“But the federal workforce, on the whole, is composed of people doing their best under increasingly difficult circumstances to keep the machinery of government functioning.”
Posts by Jen Barr
A fellow public health state employee in a different state ranted to me about one opthamologist who would sign BS medical exemptions for vaccines for hundreds of kids.
This is a WIN for science.
RFK Jr’s overhaul of vaccine recommendations has been BLOCKED by a federal court. The ACIP committee cannot meet as planned this week, since its membership has been invalidated, and ALL votes made by those advisers in the last year have also been invalidated.
I think this came out a year ago.
Great news!! “Murphy issued a preliminary ruling finding that Kennedy’s reconstitution of a key vaccine advisory panel, and changes made to the childhood vaccine schedule in January, were likely illegal. Specifically, he ruled, those policy changes violated the Administrative Procedure Act”
Measles cases in Broomfield now an outbreak, unvaccinated students at two schools sent home for 21 days
I’d also love coverage of the death threats and abuse to lower level bureaucrats. I‘m a state public health employee, and the death threats (or general threatening behavior, like protesting vaccine clinics with guns) we get on a regular basis takes its toll.
One of the main reasons I don't use AI is that you have to fact-check every single thing it gives you and by the time I do that, I could have just done the research myself.
imagine being a family member seeing your mother or father with an AI hand up their corpse making their mouth flap for a subscription fee and you didn't give a single shred of consent
I’m a huge fan of setting a timer to get started. Also, I’m a huge podcast fan, which is the only way I bribe myself to do housework!
Doctors say that vaccines protect children from dangerous diseases. A nepo baby who barbecues dogs and snorts cocaine off toilet seats says that vaccines make children vulnerable to 5G radiation. For busy parents, it can be hard to know who to trust.
With the passing of Greg Brown, cofounder of CAKE, I'm relistening to Fashion Nugget, the soundtrack of my high school years. RIP. www.youtube.com/watch?v=7xw4...
A scenic photo of an Indian lakeside at sunset, with marigold-wrapped Mughal-era structures reflecting in the still lake.
Update to my intro:
Hi! 👋 I wear hats as a public health regulatory manager for the state, a nonprofit consultant, an editor, and a writer. Always a nerd. My PhD in Medical Anthropology focused on the politics of sanitation in India, and the book comes out this year.
X-ray imaging revealed a hidden portrait beneath Van Gogh’s Patch of Grass (1887).
It showed a peasant woman painted over in browns and reds.
He often reused canvases, turning constraint into renewal, failure into foundation.
The Board of Governors decided, unilaterally, that no published textbook in the field of sociology could be used in compliance with the law for an Intro to Sociology class. None. Victor: There's not a single existing textbook on the market that could be used that would qualify under state law? Zachary: Correct. Victor: I'm sorry, that's kind of funny. Like, the absurdity of not a single sociology textbook getting past the censors. I mean, it makes me kind of proud of our colleagues, but...
I do want to shout-out my fellow sociologists, who have collectively created a discipline so woke that not a single one of our introductory textbooks can make it past Florida's censors.
Great work everyone.
the Epstein files are really devastating because they remind me of how many girls and women miss out on professional opportunities, mentorship and careers because of how many powerful, rich and influential men only view girls and women — and interactions with them — through the lens of sex
a major concern for every farmer with livestock is: how to deal with poop and it's consequences
While it may explain some of the context, this framing also hides that women scientists didn't cozy up to epstein the way men did. They also need funding, no? This is also about being part of a powerful boys club where one can act in despicable ways with impunity. Misogyny is a huge driving factor.
Huge news! They actually released Liam Ramos and his father!
Please remember that ICE is abducting more people - including children - all the time. And they will no doubt keep trying to harass and destroy this family.
Defund and abolish ICE and support immigrants!
kstp.com/kstp-news/to...
A person with polio lying inside an 'iron lung'
1 in 200 #polio infections leads to irreversible paralysis.
In the 1960s children suffering from irreversible paralysis caused by polio were required to use 'iron lungs' to help them breathe.
We don't see these 'iron lungs' anymore today because #VaccinesWork
The idea that the British Raj respected the rule of law is legitimately one of the funniest things I've ever read in my entire life
Worries about vaccination rates in dogs As rabies seems to be spreading more in wildlife, veterinarians are especially worried about vaccine hesitancy spreading among pet owners, a dangerous trend that could lead to more dogs - and their owners- becoming infected. A 2023 study published in the journal Vaccine found in nationally representative sample of Americans that nearly 40% believed canine vaccines were unsafe and 37% believed that vaccines could lead their dogs to develop cognitive issues, such as autism.
May I remind everyone that there is currently NO cure for rabies.
May I also remind everyone there is absolutely NO scientific proof connecting ANY vaccine that we produce today with autism.
This is true regarding vaccination in both humans AND in dogs.
Vaccinate your pets please.
One of the things I was most worried about is starting to come to fruition.
RFK Jr. will succeed in eliminating all of our vaccines if allowed to remain in office. His disinformation campaign and the falling demand for vaccines will cause American companies to stop making them.
Don't know this guy, but I like to reskeet research studies! Go help research if you qualify!
For everyone who's like "why are you telling us not to breastfeed bats, surely no one is doing that"
bsky.app/profile/tric...
Great run-down of some of the effects of the vax schedule change:
"A system that once made simple, safe prevention easy is now forcing families to second-guess and leading to delays."
communityimmunity.substack.com/p/are-these-...
"Science is iterative and there is uncertainty and there must be grace for good faith efforts to get some things wrong. But these are not good faith actors. This is the rejection of sound science for purely opportunistic reasons at the expense of the public’s health and safety."
This is genuinely horrifying. Fact-free far-right agitprop given accolades by credible media across the political spectrum.
Honestly, probably my favorite part of the Knives Out movies is just knowing these amazing actors are all having a delightful time.