed it was a matter of national security. "We need their vaccines if the country is attacked with germ weapons."
Ironically, foreign biological terrorism hasn't been a big problem for American citizens, but those whose lives (and the lives of their children) have been affected if not ruined by the harmful effects of thimerisol would undoubtedly say these potentially harmful vaccines are indeed a problem. Armey's piggyback bill was repealed in 2003, but that didn't stop lawmakers from continuing to protect the vaccine industry.
Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist is no stranger to the thimerosal debate, having received $873,000 in contributions from the pharmaceutical industry and $10,000 from Eli Lilly. Frist's position allowed him to attempt to help the industry from the inside, according to Kennedy. Kennedy reports that on five occasions, Frist tried to seal the government's vaccine-related documents and shield Eli Lilly from subpoenas. Frist also introduced a provision in the 2005 Senate Bill S-3 called the "Protecting America in the War on Terror Act," that would effectively insulate the pharmaceutical industry from liability for thimerosal poisoning. Pharmaceutical manufacturers, including Merck, GlaxoSmithKline, Aventis, Weyeth and Eli Lilly, can basically get off scot-free for their actions, even as more and more evidence suggests that top company officials were aware of the possible dangers and did nothing.
A secret memo leaked to the Los Angeles Times reportedly implicates one vaccine manufacturer, Merck & Co., for knowing that thimerosal could pose serious threats to infants. Allegedly, Dr. Maurice Hilleman, one of Merck's top scientists, warned the president of Merck of a possible threat as early as 1991. Dr. Hilleman told executives that six-month-old children receiving regular immunizations frequently received mercury doses 87 times higher than guidelines for the maximum consumption of mercury. Given today's more prudent mercury standards, those thimerosal doses would be 400 times that of safe levels. Dr. Hilleman recommended in the memo that thimerosal be discontinued.
Not only do government and industry officials seem to be trying to downplay the possible harms of thimerosal; the media is also denying the issue coverage. Just recently, ABC flip-flopped on whether it will air interviews with Robert Kennedy Jr., a leading critic of thimerosal. ABC has been accused of suppressing the interviews because of its ties to the pharmaceutical industry.
The thimerosal debate continues
Along with the enormous amount of controversy surrounding this issue, the five-year-old plea for "more research" may have finally produced some results. Burton Goldberg notes that a defect in the myelinization process (insulation of nerve fibers) could explain mercury's propensity to cause autism and neurological damage. This may also account for the frequent development of epilepsy in older autistic children.
Scientists are also working on biological links that support the strong correlations. Researchers at Northeastern University, working with scientists from the University of Nebraska, Tufts and Johns Hopkins University, may have recently found the mechanism by which thimerosal interferes with brain activity. If these researchers are right, vaccine manufacturers could do little to keep the damaging effects of thimerosal hidden.
Pharmacy professor Richard Deth and colleagues found that exposure to thimerosal potently interrupts growth factor signaling, causing adverse effects on the transfer of carbon atoms. These carbon atoms play a significant role in regulating normal DNA function and gene expression and are critical to proper neurological development. Additionally, the scientists recently obtained more insight into the mechanism by which thimerosal interferes with folate-dependent methylation. The mechanism inhibits the biosynthesis of the active form of vitamin B12 (methylcobalamin), a vitamin now being administered to autistic children.
The experts speak on mercury, vaccines and thimerosal
Now all childhood vaccines have at least one mercury-free version, and I urge parents to ask for those versions if they choose to vaccinate their children. Injecting mercury into children, especially infants whose immune systems are still underdeveloped (hepatitis B shots are typically given at birth, before the immune system has developed), can be an assault to the immune system. What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Autoimmune Disorders by Stephen B Edelson MD, page 65
In 1999 studies began to surface showing that multi-dose vial vaccines, such as the MMR and hepatitis B vaccines, contained enough thimerosal to expose vaccinated children to 62.5 ug of mercury per visit to the pediatrician. This is one hundred times the dose considered safe by the Federal Environmental Protection Guidelines for infants! Worse yet, some infants will receive doses even higher; because thimerosal tends to settle in the vial. If it is not shaken up before being drawn, the first dose will contain low concentrations of mercury and the last dose will contain enormously high concentrations. If your baby is the unlucky one that gets the last dose, serious brain injury can result… Health And Nutrition Secrets by Russell L Blaylock MD, page 166
Thousands of families say they can demonstrate with videotapes and photos that their children were normal prior to being vaccinated, reacted badly to the vaccines, and became autistic shortly thereafter. The number of vaccines given before age two has risen from 3 in 1940, when autism occurred in perhaps one case per 10,000 births, to 22 different vaccines given before the age of two in the year 2000. Building Wellness with DMG by Roger V Kendall PhD, page 104
We know that certain forms of mercury, such as methylmercury and phenylmercury, are highly lipid soluble, which makes the brain especially susceptible to mercury accumulation. These forms of mercury are found in vaccines as the preservative thimerosal. Once in the brain, it tends to attach itself to protein structures, especially to the cell membrane, where it can disrupt membrane functions.23 By binding to the cell membrane, mercury changes the membrane's fluid-like quality, making it stiffer and causing the cell to age faster.24 The brain is unique in that neurons depend on special microscopic tube-like structures within the cell, appropriately called neurotubules, for their function.
These neurotubules are manufactured by the cell from a substance called tubulin. We know that mercury interacts with tubulin causing it to unravel. Studies in rats have shown that doses of mercury corresponding to those seen in humans can cause a 75 percent increase in tubulin inhibition. Health And Nutrition Secrets by Russell L Blaylock MD, page 53
In the case of the susceptible newborn infant and toddler, multiple exposures to mercury-containing and multiple antigen vaccines are highly suspect in the causation of multiple organ injury (Bernard et al. 2000). The GI tract, the liver, the pancreas, the kidneys, the immune system, and the brain are major sites of mercury absorption. Researchers have clearly shown a chronic inflammatory bowel disease due to vaccine strain measles in a subset of children with autism (Thompson et al. 1995; Wakefield et al. 1995, 1999, 2000a,b; Kawashima et al. 2000; Pardi et al. 2000; Uhlmann et al. 2002). Disease Prevention And Treatment by Life Extension Foundation, page 153
Studies of autistic children have frequently shown very high levels of mercury, with no other source but vaccines found for the exposure. These levels are equal to those seen in adults during toxic industrial exposures. Several autism clinics have found dramatic improvements in the behavior and social interactions in children from whom the mercury was chelated. Results depended on how soon the mercury was removed following exposure, but permanent damage can be caused if the metal is not chelated soon enough. Still, even in cases of severe damage, because of the infant brain's tremendous reparative ability, improvements are possible. The problem of autism involves numerous body systems including the gastrointestinal, immune and nervous systems; as a result we see numerous infections and magnified effects of malnutrition.
Intrepid workers in the shadows, that is outside the medial establishment, have worked many miracles with these children using a multidisciplinary scientific approach completely ignored by the orthodoxy. Some children have even experienced a return to complete physiological normalcy. Health And Nutrition Secrets by Russell L Blaylock MD, page 166
Mercury and autism mercury toxicity is a suspected cause of a steep rise—a tenfold increase between 1984 and 1994—in diagnosed cases of autism in children around the world, according to some scientists. Specifically, the culprit is thimerosal, a mercury-based compound used as a preservative in vaccines commonly administered to babies and infants. thimerosal-free vaccines are available. If you have a child who will be receiving vaccinations, ask for and make sure thimerosal-free vaccines are used. Kelp, with its essential minerals (especially calcium and magnesium), helps remove unwanted metal deposits. Prescription For Dietary Wellness by Phyllis A Balch, page 198
The pertussis vaccine (DPT) may cause 45,000 cases of autism per year in America, affecting 15 cases out of 10,000 vaccinations; also caused by the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine (MMR) that causes mental impairment, gastrointestinal damage, and increased mortality in 6-12 months from impaired immunity; 9 out of 10 cases were not breast-fed; eating dairy products caused parasites in the autistic (take Vermex; contact Dr. Nelson in Mexico for control of parasites in children with autism). There are now over 500,000 victims of autism residing in the United States, in 1994. The pertussis vaccination is not used in Sweden, which has virtually 0 cases of autism, as does Holland. This mental illness afflicts environmentally and socially non-reactive persons, ofwithdrawn personality; with inability to speak, violent tantrums, insomnia, actions such as bolting across aroad with no regard for the dire consequences. May be caused infant antibiotic use in ear infections with subsequent yeast overgrowth, by cumulative genetic Brain damage, Vitamin deficiencies, or milk and additives allergies.
Immune disorders in autism include white blood cellneutrophil Myeloperoxidase enzyme deficiency for insufficient hypochlorite ions to kill yeast - genetic type from Chromosome 17 mutation or biotinidase deficiency, or acquired type from lead poisoning, Folic acid or B-l 2 deficiency, infection or leukemias… Anti-Aging Manual by Joseph B Marion, page 450
Multiple vaccinations, especially in newborns, are another major source of childhood mercury exposure because of the mercury-containing thimerosal preservative. Over twenty-two vaccinations are now recommended for children before the age of two! Health And Nutrition Secrets by Russell L Blaylock MD, page 64
In addition, there is some anecdotal evidence that autism may be tied to diet. One theory is that, in very rare cases, a child's immune system could be weakened by the measles-mumps-rubella vaccination (MMR), which is usually administered before a child turns 2. As a result of this weakening, the theory goes, the child's digestive system is unable to break down certain food proteins, leading to abnormal brain development. Proponents of this theory believe that putting the child on a diet that eliminates certain foods, such as wheat and dairy products, could in certain cases reverse the course of the disease. This theory remains speculative, however, and research needs to be done to determine its validity. In fact, a 2001 report issued by an Institute of Medicine committee examining studies about the health effects of the MMR vaccine in young children suggests that there is no proven link between the vaccine and autism. The committee recommends that there be no change in immunization practices that require children to be immunized during early childhood. The Immune Advantage by Ellen Mazo and Keith Berndtson MD, page 292
Rather than calling for an all-out immediate ban on thimerosal-containing vaccines, they suggested that parents continue to have their children vaccinated with mercury-contaminated vaccines until new stocks of uncontaminated vaccine could be made available. Here are two doctors' unions that had to be beat over the head with an overwhelming amount of data that mercury-contaminated vaccines were harming children far worse than the actual diseases against which the vaccine was intended to protect them, only to have them suggest that parents continue to harm their children just to satisfy their vaccination obsession. Are you surprised to discover that recent investigations have found that several doctor-members of vaccine boards were either receiving grants from vaccine manufacturers or held stock in the companies? They were willing to sacrifice the health of millions of children just to fill their pockets with cash. These people should be looking through bars, not serving on boards. Health And Nutrition Secrets by Russell L Blaylock MD, page 167
Vaccines may afflict 45,000 cases of autism per year in America, which afflicts 15 victims in every 10.000 births: there are now 5 00,000 of these victims in the U.S. In Sweden not using the pertussis vaccine, there is virtually no autism (and likewise in Holland). Anti-Aging Manual by Joseph B Marion, page 600
Many symptoms of autism are similar to those of mercury poisoning. Immune dysfunction, visual disturbances, and motor dysfunction are seen in both. Treating autistic children for removal of mercury and other heavy metals has shown significant improvement in their autistic symptoms. Most autistic individuals have poor liver detoxification, low antioxidant levels, and low levels of glutathione. Vaccines are effective, but the production and use of vaccines should proceed more cautiously. Currently manufactured vaccines still contain harmful substances like mercury. The link between vaccines and autism is far stronger than the medical community is willing to admit, and more research in this area should be an urgent priority. Building Wellness with DMG by Roger V Kendall PhD, page 105
Studies indicate that autism may be the result of adverse reactions to childhood vaccinations. Dr. Alan Cohen, an environmental physician from Connecticut, notes that high levels of autism and attention deficit disorder (ADD) did not occur until the mandatory use of childhood vaccinations, and suggests that there may be a connection between certain vaccines and the onset of these conditions. Complete Encyclopedia Of Natural Healing by Gary Null PhD, page 46
Almost from the inception of vaccination programs, manufacturers added a mercury preservative called thimerosal to vaccines. The practice continued until recently, and was stopped only because of the outcry from thousands of concerned parents and numerous experts in the field. The American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Academy of Family Practice did not warn parents or pediatricians that the mercury was dangerous until they were forced to. That mercury was toxic to cells had been known for over sixty years, but manufacturers apparently were more worried about lawsuits… Health And Nutrition Secrets by Russell L Blaylock MD, page 165
In fact, a 2001 report issued by an Institute of Medicine committee examining studies about the health effects of the MMR vaccine in young children suggests that there is no proven link between the vaccine and autism. The committee recommends that there be no change in immunization practices that require children to be immunized during early childhood. Another disorder affecting the brain, Alzheimer's disease, may also have an immune connection.
Alzheimer's is a degenerative disease that slowly attacks nerve cells in the brain. It eventually results in the loss of all memory and mental functioning. Scientists are currently investigating the role that the immune system plays in producing an overabundance of the amino acid glutamate, a powerful nerve-cell killer. Another immune connection that researchers are investigating is the idea that Alzheimer's might be triggered, in part, by a virus. The Immune
Advantage by Ellen Mazo and Keith Berndtson MD, page 292
In the past 10 years, the number of autistic children has risen between 200 and 500 per cent in every state in the U.S. This sharp increase in autism followed the introduction of MMR vaccine in 1975. Representative Dan Burton's healthy grandson was given injections for 9 diseases in one day. These injections were followed by autism. A Physicians Guide To Natural Health Products That Work By James Howenstine MD, page 267
"Probably 20% of American children, one in five, suffers from a "development disability'," according to Harris Coulter, Ph.D., Founder and Director of the Center for Empirical Medicine, in Washington, D.C. "This is a stupefying figure and we have inflicted it on ourselves. 'Development disabilities' are nearly always generated by encephalitis. And the primary cause of encephalitis in the U.S. and other industrialized countries is the childhood vaccination program. To be specific, a large proportion of the millions of U.S. children and adults suffering from autism, seizures, mental retardation, hyperactivity, dyslexia, and other branches of the hydra-headed entity called 'development disabilities' owe their disorders to one of the vaccines against childhood diseases." Alternative Medicine by Burton Goldberg, page 1101
Martin noted that the increased incidence of chronic fatigue syndrome, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, autism, and other behavior-linked illnesses "may be an inadvertent consequence of stealth virus vaccine contaminants." AIDS And Ebola by Leonard Horowitz, page 493
Just for perspective if we go back to 1971 up to 1980, we see that California consistently added 100 to 200 new cases a year; but in the year 2002, California added 3,577 new cases. Since 1980, the documented start of California's autism epidemic, the number of new cases has steadily increased. If we break down those statistics it means that from 1994 to 1995, California only added on average 2 new autistic children a day into its system. In 2001, it was a rate of 8 new autistic children added a day; in 2002, it jumped up to 10 children a day. mercury-containing vaccines are still in use today, including the most recently recommended addition to the childhood immunization schedule, 2 shots of flu vaccine for infants, bringing the total number of vaccines up to 41 in California that a child will receive before the age of two.
It will take a few years to start seeing the effect of the phasing out of the mercury-containing preservative thimerosal from childhood vaccines on this autism epidemic. Many symptoms of autism are similar to those of mercury poisoning. Immune dysfunction, visual disturbances, and motor dysfunction are seen in both. Treating autistic children for removal of mercury and other heavy metals has shown significant improvement in their autistic symptoms. Most autistic individuals have poor liver detoxification, low antioxidant levels, and low levels of glutathione. Building Wellness with DMG by Roger V Kendall PhD, page 105
Since the 1990s, there has been a tenfold or 1000-percent increase in autism, an increase which has been linked by some researchers to the organic mercury preservative commonly found in baby vaccines. A greatly increased incidence of juvenile diabetes has been correlated to specific vaccination sequences and to the number of vaccines given. In some Australian Aboriginal communities, every second child died shortly after vaccination. The Natural Way to Heal by Walter Last, page 309
The best current estimates are that autism occurs in 40 to 67 children per 10,000 live births. This means that the prevalence of autism has increased 1,000 percent in the last decade. According to the latest figures just released in January 2003 by the California Department of Developmental Services, California experienced an astounding 31 percent increase in the number of new children… Building Wellness with DMG by Roger V Kendall PhD, page 104
http://www.newstarget.com/011764.html
The great thimerosal cover-up: Mercury, vaccines, autism and your child's health
by Dawn Prate
You have probably seen your nurse insert a syringe into a large vial, extract some liquid, and then leave a substantial amount of vaccine in the original container. If you've witnessed this seemingly benign procedure, you've seen how vaccine manufacturers are saving money at the expense of public health. In order to store larger amounts of vaccine at a lower cost, companies began offering "multi-dose units" while adding preservatives to prevent contaminations. That way doctors can open and close a vaccine container, inviting germs into the once-sterile solution, while assuring the public that those contaminants are quickly killed by the preservative.
Sound familiar? It's the same story of corporate America's love affair with preservatives. It saves them money, while posing an undue risk to your health. But like many toxic preservatives found in food, a vaccine preservative kills more than just bacteria and fungi; it can lead to extensive neurological damage in your children, and has even been implicated in autism.
Thimerosal
Thimerosal is the preservative of choice for vaccine manufacturers. First introduced by Eli Lilly and Company in the late 1920s and early 1930s, the company began selling it as a preservative in vaccines in the 1940s. Thimerosal contains 49.6 percent mercury by weight and is metabolized or degraded into ethylmercury and thiosalicylate. Mercury, or more precisely, ethylmercury, is the principle agent that kills contaminants. Unfortunately, mercury also kills much more than that.
The Department of Defense classifies mercury as a hazardous material that could cause death if swallowed, inhaled or absorbed through the skin. Studies indicate that mercury tends to accumulate in the brains of primates and other animals after they are injected with vaccines. Mercury poisoning has been linked to cardiovascular disease, autism, seizures, mental retardation, hyperactivity, dyslexia and many other nervous system conditions. That's why the FDA rigorously limits exposure to mercury in foods and drugs. Some common sources of mercury include dental amalgam fillings, various vaccines and certain fish contaminated by polluted ocean waters.
The toxicity of mercury has never been in question. The real question is precisely how much mercury-laced thimerosal is toxic, and what are the possible consequences for our children at low doses?
Eli Lilly and Co. supposedly answered this question for us back in 1930. Concluding thimerosal to be of "a very low order of toxicity . . . for man," the company hired its own doctors to perform thimerosal experiments in Indianapolis City Hospital on meningitis patients during a severe outbreak in 1929. This 60-year-old evidence was still quoted on the company's brochures as recently as 1990. Andrew Waters, who is involved in a lawsuit against Eli Lilly, claims that most critical studies on the toxicity of thimerosal were suppressed by the company until now.
Banned around the world, but not in the United States!!!!!
That might explain why thimerosal was eliminated in many countries 20 years ago. In 1977, a Russian study found that adults exposed to ethylmercury, the form of mercury in thimerosal, suffered brain damage years later. Studies on thimerosal poisoning also describe tubular necrosis and nervous system injury, including obtundation, coma and death. As a result of these findings, Russia banned thimerosal from children's vaccines in 1980. Denmark, Austria, Japan, Great Britain and all the Scandinavian countries have also banned the preservative.
Eli Lilly stuck to its "scientific" facts, but the truth began slipping between the cracks in 1999. After the number of immunizations rose to 12 to 15 per child, the public finally became privy to the possible dangers of thimerosal. One 1999 study revealed that some infants, due to a genetic or developmental factor, lack the ability to eliminate mercury. Trace amounts of mercury in these infants, when accumulated over several vaccines, could pose a severe health risk. Some vaccines, such as vaccines for hepatitis B, contained as much as 12.5 micrograms of mercury per dose.
That's more than 100 times the EPA's upper limit standard when administered to infants.
Hepatitis B vaccines aren't the only immunizations under suspicion. According to Burton Goldberg in Alternative Medicine, scientists are finding stronger and stronger links between thimerosal and neurological damage. One report by Dr. Vijendra Singh of the Department of Pharmacology at the University of Michigan found a higher incidence of measles, mumps and rubella vaccine (MMR) antibodies in autistic children.
The National Vaccine Information Center in Vienna, Virginia, has noted a strong association between the MMR vaccine and autistic features. Reporting similar findings, the Encephalitis Support Group in England claims that children who became autistic after the MMR vaccine started showing autistic symptoms as early as 30 days after vaccination. The diphtheria, pertussis and tetanus vaccine (DPT) given at two, four and six months has triggered autistic symptoms, as well.
When the FDA finally formally released this information in 1999, the news came too little too late for some parents. The damage had already been done.
Links between autism and thimerosal
Autism affects 500,000 to 1.5 million Americans and has grown at an annual rate of 10 to 17 percent since the late 1980s. California found a 273 percent increase in autism between 1987 and 1998. Maryland reported a 513 percent increase in autism between 1993 and 1998 and several dozen other states reported similar findings. Some scientists say the estimated number of cases of autism has increased 15-fold –1,500 percent – since 1991, when the number of childhood vaccinations doubled. Whereas one in every 2,500 children was diagnosed with autism before 1991, one in 166 children now have the disease.
This increase in reported autism cases eerily parallels the increase in the number and frequency of thimerosal-containing vaccinations administered to infants. As of today, children are given as many as 21 immunizations in the first 15 months of life. After a number of scientists and concerned activists noticed the correlation, an investigation was launched to get to the heart of the matter.
Statistical evidence links thimerosal with nervous system disordersIn June 2000, federal officials and industry representatives were assembled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to discuss the disturbing evidence. According to Tom Verstraeten, an epidemiologist who had analyzed the data on the CDC's database, thimerosal appeared to be responsible for a dramatic increase in autism and other neurological disorders. Verstraeten told those at the meeting that a number of earlier studies indicate a link between thimerosal and speech delays, attention-deficit disorder, hyperactivity and autism.
Verstraeten offered no possible cause for this correlation, but held that the statistical evidence linking vaccines and neurological disorders was strong. Dr. Bill Weil, a consultant for the American Academy of Pediatrics, and Dr. Richard Johnston, an immunologist and pediatrician from the University of Colorado, presented similar concerns to the group. However, given no causal relationship, the CDC and industry representatives were quick to discredit the evidence.
Consequently, the CDC paid the Institute of Medicine (IOM) to conduct another study on thimerosal. According to Robert F. Kennedy Jr., this study was fixed in order to "whitewash" previous findings. In its 2001 report, the IOM's Immunization Safety Review Committee did conclude that the link between thimerosal and neurodevelopmental disorders was biologically plausible, though the evidence neither proved nor negated it. The Committee stated that phasing out thimerosal from vaccines was “a prudent measure in support of the public health goal to reduce mercury exposure of infants and children as much as possible.” However, these findings offered no imperative. The data presented at the 2000 meeting was withheld from publication and the link between thimerosal and autism remained "inconclusive."
But what does "inconclusive" mean? Well, that depends on who you talk to. According to the FDA, these "inconclusive" findings negate the risk of a causal relationship between thimerosal and autism. Even Tom Verstraeten, one of the presenters of epidemiological evidence at the CDC meeting, seemingly changed his tune a bit. In 2000, Verstraeten vigorously campaigned against thimerosal based upon his "inconclusive" correlation, but after he was hired by GlaxoSmithKline, the doctor changed his position. The same evidence from 2000, in Verstraeten's eyes, became "neutral" in 2003. After criticism for this apparent flip-flop, Verstaeten wrote a letter to the editor of Pediatrics in 2004 backing the CDC's actions and his own research methods.
Merck continues selling vaccines with thimerosal
Without an imperative to eradicate thimerosal immediately, vaccine manufacturers like Merck & Co. seemingly took their time in reducing thimerosal levels in vaccines. After a large public outcry in 1999, Merck & Co. began decreasing or eliminating the amount of thimerosal in its vaccines. In September 1999, Merck announced that its new line of vaccines were preservative-free, but still continued to distribute the remainder of thimerosal-preserved vaccines until 2001. Only after a congressional inquiry in 2002 did they stop distributing their stockpile. Rep. Dave Weldon, R-Fla., called Merck's actions "misleading."
While officials at the Center for Disease Control claim evidence is lacking to support the possible risks of thimerosal, Dr. Mark Geier, a Maryland geneticist and vaccinologist, along with his son and research partner David Geier, says the CDC has chosen to ignore the science. According to Dr. Geier, more than 5,000 articles have been published that question the safety of thimerosal in vaccines.
The Geiers analyzed the data and determined that the more thimerosal a child receives, the greater his or her chances are of being autistic. The CDC says the Geiers misused information from a CDC database that was not intended to help prove theories. Given no real causal mechanism linking thimerosal and autism, the game seems to have become one of slanting the data to suit the needs of government and industrial interests. Even Verstraeten has admitted that these "inconclusive" findings certainly don't rule out the possibility of finding a link in the future.
Grassroots action against vaccine manufacturersGiven the dearth of health organizations owning up to the dangers of thimerosal, many parents followed their gut instincts and took legal action against vaccine manufacturers. More than 4,200 families have filed lawsuits claiming thimerosal caused injuries to their children. These lawsuits often have two goals: First, to seek reparations for the loss of consortium (basically meaning that an autistic child creates emotional and psychological burdens on their family life), and second, to ensure that these companies exercise more concern for public health and less concern for their own bottom line.
The lawsuits are slow in producing results. The first constraint on these lawsuits is the National Childhood Vaccine Act of 1986. This act stipulates that victims cannot seek redress in the courts without first filing a claim for recovery in the federal Vaccine Court. The statute of limitations for this is within three years of "the first symptom or manifestation of onset or of the significant aggravation of a [vaccine-related] injury."
In the cases of many thimerosal victims, the link between autism and vaccines didn't appear until six years after the first vaccine was administered. While this statute has stopped some claims against vaccine manufacturers, including such big firms as Aventis, GlaxoSmithKline, Merck and Johnson & Johnson, many judges are now allowing suits against Eli Lilly, the maker of thimerosal, to stand. While the Vaccine Act shields vaccine manufacturers, one judge reasons that the legislation does not protect the production of thimerosal because it is a "component."
The burden of proof in court is also extremely problematic for most of these suits. Given the supposed lack of scientific data, lawyers are hard-pressed to prove the link between thimerosal and autism. In what seems like an underhanded move, the CDC sold its data to a private company, ensuring that lawyers could not access it under the Freedom of Information Act.
In the past five years, Congress has also aided vaccine manufacturers, supposedly for "security" reasons. In 2002, a mysterious piggyback on the 2002 Homeland Security bill freed drug companies of liability in lawsuits regarding thimerosal. Called the "Eli Lilly Protection Act" by outraged parents and activists, the then-House Majority Leader Dick Armey told CBS News he snuck the amendment in to keep vaccine-makers from going out of business. Armey claimed it was a matter of national security. "We need their vaccines if the country is attacked with germ weapons."
Ironically, foreign biological terrorism hasn't been a big problem for American citizens, but those whose lives (and the lives of their children) have been affected if not ruined by the harmful effects of thimerisol would undoubtedly say these potentially harmful vaccines are indeed a problem. Armey's piggyback bill was repealed in 2003, but that didn't stop lawmakers from continuing to protect the vaccine industry.
Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist is no stranger to the thimerosal debate, having received $873,000 in contributions from the pharmaceutical industry and $10,000 from Eli Lilly. Frist's position allowed him to attempt to help the industry from the inside, according to Kennedy. Kennedy reports that on five occasions, Frist tried to seal the government's vaccine-related documents and shield Eli Lilly from subpoenas. Frist also introduced a provision in the 2005 Senate Bill S-3 called the "Protecting America in the War on Terror Act," that would effectively insulate the pharmaceutical industry from liability for thimerosal poisoning. Pharmaceutical manufacturers, including Merck, GlaxoSmithKline, Aventis, Weyeth and Eli Lilly, can basically get off scot-free for their actions, even as more and more evidence suggests that top company officials were aware of the possible dangers and did nothing.
A secret memo leaked to the Los Angeles Times reportedly implicates one vaccine manufacturer, Merck & Co., for knowing that thimerosal could pose serious threats to infants. Allegedly, Dr. Maurice Hilleman, one of Merck's top scientists, warned the president of Merck of a possible threat as early as 1991. Dr. Hilleman told executives that six-month-old children receiving regular immunizations frequently received mercury doses 87 times higher than guidelines for the maximum consumption of mercury. Given today's more prudent mercury standards, those thimerosal doses would be 400 times that of safe levels. Dr. Hilleman recommended in the memo that thimerosal be discontinued.
Not only do government and industry officials seem to be trying to downplay the possible harms of thimerosal; the media is also denying the issue coverage. Just recently, ABC flip-flopped on whether it will air interviews with Robert Kennedy Jr., a leading critic of thimerosal. ABC has been accused of suppressing the interviews because of its ties to the pharmaceutical industry.
The thimerosal debate continues
Along with the enormous amount of controversy surrounding this issue, the five-year-old plea for "more research" may have finally produced some results. Burton Goldberg notes that a defect in the myelinization process (insulation of nerve fibers) could explain mercury's propensity to cause autism and neurological damage. This may also account for the frequent development of epilepsy in older autistic children.
Scientists are also working on biological links that support the strong correlations. Researchers at Northeastern University, working with scientists from the University of Nebraska, Tufts and Johns Hopkins University, may have recently found the mechanism by which thimerosal interferes with brain activity. If these researchers are right, vaccine manufacturers could do little to keep the damaging effects of thimerosal hidden.
Pharmacy professor Richard Deth and colleagues found that exposure to thimerosal potently interrupts growth factor signaling, causing adverse effects on the transfer of carbon atoms. These carbon atoms play a significant role in regulating normal DNA function and gene expression and are critical to proper neurological development. Additionally, the scientists recently obtained more insight into the mechanism by which thimerosal interferes with folate-dependent methylation. The mechanism inhibits the biosynthesis of the active form of vitamin B12 (methylcobalamin), a vitamin now being administered to autistic children.
The experts speak on mercury, vaccines and thimerosal
Now all childhood vaccines have at least one mercury-free version, and I urge parents to ask for those versions if they choose to vaccinate their children. Injecting mercury into children, especially infants whose immune systems are still underdeveloped (hepatitis B shots are typically given at birth, before the immune system has developed), can be an assault to the immune system. What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Autoimmune Disorders by Stephen B Edelson MD, page 65
In 1999 studies began to surface showing that multi-dose vial vaccines, such as the MMR and hepatitis B vaccines, contained enough thimerosal to expose vaccinated children to 62.5 ug of mercury per visit to the pediatrician. This is one hundred times the dose considered safe by the Federal Environmental Protection Guidelines for infants! Worse yet, some infants will receive doses even higher; because thimerosal tends to settle in the vial. If it is not shaken up before being drawn, the first dose will contain low concentrations of mercury and the last dose will contain enormously high concentrations. If your baby is the unlucky one that gets the last dose, serious brain injury can result… Health And Nutrition Secrets by Russell L Blaylock MD, page 166
Thousands of families say they can demonstrate with videotapes and photos that their children were normal prior to being vaccinated, reacted badly to the vaccines, and became autistic shortly thereafter. The number of vaccines given before age two has risen from 3 in 1940, when autism occurred in perhaps one case per 10,000 births, to 22 different vaccines given before the age of two in the year 2000. Building Wellness with DMG by Roger V Kendall PhD, page 104
We know that certain forms of mercury, such as methylmercury and phenylmercury, are highly lipid soluble, which makes the brain especially susceptible to mercury accumulation. These forms of mercury are found in vaccines as the preservative thimerosal. Once in the brain, it tends to attach itself to protein structures, especially to the cell membrane, where it can disrupt membrane functions.23 By binding to the cell membrane, mercury changes the membrane's fluid-like quality, making it stiffer and causing the cell to age faster.24 The brain is unique in that neurons depend on special microscopic tube-like structures within the cell, appropriately called neurotubules, for their function.
These neurotubules are manufactured by the cell from a substance called tubulin. We know that mercury interacts with tubulin causing it to unravel. Studies in rats have shown that doses of mercury corresponding to those seen in humans can cause a 75 percent increase in tubulin inhibition. Health And Nutrition Secrets by Russell L Blaylock MD, page 53
In the case of the susceptible newborn infant and toddler, multiple exposures to mercury-containing and multiple antigen vaccines are highly suspect in the causation of multiple organ injury (Bernard et al. 2000). The GI tract, the liver, the pancreas, the kidneys, the immune system, and the brain are major sites of mercury absorption. Researchers have clearly shown a chronic inflammatory bowel disease due to vaccine strain measles in a subset of children with autism (Thompson et al. 1995; Wakefield et al. 1995, 1999, 2000a,b; Kawashima et al. 2000; Pardi et al. 2000; Uhlmann et al. 2002). Disease Prevention And Treatment by Life Extension Foundation, page 153
Studies of autistic children have frequently shown very high levels of mercury, with no other source but vaccines found for the exposure. These levels are equal to those seen in adults during toxic industrial exposures. Several autism clinics have found dramatic improvements in the behavior and social interactions in children from whom the mercury was chelated. Results depended on how soon the mercury was removed following exposure, but permanent damage can be caused if the metal is not chelated soon enough. Still, even in cases of severe damage, because of the infant brain's tremendous reparative ability, improvements are possible. The problem of autism involves numerous body systems including the gastrointestinal, immune and nervous systems; as a result we see numerous infections and magnified effects of malnutrition.
Intrepid workers in the shadows, that is outside the medial establishment, have worked many miracles with these children using a multidisciplinary scientific approach completely ignored by the orthodoxy. Some children have even experienced a return to complete physiological normalcy. Health And Nutrition Secrets by Russell L Blaylock MD, page 166
Mercury and autism mercury toxicity is a suspected cause of a steep rise—a tenfold increase between 1984 and 1994—in diagnosed cases of autism in children around the world, according to some scientists. Specifically, the culprit is thimerosal, a mercury-based compound used as a preservative in vaccines commonly administered to babies and infants. thimerosal-free vaccines are available. If you have a child who will be receiving vaccinations, ask for and make sure thimerosal-free vaccines are used. Kelp, with its essential minerals (especially calcium and magnesium), helps remove unwanted metal deposits. Prescription For Dietary Wellness by Phyllis A Balch, page 198
The pertussis vaccine (DPT) may cause 45,000 cases of autism per year in America, affecting 15 cases out of 10,000 vaccinations; also caused by the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine (MMR) that causes mental impairment, gastrointestinal damage, and increased mortality in 6-12 months from impaired immunity; 9 out of 10 cases were not breast-fed; eating dairy products caused parasites in the autistic (take Vermex; contact Dr. Nelson in Mexico for control of parasites in children with autism). There are now over 500,000 victims of autism residing in the United States, in 1994. The pertussis vaccination is not used in Sweden, which has virtually 0 cases of autism, as does Holland. This mental illness afflicts environmentally and socially non-reactive persons, ofwithdrawn personality; with inability to speak, violent tantrums, insomnia, actions such as bolting across aroad with no regard for the dire consequences. May be caused infant antibiotic use in ear infections with subsequent yeast overgrowth, by cumulative genetic Brain damage, Vitamin deficiencies, or milk and additives allergies.
Immune disorders in autism include white blood cellneutrophil Myeloperoxidase enzyme deficiency for insufficient hypochlorite ions to kill yeast - genetic type from Chromosome 17 mutation or biotinidase deficiency, or acquired type from lead poisoning, Folic acid or B-l 2 deficiency, infection or leukemias… Anti-Aging Manual by Joseph B Marion, page 450
Multiple vaccinations, especially in newborns, are another major source of childhood mercury exposure because of the mercury-containing thimerosal preservative. Over twenty-two vaccinations are now recommended for children before the age of two! Health And Nutrition Secrets by Russell L Blaylock MD, page 64
In addition, there is some anecdotal evidence that autism may be tied to diet. One theory is that, in very rare cases, a child's immune system could be weakened by the measles-mumps-rubella vaccination (MMR), which is usually administered before a child turns 2. As a result of this weakening, the theory goes, the child's digestive system is unable to break down certain food proteins, leading to abnormal brain development. Proponents of this theory believe that putting the child on a diet that eliminates certain foods, such as wheat and dairy products, could in certain cases reverse the course of the disease. This theory remains speculative, however, and research needs to be done to determine its validity. In fact, a 2001 report issued by an Institute of Medicine committee examining studies about the health effects of the MMR vaccine in young children suggests that there is no proven link between the vaccine and autism. The committee recommends that there be no change in immunization practices that require children to be immunized during early childhood. The Immune Advantage by Ellen Mazo and Keith Berndtson MD, page 292
Rather than calling for an all-out immediate ban on thimerosal-containing vaccines, they suggested that parents continue to have their children vaccinated with mercury-contaminated vaccines until new stocks of uncontaminated vaccine could be made available. Here are two doctors' unions that had to be beat over the head with an overwhelming amount of data that mercury-contaminated vaccines were harming children far worse than the actual diseases against which the vaccine was intended to protect them, only to have them suggest that parents continue to harm their children just to satisfy their vaccination obsession. Are you surprised to discover that recent investigations have found that several doctor-members of vaccine boards were either receiving grants from vaccine manufacturers or held stock in the companies? They were willing to sacrifice the health of millions of children just to fill their pockets with cash. These people should be looking through bars, not serving on boards. Health And Nutrition Secrets by Russell L Blaylock MD, page 167
Vaccines may afflict 45,000 cases of autism per year in America, which afflicts 15 victims in every 10.000 births: there are now 5 00,000 of these victims in the U.S. In Sweden not using the pertussis vaccine, there is virtually no autism (and likewise in Holland). Anti-Aging Manual by Joseph B Marion, page 600
Many symptoms of autism are similar to those of mercury poisoning. Immune dysfunction, visual disturbances, and motor dysfunction are seen in both. Treating autistic children for removal of mercury and other heavy metals has shown significant improvement in their autistic symptoms. Most autistic individuals have poor liver detoxification, low antioxidant levels, and low levels of glutathione. Vaccines are effective, but the production and use of vaccines should proceed more cautiously. Currently manufactured vaccines still contain harmful substances like mercury. The link between vaccines and autism is far stronger than the medical community is willing to admit, and more research in this area should be an urgent priority. Building Wellness with DMG by Roger V Kendall PhD, page 105
Studies indicate that autism may be the result of adverse reactions to childhood vaccinations. Dr. Alan Cohen, an environmental physician from Connecticut, notes that high levels of autism and attention deficit disorder (ADD) did not occur until the mandatory use of childhood vaccinations, and suggests that there may be a connection between certain vaccines and the onset of these conditions. Complete Encyclopedia Of Natural Healing by Gary Null PhD, page 46
Almost from the inception of vaccination programs, manufacturers added a mercury preservative called thimerosal to vaccines. The practice continued until recently, and was stopped only because of the outcry from thousands of concerned parents and numerous experts in the field. The American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Academy of Family Practice did not warn parents or pediatricians that the mercury was dangerous until they were forced to. That mercury was toxic to cells had been known for over sixty years, but manufacturers apparently were more worried about lawsuits… Health And Nutrition Secrets by Russell L Blaylock MD, page 165
In fact, a 2001 report issued by an Institute of Medicine committee examining studies about the health effects of the MMR vaccine in young children suggests that there is no proven link between the vaccine and autism. The committee recommends that there be no change in immunization practices that require children to be immunized during early childhood. Another disorder affecting the brain, Alzheimer's disease, may also have an immune connection.
Alzheimer's is a degenerative disease that slowly attacks nerve cells in the brain. It eventually results in the loss of all memory and mental functioning. Scientists are currently investigating the role that the immune system plays in producing an overabundance of the amino acid glutamate, a powerful nerve-cell killer. Another immune connection that researchers are investigating is the idea that Alzheimer's might be triggered, in part, by a virus. The Immune
Advantage by Ellen Mazo and Keith Berndtson MD, page 292
In the past 10 years, the number of autistic children has risen between 200 and 500 per cent in every state in the U.S. This sharp increase in autism followed the introduction of MMR vaccine in 1975. Representative Dan Burton's healthy grandson was given injections for 9 diseases in one day. These injections were followed by autism. A Physicians Guide To Natural Health Products That Work By James Howenstine MD, page 267
"Probably 20% of American children, one in five, suffers from a "development disability'," according to Harris Coulter, Ph.D., Founder and Director of the Center for Empirical Medicine, in Washington, D.C. "This is a stupefying figure and we have inflicted it on ourselves. 'Development disabilities' are nearly always generated by encephalitis. And the primary cause of encephalitis in the U.S. and other industrialized countries is the childhood vaccination program. To be specific, a large proportion of the millions of U.S. children and adults suffering from autism, seizures, mental retardation, hyperactivity, dyslexia, and other branches of the hydra-headed entity called 'development disabilities' owe their disorders to one of the vaccines against childhood diseases." Alternative Medicine by Burton Goldberg, page 1101
Martin noted that the increased incidence of chronic fatigue syndrome, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, autism, and other behavior-linked illnesses "may be an inadvertent consequence of stealth virus vaccine contaminants." AIDS And Ebola by Leonard Horowitz, page 493
Just for perspective if we go back to 1971 up to 1980, we see that California consistently added 100 to 200 new cases a year; but in the year 2002, California added 3,577 new cases. Since 1980, the documented start of California's autism epidemic, the number of new cases has steadily increased. If we break down those statistics it means that from 1994 to 1995, California only added on average 2 new autistic children a day into its system. In 2001, it was a rate of 8 new autistic children added a day; in 2002, it jumped up to 10 children a day. mercury-containing vaccines are still in use today, including the most recently recommended addition to the childhood immunization schedule, 2 shots of flu vaccine for infants, bringing the total number of vaccines up to 41 in California that a child will receive before the age of two.
It will take a few years to start seeing the effect of the phasing out of the mercury-containing preservative thimerosal from childhood vaccines on this autism epidemic. Many symptoms of autism are similar to those of mercury poisoning. Immune dysfunction, visual disturbances, and motor dysfunction are seen in both. Treating autistic children for removal of mercury and other heavy metals has shown significant improvement in their autistic symptoms. Most autistic individuals have poor liver detoxification, low antioxidant levels, and low levels of glutathione. Building Wellness with DMG by Roger V Kendall PhD, page 105
Since the 1990s, there has been a tenfold or 1000-percent increase in autism, an increase which has been linked by some researchers to the organic mercury preservative commonly found in baby vaccines. A greatly increased incidence of juvenile diabetes has been correlated to specific vaccination sequences and to the number of vaccines given. In some Australian Aboriginal communities, every second child died shortly after vaccination. The Natural Way to Heal by Walter Last, page 309
The best current estimates are that autism occurs in 40 to 67 children per 10,000 live births. This means that the prevalence of autism has increased 1,000 percent in the last decade. According to the latest figures just released in January 2003 by the California Department of Developmental Services, California experienced an astounding 31 percent increase in the number of new children… Building Wellness with DMG by Roger V Kendall PhD, page 104
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