Stephanie S. (not her real name) is a teacher in New York City. She is facing some difficult, perhaps even impossible, choices. Will she return to the classroom, where COVID will surely spread? Or refuse to do so, and lose her a job and health insurance? What about remote teaching or a so-called "hybrid model?" Here are her thoughts.
Policy & Ethics
The World Health Organization, WHO, has had a great deal of ink in the last few months, especially since it has become a "blame-worthy" target of the President. The Financial Times asks and answers the question, Who funds the WHO?
Dutch journalist Jannes van Roermund sent an embarrassing, unprofessional, and accusatory email to epidemiologist and ACSH advisor Geoffrey Kabat. Dr. Kabat's response is pure gold.
As infuriating as the World Health Organization can be, the reality is that the U.S. cannot "go it alone" on issues like global disease surveillance. Staying in the WHO is aligned with America's long-term security, economic, and geopolitical interests.
Did you honestly believe that the CDC announcement six months ago – of a 4.1% decline in drug overdoses in 2018 – was a sign of progress in the so-called war on drugs? Of course, it was nothing of the sort. Just an exercise in tweaking numbers. ACSH advisor Dr. Jeff Singer tells us the real story.
Incompetence, waffling, moving the goalposts, disregarding unintended consequences, and being political have hurt Americans' confidence in their public health institutions.
Are you a corporate shill if you point out that environmental activists have a financial incentive to present only one side of a story? According to one scientist at the Center for Biological Diversity -- which has about 50 lawyers on its staff -- the answer is yes. Our irony-meters exploded.
Right now pretty much everything sucks. It can get mighty depressing, reading about COVID-19 deaths or civil unrest. So let's have some fun! A few minutes of mindless idiocy at the expense of California. Why now? Because their officials decided that my patio umbrella stand is gonna give me cancer. There's even a label to prove it. And if you act now, you'll get some really bad "artwork!"
There are at least 24 different concepts of what constitutes a species. Unfortunately, politics plays a substantial role in the process.
Tweeting among politicians is not restricted to the thoughts of the President. Members of Congress also feel the need to tweet. What can be learned about their views of COVID-19? A new study of Twitter offers some clues.
Timothy Litzenburg, one of the lead plaintiffs' attorneys in the shakedown of Monsanto, has pleaded guilty to the attempted extortion of $200 million from another company. Litzenburg also collaborates with Carey Gillam and her anti-GMO organization U.S. Right to Know.
Despite irrefutable pharmacological evidence of the wide range in individuals' metabolism of opioid drugs, states continue to impose "one-size-fits-none" laws. For example, Massachusetts, apparently not entirely at peace with the abolition of the Salem witch trials, became the first state to establish a seven-day limit on first-time opioid prescriptions. Others followed. It's safe to say that no one is really paying attention to the science. So, here it is. Again.