On May 18, the Connecticut House of Representatives followed the lead of the state Senate by passing legislation supposedly designed to reduce the prevalence of obesity in children.(1) This goal was to be accomplished by limiting students' access to so-called junk foods in school vending machines. The new bill would allow high school students continued access to diet sodas and some sports drinks but forbid regular sodas and various snack foods.

Activist group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is known for confusing the notion of being kind to animals (which most people I know support) with animal rights extremism (which most people find absurd).

Editor's note: The President's vow today to veto the bill passed by the House that loosened restrictions on embryonic stem cell research included a dismissal of the idea that there are any "spare" embryos, implying that even IVF procedures should be followed by "adoption" of all the embryos thereby created, not merely the implantation of one best fertilized egg cell in the patient's womb. It seems timely, then, to take another look at the June 28, 2004 piece on stem cells and IVF written by ACSH's Aubrey Stimola...

Ever wonder why the American public is so ill-informed about issues involving science such as evolution, genetic modification of food crops, stem cell research, and homeopathy or "alternative medicine"? Some scientific issues seem settled in the public's mind. There is no serious question as to whether the earth revolves around the sun, even though not too many centuries ago one could be burned at the stake for promoting proscribed ideas on this issue.

Recently, the FDA issued an edict advising sperm banks to bar as donors men who have had sex with other men within five years prior to donation. I have searched through the medical literature for a sound scientific basis for this directive, yet the only reasoning behind the recommendation is the fact that homosexual men are at high risk of HIV. If this were the rationale, though, it follows that the FDA should bar other high-risk donors such as men who have used IV drugs or have had sex with prostitutes. This, however, is not the case.

This op-ed appeared in the May 22, 2005 Hartford Courant:
Here are just a few of the problems associated with the state House of Representatives' vote this past week to attack childhood obesity and poor nutrition by banning sodas and other snacks from schools:

A May 16, 2005 article by Jaine Andrews on the site of South Dakota's Keloland-TV refers to ACSH in the course of putting Peter Jennings' lung cancer into prespective:

Government conspiracies and industry cover-ups make gripping plots for books and movies, never mind arresting media headlines. That may be what motivated journalist David Kirby to write Evidence of Harm: Mercury in Vaccines and the Autism Epidemic: A Medical Controversy (St. Martin's Press, 2005). Undoubtedly, the story will sell many copies. I heard there is even a movie deal in the works. But I fear it will cause parents to balk at vaccinating their children against a host of preventable diseases for fear of autism.

To the Editor:
As the assistant director of public health for the American Council on Science and Health, I would like to reply to your review of David Kirby's Evidence of Harm: Mercury in Vaccines and the Autism Epidemic (April 17). I disagree with your reviewer about the timeliness of the book. As noted in a 2004 Institute of Medicine report, the large majority of reputable doctors and scientists agree that available data do not support the existence of a causal relationship between thimerosal, a mercury-based vaccine preservative, and autism.

Early birds watching the Today show on May 13 were treated to the opinions of a new proponent of culinary Puritanism Dr. Steven Witherly. Dr. Witherly heads a supplement and ingredient company called Technical Products, Inc., although that fact was not mentioned on the Today interview.