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Hot Topics - Diseases and vaccines - Anthrax/anthrax vaccine/Gulf War SyndromeHot Topics - Diseases and vaccines - Anthrax/anthrax vaccine/Gulf War Syndrome FREEDOM OF CHOICE IS NOT FREE Vaccination News, A Non-Profit Corporation All the News (includes Breaking News) - a running tab of everything posted on this website since October 29, 2003 Return to Vaccination News Home Page (for best results, right click to "open in new window") View past & current Scandals (columns by Sandy Gottstein aka Mintz) Subscribe to Scandals Search This Site using keywords click here to download Adobe Reader
The Topics: *Alternatives *Big pharma *Big trouble *Conferences *Conflict of interest *Diseases and their vaccines *Legal/political *Miscellaneous *Research *Vaccine-related issues Diseases and vaccines - Anthrax/anthrax vaccine/Gulf War Syndrome also see The Anthrax Vaccine Ruling "Direct Order tells the story of members of the military who were ordered against their will to receive the controversial anthrax vaccine. Years later, after all the disturbing facts about the vaccine have surfaced, the US military still intends to vaccinate all our troops." - documentary narrated by Michael DouglasMarch 1-7, 2004 ►March 4, 2004 - BioPort Supplies FDA-Licensed Anthrax Vaccine to Taiwan - BioPort via Business Wire ►March 3, 2004 - Justice Seeks Dismissal of Anthrax Lawsuit (requires registration) - AP via The Kansas City Star - "The Justice Department wants a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit brought by six members of the military who are challenging the Pentagon's use of a vaccination against anthrax...Court papers filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court contend the suit has no merit because the Food and Drug Administration ruled on Dec. 30 that the vaccine was safe and effective." Comment: Never mind the fact that the FDA miraculously found reason to approve it just days after the judge declared the vaccine experimental, and put a (what turned out to be) temporary hold on the military's anthrax shot program. ►March 4, 2004 -
Criticism, skepticism surround anthrax vaccine - BioPort defends product
despite lawsuits, studies - The State News - "BioPort
Corp. executives are the first to admit that a cloud of doubt seems to linger
above their anthrax vaccine...Critics relentlessly question if the Lansing-based
company's product would be effective against a bioterrorist attack. Others
contend the immunization is harmful to those who receive it...Company
executives, however, maintain that scientific fact and a series of medical
studies vouch for the safety and effectiveness of the nation's only federally
licensed anthrax vaccine." ►March 4, 2004 - Drug to treat hepatitis B proves useful in blocking anthrax toxin - The University of Chicago Chronicle - "'These toxins pack a one-two punch that makes inhalational anthrax extremely harmful,' said Tang, Associate Professor in the Ben May Institute for Cancer Research at the University. 'For the first time, we have a clinically approved drug that, at least in tissue culture, completely eradicates half of that toxic team, and does it at non-toxic doses.'" Comment: That is good news. In my opinion, it is far better to develop drugs to treat those exposed to anthrax, rather than expose everyone to the known and unknown risks of anthrax vaccination, whether they need it or not. ►March 2, 2004 -
Soldiers demand anthrax vaccine inquiry -
www.abc.net.au ►March 2, 2004 - VaxGen reports Phase I clinical trial results of anthrax vaccine candidate - VaxGen, Inc. via www.eurekalert.org
►March 2, 2004 - Troops
‘gagged’ over anthrax jab concerns - The Herald, UK - "SOLDIERS
calling for an inquiry into the possible effects of Iraq war anthrax
vaccinations on the health of their unborn children have accused the Ministry of
Defence of attempting to gag them."
►March 1, 2004 -
Anthrax Jabs Blamed for Baby Deaths - PA News via The Scotsman ►February 28, 2004 - Anthrax: Vital fact the diggers weren't told - The Australian ►February 29, 2004 - Campaign: Scandal of the Anthrax Babies: A Deadly Chemical Weapon - The Sunday Mirror, UK ►February 29, 2004 - Campaign: Scandal of the Anthrax Babies: Our Worst Nightmare - Baby Kye died: 5 weeks - The Sunday Mirror, UK February 23-29, 2004 ►February 29, 2004 - Scandal of the Anthrax Babies - Five soldiers lose their babies. They all had the anthrax jab. - The Sunday Mirror, UK - "Among the general population, around one in 20 babies are still-born." Comment: Can that statistic be right? ►February 23, 2004 - Australian troops anthrax shot problems - New Zealand Herald - "It said the vaccination programme was secretly suspended for two months after 75 per cent of the 1500 Afghan deployment in 2002, including elite special forces, fell ill." ►February 23, 2004 - Defence's anthrax headache continues - TV Program Transcript The 7.30 Report Australian Broadcasting Corporation ►February 26, 2004 - 'No permanent' anthrax jab problems - www.abc.net.au ►February 26, 2004 - Defence health goes under the microscope - www.abc.net.au ►February 27, 2004 - Australian sailors misled about anthrax vaccinations for Iraq war - International Committee of the Fourth International via www.wsws.org ►February 22, 2004 - Australian defense chiefs lashed for not telling of anthrax vaccine ailments - AFP via www.channelnewsasia.com
►February 22, 2004 -
Report: Anthrax shot sickened troops (requires registration) - The Chicago
Tribune ►February 25, 2004 -
Defence had no anthrax safety data - The Australian - "THE
Australian Defence Force admitted in confidential documents that it had "no
available safety data" on its 5000 doses of anthrax vaccine less than six months
before troops were deployed to Iraq." ►February 23, 2004 -
Anthrax
vaccine no threat to troops: Hill - AAP via
www.smh.com.au Comment: What on earth does the alleged fact that "a number of Townsville soldiers and airmen had the vaccination and did not experience any long-term side effects' have to do with whether or not some/many others did suffer long-term effects? ►February 23, 2004 - Did Government Poison NZ Troops in Afghanistan? - Scoop Media, NZ ►February 23, 2004 - The blame drain - The Gulf War veterans are blaming their lawyer for the collapse of their case against the MoD. Jon Robins hears both sides of the story - www.thelawyer.com ►February 23, 2004 - Australian troops anthrax shot problems - New Zealand Herald ►February 23, 2004 - Defence's anthrax headache continues - TV Program Transcript The 7.30 Report Australian Broadcasting Corporation February 16-22, 2004 ►February 21, 2004 - Govt misled troops about anthrax vaccinations: Opposition - www.abc.net.au - "Senator Evans says dozens of troops were sent home for refusing the anthrax vaccinations and while most agreed to the injections, many did so reluctantly...'Clearly the attitude of some of the troops may have been different if they had known about the severe adverse reactions by earlier troops to the inoculations,' Senator Evans said." ►February 21, 2004 - Australian government keeps mum about side effects of anthrax vaccine - AP via www.whnt19.com - "The Australian government is admitting it kept silent about possible side effects of the anthrax vaccine."
►February 21, 2004 -
Anthrax Shots Made Australian Troops Sick - Reuters ►February 21, 2004 -
Anthrax vaccine
serious side-effects kept from soldiers who were vaccinated - Medical News
Today ►February 18, 2004 - A soldier's grim homecoming - Questions: A World War II veteran wonders if Iraq played a part in the apparent suicide of his grandson, Spc. Jeremy S. Seeley. - The Baltimore Sun - "Ray Seeley, a hale 78, has heard about the suicides of those who served in Operation Iraqi Freedom. To some, his grandson's death fits a disturbing pattern of soldiers making it out of Iraq only to die after coming home...The Army says 21 soldiers have killed themselves in Iraq or Kuwait since the war began last March, a rate officials concede is higher than that in the overall Army population. But the figure does not include nearly 70 suicides in the United States after a tour in Iraq, according to the National Gulf War Resource Center, a veterans advocacy group." ►February 21, 2004 - Anthrax shots made troops sick - www.abc.com.au - "THE SAS and other Australian forces sent to Afghanistan to fight the Taliban suffered severe side effects from the anthrax vaccine, according to confidential Defence documents...The documents also reveal that 97 crew aboard HMAS Darwin in the Gulf last year reported ill after being given the controversial vaccine...Only a year earlier, the temporary side effects of the anthrax vaccine among troops bound for Afghanistan were so severe that the entire vaccination program for the 1550-strong deployment was suspended for two months...However, the Howard Government did not disclose this to the troops bound for Iraq last year, who were also required to have the anthrax vaccination." Comment: Will our media report this critically important news? ►February 17, 2004 - Hepatitis Drug May Help Anthrax Victims - Study - Reuters via Yahoo! News ►February 17, 2004 - U.S. Army Makes Exceptions To Anthrax Shots Rule (requires registration) - The Hartford Courant - "The U.S. Army has sent to Iraq at least four soldiers who have refused to be vaccinated against anthrax, despite the Pentagon's long-held insistence that the vaccine is mandatory for all service members assigned to areas of combat or probable terrorism...The deployments by base commanders in Indiana, Kentucky, New York and Wisconsin has led Pentagon critics to question the seriousness of the anthrax threat and the fairness of penalties meted out by the armed services earlier for scores of service members nationwide who refused the vaccine." ►February 16, 2004 - Approved drug blocks deadly anthrax toxin - University of Chicago Medical Center via www.eurekalert.org - "In the online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, a team led by Wei-Jen Tang of the University of Chicago shows that in vitro adefovir dipivoxil (sold as Hepsera®) can effectively reduce the effects of edema factor, one of the two deadly toxins produced by anthrax...'These toxins pack a one-two punch that makes inhalational anthrax extremely harmful,' said Tang, an associate professor in the Ben May Institute for Cancer Research at the University of Chicago. 'For the first time, we have a clinically approved drug that, at least in tissue culture, completely eradicates half of that toxic team, and does it at non-toxic doses.'" ►February 16, 2004 - Worker files $12 million anthrax claim against government - AP via The Daily Press February 9-15, 2004 ►February 10, 2004 - Anthrax Spores Can Germinate, Grow and Reproduce in Soil - University of Michigan Health System via Newswise►February 13, 2004 - Man Exposed to Anthrax Sues Government - www.nbc25.com ►February 10, 2004 - Granville soldier deployed without vaccine - AP via The Advocate - "The Army dropped one charge against an Ohio National Guard member convicted once and charged again with disobeying a lawful order after he refused to take the anthrax vaccine, then deployed the soldier to Iraq without the shots." ►February 11, 2004 - Anthrax alert lost in rush to war - The West Australian - "THE Australian navy deliberately rushed sailors to war in the Gulf without first warning them they would need anthrax shots and without recording the details of vaccines they were given, a secret defence investigation has found." ►February 2004 - Gulf-war vaccination (requires registration) - In The News - Nature ►February 5, 2004 - Gulf war syndrome: the legal case collapses - The Guardian, UK - "An eight-year, multimillion pound legal battle by more than 2,000 veterans for compensation for Gulf war syndrome has collapsed because there is not enough scientific evidence to prove their case in court." ►February 1, 2004 - Baby Is Gulf War Syndrome Victim - Sunday Mirror, UK - "FIGHTING for breath with a mass of tubes keeping him alive, tiny Scott Bowen is Britain’s youngest victim of Gulf War Syndrome...Weighing just 2lb 4oz, the tragic tot was born two months prematurely after both his parents returned from serving in Iraq...Dad Justin, 27, and mum Vicky, 20, had multiple vaccinations before going to war last year and developed symptoms of the Syndrome...They are now sure the cocktail of jabs – especially the controversial anthrax shot – is behind their new-born’s desperate condition." ►February 5, 2004 - Marathon inventor gets patent on anthrax-killing mailbox - Miami Today ►January 27, 2004 - Anthrax kills nine cows in western Saskatchewan, farm quarantined - Canadian Press via http://cnews.canoe.ca ►January 26, 2004 - Make vaccine voluntary - editorial - Army Times - "Five years after the Defense Department began forcing service members to roll up their sleeves for the anthrax vaccine, the battle over whether the shots are safe, effective or even legal still rages...But there’s another question that gets far less attention: Has anyone reassessed the potential threat that prompted the vaccine program in the first place?...More than eight months after major combat operations ended in Iraq, U.S. officials have failed to find a single drop of the thousands of gallons of anthrax supposedly stockpiled by Saddam Hussein." ►January 25, 2004 - Ohio National Guard Member Charged For Refusing Anthrax Vaccine - AP via www.wcpo.com - "An Ohio National Guard member has been charged by the Army with disobeying a lawful order after he again refused to take the anthrax vaccine...Hickman could go to jail and be discharged if convicted...Pfaff said the charge is separate from Hickman's court martial in Ohio last month." January 19-25, 2004 ►January 25, 2004 - Legal fight puts Marine in limbo - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution - "For the last three years, Ocean Rose of Marietta has been trapped in the military version of purgatory...In January 2001, the Walton High School graduate pleaded guilty to disobeying a superior officer. Busted to private, he was drummed out of the Marine Corps with a bad conduct discharge...The refusal of all of them stems from their concern about the safety and effectiveness of the shots. Yet their punishment has been far from uniform."►January 21, 2004 - BIOLOGICAL WAR-FEAR: FDA fails to halt anthrax anxiety - After judge stopped controversial vaccine feds declared it safe - by Timothy W. Maier - Insight magazine, via www.worldnetdaily.com - "'Only after the issuance of an injunction, up pops a federal rule,' Sullivan declared with acid sarcasm to Justice Department attorney Shannen Coffin, who is representing the Pentagon in the lawsuit filed by the six John Does. 'And you're telling me it's coincidental?'...'I'd stand on a stack of Bibles and tell you it's coincidental,' Coffin replied to Sullivan...'That's an amazing coincidence,' Sullivan shot back." ►January 21, 2004 - Local company testing anthrax vaccine - www.wtvw.com - "Bioterrorism is a constant threat, and now the government wants a new vaccine to protect us from anthrax...Now the race is on to find a safer vaccine. That's where federal researchers and those at GFI, a research company, come in...'What they've actually developed now is not only a vaccine that's been on the market for years, we're actually involved in a trial on a new vaccine to potentially protect the public,' said Dr. Randall Stoltz, Medical Director of GFI." Comment: Gee, why would we need to race to produce a "safer" vaccine? And here I thought the one they were using was already plenty safe. January 12-18, 2004 ►January 15, 2004 - Ohio National Guard soldier again refuses anthrax vaccine - Mansfield News Journal - "An Ohio National Guard member again refused an anthrax vaccine Wednesday, an action that could trigger his court-martial or administrative discharge, his lawyer said...Spc. Kurt Hickman said he feels it’s illegal for the government to force his vaccination, lawyer Kenneth Levine said." ►Anthrax Vaccine is Dangerous - The following warning on the pending anthrax vaccine also recalls the hazards of aspartame, the artificial sweetener. Not coincidentally, the current U.S. Secretary Of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld, was the influential head of GD Searle, the pharmaceutical company that won FDA approval for aspartame after the FDA advisory committee had recommended AGAINST approval of aspartame –- also known as Nutrasweet™. - www.naturodoc.com Comment: It is not clear that it is "not coincidentally". That is sheer speculation, in my opinion. ►January 14, 2004 - Veterans to lobby Govt on vaccine illness link - The Canberra Times, Australia - "Now out of the army, Mr Romer said he and others suffered from debilitating intestinal and skin conditions they believed were caused by the medication...'It scares the hell out of me,' he said...'I'm not there to sue them, I'm not that sort of a bloke. I just want something to be done over all this. Surely to God they can do something to help us.'" ►January 14, 2004 - Zimbabwe Suffers Anthrax Outbreak - www.voanews.com - "An outbreak of anthrax in Zimbabwe has killed three people and infected nearly 200 others. Health officials are struggling to deal with the outbreak." ►January 13, 2004 - Report blames Gulf War vet sickness on injections - ABC Local Radio program transcript via www.abc.net.au ►October 2003 - Lymphocytic vasculitis associated with the anthrax vaccine: case report and review of anthrax vaccination. - journal article (J Emerg Med) ►January 13, 2004 - Granville soldier still embroiled in anthrax dispute - The Newark Advocate - "As a battle over the safety of anthrax vaccines heats up, Spec. Kurt Hickman of Granville is left with few clues on how his refusal to take the vaccine will affect his military future...'I think it is only a matter of time before he is asked to take it again,' said Hickman's attorney Kenneth Levine. And if Hickman again refuses -- and Levine would expect him to -- he could face a second court martial hearing, this time by the Army." ►January 12, 2004 - Vaccine link to Gulf War syndrome - AFP via The Australian - "GULF War syndrome was probably caused by vaccines administered to soldiers before their departure to the region, according to a medical report whose findings are published in today's edition of The Times newspaper...The confidential report by senior army specialist Lieutenant Colonel Graham Howe, who examined a British soldier who suffered osteoporosis and depression after the Gulf War, found that 'secret' injections he received before his expected deployment to the Gulf 'most probably led to the development of autoimmune-induced osteoporosis'...The theory has extra credibility because the soldier in question, ex-Corporal Alex Izett, did not end up going to the Gulf. His regiment, based in Germany, was not deployed there." ►January 19, 2004 - Researchers step up battle against ongoing anthrax threat - Early detection, quick treatment and a new-generation vaccine are all part of a multipronged effort to disarm the deadly bacterium. - www.ama-assn.org►January 12, 2004 - Official report links vaccine to Gulf War syndrome (requires registration or subscription) - www.timesonline.com - "For 13 years, the Ministry of Defence has denied that the vaccines , some of which were classified as “secret”, could be blamed for the wide range of debilitating diseases...A copy of the report, dated September 22, 2001, but never made public, has been handed to The Times by Mr Izett, who won a landmark ruling at a war pensions appeals tribunal in July last year which awarded him a 50 per cent disability pension. ..The MoD did not appeal against the ruling but maintained that the vaccines could not be the cause of any Gulf War syndrome of illnesses.Comment: How many secrets are we going to have to discover before realizing we have not been told the truth about vaccines? For a recent letter from a Congressman concerning a possible CDC cover-up, click here (pdf). ►January 13, 2004 - Troops' illness linked to vaccines - Herald Sun - " VACCINES administered to Australian troops before their departure to the first war against Iraq may have caused long-term symptoms known as Gulf War Syndrome...A British medical report has found a link between a pre-deployment immunisation program and long-term medical problems...Australian Gulf War Veterans Association yesterday seized on the British report as evidence that Australian troops also suffered permanent side-effects from their vaccination program."►January 12, 2004 - Jabs linked to Gulf War Syndrome - A Ministry of Defence doctor has said a cocktail of vaccines may be to blame for a range of debilitating illnesses known as Gulf War syndrome. - BBC - "Mr Izett, 33, who now lives in Bersenbruck, near Bremen in Germany, was inoculated like other troops against anthrax, botulism and other biological agents...He said he went public with the confidential report, dated September 22, 2001, so that other soldiers vaccinated with the same 'secret' injections could claim compensation for the physical and mental illness they may have suffered as a result."►January 2004 - “DoD and the Anthrax Vaccine” - message from William Winkenwerder, Jr., MD, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs - www.anthrax.mil - "I want to address the recent controversy created by a U.S. District Court decision December 22 to order a preliminary injunction against our anthrax program and the subsequent lifting of that injunction, January 7. Although the litigation has not been finally resolved, we are pleased the Court lifted the preliminary injunction. DoD is now vaccinating service members again to protect them against the threat of anthrax. The facts, the best medical science, and the FDA’s December 30 final rule, fully support all of DoD’s actions and speak for themselves."January 5-11, 2004 ►January 8, 2004 - Judge clears anthrax shots in the military - The Daily News - "Geld said the matter has been under review by the FDA for more than two decades...'These deliberations have been going on for years,' Geld said. 'The timing is not related to the ruling. It just so happened that it came out now.'" ►January 9, 2004 - BioPort wins $245 million contract to supply anthrax vaccine - AP via www.mlive.com - "BioPort Corp. said Friday that it has entered into a three-year, $245 million contract with the Pentagon to provide anthrax vaccine following a government ruling that the vaccine is safe...The Lansing, Mich.-based company has been the nation's sole supplier of an anthrax vaccine for years but has struggled with safety and reliability issues. BioPort President Bob Kramer said Friday the contract 'demonstrates the Pentagon's faith in our company.'" ►January 9, 2004 - Pentagon Advisers Review Troop Vaccine Safety - Global Security Newswire via www.nti.org - "A U.S. Defense Department advisory board is reviewing the military’s practice of giving soldiers multiple, simultaneous vaccinations to protect them from certain biological agents and natural diseases...Ellen Embrey, deputy assistant secretary of defense for force health protection and readiness, last October requested the review by the Armed Forces Epidemiological Board (AFEB), which is composed of top civilian experts from around the country. The board is expected to present its findings at a regular meeting next month...The request was made while a subcommittee of the board and another panel were investigating a possible relationship between military-administered vaccines and the illnesses or deaths of four personnel." ►January 8, 2004 - Judge Decides Pentagon Can Resume Anthrax Vaccinations (requires registration or subscription) - The New York Times - "In his two-page order issued on Wednesday, Judge Sullivan wrote, 'Although the timing of the issuance of the rule is arguably highly suspicious, nevertheless, the rule has been issued and the principle reason for the issuance of the injunction has been addressed by the government.'...Mr. Zaid, a plaintiffs' lawyer, said after the court action that the agency's rule should be interpreted as an admission that the vaccine 'was being used illegally by the Department of Defense before that time.' He said any military personnel or Pentagon civilians penalized for refusing the mandatory vaccine 'were unjustly punished.'"►January 8, 2004 - Judge Reverses Anthrax Ruling - Pentagon May Resume Vaccinating Members of Military - "Zaid said he will soon ask Sullivan to reissue an order blocking mandatory anthrax inoculations because the FDA's approval of the vaccine was itself flawed, based only on animal research. Another government investigation of the vaccine, being carried out by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and based on human research, will not be completed until 2007, he said."
►January 7, 2004 - Anthrax Vaccine Immunization Program Resumption (pdf) - Memorandum for Secretaries of the Military Departments; Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; Under Secretaries of Defense; Assistant Secretaries of Defense; General Counsel of the Department of Defense; Inspector General, Department of Defense; Directors of Defense Agencies; Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard - www.dod.mil - "Therefore you should immediately resume the anthrax vaccination program." ►January 6, 2004 - Anthrax Vaccine Litigants To File Class-action Complaint Against DOD (requires subscription) - www.insidedefense.com - "Plaintiffs challenging the Pentagon’s 5-year-old mass inoculation program against anthrax will amend their complaint within the next 24 hours to include a class-action certification, according to one of the lead attorneys...The move constitutes the latest salvo in a legal tit-for-tat with the Bush administration following a federal judge’s Dec. 22 injunction against mandatory anthrax inoculations, which the Defense Department gives military personnel serving abroad in regions where they may face a biological threat."
►January 6, 2004 - Commentary: Senseless ‘opt-out’ anthrax ruling must be reversed - The Union Leader and New Hampshire Sunday News - "The decision of Judge Emmet G. Sullivan of the D.C. District Court, which will be binding until the full court can hear the trial or the Supreme Court overturns it, was based on 1998 federal legislation that says service members cannot be forced to take experimental drugs...Granted, it was a piece of bad legislation based not on scientific evidence but rather on kowtowing to “Gulf War Syndrome” activists."
►January 7, 2004 - Judge OKs military anthrax vaccinations - Santa Maria Times - "A federal judge Wednesday allowed the military to resume anthrax inoculations, although he questioned the timing of a government announcement declaring the vaccine safe." ►January 7, 2004 -Judge OKs military anthrax vaccinations - A federal judge cleared the way Wednesday for the Pentagon to resume vaccinating military personnel against anthrax after lifting his injunction against the mandatory inoculation program. - CNN - U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan granted a motion from Defense Department attorneys to limit the effect of his vaccine ban to the six plaintiffs who are suing the government...'In the absence of a proven correlate of immunity between humans and animals, specific to anthrax infection, the FDA's Final Rule's reliance on animal data is illegal, and reflects an arbitrary and capricious decision. Therefore, the government's victory today may only be fleeting,' said attorney Mark Zaid."►January 6, 2004 - New Insight Into How Anthrax Bacteria Can Evade A Host's Immune Response - University of California, San Diego via www.newswise.com ►January 6, 2004 - Some await anthrax shot antidote - The Daily News - "James Muhammad says that those who check his record will see he was a good Marine. An honor graduate from several military courses, he also received at least one meritorious promotion. In only two years and 11 months, he was promoted to sergeant on Nov. 1, 2002 - a rapid rise through the chain of command...Muhammad refused to take the vaccine. Less than six months later, on April 9, 2003, he was sentenced to 60 days in the brig, demoted to the rank of private and received a bad conduct discharge. He was jailed, strip-searched and housed with violent criminals." ►January 5, 2004 - Anthrax ruling a victory for local mom - Missoula woman says judge's decision isn't end of fight over vaccine - Missoulian Online - "'I went looking on the Internet for something that was not hysterical, not emotional; I wanted facts,' says Hubbell, who runs a public relations firm out of her Missoula home. 'I found that when I came across the site sponsored by Maj. Sonnie Bates.'...Bates, Hubbell says, is the highest-ranking officer to refuse the anthrax vaccine, costing him his military career...'His letter to his commanding officer explaining why he would not take it had a military precision to it,' she says. "'t was just fact, fact, fact, fact. It convinced me there was a real problem here, and I had to get involved. The people this is affecting can have their pay docked, be demoted, be court-martialed. They can't speak up, so I figured it's up to the parents to do it.' ►January 5, 2004 - Full story needs airing on military anthrax vaccine (Editorial) - www.pantagraph.com - "Having 800,000 service people vaccinated without positive proof that the vaccines caused any deaths would seem to be sufficient evidence to continue the program for service people heading into areas where the threat of anthrax might be high...However, the problems the manufacturer had with the FDA suggests a full court hearing should be conducted to bring out all of the facts surrounding the manufacturing process before any members of the armed forces are required to take more shots. This hearing should be scheduled quickly." December 29, 2003 - January 4, 2004 ►January 2, 2004 - U.S. Army Buys $30 Million in Anthrax Shots - Reuters - "The Defense Department announced on Friday a $29.7 million order for anthrax vaccine based on the assumption that a federal judge's ban on mandatory inoculations will be reversed...Privately held BioPort Corp. of Lansing, Michigan, was awarded the Army order on Wednesday as part of a $245.6 million contract, the Pentagon said." Comment: If this isn't arrogance of power and doesn't show contempt for the taxpayer, I don't know what does. ►January 3, 2004 - Guardsman who refused vaccine to be deployed - AP via www.newarkadvocate.com - "An Ohio National Guard member convicted of disobeying a direct order by refusing to be vaccinated against anthrax is expected to be deployed next week with his unit, the guard said Friday." ►December 31, 2003 - FDA Issues Final Rule And Final Order Regarding Safety And Efficacy Of Certain Licensed Biological Products Including Anthrax Vaccine - FDA via ScienceDaily - "To complete the review of the safety and effectiveness of certain bacterial vaccines and toxoids licensed before July, 1972, FDA today issued a final rule and order that makes final determinations concerning the safety and effectiveness of such products and amends certain biologics regulations. The final order states FDA's conclusion that the licensed anthrax vaccine, Anthrax Vaccine Adsorbed, is safe and effective for the prevention of anthrax disease - regardless of the route of exposure." Comment: How conVENient. ►December 30, 2003 - FDA's Issuance of Final Rule Concerning Anthrax Vaccine Reflective of Legal Gamesmanship - 18 Year Delay In Issuing Final Rule Calls Into Question FDA Conduct - Press Release, Mark S. Zaid, Esq. and John J. Michels, Jr., Esq. ►December 31, 2003 - Pentagon's past errors heighten vaccine fears - PalmBeachPost.com - "The Pentagon's shameful record of stonewalling active military members and veterans about toxic exposures inspires no confidence in the claim that the vaccinations are safe. Soldiers have been guinea pigs many times before."►December 31, 2003 - F.D.A. Rules Shots Effective for Anthrax That Is Inhaled (requires registration or subscription) - The New York Times - "In its statement on Tuesday, the F.D.A. said the new 'final rule and order' made clear that it 'does not regard the approved anthrax vaccine as investigational for protection against inhalation anthrax.' The new determination, the statement said, was 'relevant and should be considered in any further litigation in this matter.'...But Mark S. Zaid, a lawyer who is challenging the Pentagon's mandatory anthrax vaccine program, said the timing of the announcement was driven by politics, not science...'This alleged final rule is nothing more than after-the-fact gamesmanship to overrule the court's findings,' he said in a telephone interview. 'It appears reflective more of policy duress than independent analysis.'►January 5, 2004 - No longer a threat (Editorial) - AirForceTimes.com - "The Defense Department’s mandatory anthrax vaccination program has been snakebit from its inception...Now, in the face of a U.S. District judge in Washington who ordered the Pentagon to stop forcing service members to take the anthrax shots, the Pentagon has backed down. For now." ►December 30, 2003 - Pocatello woman helps stop mandatory anthrax vaccinations - Idaho State Journal - "A Pocatello woman helped influence the decision when she refused to take the anthrax vaccine last March. Sarah Holder, a former soldier at Fort Lewis, Wash., and Pocatello native, took a general discharge under honorable conditions Nov. 29 ending her five-year military career in communications...Holder, who now lives in Portland, Ore., told the Seattle P-I Tuesday she might try to have her discharge upgraded to honorable." ►December 30, 2003 - Anthrax Toxin Inhibitor Identified; Findings Could Lead To More Effective Therapy For Deadly Agent - Harvard Medical School via ScienceDaily ►December 30, 2003 - FDA Says Anthrax Vaccine Safe for Troops - Reuters - "The anthrax vaccine is safe for use in protecting U.S. troops against inhaled exposure to the potentially deadly bacteria, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said on Tuesday...'The FDA-approved labeling for the anthrax vaccine does not specify the route of exposure, and the vaccine is indicated for active immunization against Bacillus anthracis, independent of the route of exposure,' it said in a statement...It also said an expert panel put together by the independent Institute of Medicine had found the vaccine to be safe." Comment: It is hard to believe that the plaintiffs could have argued, and the judge would have accepted, that the vaccine was only approved for cutaneous use, if the labeling, in fact, did "not specify the route of exposure". Stay tuned. ►December 30, 2003 - Court To Rule On Marines' Anthrax Vaccinations - One Marine Court-Martialed, Another Awaits Trial - www.nbcsandiego.com ►December 29, 2003 - New drug could beat anthrax poison - UPI via Washington Times - "A U.S. discovery could produce a drug to counter the deadly effects of the anthrax toxin, the BBC said Tuesday...Experts from Harvard Medical School have found six chemicals which they believe could stop a toxin called "lethal factor" getting into cells. In the journal Nature Structural Biology, they say a drug could be more useful than mass vaccination." ►December 29, 2003 - Opt-Out Military - Hysteria leads to judicial overreach — and national-security danger. - National Review Online - "In fact, extensive epidemiological studies have shown that Gulf vets are just as healthy as matched vets who didn't deploy and healthier than matched civilians. They are somewhat less likely to have died thannon-deployed vets and are dying at less than half the rate of the general population. This is not only the case here, but in the U.K. as well. There is no GWS." ►December 29, 2003 - Troop anthrax shots in question - North County Times - "At least two local Marines remain in legal limbo as federal officials and a Washington district court judge wrangle over whether the military can force members of the armed services to take anthrax vaccinations...The two Marines refused to take mandatory inoculations a year ago and have since faced stiff punishment for refusing direct orders. One claims to have suffered intimidation and even a death threat from his superiors for refusing the vaccine." ►December 27, 2003 - Airing anthrax - Editorial, The Salt Lake Tribune - "The question of whether anthrax vaccine used during the first Gulf War caused or contributed to the set of ailments referred to as Gulf War Syndrome is unresolved. Up to 20,000 veterans of that conflict continue to suffer memory loss, fatigue, rashes and muscle and joint pains and still are trying to get compensation from the Department of Defense for their medical expenses. So it is easy to see why today's troops balk at taking the vaccine when so many questions remain unanswered." ►December 24, 2003 - When it comes to vaccines, let soldiers call the shots - Commentary, Chicago Sun-Times - "Soldiers must obey orders. Normally that would begin and end our thinking regarding the U.S. military's desire to inoculate its troops against anthrax...But the military, which has performed so skillfully and admirably during warfare, has a terrible record when it comes to guarding the health of its personnel off the battlefield, and has lost the right to dictate, unquestioned, what troops should be required to automatically undergo." ►December 29, 2003 - Compounds stop anthrax toxin: studies - www.cbc.ca - "Researchers have discovered a way to stop a deadly anthrax toxin in tests on cells. They say it could lead to new ways of treating the disease...Rather than vaccinating whole populations, a therapeutic combination of antibiotics and protease inhibitor drugs would need to be used only in actual cases, Cantley said." ►December 29, 2003 - A dose of restraint ordered for Pentagon - Opinion, The Virginia-Pilot - "Air Force Gen. Richard Myers said of the vaccine, 'It’s not experimental. It has been approved by the FDA.'...Yes, but only for cutaneous anthrax...And one attorney who worked on the case told The Washington Post that the only thing Pentagon officials received from the FDA to bolster their claim was the personal opinion of a political appointee, not full agency sanction that the shot can be used against both types of anthrax.
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DISCLAIMER: All information, data, and material contained, presented, or provided here is for general information purposes only and is not to be construed as reflecting the knowledge or opinions of the publisher, and is not to be construed or intended as providing medical or legal advice. The decision whether or not to vaccinate is an important and complex issue and should be made by you, and you alone, in consultation with your health care provider.
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 "A foolish faith in authority is the worst enemy of truth." -- Albert Einstein, letter to a friend, 1901 "I know of no safe depository of the ultimate powers of the society but the people themselves, and if we think them not enlightened enough to exercise control with a wholesome discretion, the remedy is not to take it from them, but to inform their discretion by education." -- Thomas Jefferson, letter to William C. Jarvis, September 28, 1820 "What's the point of vaccination if it doesn't protect you from the unvaccinated?" -- Sandy Gottstein "Who gets to decide what the greater good is and how many will be sacrificed to it?" -- Sandy Gottstein |