RealClearInvestigations' Picks of the Week
RealClearInvestigations' Picks of the Week
April 8 to April 14
Featured Investigation
Vaccines do not cause autism. But scientific research has revealed an unexpected link: Acetaminophen, routinely administered to relieve aches, pains and fevers from the vaccine shots, may be one culprit.
In an article for RealClearInvestigations, Dr. William Parker, an associate professor in the Department of Surgery at the Duke University School of Medicine, highlights three bodies of groundbreaking evidence suggesting the link. He writes:
The first is historical. Autism rates were relatively low – about four cases per 10,000 – until the mid-1980s, when they suddenly exploded (see graph), rising to more than 100 cases per 10,000 today. A leading theory proposed to explain this increase is that most of it does not reflect a change in the actual occurrence of autism, but rather it is a reflection of changing awareness, diagnostic criteria, and other factors.
However, research and analysis by me and others point to the early 1980s as the beginning of this almost 40-fold increase, when the link between aspirin and the rare but brain-damaging Reye’s syndrome was established. In response, pediatricians were guided to acetaminophen as the only FDA-approved fever reducer for children aged 0-6 months. Although nobody is tracking exactly how much acetaminophen our children receive today, we do know that more than 90 percent of all kids today receive the drug during early development.
The second body evidence comes from research with lab animals “showing acetaminophen-induced brain damage if used shortly after birth.”
The third body of evidence involves circumcised boys:
Circumcised boys – who are typically given acetaminophen for pain relief – have 50 percent more autism than uncircumcised boys. Cuba, a country without access to acetaminophen, reportedly has extremely low rates of autism. Unusual and unexplained rates of autism in Israel and in South Korea may also have their roots in levels of acetaminophen exposure in those countries.
Other Noteworthy Articles and Series
Twists and Turns Through Trump World
New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Politico
If Donald Trump were an amusement park developer, he might consider a tilt-a-whirl, tunnel of love, hall of mirrors and tug-of-war. But maybe not kiddie rides.
With rollicking twists and turns in what was once accurately labeled the Trump-Russia investigation, attention shifted this week to the President's personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, and his role as a fixer of philanderers' hush money and who knows what else. The FBI raided his office, home and hotel room for evidence, directed by federal prosecutors in New York after a referral by Robert Mueller, the special counsel.
That provoked outrage from Trump over what he and others saw as violations of attorney-client privilege. His splenetic tweets were revived later in the week with the release of a much-anticipated internal investigation concluding that Andrew McCabe, the FBI's cashiered deputy director, was a leaker and a liar.
Trump views both McCabe and McCabe's ex-boss, James Comey, the FBI director Trump fired, as Hillary Clinton partisans bent against his election and presidency. The dislike is mutual, to judge from advance word of Comey's new memoir, out Tuesday. The book apparently draws on contemporaneous memos Comey took with him, arguably illegally, when he left the FBI - notes he had earlier leaked to get the special counsel appointed.
Amid the week's dark portents for the President, he could take solace that the Comey book is not one of truly damaging bombshells, at least not according to the Beltway's chattering classes. Perhaps it's more like cotton candy for people who don't particularly like being treated to the experience of Trump World.
Zuckerberg Grilled on Hill by His Firm's Cash Recipients
RealClearInvestigations
As a contrite Mark Zuckerberg was grilled on Capitol Hill this week over the Cambridge Analytica privacy scandal, he could be forgiven for hoping some cool Facebook cash – about $7 million since 2006 – might reduce the heat from his inquisitors. According to OpenSecrets.org, a site that tracks political contributions, Facebook-affiliated donors have given liberally to candidates at the federal level – including many of those who questioned the 33-year-old billionaire.
How South Florida Became Bullish for China Shops
RealClearInvestigations
If city leaders have their way, North Miami could be known as Beijing on the Biscayne. In a plan that suggests the reach of Chinese influence in America, among other trends, city leaders have already approved initial plans, and at least $40 million in infrastructure funding, to transform a 16-block area into a celebration of Chinese culture. The catch? The only Chinese walking the streets will be tourists. “This is a Haitian community,” said local florist Shirley Gonzalez, herself from Uruguay. “We have some Spanish [and] very little American people.”
How State, Local GOP Officials Bash Muslims
BuzzFeed
A state lawmaker in Oklahoma refused to meet with Muslim constituents unless they replied to a questionnaire asking if they beat their wives. A Nebraska state senator suggested that any Muslim wanting to enter the United States be forced to eat pork first. And a Rhode Island legislator advocated herding Syrian refugees into a camp, writing in an email that Muslims seek “to murder, rape, and decapitate anyone who is a non-Muslim.” Those are among dozens of examples of state and local Republican politicians and officials publicly attacking Islam in 49 states since 2015, typically with impunity, according to a BuzzFeed News analysis.
California: Navy Workers Sleeping on the Job, Getting Paid
Daily Beast
In order to spend the extra billions of dollars the Trump administration gave to the Pentagon, the U.S. Navy is giving lots of overtime to nearly 5,000 workers who repair aircraft in San Diego, California. The catch is that many of the workers are simply killing time while on the clock in order to use up the funds.
1,224 Complaints of Sex Abuse in Immigration Detention
The Intercept
Many women and men held in immigration detention across the country report routine searches that turned into groping and fondling. Many said they were propositioned, subjected to suggestive stares and sexual innuendo, and threatened with retaliation if they spoke up. Many said officers shrugged when they reported abuse by fellow detainees.
Pro Cheerleaders Say Offensive Holding Part of Job
New York Times
Professional cheerleaders are often trained dancers who beat out other talented competitors to land their jobs. But they quickly learn that performing at games isn't a ballet recital. Then there's the truly unsavory, and unavoidable, aspect of the job: interacting with fans at games and promotional events, where creeps, groping and sexual harassment are common.
Politicians Are No Paragons on Equal Pay Day
RealClearPolitics
Men significantly outnumber women in the top-paid government positions, according to an analysis of payrolls from federal agencies, Congress, the White House, and government positions at the state and local levels. But the study by OpenTheBooks found no evidence men and women in the same position were paid differently; that would be illegal. So, no gender pay gap, but a gender hiring gap.
Germany: Anti-Semitism Alive and Well in Berlin
Daily Beast
Last year, the German Interior Ministryreported more than 600 attacks on Jews and Jewish public spaces across the country. Human rights defenders, entrepreneurs, journalists, and victims of anti-Semitism tell the Daily Beast they feel lost and shocked and under assault from many different directions—from Muslim migrants who despise Israel, and from far-right and far-left figures in German politics.
Pizza Night, Hold the Anchovies and Data Privacy
Wall Street Journal
Here’s the deal: In exchange for speedy convenience, modern devices demand troves of user data, even to do the most mundane things. This story imagines two friends agreeing to order pizza from their smart phones, to illustrate how the tech they use along the way siphons off personal information: the Amazon Echo; the pizza chain app; Google Maps; Facebook (to post the necessary selfie), and Apple TV – because what's pizza without a movie?
