ICWA Weekly News 2-5-25
The House Bill (1531) that would enforce The Best Available Science™ is heard in committee; plus, we dissect what Senators Murray and Cantwell said about Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as he seeks confirmation
In this issue: House Bill 1531 that would allow the state to enforce The Best Available Science ™ had its first committee hearing; Kennedy Takes On Washington Senators Cantwell and Murray at Committee Hearings; Senator Murray Responds To Constituents Plea to Confirm Kennedy for HHS Secretary
January 31 Episode of Informed Life Radio - - notes and links
Health hour: Abundantly Well
Guest: Shemane Nugent, New York Times best-selling author and fitness expert, discusses her new book, Abundantly Well: Bible-Based Wisdom for Weight Loss, Increased Energy, and Vibrant Health.
Abundantly Well: Bible-Based Wisdom for Weight Loss, Increased Energy, and Vibrant Health
Shemane Nugent - website
Liberty hour: Refusers Reinstated
Guest: Brad Miller, West Point graduate and former Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Army, discusses President Trump’s reinstatement of service members dismissed from the military for failing to get vaccinated against COVID-19. Brad resigned from the Army with 19 years of active service because of the COVID-19 vaccine orders.
The Committee Hearing on HB 1531 To enforce The Best Available Science ™
Thanks to the
& Washington’s ringing of the alarm bells, the last issue of ICWA Weekly News was able to join their call, sending out a loud and clear message for Washington residents to register “Con” before last Friday’s HB 1531 hearing in the House Health committee.Zana Carver reminded us in the issue’s Substack comments section that over 10,000 people signed up “Con” against the bill, and only about 162 people signed up as “Pro.”
“There was an overwhelming opposition to the bill's attempt at government overreach,” Zana added. Not only that, but it was noticed that a pharma and healthcare lobbyist signed up twice: once representing the Washington Vaccine Association and then again for the Washington Hospital Association.
One of the comments seeming to oppose the bill [TVW @57:11] was delivered by a government employee registering in the “Pro” category. This was Allison Berry, who is the public health officer on the Olympic Peninsula and who ordered restaurants and other establishments to not accept patrons if they didn’t get the COVID-19 jabs.
But as covered by the Center Square and Everett Post, Berry said that allowing local officials to decide best practices is essential for maintaining trust among their communities. “The counties I serve are rural and politically often [have] a deep-seated distrust in centralized government. Despite that, our public health department has been able to build strong and sustained trust in our work and the information that we put out. We ask you to help protect our ability to continue to do this critical work to protect our communities.”
Don’t Dr. Berry’s comments seem to oppose the bill, where current law allows local health officer’s some latitude on using the best science? Maybe she was a little insulted by the bill, as if it says she didn’t know how to do her job. Or perhaps she was just trying to save her job – since if the state set forth all scientific interpretation, would we even need local health officers?
At the hearing, ICWA director Bob Runnells said that the bill “Would increase distrust the public would have in the next outbreak.” He then added, “Who decides what’s the best science? Perhaps most importantly, the bill does not solve a stated problem,” meaning the state and the Department of Health have plenty of resources to get their message out. Bob also questioned why there was an emergency clause, which means the bill would take effect immediately, thereby preventing a voter referendum which could overturn the law if enough signatures were gathered within a short time after passage.
At the moment, HB 1531 is currently not scheduled for any further committee action. A Sunday Q and A video published by Representative Jim Walsh on his Facebook page expects the bill won’t pass – this session:
I've read House bill 1531. It is a bill that essentially prohibits local governments - I think county commissions or county sheriff departments - from doing any kind of conscientious objection or noncompliance with mandates from the very weaponized Washington Department of Health, a bureaucratic agency that frankly has become kind of a joke in recent years, extremely ideological, extremely partisan politically, and the creator of lots of very dubious edicts and mandates and orders. A very corrupt organization - that Department of Health...and not corrupt in the way they're taking bribes, but corrupt like they've just become so politicized. They're not honest brokers of information anymore.
This bill, which says the local agencies have to do what DOH says, is full of a bunch of language about best available science and evidence based policy. This is bureaucratic mumbo jumbo. We do believe in science, we do believe in the scientific method, but when bureaucrats talk about best available science, that's actually a fig leaf they use to hide their edicts behind what they thought was best available science at a given time. I am with you, Trish, I think that some of the people you talk to maybe they buy into the information of best available science and evidence policy but ...that's what that flowery language is there to do; it's to confuse people. The fact is it's a bad bill that erodes local control over public health and public policy. It tries to put more power in this very ideological government agency with the state Department of Health.
There's good news here, too. This house bill 1531 had a hearing already, a committee hearing, and it went absolutely badly for the bill. Most of the people testifying and involved had problems with it, and in fact, the chair of the committee, a Democrat legislator (Bronoske) even said he had problems with some of the language in the bill so that was not a very good hearing for house bill 1531. I think there's a very slim chance that that one is gonna pass into law - at least this time around, so some good news there.
However, some of our members point out that the bill was requested by the Pierce County Department of Health, and then the Governor’s office and Department of Health sent their top envoys to testify in support. Further, the bill has 15 sponsors, all democrats, indicating a lot of conviction that the bill should go forward.
So, ICWA will not assume the bill will stall and will continue to watch it closely.
You can monitor the bill too by signing up to receive email notifications when the bill moves through the process.
You can also monitor ICWA’s Bill Watchlist and sort on action date to see which bill is scheduled for which upcoming activity.
Kennedy Takes On Washington Senators Cantwell and Murray at Committee Hearings
HHS Secretary-nominee Robert Kennedy Jr. faced both Washington U.S. Senators last week during committee hearings.
The January 29 Senate Committee on Finance was the first gate through which RFK Jr. had to pass, filled with past and present friends and enemies. Senator Maria Cantwell took to the microphone at the 2:32 mark of the Children’s Health Defense video recording. First, she congratulated Kennedy on his nomination, but then apologized for being late:
“And I've been absent only because I've been in another hearing with the nominee to be the commerce secretary. So, I will review everything that you've said today, and look at that diligently.”
(thanks for that essential bit of information, Senator M. Cantwell. Tick, Tock…)
She then began her five minutes talking about Washington without mentioning all the extensive harm done to the government by way of some of the greatest obliterations of civil liberties in the country during the COVID-19 debacle:
But one of the things that I wanted to discuss with you is I represent a very big innovation state in healthcare, specifically innovation like NIH funding to the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center that helped develop the HPV vaccine, which has the potential to eliminate over 95% of cervical cancer. NIH also funds a lot of jobs and grants. Nearly 11,000 people in the state of Washington and nearly 1.2 billion worth of grants. So, while I agree with you on healthy foods, I definitely am troubled by the medical research side of innovation and some of the things that you have said. In fact, this issue about laying off 600 employees at NIH. Or giving the fact that to, ‘Give infectious disease a break for eight years.’ So, we've had a chance to talk about this a little bit, but the most striking example of this is when COVID hit, and we were the first in the nation. We had the first case, and it really was the fast response by the University of Washington that really helped save lives. So, I just want to know are you aware of how harmful these issues could be for public health? That public health in itself could be affected by these kind of anti-science views.
Kennedy’s response:
Senator, I have always been a science person, a pro science person. I believe in evidence-based medicine and gold standard science. And I've explained this before you came in. At 600 people [let go from their jobs] out of a workforce of 91,000 is pretty typical, last year alone President Biden replaced 3,000 people at HHS and 700 at NIH. I want to say this. I said give infectious disease a break, because that's been the principal preoccupation. Infectious disease. Chronic disease accounts for 92 percent of deaths in this country, and almost nothing is studied at the NIH about the ideology of our chronic disease epidemic. But right now, money is going to infectious disease.
Cantwell used that response to bring in more about Washington state:
“I get your point. It's an interesting point. The problem is we had to respond. It's actually the Gates Foundation and a flu cohort that figured out what was wrong. And that we had an outbreak of COVID that was going beyond the very first case, and so we had to build a very fast response. So, I take this, too. The University of Washington has conducted groundbreaking stem cell research on fetal tissue. I know there's probably a lot of people who may not agree with this, but we're making regenerative heart tissue now at the University of Washington, So, yes or no? Do you commit to protecting stem cell research for scientific agencies?”
Kennedy responded very matter-of-factly:
“If confirmed, I will protect stem cell research today. It can be done on umbilical cords, and you don't need fetal tissue.”
“You'll protect the laws that are on the books today and the research?” Cantwell asked.
“My job, senator, is to enforce the law,” Kennedy answered with some clarification.
Cantwell then moved on to drug pricing and Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) which are being acknowledged as taking outsized profits from their distribution and price-setting roles.
Okay. So. I want to move to PBMs, because PBMs are driving up drug prices, and one of the biggest things that we need to do here, I think, in a new administration is to get a handle on everything that is driving up prices and lower them. The report found that PBMs generated $1.4 billion from spread pricing. That is where they are able to basically set the price, not reimburse pharmacies, and then pocket the rest. We've had bipartisan legislation in several different committees now to get at this. What do you think the solution is?
Kennedy was prepared for this subject:
One of the really notable achievements of this panel was the PBM legislation that they put together in a bipartisan way,” Kennedy said. “The sixty odd senators whom I talked to, all of them talked about PBMs and how important it was. During his first administration, President Trump pushed through a law to give transparency to PBMs. It got overruled during the Biden administration. Luckily, this panel is resuscitating that President Trump is absolutely committed to fixing the PBMs.
“My time is running out,” Cantwell said in a rushed voiced. “So, I just want to clarify. You believe that we should pass these laws that now have been proposed in the senate?
“I haven't read the entire law, so I don't know,” Kennedy clarified. “But I think that we need to reform the PBMs. I think we need to address all these vested interests that are draining money from the system.”
“Somebody suggested though that you thought you should convene the PBMs and talk to them about some sort of self-regulation,” Cantwell said, trying to drive a point. “So, I am trying to distinguish between these people who basically are doing illegal activities and ripping us off. They're creating pharmacy deserts in my state. So, I'm asking you whether you believe that we have to legislate in this area.”
Is it possible that Senator Cantwell reads the ICWA Weekly News, where we covered all the closing pharmacies? We think it’s a stretch to say PBMs are causing closures. There are many other market forces at play here – Costco and Amazon pharmacy to name just two competitors.
“Again. I'm not being evasive,” Kennedy was allowed to continue. “I just don't know exactly what the law says. I met with the PBMs. I met with Pharma. My job is to meet with all the stakeholders. I've been meeting with stakeholders for forty years, including people I was suing. You want to hear from the other side? Well, it doesn't mean I would let the PBMs write their own ticket. I think I support the efforts of this committee to come up with bipartisan legislation. President Trump wants to get the excess profits away from the PBMs and send it back to primary care and to patients in this country.”
Cantwell said, “I'll ask you for the record, since my time has expired, to look at the legislation that came out of the commerce committee that defined the activities that they are doing to drive up prices and get us an answer for the record.”
“In principle, I support that legislation,” Kennedy said.
(For the full interchange: RFK Hearing Senate Finance Transcript)
That interchange with Senator Cantwell, while dotted with accusations and misinformed claims of HPV vaccine efficacy, was fairly civil and may have even helped the swing votes sway toward Kennedy.
However, on January 30, Kennedy’s exchanges with Senator Patty Murray did not seem so civil. She launched into him at the fifty-one minute mark into the Committee for Health, Education, Labor, and Pension hearing.
Perhaps setting the tone for this HELP committee inquisition, Patty Murray had just responded en masse to those who sent letters of support for Bobby Kennedy’s appointment. In her form letter, Murray wrote about her important role in these hearings:
I consider the responsibility to evaluate and vote on presidential Cabinet nominees to be one of my most important duties as a United States senator. I evaluate each individual and examine their record to ensure they meet my long-held standards regarding their ethics, honesty, and substantive experience. Whether in committee or on the Senate floor, I ask tough questions about how each nominee plans to move our country forward, to make it more just and inclusive, and to fight for the middle class and working families.
With just five minutes to work with in the Finance Committee hearing, one would think that Murray would have put forth her “tough questions” at the get-go. Instead, she began with some grandstanding:
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. HHS has really broad and critical responsibilities to protect and preserve health care and social services from women's health to childcare to biomedical research. That's just a few. In light of last night's tragedy, I do want to express my thoughts and prayers. But it is, I think, a painful reminder to all of us that we need competent people running our federal agencies to respond when a crisis strikes.
Murray then delved into her questions, prefaced with more grandstanding:
“Mr. Kennedy, let me start by talking about vaccines. I think we all agree that cancer is particularly a nefarious chronic disease, and the American Cancer Society reported earlier this month that women under fifty are experiencing a dramatic increase in this incidence of that disease. Fortunately, there is clear data showing that the HPV vaccine has saved lives and cut cervical cancer rates dramatically. You have called the HPV vaccine, ‘dangerous and ineffective’ and said it actually increases the risk of cervical cancer. Do you stand by those statements? Yes or no?”
“For the HPV vaccine, I brought litigation,” Kennedy said. I represented—”
Murray said, “By your statement…”
“Let me answer,” Kennedy said.
“Yes or no,” Murray said. “It's a simple yes or no. Do you stand by your previous statement?”
“I litigated on that issue,” Kennedy said. “I represented hundreds of young girls who felt that they were injured by the vaccine. That trial is happening right now in Los Angeles. Those questions will be answered by a jury.”
“At the trial, you said that no loving parents would allow their daughter to receive that vaccine,” Murray said. “If confirmed as HHS secretary, would you recommend that parents get their children vaccinated against HPV?”
“I recommend that children follow the CDC schedule,” Kennedy said. “And I will support the CDC schedule when I get in there.”
“If fortunate enough to be confirmed, would you recommend that parents get their children vaccinated against the measles? Yes or no?”
“Against measles, yes,” Kennedy answered.
Murray’s response: “Well, this reminds everybody that parents look to our health leaders for advice on these decisions. You would be a health leader. And, for the record, I would like to put into the record his previous statements on these vaccines.”
After the two discussed Kennedy’s “character” concerning a babysitter in which Kennedy flatly told her did not make sexual advancements toward her, Murray targeted the topic that Cantwell had broached concerning Kennedy’s quote of giving infectious disease a break for eight years. Murray used this as a transition point for getting back to vaccines.
“Will you support the development and distribution of vaccines for the avian flu? Yes or no?” she asked.
“Well for the avian flu, yes,” Kennedy answered.
Instead of firing off more “tough questions,” Murray ended the exchange with additional grandstanding:
My time is almost up, but having read a lot and listened a lot, I just want to remind all my colleagues that by voting to confirm Mr. Kennedy, we would be telling our constituents he's worth listening to. That alone could get people killed before he even lifts a finger because he does not even need the levers of power to influence people as we saw in Samoa. All he needs is a megaphone to affirm his views. By voting to confirm him as our highest health official, we should not mince words about what that would mean when babies die from whooping cough because parents weren't sure if the vaccine was safe. We will have to look them in the eye when measles sweeps through schools, then hospitals, and nursing homes. Will this be worth it? There are political realities. We all get that. But there's also right and wrong. Fact and fiction. And there's also people dying pointlessly from diseases we can prevent because they thought Congress did its job by vetting our healthcare secretary seriously. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Murray Responds To Constituents Plea to Confirm Kennedy for HHS Secretary
Readers: brace yourselves and settle in for some deep reading as we fact check our own on Senator Patty Murray’s form letter to constituents and then her uninterrupted testimony earlier this year to prevent Robert F. Kennedy’s confirmation as Secretary of HHS. We are running long because this stuff is gold…just like gold standard science.
Thank you for contacting me regarding President Donald Trump’s nominees for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). I appreciate hearing from you on this important matter.
That’s the way U.S. Senator Patty Murray began her letter last week to her Washington constituents calling for her to confirm Robert Kennedy Jr’s nomination for secretary of HHS.
After a paragraph on the importance of this decision, as quoted in the previous article about the committee hearings, Murray detailed her concerns about Kennedy:
With regard to President Trump’s selection of Robert F. Kennedy (RFK) Jr. to be Secretary of HHS, I have serious concerns about his record and his capability to take on a key leadership position. HHS is one of the largest departments in the executive branch, which makes the Secretary of HHS a crucial role. This position includes overseeing our nation’s public health agencies, regulation of food and drugs, health care coverage and affordability, biomedical research and innovation, and so many more important agencies that affect the lives of all Americans. It is my utmost priority to ensure that access to evidence-based health care remains at the forefront.
RFK Jr.’s views are particularly worrisome to me when it comes to things like vaccines. We need a leader who will uphold the centuries-long scientific research and maintain access, rather than undermining safety and efficacy. This is especially important for children, who are vulnerable and susceptible to many of these life-threatening illnesses and need immunizations to protect against them. I do not believe it is too much to ask that the HHS Secretary believes not only in access to safe and healthy food, but also that vaccines are safe and effective. I strongly oppose his nomination and I laid out much of my thinking in a floor speech you can watch or read here.”
WARNING: The link to her opposition press release takes you to a site with a very large head shot picture of Sen. Murray on your screen - it might shock.
The link, after scrolling past her face, for “much of my thinking” leads to a January 16 press release titled, “Senate Floor Speech, Senator Murray Raises Alarm over RFK Jr.’s Dangerous Anti-Vaccine Extremism and Conspiracy Thinking as HHS Nominee Meets with Senators this Week,” which we’ll dig into shortly.
A paragraph in the press release shows Murray’s wholehearted commitment to vaccines:
In 2019, Senator Murray co-led a bipartisan hearing in the HELP Committee on vaccine hesitancy and spoke about the importance of addressing vaccine skepticism and getting people the facts they need to keep their families and communities safe and healthy. Ahead of the hearing, as multiple states were facing measles outbreaks in under-vaccinated areas, Murray sent a bipartisan letter with former HELP Committee Chair Lamar Alexander (R-TN) pressing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director and HHS Assistant Secretary for Health on their efforts to promote vaccination and vaccine confidence.
ICWA remembers that day in DC all too well and our members were there in 2019 to witness Anthony Fauci and Nancy Messonier sling their own misinformation about.
Just after that paragraph, they provide the link to a YouTube video of this apparent senate floor testimony:
Senator Murray Raises Alarm over RFK Jr.'s Dangerous Anti-Vaccine Extremism and Conspiracy Thinking [11 mins]
She clipped and posted it to her personal YouTube channel where it’s had a whopping 483 views at the time of publishing this News.
If you can’t stomach watching Sen. Murray slander RFK Jr. while she promotes the ancient vaccine lore ad nauseum (emphasis on the nausea), you can read along instead as we dissect the transcript of her testimony.
She begins with a story where she wants you to immediately reach for the Kleenex:
Mr. President when I was a very young girl, the polio vaccine was approved.
And to this very day, I remember my mom, saying ‘thank goodness!’ We can now send our kids to school and not have to worry they will get sick, be paralyzed, or live in an iron lung, or worse. The relief was overwhelming.
Stop right there. In her book Dissolving Illusions Suzanne Humphries shows that Senator Murray needs to do a lot more reading and research on the polio vaccine. Humphries starts out with what Murray has missed:
The polio story is a haunting one: long, complicated, and ugly. It’s not a story you will have read or that the medical profession will be able to tell. Beyond the smoke and mirrors lie sketchy statistics, renaming of diseases, and vaccine-induced paralytic polio caused by both the Salk,{354},{355} and the Sabin vaccines. Dr. Albert Sabin’s oral polio vaccine (OPV) continues to cause paralysis in vaccine recipients today.{356},{357}
After plenty of charts, studies, and articles, the following from Humphries summarizes the false narrative of the success of the polio vaccine:
After the vaccine, there was a concerted effort to distinguish cases with poliovirus from cases without it. This was not a concern prior to 1958 when many diseases common today hid behind the name poliomyelitis. Transverse myelitis, viral or aseptic meningitis, Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS), chronic fatigue syndrome, spinal meningitis, post-polio syndrome, acute flaccid paralysis (AFP), enteroviral encephalopathy, traumatic neuritis, Reye’s syndrome, etc., all could have been diagnosed as polio prior to 1958.
A modern scientific publication has even cast strong doubt on President Franklin Roosevelt’s well-publicized polio diagnosis. The conclusion of a team of modern researchers is that he actually had GBS and not polio as was originally believed.{369}
One also has to wonder whether Murray has ever taken the time to look at the VAERS reports for the polio vaccines. The United States has 119,666 adverse events following the polio vaccine. Of those adverse events, 3,077 of them resulted in death.
Here in Washington, 2,747 adverse events have been reported following a polio-virus containing vaccine.
And fifty-three of those adverse events in Washington resulted in death.
Most disturbing, the above table shows that forty-six of the deaths were for those under six months of age. All of the fifty-three deaths occurred with the polio vaccine being administered with other vaccines. The Washington Department of Health’s web page on the polio vaccine makes no mention of administering the jab with other vaccines.
Now, let’s get back to Murray’s senate floor speech:
And that is why, the fear is so overwhelming now that Donald Trump wants RFK Jr.—an outright, unapologetic, anti-vax conspiracy theorist—as our nation’s Secretary of Health and Human Services!
Now, I want to be clear—I will not be shy about making my concerns quite plain with the American people.
That’s part of the Senate’s role to advise and consent to the President’s nominees. It’s our job to vet these nominees and put them through a rigorous process, to determine if they are qualified to serve.
That’s why I met with RFK Jr. yesterday, so I could be direct with him about my concerns with his anti-vaccine record, and so I could discuss the other challenges our nation faces, where HHS has a really crucial role.
I do appreciate his time, and I appreciate the opportunity to look for areas of common ground. But as I have said already, I oppose his nomination. Because, regardless of any other views he holds, his long history of explicitly anti-vaccine activism is utterly disqualifying.
And I am not the only one who is worried. Even Trump’s former FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb has said RFK Jr.’s agenda ‘will cost lives in this country.’
I mean, just imagine if RFK Jr. was Secretary when COVID struck—we still might not have vaccines! After all, he called the COVID vaccine the ‘deadliest vaccine ever made.’
Stop right there: All we need to do here is look at the VAERS data so that we can compare apples to apples, so to speak, and see what vaccines seem to be deadly.
Here are a sample of the top contenders for deadliest vaccine, in addition to the 2,247 deaths reported to VAERS following the polio vaccine:
MMR vaccine: 486 deaths
HPV vaccines: 640 deaths
Hepatitis B vaccine: 2,409 deaths
Influenza vaccines: 2,620 deaths
Diphtheria-containing vaccines: 3,496 deaths
Pertussis (whooping cough)-containing vaccines: 3,402 deaths
And…drum roll please…
The number of reported deaths following the COVID-19 shot: 38,264.
This includes 238 deaths following the COVID-19 shot here in the state of Washington:
Furthermore, the COVID-19 shot was only introduced four years ago.
We sincerely hope Senator Murray cannot find a deadlier vaccine than the COVID shots, as Bobby Kennedy has astutely pointed out.
With such an ignorant accusation, one would think that Murray would have been laughed off the senate floor (another sign that we don’t think anyone else was in the room). But instead, she continued on:
This isn’t a case where we can just look for areas of agreement or hope for the best—maybe drug costs, maybe healthy food.
We are talking about a conspiracy theorist who is openly antagonistic to public health, and he will have tremendous authority over Americans’ lives and health care.
It is not asking too much to have a Secretary of Health who believes in healthy food and believes in vaccines—especially when we are already backsliding on vaccines and seeing real and deadly consequences.
We eliminated measles in 2000. But last year? We had 16 outbreaks! Whooping cough has spiked in the country and in my home state of Washington. Polio—even polio!—is making a comeback.
These are dangerous diseases—and RFK Jr. would let them spread through our communities and schools like wildfire. And as any parent knows, when a bug goes around school, it doesn’t stop there. It comes home to mom and dad, baby brothers and sister who could be at serious risk.
So, I am here to talk some truth to the American people about the stakes here, and lay out the facts for anyone who might not appreciate the serious threat posed by RFK Jr.
Stopping right there: Dissolving Illusions also mentions the elimination of measles in 2000:
In the year 2000, measles was declared eliminated from the United States. However, in 2012 the CDC pulled back from that declaration, stating that measles reappeared and was spreading. Like the threat from polio, though, the danger was from abroad, not the heavily vaccinated children of the United States. Of the total number of cases, 200 were attributed to foreign travel, but the source for 22 cases was never determined.{617} No deaths or adverse outcomes were reported.
It is clear that the reported measles incidence rate did decline, although it took much longer than originally promised and required more than one shot of a vaccine that had significant side effects. In the United States and England, this trend was probably boosted through the use of an extensive vaccination program, with all the “unintended consequences” and inherent unknowns.
Dissolving Illusions goes on to show Murray’s ignorance of the measles vaccine’s ineffectiveness:
One study predicted that, even with good response to vaccination, immunity wanes in as little as 25 years. If this is true, then there could be a resurgence of measles after a period of relatively low measles incidence, which we are in now.
Because measles-specific antibody titer after vaccination is lower than after natural infection, there is concern that vaccinated persons may gradually lose protection from measles. Secondary vaccine failure (loss of immunity over time), in contrast to primary vaccine failure (no protection immediately after vaccination), is a concern because of the potential insidious challenge to measles elimination. For instance, if vaccine-induced immunity wane to nonprotective levels in a high proportion of vaccinated adults, the level of population protection might decline to allow recurrence of endemic disease. By means of statistical modeling, Mossong et al. predicted waning of vaccine-induced immunity 25 years after immunization.{618}
The estimate of 25 years for waning vaccine immunity is generous. Reports of waning immunity or vaccine failure, even with the live vaccines, show that immunity can wane in as few as 10 years.{619}
A 2009 study published in Proceedings of the Royal Society investigated what could happen with waning measles vaccine immunity even with high vaccine coverage among children. They predicted that, after a long disease-free period in the population, the introduction of infection will lead to far larger epidemics than predicted by standard models.
Now, let’s get back to Murray’s January 19 senate floor speech:
Maybe you think ‘Well, he’s not talking about vaccines like polio or measles,’ or he’s ‘only asking questions.’
Except, know this: he founded a nonprofit entirely focused on attacking vaccines. RFK Jr.’s nonprofit has made videos promoting falsehoods about vaccines and autism, and sowing distrust in vaccines, especially among the Black community.
They tried to revoke the emergency authorization for kids’ COVID vaccines. They sued against measles vaccine requirements, even amid measles outbreaks. And it’s not just RFK Jr.’s nonprofit that should raise alarm here.
Stop right there, for Patty Murray is in no position to be talking about conflicts of interest. On January 8, 2025, we just reported on the not-insignificant money she has taken from the vaccine industry and other medical interests. $600,000+ from pharmaceutical interests in the 2021-22 election cycle is not trivial.
That kind of campaign dough leads one to wonder whether Murray is truly a public servant or just a marketing agent for Big Pharma. Now, let’s get back to her senate floor speech:
He has said he doesn’t know if the polio vaccine caused more deaths than it prevented. Or, another example, HPV vaccines led to a huge drop in cervical cancer. RFK Jr. suggested it increases cancer risk.
And let’s not get cute here with excuses like ‘well, he’s just asking questions.’ Because when he says ‘we need to know vaccines are safe’—he is ignoring the centuries of research we have already done on these vaccines. We do know they are safe!
Stop right there: Senator Murray needs to take a look at the following chart obtained through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuits and put together by the Informed Consent Action Network (ICAN), which shows the lack of proper long term, placebo-controlled trials:
Again, back to Murray’s senate floor speech:
And what’s more, he has not just been asking questions. These are statements I’m going to give you that RFK Jr. has made—these are in his own words.
He has said, ‘I do believe that autism does come from vaccines.’ He has said, ‘They get the shot, that night they have a fever of 103, they go to sleep, and three months later, their brain is gone.’ And, he said the COVID vaccine was the ‘deadliest vaccine ever made.’ These statements are not just false—they are, Mr. President, irresponsible. And they are disqualifying!
Stop right there: All that Murray has to do is look at the VAERS reports for just her state of Washington to get a better understanding of how quickly autism can occur following a vaccine.
Below are summaries and highlights of each of those cases.
VAERS ID: 75900
This male is listed as “1.3”years old. The onset began one year after taking the MMR shot on November 18, 1992. The dosage is unknown. The boy had no preexisting conditions. Submitted write-up: Patient received vax on 18NOV92 & the same day experienced allergies, learning difficulties & stopped talking; no further info provided.
VAERS ID: 151084
This male is listed as “1.4” years old. The onset began 22 days after vaccination on April 9, 1993. He had no pre-existing conditions. Submitted write-up: He became less responsive, lost speech, lost eye contact. Was diagnosed with autistic spectrum disorder.
VAERS ID: 155592
This male is listed as “1.25” years old. Submitted write-up: The morning following vax, he had a large (2-3") hot red circle at injection site. The patient also experienced a fever of 101-102 followed by a seizure. He was taken to a nearby pediatricians office. He had another seizure since and now has autism. The annual follow-up states seizure disorder and autism.
VAERS ID: 177303
This male is listed as “1.25 years old.” He had no preexisting conditions. Submitted write-up: Patient stopped talking, become spacey and stopped responding. per doc 212752 patient has never developed appropriate speech language communication. He was right on track before the vaccines. His intestinal system is still messed-up, and he is now on undergoing treatment to rid his body of mercury and other toxins. *F/UP report on 3/21/03: Autistic Sx''s, Severe language loss.*
VAERS ID: 199901
This male is listed as “1.69” years old. On July 1st, 1994, patient was 1 year 6 months. I brought my son in; he was sick with fever. He was vaccinated by doctor. Same night, he vomited, lost his balance, drooling, eye cross. MRI showed there was a damage in the brain. The follow up states, "diagnosed with PDD, ADD, heart valve disorder, tic syndrome."
VAERS ID: 204169
This female is listed as “0.5” years old. After the shots, the patient was lethargic almost unconscious for 72 hours, The doctor’s office called and said it was a common side effect and not to worry....patient never seemed the same again has had mild autistic like symptoms learning disabled and communication problems.
VAERS ID: 218033
This male is listed as “0.51” years old. Submitted write-up: 1990: Within one month of the vaccine on 8/21/90, patient changed from a happy baby to a very unhappy baby. He stopped nursing during this time. Rashes started on and off. At 9 months he became very aggressive, angry, nothing pleased him. Having major tantrums. Behavior problems very severe. His doctor continued to tell me that this was not abnormal behavior. 1993: Heart murmur diagnosed. 1994: Vomiting began. Later diagnosed as cyclic vomiting syndrome as no other cause could be found at the time. 1996: Diagnosed with ADHD. Started medications. 2000: Diagnosed with Asbergers syndrome (High functioning autism). 2003: Diagnosed with mercury (thimerosal) poisoning. This is the cause for all of the patient’s above listed problems. He is currently undergoing chelation therapy. The medical record received on 4/5/04 states hypertension and kidney dysfunction. Information from Annual Follow-up report states that behavioral problems continues, ADHA problems, mercury continue levels are at 4 times normal levels, amino acid levels in hair are low due to mercury. Patient continues at this time with chelation therapy and nutrition replacement.
VAERS ID: 235970
This male is listed as “0.63” years old. Submitted write-up: Child was normal until given his first vaccine DT at 7 1/2 months of age. Later that day, moderate fever, very irritable, lot of screaming. Parents felt that by 2 weeks, he was a changed child, later diagnosed as autistic. Patient’s caregiver reports: I was pt’s mother's caregiver during pregnancy. It was a normal pregnancy. Pt was born by cesarean section because of cephalopelvic disproportion. He showed normal growth and development for the first 7 1/2 months after birth. At his 7 1/2 months visit his development was normal and in fact exceptional in some respects-he was using the potty upon his parents command! He enjoyed peek-a-boo, was laughing, responding to his name. Enjoyed books, etc and was generally cheerful. There was no indication of any neurological or other difficulty. Also at that visit (7 1/2 months) he was given an injection of a single vaccine 0.5 of pediatric diphtheria/tetanus toxoid (DT). He had an immediate reaction to the vaccination that included fever and inconsolable crying. This incident appears to have marked a turning point in the patient’s development. He changed from a good natured, happy child to one who had became increasingly irritable and difficult. The next time I saw him was about 1 month after the vaccination. His chief complaint was a persistent cough. His parents reported that he had displayed unusually severe crying for about a week after the shot, and irritability, restlessness, poor sleep, etc. was continuing. My conclusion at that time was that he had had a significant neurological reaction to the vaccine. I saw him again about 3 1/2 months after the vaccination. His chief complaint at that time was fever with rash, which we diagnosed as a viral exanthem. The irritability etc. was continuing. The next time we saw him was when he was 26 months old. It was obvious at that time that he was suffering from a developmental delay that stemmed from the time of the vaccination, and we recommended that he get specialized diagnosis and treatment. DX with autism about 8 months later. I haven’t seen the child lately (in the past 3 years). I believe he is still autistic. The connection between the vaccination and the behavior/neurological disorder is obvious.
VAERS ID: 240323
This male is listed as “0.33” years old. Submitted write-up: Approximately three hours after the shots, started screaming uncontrollably for 30 minutes. The doctor’s office had warned us of this and told us to give Tylenol when it occurred. After about 15 minutes the crying stopped. From 6-15 weeks, had been sleeping through the night. The day we got these shots he stopped sleeping through the night (waking every hour) and didn’t sleep more than an hour at a time until the following January, 2004.
VAERS ID: 240873
This male is listed as “1.26” years old. Submitted write-up: At age 16 months (February 2003): Had Rotovirus. Lost all previously acquired speech. Lost ability to point, clap hands, and wave goodbye. Stopped referencing parents for cues. Lost all joint attention skills. Lost interest in peers. Stopped responding to name. Lost ability to maintain even minimal eye contact. In months following this regression: Began playing repetitively with toys (or parts of toys) and engaging in perseverative play. Began arm/hand flapping. Would "zone out" and not seem to hear, see, or notice the world around him. Began to actively avoid peers. Began having tantrums over slight changes in routine. Began having difficulty adapting to new places. Began early intervention with school district (speech and occupational therapy) at age 20 months. To date (6/30/2005), the only one of the lost skills that has been reacquired is clapping. The only maladaptive behavior that has diminished is arm/hand flapping. PLEASE NOTE: I do not believe it was only the last batch of vaccinations (1/14/2003) received prior to the onset of symptoms in February 2003 that caused the heavy metal toxicity, but rather a build up of all the thimerosal-containing vaccinations he had received since birth building up to a toxic "tipping" point that occurred in February 2003. Your form does not allow for entry of this phenomena, so I’ve done the best I could given your form’s parameters. Diagnosis from Medical Record received on 07/25/2005 is autism.
VAERS ID: 289553
This female is listed as “0.5” years old. Submitted write-up: This case was considered medically important for the event of autism. Information regarding Prevnar was received from a consumer regarding a female patient who received the third dose on 16-Aug-2005 at the age of 6 months and was diagnosed with autism and heavy metals including mercury in the patient’s system at the age of 29 months. In Aug-2007, the patient was diagnosed with heavy metals including mercury in the patient’s system and autism. Treatment included amino acid powder and DMSA. The patient had not recovered from the events. No additional information was available at the time of this report.
VAERS ID: 341987
This male is listed as “1.0” years old. Information has been received from a consumer concerning her 12 month old son who on 21-AUG-2002 was vaccinated with an only first dose of MMR II (Lot # 641020/1483L). Concomitant therapy included VARIVAX. On 22-AUG-2002, the next day, the patient had fever of 104 degrees and cranky behavior. On 27-AUG-2002, the patient started throwing up with diarrhea whole week and next week diarrhea changed to large chunk tissue coming out from his stool. On 28-AUG-2002, the patient was hospitalized and stayed there for 3 days; the patient was diagnosed with viral colitis of unknown origin. A week later, the patient was diagnosed with autism, chronic pain and autoimmune response, which were ongoing at the time of reporting. Upon internal review, autism was considered to be an other important medical event. No further information is available.
VAERS ID: 342239
This male is listed as “1.0” years old. Submitted write-up: Information has been received from a consumer concerning her now 5 year old daughter with no drug reactions/allergies who on 22-MAR-2004 at the age of 12 months was vaccinated with MMR II. Concomitant therapy included VARIVAX, but the patient’s mother did not know if the VARIVAX was (MSD) or not (manufacturer not reported). "Around when the patient turned 24 months old" in approximately March 2005, the patient developed autism. The patient had sought unspecified medical attention. The mother reported her son followed an autism program. At the time of reporting the patient was recovering from the autism. Upon internal review, the patient’s autism was considered to be other important medical event. Additional information has been requested.
VAERS ID: 342382
This female is listed as “4.0” years old. Submitted write-up: Information has been received from a consumer concerning his daughter (a year old female) with no medical history or drug allergies who on 3-MAR-2006 was vaccinated with a dose of MMR II (lot # 649748/0301R). Secondary suspect vaccinations included: the third dose of hepatitis B virus (lot # 651854/0306R) and the first dose of VARIVAX (Merck) (lot # 64668/0625R). Concomitant therapy included the third dose of HIB. The patient had been formally diagnosed as Autistic shortly after receiving the vaccines. The patient sought medical attention by visiting the physician’s office. Multiple tests had been performed. At the time of reporting, the patient was not recovered. Upon internal review it was determined that "diagnosed as Autistic" was another important medical event. There is no additional information.
VAERS ID: 377808
This male is listed “6.0” years old. Submitted write-up: A serious spontaneous report of behavior change presented by hyperactive and oppositional and started exhibiting repetitive behavior, including touching his nose repeatedly, repeatedly bobbing his head and repeatedly sniffing his pants, and jumping up and down; autism and pediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorders associated with streptococcal infections (PANDAS) has been received from a mother/consumer concerning her six-year-old male child, subsequent to Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine Live, Intranasal. The patient’s medical history included sinus infection for one year prior to receiving vaccine. On 19-Oct-2009, the patient was also diagnosed with rheumatic fever and strep throat. No concomitant medications have been reported for this patient. On 19-Oct-2009, the patient received Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine Live, Intranasal, for an unknown indication. On 19-Oct-2009, the patient was prescribed amoxicillin/clavulanate. On 03-Nov-2009, the patient stopped taking amoxicillin/clavulanate and his behavior began to change. He got hyperactive and oppositional and started exhibiting repetitive behavior, including touching his nose repeatedly, repeatedly bobbing his head and repeatedly sniffing his pants, and jumping up and down. He was now being tested for autism and pediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorders associated with streptococcal infections (PANDAS). The outcome of the events was unknown at the time of reporting.
VAERS ID: 426317
This male is listed as “0.34” years old. Submitted write-up: At both the 2 month and 4 month vaccination, my son experienced a seizure lasting approximately 10 seconds. Approximately 1 week after receiving shots he was fussy, ran a temperature, had poor coloring. My son experienced a seizure at his two month and four month vaccination. Both seizures occurred approximately 1 week after the 2 and 4 month vaccination. During this time, my son was fussy, ran a fever on and off ranging from 99 degrees to 102 degrees. His coloring was poor as he appeared pale. At birth, he was a normal child. He made eye contact, would respond to voices as any normal child does, however, after the two month vaccination, my child started staring off into space, and would not longer turn his head when hearing a voice; each of the seizures lasted approximately 10 to 20 seconds with my son’s eyes rolling back in his head, body non-responsive. Both incidences occurred at approximately 9:00 PM when I was putting him to sleep for the night. The 2 month vaccination was performed by the doctor of the clinic on 06-18-08. I did not report this to the doctor because I was notified shortly after that she was no longer in business, so therefore I also do not have information on the manufacturer, lot #, route/site. The 4 month vaccination was performed by the County Health District on 8/20/08. My child is developmentally delayed and diagnosed Autistic. He is permanently disabled and will never recover! It is so important as the patient’s parent to report this information. I suspect that vaccinations harm more people in the population that is currently being reported, and therefore the statistics are inaccurate on the likelihood of a child being harmed. Parents should have this kind of information available so they can make better choices for their children and understand how a few unfortunate souls are sacrificed for the common good of society. To put it rather bluntly, being one of those parents of a child harmed by vaccinations kind of sucks. Thank you for your time in allowing me to report this information on my son’s behalf.
VAERS ID: 472772
This male is listed as “0.25” years old. The onset began on the same day as the vaccination on January 30, 2004. Submitted write-up: Seizure. Stopped talking and walking. Started high pitched screaming within hours of immunization. He was later diagnosed with severe autism and chianti malformation when a brain scan previously did not show chiari. He tested at 24 months the day of vaccination, he was 15 months old at the time.
VAERS ID: 503294
This female is listed as “15.0” years old. Submitted write-up: August 14, 2007 - lot # 0384U - afternoon shot injection site itchy, sore. Flu like symptoms. Sore joints and muscles in the months to follow. Exhaustion. The doctor’s office said the symptoms were normal. November 14, 2007 - lot # 0927U - afternoon shot. Injection site more itchy, sore, red, swelling. Flu like symptoms for days. Sore joints and muscles, headaches, hair loss, exhaustion. The doctor’s office was not worried about the symptoms. February 14, 2008 - lot # 12APR10 - vomiting, shaking, feverish, itchy/sore injection site, redness, swelling entire arm. Sore joints, muscles, fatigue, hair loss (more) migraine, home from school 1 1/2 weeks for flu like symptoms. Many, many, many doctor visits, hospitalization ER visits until October 2009 when she became paralyzed on right side, loss of vision, hearing loss. Stay for couple weeks, home recovery. Learned to walk again. Repeat of above January 2011. Week stay. Hospitalization for seizures (4 days). Medical diagnoses: Perfectly healthy until GARDASIL now suffers daily from: Leaky Gut Syndrome, pins/needles in extremities, dizziness, dental issues, brain fog, sensitivities to chemicals, chest pains, constipation/diarrhea, enlarged liver, sound sensitivity, anxiety, extreme pain tailbone, fainting, fevers and blisters, back pain, hot/cold intolerance, sleep problems, itching, joint pain, knee pain, light sensitivity, blindness (right side), depression, personality changes, panic attacks, loss of bladder control, bladder issues, muscle aches, spasms, muscle tension tumor in left tibia, paleness, chronic fatigue syndrome paralysis, pneumonia, severe nerve pain, shortness of breath, slurred speech, smell sensitivity, sore throat stomach pain, swelling/edema, tremors, random twitching of extremities, bloating, uterine spasms, blood clotting, numerous UTI''s, kidney problems, vision loss, stomach aches, nausea, rashes, appetite loss, vomiting, dyslexia, hallucinations, large weight loss, seizures, autistic behaviors. Tumor removed December 2010.
VAERS ID: 567295
This female is listed as “1.42” years old. Submitted write-up: Inconsolable crying within the week following shots. Decline of social/communication skills from this time forward. Odd behaviors. Loss of speech by 3rd year of life.
Do you think that after reading all these reports just in her own state, Murray would still believe that the link of vaccines and autism is just a wild conspiracy theory and that Kennedy is nothing more than, as she says at the end of the speech, a vaccine-denier? Now, let’s get back to Murray’s senate floor speech:
Given his track record, we cannot just hope that if RFK Jr. finally gets power to undermine vaccines—a cause that he has, by the way, dedicated considerable time, and money, and effort to—that he’ll just give that up.
That is not believable. Especially when we know the lawyer helping him put together a team has tried to have 14 different vaccines pulled from the market himself, including, by the way, the polio vaccine!
And if you are thinking ‘well, he can’t really do anything about vaccines’—you need to think again.
If confirmed, RFK Jr. would have tremendous power to undermine vaccines. He could influence FDA’s approval of medicines and drugs. He could directly appoint people to CDC’s vaccine board, which influences vaccine coverage and costs.
He said he will fire top researchers by the hundreds and pause infectious disease research for years—a threat far beyond vaccines, I would say.
And let’s not downplay the fact that as Secretary, he would have the one of the biggest megaphones in the world to spread anti-vaccine misinformation.
Maybe you are someone who thinks, ‘so what if we have more whooping cough?’ Or, ‘a lot of people had measles, they lived.’ Well, I realize some people probably think like that because they have never seen the reality of these terrible diseases. Because vaccines have been so effective!
A nurse recently shared online what whooping cough can do to a baby, what she has watched families go through herself. I will warn you, it was soul-crushing. First the baby can’t stop coughing—not even to eat, not even to breathe. Then come seizures and strokes. Then a breathing tube, and a ventilator. And finally, a machine to take over failing heart and lung function. And then they die.
That is horrific—that is whooping cough, and it is far from the only disease at risk of a comeback. We don’t want that to happen here in this country or around the globe.
Let’s talk about measles: it is one of the world’s most contagious diseases. It easily spread by coughing and sneezing, it lingers in the air for hours, and you are contagious four days before you develop a rash, and four days after. Now before the vaccine, millions of people caught measles annually, meaning thousands were hospitalized and hundreds died, most of them mostly young children.
But this is not just history. You want to know what RFK Jr. would do as Secretary of Health? I want you to look at Samoa. Before Samoa had a measles outbreak, he was there—he was there propping up vaccine deniers and falsely blaming deaths on the measles vaccine.
After Samoa had a tremendous measles outbreak with over a hundred hospitalized, and at least 83 dead—mostly kids—no apology from him. No admitting he was wrong. Instead, he doubled down, and wrote to the prime minister suggesting vaccines were part of the problem.
That is who we want to put in charge of our nation’s health care? What do we think is going to happen? How many outright lies are we going to tolerate? How many deaths before we realize this nonsense is dangerous?
Let’s stop right there and go to the following timeline from Nic Hulscher that debunks these accusations about Samoan incidents:
Along with RFK Jr.'s response, Dr. Ah Kahn Syed’s article titled, The Killing Fields of Samoa, completely debunks the false claim that RFK Jr. “caused the measles outbreak in Samoa.”:
April 2019 - MMR relaunched in Samoa after a pause on the vaccination program in 2018 after two vaccine-related deaths of children. The vaccine program was poorly received by the Samoan population and uptake was low.
1st Oct 2019 - UNICEF delivered 135,000 doses of measles vaccines to Fiji, 110,500 doses of measles vaccines to Samoa (as well as supplies of vitamin A) and 12,000 doses of measles vaccines to Tonga
18th Oct 2019 - Samoa declares a measles outbreak.
24th Oct 2019 - Tonga declares a measles outbreak.
7th Nov 2019 - Fiji declares a measles outbreak (archive here)
15th Nov 2019 - State of emergency declared in Samoa after 1000 cases and 15 deaths (of which 14 were children under five)
As difficult as this speech has been to stomach, it might be of comfort to know that we’re almost at the end. So, hang in there and here we go:
“And look, the vaccine lies just scratch the surface here. This is someone who won’t accept that HIV causes AIDS. This is someone who thinks chemicals in the water might ‘turn people gay.’ He’s said that! This is someone who thinks 5G wireless is being used to ‘control our behavior.’
This is not someone that we, in the United States Senate, should be telling the American people to trust on health care. He is not someone that should be handling the levers of power. And for that matter, the same goes for some of Trump’s other health care nominees who have ignored science and promoted false conspiracy theories.
His nominee to lead the CDC is an anti-abortion extremist, with zero public health experience—unless you count peddling the conspiracy that vaccines cause autism or promoting junk health care plans.
And then you have Dr. Oz, who has been named to lead CMS—someone who is known for pushing quack treatments, and debunked junk science, who will be shaping health coverage for millions, despite clear conflicts of interest.
I cannot drive home enough to the United States: this is not a game. These are not political roles without consequence. They have real power over whether Americans can get basic information and care.
Mr. President, I want to end on this note, and it is important. Vaccines save lives. That is not a question. It is not a slogan. It is a fact. And if you cannot accept that fact—if you cannot be honest with the American people about it, if when parents look to you, worried about their newborn, wanting to do what is best for their baby, trusting your advice as a public health leader…
If you cannot tell them the same truth that centuries of science and experience tells us: which is that vaccines are safe, effective, and lifesaving—then you have absolutely no business leading the Department of Health and Human Services. None.
That should not be up for debate. A vaccine denier should not be our highest-ranking health care official. Thank you.”
At least we can commend Senator Murray for asking for a response to her thoughts, as she stated at the end of her letter to constituents:
It is important to me that people like you throughout Washington state and across the country are making your voices heard, and I will keep your views in mind when making my final decision on each individual HHS nominee and whether they represent the values of Washington state. Please don’t hesitate to reach out again to express your views on any issue, or if I may be of assistance.”
And now we wait for the Senate floor vote, for on February 4th, the Finance committee voted 14-13 to support Robert F. Kennedy’s confirmation.
We would remiss if we didn’t mention the epic Bernie Sanders questioning/testimony on November 29, where he helped Children’s Health Defense run out of their supply of onesies.
So, this…
Naturally, leads to this » (Shield thine eyes)
It is truly an embarrassment to have Senators Murray and Cantwell in office. It will be a great sign of relief when they are voted out.
I cannot begin to express how I despise both of these "Senators." And I voted for them (sorry everyone) once each in the early 2000s.
At the same time I can thank them for being key elements in my awakening to what a captured cabal is so-called "government"in Pugetopolis, and Olympia.
I also thank them for underscoring a long-held belief that was very unpopular to voice in the 1980s and 1990s: there is no entity more lethal to healthy, strong civilization, communities, and families than women who sell themselves.
San Francisco has many streets named after famous prostitutes. Maybe we need to start the same tradition for these corporate courtesans.