I’m glad he’s forcing everyone to ask the difficult questions (also prevention over cure), and I’m glad he has gone after “the poisons in our food supply” and wrote a post on microplastics. Someone has to go after the medical establishment for once.
Maybe there’s a small chance this could finally speed up drug approvals.
Bryan Johnson posed for a selfie with him
All of this “poisons in our food supply” more than cancel out for some of his fringe beliefs on vaccines [and he’s not taking them away from anyone]
Not much to like about him. Vaccine scepticism, a extreme record as environmental activist, his positions on the food supply and big pharma seem extreme to me.
Now, contrast that with the arrogant, intolerant, petulant, radical-left environmentalist Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Last week, at the People’s Climate March in New York, he accused the Kochs of polluting our atmosphere. He said, “Do I think the Koch brothers are treasonous? Yes, I do.” He added, “I think they should be enjoying three hots and a cot at The Hague with all the other war criminals.”
Today, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. – who has continued to publicly promote the discredited theory that vaccines cause autism — met with President-Elect Donald Trump in New York City and afterward stated that Mr. Trump has asked him to lead a new commission on vaccine safety and scientific integrity. Autism Science Foundation President Alison Singer released the following statement in reaction to Mr. Kennedy’s comments:
STATEMENT FROM ALISON SINGER, PRESIDENT, AUTISM SCIENCE FOUNDATION:
“The scientific research has been done and the results are clear – vaccines do not cause autism. Some people may choose not to believe the facts, but perpetuating a myth from the very highest levels poses a dangerous threat to public health. Creating a commission makes it look like scientists have not already studied this issue for many years, and it may lead people to think this is still an open question. It is not.
It’s imperative that parents make health decisions for their children based on scientific evidence, in consultation with their pediatrician. I fear that parents will think we don’t have the data that we do – from dozens of studies — and will withhold lifesaving vaccines from their children. Withholding vaccines will do nothing to reduce the chance that a child is diagnosed with autism, but will absolutely increase the chance that a child could contract and die from a vaccine-preventable disease. Vaccines save lives, period.”
RFK Jr. also claimed that the COVID vaccines were not tested in RCTs. I believe he said placebo controlled trials. Of course this is nonsense the Pfizer and Moderna mRNA vaccines went through standard RCTs with placebo controls.
As far as I am concerned, RFK is a lunatic, a liar, and a dangerous man if put in control of anything other than his anti-vaccine non profit group. In the newsweek piece, he says vaccines are exempt from placebo controlled trials. Simply not true. As Paul Offit explains here:
Since it appears to be in expectation a change of the current system from its current paradigms, for better or worse, there is the chance that for example longevity researchers, medicine 3.0 people, start applying and getting positions in the administration or civil service. I think it would be nice if people with the right credentials worked on that and showed up to apply. Basically persuading people with the fringe ideas of longevity and healthspan, but that is becoming more mainstream now, that are able to thrive in an environment where it seems everything changes rather than everything being static as previously.
Funding drug-repurposing like for rapamycin, expanding ITP, refunding the Dog Aging Project, arguing with the right people for a paradigm shift. One which they might’ve not heard about but are willing to listen for ideas how to improve health among the population and staving off chronic disease. Imagine if RFK Jr. learned about rapamycin, the Dog Aging Project losings its funding, how it’s a natural substance from Rapa Nui, etc.
I think people underestimate a what a shake-up can do opportunity wise for those with the right credentials and fringe, but good ideas… I mean it fits if you can get past everything else. Would we rather that Aging be given the current funding of less than ~1% of the U.S NIH budget?
Or even worse… being dismantled and renamed from NIA (National Institute on Aging) to National Institute on Dementia… (Support-NILAR - a4li.org)? I don’t see why people don’t see this as better than nothing happening and instead we get an health administration arguing about seed oils and vax and not that the Dog Aging Project losing its funding for example or that <1% of NIH budget is on aging. It is how it is. I don’t expect things to happen in this direction anyway, but there is a small chance when a lot of things seem to be expected to change.
I don’t know what position he will up in, so hard to say. However a shake is needed. The FDA, CDC, and NIH are a mess and need serious changes.
Not sure I understand anyone who thinks the current state of the country’s health, activity level, and diet are good and should continue.
I don’t understand how anyone that thinks vaccines cause autism can be appointed to a leadership role. Except, of course, that is the world we live in.
Do you prefer the status quo where the NIA is dismantled with its <1% funding of NIH budget and renamed to the National Institute of Dementia? Dog Aging Project defunded? Estriol being renamed in ITP papers to possibly avoid biohackers using it?
Good luck. If you think politicizing science, research, and involving social media in the process is going to lead to progress in useful results, go ahead and appoint whoever is more prominent in creating controversy whether through vaccine scepticism or conspiracy theories:
“Retracted COVID-19 articles have circulated widely on social media. Although retractions are intended to correct the scientific record, when trust in science is low, they may instead be interpreted as evidence of censorship or simply ignored.”
Whether he is right or wrong about vaccines, parents should be the ones who get to decide whether their children get the crazy number of vaccines that are required to attend school. I think it’s 16 vaccines that include 72 shots. I don’t think they should ever be forced. He has also stated many times he’s not anti vaccine in general.
He wants to remove liability protection from vaccine manufacturers, which is incredibly important and necessary.
Much more importantly, I think it’s amazing he wants to advance research in peptides, stem cells, and everything else he mentions in the Tweet. We absolutely need that. The regulations George Bush put on stem cells set research back decades. We shouldn’t have to go to Colombia for treatments.
I can see how people disagree with things he certain things he says about health, but I think the pros far outweigh the negatives.
For all the ill he may do, if he supports loosening of rules into aging research, then it’s worth it. People will die from some of his other proposals, but aging is killing people unnecessarily every day. I just wish he would only support reasonable things.
A bit presumptuous to say the least especially at this point when he’s not even been appointed nor taken an actual policy position yet, but hey the wilder the imaginations the better, I guess lol.
No way of knowing if people will die or not because of his positions. I guess we’ll find out if it ever happens.
I agree with him that NOT all vaccines are necessary, but I definitely disagree if he says that all vaccines are not necessary. I have not researched the subject at length as my family and I are vaccinated (other than Covid) as such it is a non-issue for me. If I happened to be in the market for vaccines (family or self) I would do a thorough research and make an informed decision. I did exactly that with Covid vaccine and everything I read and searched told me it was useless for me; thus, I skipped. Clearly it did not affect me either way, I never had covid.
As an FYI- I do know someone that was condemned to a life in wheelchair because they dd not have a certain vaccination, so yes, some vaccines are indeed lifesaving.
I am hopeful that as he meets with real scientists and they explain to him how science and research actually work, he’ll gradually come to understand that things are not quite as conspiratorial as he’s been led to believe.
