Samantha Pierce

Today I am thankful for/that: Good judgment, of others if not always my own. Family. Helping hands. Central heating, the heating bill not so much. A good laugh. Modern medicine. What are you tankful for?

Most people would recognise that Dr. Andrew Wakefield is an unethical user of autistic children and their parents but now it is official. MMR doctor Andrew Wakefield 'abused his position of trust' The doctor who first claimed that the MMR vaccine could cause autism has been found guilty of a series of misconduct charges, that include putting children through painful and unnecessary tests, a disciplinary hearing has ruled today. Dr Andrew Wakefield showed "a callous disregard" for the suffering of children and "abused his position of trust" as a doctor in carrying out a study which sparked the biggest vaccine scare in a generation and has been blamed for the resurgence of measles in Britain, the General Medical Council (GMC) found. He was also found to have brought the medical profession "into disrepute" after he took blood samples from youngsters at his son’s birthday party in return for payments of £5 and failed to disclose vital conflicts of inte...

A visual representation of the universe as we know it thus far. Kind of blows the mind. Via Respectful Insolence .

Today I am thankful for/that: Better living through chemistry. Progress, even if it is then followed by two steps back. Good teachers. Good friends. What are you thankful for?

Sullivan at Left Brain/Right Brain comments in the post Forbes on “Stars Vs. Science” once again the autism community looks bad Once again, the Autism community takes it on the chin that our representative in the public eye is, well, in a league of her own when it comes to understanding science. Even though the story is about celebrities and science in general, autism plays a big part in the story as a whole. Autism and the "controversy" over whether or not vaccines cause autism feature prominently in the Forbes article Stars Vs. Science that discusses the maddening phenomenon of people taking medical advice from Hollywood celebrities. When the medical journal Pediatrics released a consensus report early this year concluding that autistic children do not benefit from special diets, ABC News' Diane Sawyer knew just whom to call. Jenny McCarthy, former MTV game host, nude model and now mother of an autistic son Evan, enthusiastically denounced the study. "Until docto...

This explains a lot. Bacon and eggs could help pregnant women boost their baby's intelligence Sis2's response, "Who put that out the pork people?" Via Instapundit who asks , "BACON: IS THERE ANYTHING IT CAN’T DO?"

Proverbs 22:6 (ESV) 6Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it. Zakhqurey Price is an 11 year old Arkansas boy who has been diagnosed with autism, among other things. Despite documentation of his diagnosis his school district refused to provide this child with appropriate services. If you thought this sounded like a recipe for disaster for this child you would be right. Fifth grade autistic boy charged with a felony On Oct 30th, Zakhqurey exhibited behaviors manifested by his Autism, which led to restraints. The police were called. In the process of attempting to restrain him, two staff members were injured and filed felony charges against the 11 year old child. They cornered him and tried to take him down, he fought back. There were very minor injuries to principal and teacher. The fifth grader was taken away in handcuffs and booked with juvenile criminals. He has an IQ of 68. What does it teach this child when those tasked with educa...

Today I am thankful for/that: God has mercy on us miserable sinners. We can do what we can. The light at the end of the tunnel is not always another on coming train. Haiti's survivors. What are you thankful for?

This is a meme that seems to be making the rounds on Facebook status updates these days Please put this on your status if you know someone (or are related to someone, or are someone) who has AUTISM. My wish for 2010 is that people will understand autism is not a disease; people with autism are not looking for a cure but for ACCEPTANCE...... 93% won't Copy and Paste this, will YOU make this your status for at least one hour? Now for the most part I agree with the sentiment expressed. Autistic individuals are not broken or diseased and for the most part do not want a cure. Many in fact find the implications of curing something that is such a significant part of who they are to be quiet disturbing, as do I. Autistic individuals do, however, want to be treated with respect same as anyone else. I want to comment though on that last little bit of the status update, "93% won't copy and paste this." It's a common feature with these kinds of status updates that often ruin...