Thank you for your note. We will look into those reports and try to sort out what’s going on. Thanks for calling our attention to these reports.

Best,
Michael McCarthy
Editor

Is there any truth to this article by CBS news? It is already troubling that there seems to be so much misinformation being propogated by anti-vaccine people, but even more troubling, there seems to be a lack of debate within the scientific community in the United States. The latest “The Atlantic” Nov. 2009 issue carried a wonderful article questioning the integrity of the scientific community with regards to both the seasonal flu vaccine and the h1n1.
If you read Japanese newspapers..

http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20091025a7.html

how can it be that only they seem to be reporting some adverse effects, with almost no adverse effect reports in the USA? It is even more worrisome that people with food allergies were implicated in these adverse effects.

Surely, the CDC cannot be so high handed as to presume the public incapable of making intelligent judgements given truthful data however confusing. After all any pandemic must be dealt with along with the public. Simply propogating panic and confusion among lay people and doctors is in itself an error of judgement.

I am merely a stay at home mom, but given these conflicting reports(not from web sites without merit), how can I justify risking the flu vaccine for my children one of whom would if I follow the CDC guidelines have to take thimerosol 4 times with 2 doses of h1n1 and 2 doses of the seasonal flu.

What has happened to the Canadian problem being reviewed by a select panel of epidemiologists?
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/technology/science/study-prompts-provinces-to-rethink-flu-plan/article1303330/

My apologies for asking a lot of questions,but perhaps if more ordinary people start asking questions, someone, somewhere will at least attempt to address them.

She writes:

But Amy L. Best, a sociologist at George Mason University, said the teenage embrace is more a reflection of the overall evolution of the American greeting, which has become less formal since the 1970s. “Without question, the boundaries of touch have changed in American culture,” she said. “We display bodies more readily, there are fewer rules governing body touch and a lot more permissible access to other people’s bodies.

For more read Kershaw’s article For Teenagers, Hello Means ‘How About a Hug?’

Michael McCarthy
Editor

Be responsible — JUST SAY NO TO HUGGING!

It creeps me out that so many people are still hugging.