Don't vaccinate to protect my cancer kid

© Jean Ghantous

I read with great interest the recent 'measles epidemic' articles that addressed the vaccine debate from the point of view of a cancer parent. My interest is the result of being a cancer parent myself - my little girl has been battling leukemia on and off for the past 10 years. I read these articles, and I became angry. Very, very angry. Once again, the government and drug companies are exploiting the plight of children stricken by cancer to achieve a profit-driven end without actually helping them. In fact, this profitable end could cause great harm, even increasing the rates of pediatric leukemia, if their obvious goal of a federally mandated vaccination protocol is achieved. I am a seasoned Momcologist, a term the research-driven cancer parents call themselves. We are the cancer equivalent of Thinking Moms, critical thinkers. I have done extensive reading on the etiology of leukemia, its connection to autoimmune disease, and how vaccines and natural disease may influence these sorts of childhood illnesses. Come connect the dots with me.

Clearly, I empathize with the raw fear the parents in these articles have that their immunocompromised children may contract an illness that could be devastating. I have walked for years in their shoes. I get it. However, the parents in these articles are either grossly misinformed, or their comments have been edited with bias. Let's get some facts straight about cancer treatment and infection. One of the first things we were warned about after my daughter's diagnosis was live-virus vaccination. No one in the family was to receive a live-virus vaccine while my daughter was on treatment because these viruses can and do shed (1, 2, 3, 4), some for as much as four weeks (5), potentially infecting the immunocompromised patient with disastrous results. That includes the measles vaccine (MMR II and ProQuad), the intranasal flu vaccine, and the chicken pox shot. In fact, my other children were able to get medical waivers not to receive vaccines because of my daughter's illness. I know my child is much more likely to encounter a peer at school who has been recently vaccinated with a live-virus vaccine than she is to encounter natural disease from an unvaccinated child'

© stjudes.org

If my child were at a stage of treatment in which she was very immunocompromised, she would not be in school. My daughter missed most of fourth grade and a good portion of fifth, not because she was so sick, but because others were sick. Despite a nearly 100% vaccine compliance rate at our school, there were regular outbreaks of shingles, occurring after chicken pox vaccine boosters, influenza and other illnesses. Please note that, even in areas in which vaccine compliance is extremely high, there are still outbreaks of disease that are not caused by the unvaccinated (6).

The most deadly threats for a child during intensive cancer treatment lie right within his or her own body. Immunocompromised pediatric cancer patients are far more likely to die from opportunistic infections that originate from overgrowths of fungi, mold and bacteria(7) than they are from vaccine-related viral infections. When I searched to find the last recorded incidence of a child dying of measles (because that is the hated disease du jour) while undergoing cancer treatment, well, I couldn't find one. I did, however, find at least one death in the immunocompromised from the measles vaccine (8), with no indication of when it or they occurred. There hasn't been a recorded death in the U.S. from measles in the past 10 years. (9) In fact, measles infection may actually be curative of some blood cancers (10, 11), presumably by initiating normal immune system defenses. The measles virus as an actual treatment has also been explored in other malignancies (12, 13).

There is evidence that the "hygiene theory" of the immune system may have some relevance to to vaccines. It has been found that more "hygienic" populations, i.e. kids who have had fewer exposures to everyday germs, are at higher risk for some illnesses. The idea being that the immune system needs to "learn" how to respond appropriately by coming in contact with common bugs in order to develop properly. Industrialized countries that have a decrease in infectious burden over less developed nations nevertheless show an increase in allergies and autoimmune disease. "The leading idea is that some infectious agents — notably those that co-evolved with us — are able to protect us against a large spectrum of immune-related disorders." (14) Are we trading benign, transient illnesses that were once considered normal childhood rites of passage, illnesses that appear to be protective for more serious disease, for a lifetime of chronic illness, even death?

A discussion of the peculiarities of leukemia is in order, its relationship to the immune system, and the idea that vaccines can act as a possible trigger for the cancer itself. Leukemia begins with the development of immature white blood cells in the bone marrow, when one of these baby white blood cells mutates into an abnormal, leukemic cell. The more actively the body produces white blood cells (which are infection-fighting cells), therefore, the higher the risk of mutation. This is the explanation given for increases in the incidence of leukemia after a flu virus passes through an area (15), and why children who exhibit hyper-stimulated immune responses in the form of asthma and eczema also have increased risk for leukemia (16). It may seem contradictory to discuss infection as a preventative for leukemia when applying the hygiene hypothesis, while also pointing to infection as a cause. It's apparently all about the maturity and status of the immune system. "Timing is critical, as early infections are likely to positively modulate the immune system thereby reducing risk of leukemia, whereas later infections in children whose immune system was less well modulated may increase such risk." (17)

Time to stop and connect more dots. What are American children exposed to that deliberately hyper-stimulate the immune system? Vaccines. Our children are subjected to an incredibly aggressive vaccine schedule, the likes of which no other country sees, from the day they are born (and we have the highest first-day infant death rate of any first-world country, by the way) (18). Could we actually be triggering leukemia, the most common form of childhood cancer, with these vaccines? Particularly when we give them to children who already show signs of abnormal immune response?

Vaccines are not calibrated by weight or age or health-risk factors; potency levels of vaccines are standardized (19), which may cause hyper-stimulation for a child with a highly sensitive immune system. Isn't it interesting that less industrial countries have lower rates of autoimmune disease, yet when those kids come to industrialized countries, in one generation they match our rates? (20) Could this possibly be related to the fact that these immigrants are required to submit to more aggressive vaccine schedules?

Acute lymphocytic leukemia is also less common in third-world countries, despite their children's otherwise more debilitated state. Children in industrialized nations experience a sharp rise in leukemia between two and six years of the age, the vaccine years, which does not occur in less developed nations. (21)

It is so very obvious that this potential connection requires exploration, yet the only studies to be found merely compare leukemia in more vaccinated to less vaccinated kids. The data from children who are completely unvaccinated is critical in uncovering the true reality of overall pediatric health. We may very well find many interesting discoveries. Read this study from Germany (22), for example, which shows less acute and serious chronic illness overall for unvaccinated children, though they did not include childhood cancer. Why are we merely chasing a cure when a likely cause is sitting right under our noses?

One word: Profit. As of 1988, vaccine makers and the doctors who administer vaccines bear no liability for vaccine injury (23). They cannot be held accountable by law for adverse events from vaccination. In fact, the entire adverse event reporting system (VAERS) is voluntary! This means that the more aggressive our vaccine schedule, the more profitable it is for vaccine makers. But what about the Centers for Disease Control, don't they direct the vaccines our children really need? Please note that the CDC uses worldwide disease data to formulate our policies, which makes no sense at all. How could one possibly compare a malnourished child living in unsanitary conditions and subsequently exposed to illness to a child exposed to that same illness in a first-world country? I invite parents to take a look at the resumes of some of the heads of pharmaceutical companies and members of the CDC like this one (24). One can very clearly see those in charge of vaccine policy have a dangerous conflict of interest with those who profit from that policy. Remember, pharmaceutical companies contributed $34 million dollars in campaign funds in 2014 (25). It would behoove anyone attempting office these days to err on the side of 'big pharma.'

I must add additional comment about parental trust in the government as it concerns our cancer kids. Once parents recover from a cancer diagnosis, they have a strong desire to help their children - to participate in activism in some way. It is then they discover a disturbing reality about the state of pediatric cancer research and funding: In a united front, the major cancer fundraising organizations, our government, and the pharmaceutical industry ignore pediatric cancer. Why? First, kids don't vote. Second, kids don't get cancer in rates high enough to warrant good profit returns. There has not been a novel drug developed for the treatment of acute lymphocytic leukemia, the most common childhood cancer, in 20 years (26). Oncologists are forced to use the same horridly harmful chemotherapy and radiation; the only variability in protocols is in the combinations, dosages and timing of the same archaic drugs. And while 'cure' rates have increased, childhood cancer incidence is still on the rise (27). Over and over again, however, these organizations will exploit the pitiful stories and pictures of our kids to tug heartstrings and solicit funding. The National Cancer Institute directs a pittance (4%) at pediatric cancer research versus other, more common and profitable, cancers (28). When will health research be directed by the needs of the people rather than the greed of corporations?

If any parent wants their child to be safe from preventable illness, it is a cancer parent. Yet I also stand with scores of cancer parents who have seen their children become stricken with leukemia shortly after vaccination. My little girl? She was diagnosed with leukemia shortly after her pediatrician "caught her up" on her shots almost 10 years ago. That "catch up" schedule matches the regular schedule for a toddler today. Unfortunately, it is nearly impossible to untangle true childhood cancer statistics or 'cure' (as in survival) rates (29). The SEER database includes only five states and ten cities in the U.S., and one cannot readily backtrack to the time before the mad rush of vaccines. (30)

It is time to ask the hard questions for the sake of our children. Are we actually causing leukemia and other childhood illnesses with these vaccines? Could we even prevent leukemia by allowing natural disease? The current measles "scare" is clearly a push for a federally mandated vaccine program. Measles is highly contagious, yes, but benign (even potentially helpful) for the vast majority in a first-world country. If the current vaccine schedule could be harming our children, what will happen when pharmaceutical companies are given carte blanche? Do we really want to relinquish our parental rights to a government that has shown itself to be both corrupt and callous in their treatment of our cancer kids? What data is critical to either prove, or disprove, the hypothesis that vaccines can lead to increased chronic disease, particularly those related to the immune system like leukemia? An independent study of the overall health of vaccinated versus unvaccinated children must be undertaken. It is past time to finish connecting the dots to reveal the true picture of vaccines and childhood cancer. Though it is too late for my vaccine-injured daughter, this Momcologist stands against vaccine mandates, for the health of future children.

About the author: Jean Ghantous is a wife and mother of three with a background in science, who formerly held a position with a pharmaceutical company as a research specialist. She has been a Momcologist for the past 10 years, since her daughter was diagnosed with high-risk pre-B cell acute lymphocytic leukemia as a toddler. After three years of treatment, the family enjoyed years of remission until her daughter was again diagnosed with a very late relapse at nine years old. She is currently in remission and doing well.

Jean's penchant for research led to the important discovery that transfusional iron overload had been a long-overlooked high-risk factor for adverse late effects in cancer children. "Oncologists are so focused on treatment protocols that preventative care has been neglected, universally," said Jean. "I realized within the first 10 minutes of researching iron overload that not only did my daughter have a very grave problem, but many kids, over many years, were at risk as well. I was horrified to read the list of side effects of iron toxicity; it was eerily similar to the late effects one is told to expect from chemotherapy." Jean pushed for treatment and preventative care. She said "No one addressed iron overload because, well, no one had NOTICED it. For decades of cancer treatment." This led to her hospital implementing a computerized tracking program for transfusional iron deposition and its involvement in a nationwide strategy for reducing risk from iron toxicity in children with cancer.

While Jean had always been suspicious that vaccines could play a role in the development of leukemia, she was told her daughter's diagnosis after aggressive vaccination was "coincidence." After her third child also sustained a vaccine injury, Jean took on the additional descriptor of Thinking Mom and became more actively involved in advocating for vaccine safety. "It is abundantly clear to any parent who takes the time to do the research that there is a very real causative connection between immune system disorders, chronic disease and vaccines," warns Jean. "American kids are sick, really sick. EpiPens, inhalers, glucometers, special diets and special-needs teachers have become normalized in our schools. Four children in my neighborhood have been granted Make-A-Wish trips for life-threatening illness. One-third of my son's class is in need of special-needs educational support. This is NOT normal. We MUST stop this insane, profit-driven push for federal vaccine mandates. Clearly, our families' futures depend on it."

References

1) "Detection of Measles Virus RNA in Urine Specimens from Vaccine Recipients,"

2) " Vaccine Oka Varicella-Zoster Virus Genotypes Are Monomorphic in Single Vesicles and Polymorphic in Respiratory Tract Secretions,"

3) MMR II vaccine insert: "Excretion of small amounts of the live attenuated rubella virus from the nose or throat has occurred in the majority of susceptible individuals 7 to 28 days after vaccination."

4) "Chickenpox Attributable to a Vaccine Virus Contracted From a Vaccine With Zoster,"

5) FluMist vaccine insert: "FluMist contains live attenuated influenza viruses that must infect and replicate in cells lining the nasopharynx of the recipient to induce immunity. Vaccine viruses capable of infection and replication can be cultured from nasal secretions obtained from vaccine recipients (shedding)." Study showed shedding up to 28 days post vaccination:

6) "Influenza Outbreak in a Vaccinated Population — USS Ardent, February 2014,"

7) "Infections in the Neutropenic Patient— New Views of an Old Problem:,"

8) MMR II vaccine insert: "Measles inclusion body encephalitis{44} (MIBE), pneumonitis{45} and death as a direct consequence of disseminated measles vaccine virus infection have been reported in immunocompromised individuals inadvertently vaccinated with measles-containing vaccine."

9) "There has been no measles deaths reported in the U.S. since 2003," Dr. Anne Schuchat, the director of CDC's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases. (Apparently, the veracity of this statement is in question, as CDC data for 2009 and 2010 both list two measles deaths, leading one to wonder why does the director of CDC's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases not seem to know about them? Don't you think given the current hoopla about an outbreak with no associated deaths that they would be screaming about them? Could it be that they were in immunocompromised people who got the disease either from the vaccine or from recently vaccinated people?)

10) Bluming A, Ziegler J. "Regression of Burkitt's lymphoma in association with measles infection." The Lancet. 1971 Jul 10;:105 - 106.

11) "Remission of Disseminated Cancer after Systemic Oncolytic Virotherapy,"

12) "Measles Virus for Cancer Therapy,"

13) Liu TC, Galanis E, Kirn D. "Clinical Trial Results with Oncolytic Virotherapy: A Century of Promise, a Decade of Progress." Nat Clin Pract Oncol. 2007;4(2):101 - 117.

14) Hygiene hypothesis: "In countries where good health standards do not exist, people are chronically infected by those various pathogens. In those countries, the prevalence of allergic diseases remains low. Interestingly, several countries that have eradicated those common infections see the emergence of allergic and autoimmune diseases."

"The 'Hygiene Hypothesis' for Autoimmune and Allergic Diseases: An Update,"

15) "Childhood Leukemia Incidence in Britain, 1974 - 2000: Time Trends and Possible Relation to Influenza Epidemics,"

16) "Allergic Conditions and Risk of Hematological Malignancies in Adults: A Cohort Study,"

17) "Timing is critical, as early infections are likely to positively modulate the immune system thereby reducing risk of leukemia, whereas later infections in children whose immune system was less well modulated may increase such risk."

"Infection and Pediatric Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia,"

18) U.S. highest first-day infant mortality of industrialized nations: "6 Articles You Should Read about Infant Mortality in the U.S"

19) "Potency Tests of Combination Vaccines,"

20) " The 'Hygiene Hypothesis' for Autoimmune and Allergic Diseases: An Update,"

21) "An Infectious Aetiology for Childhood Acute Leukaemia: A Review of the Evidence." Sharp peak in ALL diagnoses in developed countries between 2 and 6 years; early infection could be protective.

22) German study on the health of vaccinated versus unvaccinated children:

23) Vaccine Liability removed:

24) Julie Gerberding: "Merck Announces Appointment of Dr. Julie Gerberding as Executive Vice President for Strategic Communications, Global Public Policy and Population Health,"

25) Pharmaceutical campaign contributions 2014: "Pharmaceuticals/Health Products: Long-Term Contribution Trends,"

26) "Little Patients, Losing Patience: Pediatric Cancer Drug Development,"

27) Childhood and Adolescent Cancer Statistics, 2014:

28) National Cancer Institute gives 4% to pediatric cancer research:

29) "Because Statistics Don't Tell the Whole Story: A Call for Comprehensive Care for Children With Cancer,"

30) SEER database:

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Fallen 50-tonne rock blocks main mountain road near Moûtiers, France

Holidaymakers were trapped in the French Alps after a giant 50-tonne boulder blocked a main mountain

Thousands of British holidaymakers were trapped in the French Alps after a giant 50-tonne boulder blocked a main mountain road.

Falling rocks cut off popular resorts Val Thorens, Les Menuires and St Martin and ski enthusiasts were left stranded in a 50-mile tailback.

Holiday coaches were stopped from entering and leaving the resorts in the Tarentaise Valley after authorities ruled the N117 road was too dangerous for large vehicles to use on Friday morning.

[embedded content]

Tourists took to social media to vent their frustration at being stranded after the rockslide.

Mike Parkes ‏tweeted: 'Delay getting out of Alps due to 100 tonne boulder that has decided to fall into the road! #annoying This never happens to #judithchalmers.'

Claire Zillman ‏said: '1st for everything: 'a boulder cracked the road so there's no traveling in or out of this village. Skiing in Alps was spectacular until now.'

Tour operators are planning to hire a fleet of minibuses so holidaymakers due to return home yesterday can be taken to their departing flights today.

Hundreds of Britons on their way to the region were accommodated in the nearby town of Albertville.

Crystal Ski Holidays, one of the British travel firms affected, said it arranged overnight accommodation for 500 UK holidaymakers arriving at Chambery and Geneva airports.

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Private police tote guns, make arrests and their ranks are swelling

© privateofficerbreakingnews.blogspot.com

Michael Youlen, private "policeman"

Michael Youlen stopped a driver in a Manassas apartment complex on a recent night and wrote the man a ticket for driving on a suspended license. With a badge on his chest and a gun on his hip, Youlen gave the driver a stern warning to stay off the road.

The stop was routine police work, except for one fact: Youlen is not a Manassas officer. The citation came courtesy of the private force he created that, until recently, he called the "Manassas Junction Police Department."

He is its chief and sole officer.

He is a force of one.

And he is not alone. Like more and more Virginians, Youlen gained his police powers using a little-known provision of state law that allows private citizens to petition the courts for the authority to carry a gun, display a badge and make arrests. The number of "special conservators of the peace" — or SCOPs, as they are known — has doubled in Virginia over the past decade to roughly 750, according to state records.

© www.topix.com

Michael Youlen patrols a housing complex where he works as a private "police officer."

The growth is mirrored nationally in the ranks of private police, who increasingly patrol corporate campuses, neighborhoods and museums as the demand for private security has increased and police services have been cut in some places.

The trend has raised concerns in Virginia and elsewhere, because these armed officers often receive a small fraction of the training and oversight of their municipal counterparts. Arrests of private police officers and incidents involving SCOPs overstepping their authority have also raised concerns.

The Virginia legislature approved a bill Friday increasing the training and regulation of SCOPs. The private officers would now be required to train for 130 hours, up from 40 hours — less than the state requires for nail technicians, auctioneers and security guards.

In neighboring D.C., a similar designation called "special police" requires 40 hours of training. Maryland officials leave instruction to the discretion of employers but have no requirements. Other states have similar systems.

"There are a number of groups we regulate far more stringently than SCOPs carrying a gun," said Virginia Secretary of Public Safety Brian Moran, speaking prior to the passage of the bill.

Independent and informal

The conservator of the peace concept predates modern policing.

It has its origins in English common law, and the first Virginia statute was enacted in 1860 to allow proprietors of "watering places" to protect their establishments.

The designation still retains some of that informality. No ­authority regulates the conduct of SCOPs or addresses complaints against them, although a court can revoke their commissions. The state does not track the number of arrests they make or citations they issue.

Most SCOPs patrol corporate campuses, work for neighborhood associations or perform code enforcement for counties or cities, but Youlen has pushed the model further by creating his own "department" and turning policing into an enterprise. He contracts his services to nine apartment and housing communities in the Manassas area. That's up from one in 2012.

SCOPs are free to call themselves "police" in Virginia, ­although the new bill would ­require court approval. Youlen recently dropped "police department" from the name of his operation, anticipating that lawmakers would restrict use of the term. It is now called Manassas Junction LLC.

Youlen, who is a former police officer, said he sees his work as a complement to the Manassas force, not a replacement for it. He said he provides the type of intensive policing, hands-on engagement with the community and attention to small problems that the city simply doesn't have the resources or manpower to provide.

"I'm a part-time police officer and a part-time advocate," Youlen said of his work. "And I would hope a part-time role model and steady security presence for these communities."

On the night Youlen wrote the suspended-license ticket, he pulled his black Ford Fusion with tinted windows out of the Colonial Village Apartments around 8 p.m. Youlen, 30, spends his shifts circulating among the communities he covers until the early hours of the morning.

He deals mostly with loitering, traffic infractions, noise complaints, minor drug offenses and nuisances that can impact quality of life. He said he has never pulled his gun.

At one point during another patrol, Youlen rolled up next to two mattresses that someone had propped against a tree in a townhome community. He said he would return later to investigate and possibly issue a citation to the violator.

At another point, he checked in with the mother of a teen who had gotten into trouble with neighbors to make sure the boy was still in school and playing football. Youlen wore a black flak vest with the word "police" emblazoned across it as he talked to the woman.

Youlen said he turns any felony-type incidents, such as ­assaults, rapes or shootings, over to the Manassas police to handle, but if he does go to court he testifies and provides evidence in cases just as a municipal police officer would.

Youlen said he was a police officer in upstate New York before spending several years on the Manassas force. He said he left to start a private investigator service and then became a SCOP after reading about a housing community in Stafford County called Aquia Harbour that had its own private police force.

In many ways, Youlen's operation functions much as any police department. Youlen has a dispatch number that residents can call and a daily blotter that he posts on the Manassas Junction web site, along with fliers for suspects and notices about recent incidents. He gives reports about crime at homeowners association meetings.

In 2014, Youlen recorded 77 arrests and ticket citations and handed out 162 parking violations, according to his statistics. He responded to 221 calls for service.

Manassas City Police Chief Douglas W. Keen said he has concerns about Youlen, saying his presence has created confusion among citizens, magistrates and even judges. Keen said many who encounter him assume he represents the city. "Any misunderstanding or confusion in this could greatly impact the relationships and trust within our community," Keen wrote in an e-mail.

Prince William County Commonwealth's Attorney Paul Ebert said SCOPs' lack of training and their backgrounds have sometimes undermined prosecutions, though he did not point to any specific cases. His office noted they had not had any issues with Youlen. "The trouble of prosecuting cases from those folks is that we have to vouch for the credibility of the complainant," Ebert said. "A lot of them are not trained and don't have pasts that are conducive to law enforcement."

But Crystal Terrant, owner of Burke Community Management, which manages eight properties that Youlen patrols, said calls to police have dropped dramatically since she hired Youlen. "He's cleaned up a lot of the petty crime and traffic stuff," Terrant said. "He offers a sense of security to residents. He's befriended the kids, so they respect the property more."

Problems bring scrutiny

A handful of incidents involving SCOPs in Virginia and nationally have focused attention on the training and oversight of private police. In 2009, a SCOP who owned a private security firm got into a heated argument with a woman over parking at a Newport News-area shopping center, according to court records.

Kevin Bukowski hemmed in the woman's vehicle, and then he and a partner pointed their guns directly at the woman and a friend as they sat in their car with two children, court records show. Bukowski was convicted of abduction, and the state revoked his SCOP registration in 2012. "I was unjustly punished, but there are a lot of problems with the system," Bukowski said of SCOPs. "You got these guys running out there as security officers who couldn't make it as police officers."

In another incident in 2012, a SCOP on a motorcycle with flashing lights and various law enforcement-style stickers pulled over a Virginia State Police special agent driving on I-64 near the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel, according to court records. The SCOP asked the officer why he was going so fast. The officer replied, "Who are you?" and flashed his badge, according to court records. The SCOP then rode off.

The officer said the man on the motorcycle was likely a SCOP named Michael Tynan, who runs a security officer training academy in Virginia Beach. Portsmouth police questioned Tynan after he was seen conducting another traffic stop in 2013, according to the court documents. He told officers his SCOP status allowed him to perform traffic stops. He also said he was a retired state trooper but later admitted he failed out of the academy.

The Virginia Attorney General's Office moved to strip Tynan of his SCOP commission in Portsmouth in 2013, and Tynan agreed to surrender it. In an interview, Tynan said he was unaware of the allegations and would have challenged them if he had known about them. "I categorically deny these things," Tynan said.

The government's motion to vacate Tynan's SCOP commission in Portsmouth said he was "unfit for an appointment," but state records show Tynan is still registered as a SCOP in Virginia Beach.

Backers note that SCOPs can play a valuable role and that problems are rare.

John Hall, president of American Security Group in Richmond, said his company employs SCOPs. He said they provide an affordable way to boost security for many communities. "There's a void in a lot of the [homeowner's associations], light rails and business parks," Hall said. "There has to be some type of role there between public and private."

Experts say Virginia's increase of SCOPs is part of a nationwide uptick in private security that began in the 1970s and accelerated after the Sept. 11 attacks. The number of private security guards — nearly 1.1 million — dwarfs the 640,000 public police officers, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

While the numbers have increased, training has not kept pace. A 2012 study from a University of Illinois College of Law assistant professor found that private police are "chronically undertrained" and nearly a third nationwide face almost no regulation.

States other than Virginia have faced issues as well. In 2012, more than 20 residents of the Cherry Hill neighborhood of Baltimore filed a $25 million lawsuit against a Cleveland security company, claiming its guards had abused residents and violated their civil rights by stopping them illegally and making false arrests. Two of the three guards named in the suit were "special police," a designation similar to SCOPs in Virginia.

In 2005, a special police officer tasked with guarding government buildings in D.C. was convicted of a felony after carrying out an armed robbery in Georgetown using the revolver issued by his security company.

To become a SCOP in Virginia, an individual must register with the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services. That requires the applicant to pass a criminal background check and an alcohol and drug test. The new bill ups the training requirement to 130 hours for armed SCOPs — still far less than the 580 to 1,200 hours required of municipal police officers in the state. The individual then petitions a circuit court to be commissioned with the sponsorship of an employer.

Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe is expected to sign the bill increasing training and regulation for SCOPs. Sen. Thomas K. Norment Jr., who sponsored it, said he would like to eventually bar SCOPs from calling themselves police and using flashing lights. The current bill allows them to do both, with the permission of the courts. "I'm pleased with the progress, but there is still some work to do," Norment said.

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Totalitarian rule in America: False flags, secret prisons, extrajudicial assassinations, media censorship, the rounding up of alleged "terrorists" ...

© Global Research

Every day signs are looming larger than life as we know it in the wealthiest nation on earth that it's about to crash and burn, forever changing not for the better. The latest wake-up call arrived in a Guardian article earlier this week. The story features a secret prison not unlike the CIA torture detention centers all over the world whereby the Chicago police hold rounded up US citizens for hours or days at a time for interrogation. The same internationally illegal roundups of suspected "potential terrorists" (which by latest Gestapo America standards can easily be you or me) that the CIA and military black ops deploy globally, are being covertly conducted not only in Obama's hometown where his thug buddy Rahm rules, but likely every US city and soon coming to a neighborhood near you.

The complete loss of constitutional civil liberties where we can be taken in without warrant, locked up and shackled for indefinite periods of time, where to all our friends and family we simply disappear, those totalitarian Orwellian tactics are here today in secret CIA-like "black site" locations throughout the nation. Lawyers are summarily turned away. Those imprisoned are not booked nor entered in any record-keeping system, only to typically be beaten and shackled. It was determined that one man at the Chicago site already died while in custody. If this inhumane brutality hidden from public view is operating in one major US metropolis, it means that these secret police detention centers are no doubt also up and running in secret locations throughout America. This worst case scenario of police state USA is just one more nightmare come true. And this comes after it's been determined that Americans are at least 100 times more likely to die at the hands of murdering police than in all other industrialized nations.

For numerous decades the United States has engaged in both high intensive and low intensive counterinsurgency and counterterrorism wars around the globe. But now in the twenty-first century all those same black ops wars have come home to roost right here in the land of the not-so-free. To police state USA all American citizens are the potential enemy. It's also fair to say that the police in countless jails and prisons have unlawfully beaten and killed thousands of US citizens while in police custody over the years. Sadly, this form of murder in covert black sites where inmates are literally tortured to death takes police state brutality and slaughter to a whole new unprecedented level. And of course those of color and poor are most often the victims. Two years ago it was reported that a black man is killed by police every 28 hours. And with the deaths spiking last year, it's more apt to be closer to every 24 hours now.

On a far less shocking and dramatic note, the latest FCC 3 to 2 vote on Thursday to "maintain net neutrality" has been treated in the press as a triumph for the people. Yet before we internet users celebrate, several keys factors still need to be pondered. We already know the overriding history in North America where giant transnational corporations enjoy more individual rights than us individuals in this age of globalism. The people may have averted a disastrous lost battle but the war of corporate greed winning out over the rights of people goes on. The FCC's ruling declared that the internet falls under the rules and regulations of the telecommunications industry and we know what's been happening there. Six corporate entities virtually control all the world's major media outlets.

Secondly, the 300-page details of the FCC decision has yet to be released. Literally armies of telecom lawyers will be analyzing every line of 300 pages with a fine-tooth comb just searching for the myriad of potential loopholes by which the large corporate internet providers can find ways to squeeze additional money for the giants at our expense. Finally, the FCC has a special new rule called the "general conduct rule" whereby as in FCC Chairman Wheeler's words, "it wants to referee" in getting to decide what it deems unfair or "hurts consumers, competition or innovation." With such a vague and wide open birth, the FCC wields enormous power to interpret its 300 pages of new rules in what it considers running afoul of "proper conduct" and it may not be in favor of us internet consumers. Meanwhile, the telecom lawyers have unlimited time and money to finagle, lobby and court FCC's favor, not unlike Big Business rules over the EPA in getting away with all kinds of unregulated pollution and Big Pharma literally owns the FDA.

Big Gov operates in deviously sneaky ways. It knows ruling against net neutrality now would cause a storm of fury in America that temporarily Washington is choosing at this moment to avoid. But as mentioned, the mountains of fine print perfectly suited for loopholes contained in 300 pages of rules can easily turn this ephemeral victory into another staggering long term defeat for the people. It's simply akin to the hard kill being deferred to the soft kill strategy, quietly sneaking through little changes that in their totality will eventually peck away at net neutrality and ultimately kill it. We need to always remember that in recent years gov.corps is one entity that historically favors corporate greed and profit over the well-being of a bunch of humans. The power elite's agenda remains to offer less internet services, less access to not only the internet but to particular websites that will come at higher prices to access in the future.

Indeed the growing threat of our tyrannical fascist government cutting off access to independent alternative news sites falling victim to state censorship is still very real and extremely foreboding. Increasingly the elite's agenda is to disempower the global masses by keeping them ignorant, dumbed down and in the dark without any access to the truth. Taking away much of the World Wide Web is their sinister strategy that's still operating at all times despite this recent decision.

The totalitarian government in Washington has realized that their propagandizing mainstream media machine has been rapidly losing its credibility and audience. Upwards of 4 out of 5 Americans today aren't even tuning in to the likes of NBC's Brian Williams' fake show for MSM's inaccurate reporting of the latest unfolding events in the globalized censored world. And that trend arrived long before we learned Williams turned out to be another mainstream liar.

The totalitarian government's fusion into corporate fascism has long recognized that supplying the world with free internet allows the masses access to alternative independent news sites for far more accurate reporting of world news and developments. At increasing risk of censorship black outs and persecution, independent news strives to tell the truth to the rest of the world, exposing the official narrative of pure lies and evildoing perpetrated by the criminal syndicate acting as the rogue government. A continued free and independent internet news outlet making suppression of the truth difficult poses a real threat to fascism. That's why free internet is still under attack.

The other reason the internet poses a threat to New World Order is its enormous capacity to provide instant global communication between billions of humans around the globe that together possess a potentially powerful resistance movement opposing the oppressive tactics being implemented by globalized multinational governments. Ultimately an awakened, informed and empowered citizenry of the world united in solidarity poses the biggest threat to global fascism and its New World Order. That's why through Executive Order Obama has given himself supreme dictatorial authority to shut down the internet in America under the pretense of a national emergency.

As another in-our face, over-the-top, draconian measure that reveals how today's totalitarian police state is fast closing in on us is the feds' agenda to impose its latest sinister plan to impose mandatory vaccine immunizations on every American adult as well as child. Since 9/11 the feds have been systematically stripping away all our liberties. But when forcing potentially lethal injections on us citizens against our will, the tyrants in Washington will likely have a real fight on their hands. With overwhelming evidence piling up indicating vaccines pose a deadly danger to millions of humans, the feds forcing injections on all US adults may be the catalyst that sparks a genuine grassroots revolt not unlike what the Boston Tea Party was to the American Revolution. With an increasing segment of the US population becoming sick and tired of their government's rampant oppression, their battle cry may be "enough is enough with your abusive totalitarian bullshit." The US government has long overstepped both its legal and ethical boundaries that the people may now be reaching the tipping point toward active rebellion.

Of course everything gov.corps does has an intended purpose. With this latest Big Brother violation - the National Adult Immunization Plan (NAIC), it appears the feds are actually intending to create a national confrontational backlash. Ever since 9/11 they've been preparing for the civil unrest that they've been insidiously provoking and escalating. With the US police state fully militarized, mechanized and mobilized, apparently Washington's nearing ready to unleash its absolute brutality full force against its own people.

© SOTT.net

In the same way the US lies and propaganda are attempting to demonize Putin as the bad guy excuse to start WWIII, baiting him to react to relentless over-the-top Empire transgressions, the feds are using the same demented strategy now on us too. They want Americans to react and oppose them so they can bring out their big guns and initiate those long awaited FEMA camp roundups we've been hearing about for years - all for the sake of quelling the unrest they themselves incite as their excuse to "restore civil order". It's downright demonic but unfortunately that's where our nation and world appear to be heading, led by an elitist handful of sub-human psychopaths that within a short period of time are bent on killing off at least 90% of us currently inhabiting this planet.

The neocon 9/11 inside job shows more about the treasonous, demonic elements controlling the US government (along with Saudi-Israeli assistance) that executed nearly 3000 innocent Americans to justify waging permanent war around the world than it does 19 box-cutting Moslem terrorist-stooges borrowed from the Saudi government accomplice. Yet the evildoers responsible for 9/11 have targeted Islamic religion as their scapegoat and polarized the entire world with dozens of false flags purposely designed to demonize Moslems worldwide. By waging false flag terrorism events like January's Charlie Hebdo attack in Paris, between Bush and the Obama regime they have maintained the US and the world in a constant state of emergency, using that designated status as their carte blanche false flag policy to get away with anything and everything evil.

As an example, with the total dismantling of the US Constitution since 9/11 that for more than two centuries guaranteed Americans their civil liberties, now the criminal syndicate of our shadow rogue de facto government currently in power is waging undeclared war against the American people. Meanwhile, increasing numbers of Americans at grave risk to themselves are growing boldly courageous enough to vocally object to the tyranny and criminality of the treasonous feds who've systematically violated both their oath to uphold and protect the Constitution and the Constitution itself as our nation's no longer recognized rule of law. This criminal element inside our own government is not only killing innocent people around the world but is now beginning to brazenly murder innocent American citizens on US soil with increasing regularity. Recall Obama a couple years ago envisioning out loud his use of drones to kill citizens here in the US in the not too distant future. And now he's selling killer drones to US allies that inevitably will fall into ISIS/al Qaeda hands as the rogue government's fake enemy and true ally that will join the Empire in the slaughter of Americans.

For years the federal government has been arming and militarizing its robotic henchmen in preparation for waging all-out war against the mounting anger and civil unrest coming from the American people. The exponential growth of the Homeland Security Department and FEMA, the pathological surveillance state, the militarization of US police state, the 2012 National Defense Authorization Act that authorizes military force to break into our homes and arrest law-abiding US citizens without warrant, without charges and imprison Americans without due process or legal representation for an indefinite period of time, all of these highly disturbing developments act as hardcore evidence of the government's not-so-hidden war against the American people.

For some time now Obama has been both secretly and not so secretively negotiating a full frontal assault on America with implementation of the nightmarish UN Agenda 21 whereby under the rationale of sustainability the UN will work in conspired unison with DHS to relocate much of the US population away from rural and suburban areas into denser populated urban zones. According to their plan, the US has already been broken down into various regional sections most of which will end up unpopulated. Similar to the method of how "national security" has been used to cram down our throats in order to justify stripping us of all our rights and freedom, Agenda 21 uses the transparent façade of "sustainability" as its oppressive criminal excuse to confiscate and steal our homes and force people into federal urban housing. Counties throughout the States and beyond have been busily enacting Agenda 21 laws using eminent domain to illegally force people off their own land and property.

Those who object are labeled noncompliant dissidents joining the activists and journalists who've been protesting and exposing the federal crimes against humanity. They are the designated enemy to be rounded up and placed in the more than 1000 FEMA concentration camps that have been waiting to be filled. In the last decade Halliburton has contracted with gov.corps to refurbish and build hundreds of prisons throughout America. To justify mass murder and imprisonment, the feds are now openly calling those of us who object to their lethal madness homegrown terrorists. Yet it is they who are the true terrorist-traitors reigning terror, theft and destruction down on this entire planet. We law abiding citizens are determined patriots willing to stand up for our rights, indeed standing up for humanity and the very survival of our human species. Members of the ruling elite are the perverse, insane psychopathic criminal mass murderers.

The US government since 9/11 has turned the United States of America into a military-security-prison complex with multiple state and city information analysis fusion centersworking 24/7 around the clock in cahoots with militarized law enforcement and NSA surveillance creating dossiers on every single person in America. Those of us who object, resist and/or oppose the insanity of what's happening will either be imprisoned or killed.

Obama has been secretly signing a host of Executive Orders (EO's) without Congressional approval, many of which violate existing laws rendering his orders illegal. But the crime syndicate behind the current de facto government operates above all law. The criminals in power do not answer to anyone but the ruling elite. And though they're all bona fide, soulless psychopaths, they're utilizing their brute force to subjugate innocent, good people in bondage or worse yet, simply murdering them.

Perhaps the most graphically telling EO of all illustrating their sinister nature is Executive Order 13603, which grants Obama authorization to seize possession of every possible resource, from our property to "all food storage facilities" (meaning all food and water belonging to every person inside our homes). This extremist, maniacal edict is designed to enforce our submission, rendering us totally dependent on Big Brother government or face the obvious - starvation and extermination.

President Obama has quietly transferred his intelligence gathering apparatus from the superseded NSA now under the authority of the Department of Homeland Security. The reason is simple, NSA can only collect data but is not authorized to act on it. Now DHS does have federal authorization to act against all the dissident voices who've become outraged over how our government has betrayed the United States and our people. If not already, very soon DHS will be moving to lock up those observed and classified by NSA as targeted security threats who've been placed on growing watch lists. Among this list, a dissident's gradient status as a security threat target is measured on how large a conduit disseminating the lowdown truth to the public that automatically places him or her at the top of the list to be silenced.

Neocon puppet Bush summed it up when he smugly pronounced, "You're either with us or against us." Ever since he uttered those words, the US population has become polarized into two growing divided camps. The one camp consists of the totalitarian enforcers that are members of the criminal government agencies having drawn the line in the sand with their massive bulk data collection separating themselves from their opposing camp - those of us citizens who disagree with their Orwellian nightmare-come-true. A third group of Americans are sitting on the fence, though leaning toward the oppressors as in the Stockholm syndrome, either employed in the Fortune 500 transnational corporations unwilling to bite the immoral hand that feeds them or part of the larger flock of sheeple representing Americans either too ignorant, weak or fearful who remain in denial or have stuck their head in the sand pretending or hoping that what's happening above ground really isn't happening at all. They are in for very a rude awakening.

Everyone part of this demonic system simply plays their part in doing what they're told, not unlike the Nazi guards at the Jewish concentration camps during WWII. So now you can see why the psychiatric field has been co-opted and taken over by our Gestapo totalitarian government that represents the oppressive crime syndicate. Mental health clinicians are being mandated to brand anyone with a label in order to declare them certifiably ill with a mental disorder diagnosis that can be applied conveniently to anyone regardless of how stable, well-adjusted or strong their mental and emotional health may actually be. This labeling for control purposes will come in handy as to deciding who goes where under martial law.

Now you know why oppressive draconian laws have been springing up all over the country as well as globally usurping homeowners' rights to even grow their own vegetable gardens in their own backyard. Harassing and shutting down community food co-ops that undermine local citizens' resources and independence has been part of the feds' agenda. In fact, anyone who is preparing to live off grid as a resourceful survivalist/prepper is also in their crosshairs. It's even become unlawful in many municipalities to be a caring humanitarian these days. Serving food to the homeless in parks is now considered a crime across America.

For a long time Obama and the feds have been attempting to confiscate citizens' Second Amendment rights to bear arms with the passing of stricter gun control legislation to such an extreme of using Sandy Hook as yet one more horrendous false flag. For that singular purpose, Obama has signed twenty-three Executive Orders on gun safety alone. Already early in 2015 Obama is at it again with his plan to take guns away from gun owners. His latest unilateral move is to ban a bullet commonly sold in local sporting goods stores that's been among the most popular ammunition in America for generations, used in multiple rifles as well as a new kind of revolver. The catch here is the .223 caliber "green tipped" bullet is known to pierce bullet proof vests typically worn by police state nation. By outlawing and collecting all the most popular ammo and making it strictly for the feds' use, when his government goes to war against Americans, it'll obviously give his murdering death squads a distinct, unparalleled advantage.

During the global spread of the Ebola virus last August, Obama signed executive orders authorizing authorities to begin involuntarily rounding up and housing against their will the homeless and mentally ill to even include persons with known respiratory ailments (EO13295). All of these draconian measures demand total dependence and docility from its citizenry - or else. While Americans are now trapped in a domestic police state, cops are killing innocent people in the US every single day at an unprecedented, alarming rate. If you resist, you risk dying. And even if you don't resist, you still risk dying.

The constant attack on citizens struggling to maintain their modest yet eroding standard of living desperately trying to stretch less money to cover the steadily rising costs of survival spells a very uncertain and even doubtful future for both Americans and people throughout the world. The ever-shrinking middle class in both North America and Europe is the inevitable, by designed outcome of globalization, privatization, destabilization, rising war and massive human impoverishment. The unstable future of the world feeds the emerging New World Order along with its demonically Orwellian control of the entire global population.

Ever since the breakup of the Soviet Union nearly a quarter century ago, the US as the sole global superpower has aggressively been surrounding the entire Russian border placing missiles on its doorstep aimed directly into Russia while the US Empire-NATO-European Union has co-opted as geopolitical puppets the entire former Soviet bloc nations of Eastern Europe including a number of Central Asian countries on the globalized chessboard hemming in Russia and China into checkmate position.

Despite this prodding, walled in aggression used as bait to manipulate Putin into reacting and fighting back, he has repeatedly outsmarted the US and its puppets by showing remarkable restraint. But the US has pushed him to the very limit. Understandably he has strengthened ties with neighboring China and formed an economic union with other emerging powers Brazil, India and South Africa (BRICS) in formidable economic self-defense. Just this week India's cabinet approved of a BRICS development bank. Meanwhile, increasing financial reports have predicted that the US dollar and petrodollar as the standard international currency will be dropped. And that may spell economic disaster for the United States.

In response to the threat that the West poses, a coalition of nations in the East - Russia, China and India - have all been forced to prepare for the impending war the US Empire has been instigating. Clearly it is America and Europe that are the wrongful aggressors that have been deliberately setting the stage for World War III against nuclear-powered Russia and China. Also clearly in the court of world opinion, Putin is winning and once again Obama and his neocon aggressors are losing. The real problem though is all of us on earth might lose because of Obama and his puppet masters' deadly games.

Everything in this world now is reversed from the way it once was and should be. It is painful to realize that we Americans were always brainwashed and taught that we were the good guys and the Russian and Chinese Communists were always the bad guy oppressors. However, now roles seem very much reversed whereas the relentless, instigating aggressor pushing for what could easily become nuclear war and the end of the world, American Empire has become the most dangerous rogue state on earth flailing in its final destructive acts before it collapses . The tragic irony and pathetic hypocrisy is that the United States always in its holier than thou self-righteousness criticized the totalitarianism of the Soviet Union and China. Yet it now appears that the darkest shadows of the gulag are operating as "black holes" right here in America, the land of the no longer free but the enslaved and the walking dead who haven't awakened from their slumber of what used to be to find the once greatest nation on earth the most destructive predator spiraling into oblivion but seemingly determined to take the entire planet down with it.

In reality the US government is simply acting on orders from the ruling Western elite that has ordered destruction of the United States. The ruling elite has taken the entire human species hostage and like their Islamic State stooges, the psychopathic oligarchs are busily beheading the entire human civilization in a relentless combination of both soft and hard kill tactics designed to exterminate 90% of the global population. This is the first known human genocide - the earth's sixth mass extinction and first caused by a handful of demonically possessed sub-human species that has been in control of planet earth for many centuries. We owe it to all life on planet earth to fight back.

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Missouri boy put into foster care after parents sought second opinion on medical diagnosis

© Facebook

Tiffany and Jaxon Adams.

A sickly eight-year-old boy was taken from his family and foisted into foster care after his parents sought a second medical opinion and recourse for alleged medical malpractice against their son.

This is what happened to Jaxon Adams, now 8, who had suffered chronic illness since his youth. Over the years he was diagnosed with high-functioning autism, ADHD, severe food allergies, and eventually, epilepsy. He began having seizures. In June of 2013, his appetite subsided and he lost a considerable amount of weight, and had a gastronomy tube surgically inserted through his abdomen into his stomach.

Jaxon's parents, Tiffany and Jason Adams of Independence, sought care for the boy through nurse practitioner Ingrid Larson in Dr. Amber Hoffman's practice at the Beacon Clinic in Children's Mercy Hospital (CMH) in March of 2014, according to Health Impact News.

After being under CMH care for several month, the Beacon Clinic staff confronted Tiffany and Jason Adams about the boy's apparent "lack of nutrition" at home. Health Impact News reported what happened next:

When the nurse said that she couldn't figure out why he hadn't been gaining weight, Tiffany said that they would be looking for someone who would be able to figure it out.

The parents had begun speaking with a medical malpractice attorney, who started looking into Jaxon's medical records.

It was right after this that the little boy began fainting. Tiffany said that he just passed out just a few feet in front of her while he was riding on an electric scooter, an accident that landed him in the hospital with a cut above his eye. Once he fainted while eating birthday cake at a party. While Jaxon's parents were puzzled about the fainting spells, the doctors at the Beacon Clinic decided that they were psychosomatic. They also told them that all of Jaxon's problems were in his head.

When the Adams said they wanted to get a second opinion, they were told that they were not allowed to do so. When they suggested switching pediatricians, again the Adams were told that they could not.

On September 15, the family had an appointment with Dr. Hoffman at the Beacon Clinic. The doctor came in and asked why they disagreed with the diagnosis of psychosomatic causes for Jaxon's multiple conditions. According to Tiffany, the doctor's hostile attitude became upsetting to her son, and he was removed to a waiting room. The Adams insisted that they had a right to seek another opinion. To which Dr. Hoffman replied:

"I want you to know big hospitals take kids away from families for this stuff."

Tiffany asked, "For seeking a second opinion?" When the doctor nodded yes, Jaxon's mother asked, "Why would you do that to me?"

Mrs. Adams heard vengeance in Dr. Hoffman's response: "I hope you have a good attorney. We're going to have your behind."

Soon after, the Adams were questioned by a case worker from the Children's Division of the Missouri Department of Social Services.

"They came back the next day and told me directly that they didn't even have time to read his medical records. They were taking him based upon a statement a doctor made," Tiffany Adams told WDAF, a Kansas City Fox affiliate.

"We were seeking out other options. We felt like Mercy Children's [in Kansas City] couldn't help him. We just wanted our son to be better," Mrs. Adams said to CBS St. Louis. "We wanted a normal little 8-year-old boy."

"They took Jaxon away from us based upon our request for a second opinion," she added. Mrs. Adams said that she was told that Jaxon may have undiagnosed mitochondrial disorder.

His abduction by social workers was recorded and placed on YouTube. The caption states: "This is the uncut raw footage of Children's Division in Jackson County Missouri removing our 8 year old son Jaxon for BOGUS allegations made by an overzealous Dr. At Children's Mercy Hospital in KC."

[embedded content]

Later, Jaxon's parents learned that they stood accused of medical abuse, medical neglect, lack of nutrition, lack of supervision (based on him falling off the scooter when he fainted, although Tiffany was right there when it happened), and psychological abuse. The accusations were not tangible enough to present criminal charges, but were sufficient to pass the low standard which is set to confiscate children from their families.

© Facebook

Jason Adams

Since Jaxon's abduction, his parents alleged that he has faced actual abuse, such as being fed the foods he was known to be allergic to, causing him to suffer severe reactions.

Since the ordeal began, Jaxon has faced prolonged isolation from his parents for weeks, leaving him feeling abandoned and without explanation. After he tried to escape his hospital confinement and call his parents, the phone was removed from his room.

Eventually, he was transferred from the hospital to live with a foster family. The devastation felt by the Tiffany and Jason Adams is palpable. They wrote on Facebook that they only were permitted 30 minutes of contact with Jaxon for the entire month of February; no phone calls. And they have virtually no legal recourse at this point, short of an act of Congress.

The family is desperate for financial help, after suffering thousands of dollars in legal expenses to futilely fight for custody. Not only that, but the State of Missouri has ordered the couple to pay $798 in child support and is now garnishing the wages of Mr. Adams. To top things off, Tiffany said that her home-based business has been lost following the custody ordeal. They say that they expect to lose everything they own in fighting for Jaxon. Donate to them at their GoFundMe Page.

More details and allegations can be found at Health Impact News. Hat tip to Terri LaPoint for her coverage of the story.

"We want our son's story heard as near and as far and as loud and as clear as we can before they make us close our mouths. He's voiceless right now. It's our duty as his parents to be his voice when he's voiceless." — Tiffany and Jason Adams

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What is it about American society that is so depressing? What we are not being told about suicide and depression

© scientificamerican.com

For nearly two decades, Big Pharma commercials have falsely told Americans that mental illness is associated with a chemical brain imbalance, but the truth is that mental illness and suicidality are associated with poverty, unemployment, and mass incarceration. And the truth is that American society has now become so especially oppressive for young people that an embarrassingly large number of American teenagers and young adults are suicidal and depressed.

In November of 2014, the U.S. government's Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) issued a press release titled . This brief press release provides a snapshot of the number of Americans who are suicidal, depressed, and mentally ill, and it bemoans how many Americans are not in treatment. However, excluded from SAMHSA's press release—yet included in the lengthy results of SAMHSA's national survey—are economic, age, gender, and other demographic correlates of serious mental illness, depression, and suicidality (serious suicidal thoughts, plans, or attempts). It is these demographic correlates that have political implications.

These lengthy results, for example, include extensive evidence that involvement in the criminal justice system (such as being on parole or probation) is highly correlated with suicidality, depression, and serious mental illness. Yet Americans are not told that preventing unnecessary involvement with the criminal justice system—for example, marijuana legalization and drug use decriminalization—could well prove to be a more powerful antidote to suicidality, depression, and serious mental illness than medical treatment.

Also, the survey results provide extensive evidence that unemployment and poverty are highly associated with suicidality, depression, and serious mental illness. While correlation is not the equivalent of causation, it makes more sense to be further examining variables that actually are associated with suicidality, depression, and serious mental illness rather than focusing on variables such as chemical imbalances which are not even correlates (see AlterNet January 2015). These results beg questions such as: Does unemployment and poverty cause depression, or does depression make it more likely for unemployment and poverty, or are both true?

And the survey results also provide extensive evidence that younger Americans are more depressed than older Americans, that women are more likely to be depressed than men, and that Native Americans and biracial Americans are more likely to be depressed than other ethnic/racial groups. Again, while correlation is not the equivalent of causation, depression obviously cannot cause one to become young, female, or Native American. More rationally, researchers should be asking what is it about American society that is so depressing, especially for young people, women, and Native Americans?

These recent SAMHSA survey results provide a golden opportunity for a scientific and societal shift to reconsider what about American society and culture is resulting in emotional suffering and self-destructive behaviors, especially for certain groups. Below is a summary of some of the key statistics in these buried SAMHSA survey results.

Summary of Buried SAMHSA Survey Results

Involvement with the Criminal Justice System: In 2013, the percentage of American adults with serious suicidal thoughts: 10.7 percent for those on parole or a supervised release from jail in the past 12 months, 9.2 percent among those who were on probation, and 3.9 percent for those not involved in the criminal justice system. The percentage for adults with any mental illness: if on probation was 32.3 percent, if on parole or supervised release, 36.5 percent, double the percentage of adults not involved in the criminal justice system (18.3 percent). The percentage of adults with serious mental illness: if on probation was 9.4 percent, if on parole or supervised release was 13.9 percent, more than triple for those not involved in the criminal justice system (4.1 percent).

Unemployment: Among American adults in 2013, the unemployed were more likely than those who were employed full time: to have serious thoughts of suicide (7.0 vs. 3.0 percent), make suicide plans (2.3 vs. 0.7 percent), or attempt suicide (1.4 vs. 0.3 percent). The percentage of adults with any mental illness: for the unemployed was 22.8 percent, for part-time employed was 20.3 percent, and for full-time employed was 15.4 percent. Among adults with serious mental illness: the percentage for the unemployed was 6.6 percent, for part-time employed was 4.8 percent, and for those full-time employed was 2.7 percent. Among those adults having a major depression episode: the percentage for the unemployed was 9.5 percent, for part-time employed was 7.8 percent, and for full-time employed was 5.3 percent.

Family Income: Among American adults in 2013, serious suicidal thoughts occurred in: 6.6 percent of those from family incomes below the Federal poverty level, 4.7 percent of those with family incomes between 100 and 199 percent of the Federal poverty level, and 3.1 percent of those with annual family incomes at 200 percent or more of the Federal poverty level. Among American adults, the percentage with serious mental illness: for those with a family income that was below the Federal poverty level was 7.7 percent, for those with a family income at 100 to 199 percent of the Federal poverty level was 5.1 percent, and for those with a family income at 200 percent or more of the Federal poverty level was 3.2 percent.

Age: No suicidality results were reported for Americans under 18, however, among American adults having serious suicidal thoughts, the percentage: for those aged 18 to 25 was 7.4 percent, for those aged 26 to 49 was 4.0 percent, and for those aged 50 or older was 2.7 percent. And among adults who made suicide plans in the past year: the percentage for those aged 18 to 25 was 2.5 percent, for those aged 26 to 49 was 1.3 percent, and for those aged 50 or older was 0.6 percent. The percentage of Americans having a major depressive episode in 2013: for those aged 12 to 17 was 10.7 percent, for those aged 18 to 25 was 8.7 percent, for those aged 26 to 49 was 7.6 percent, and for those aged 50 or older was 5.1 percent.

Gender: In 2013, adult women were more likely than adult men to have: any mental illness (22.3 vs. 14.4 percent), a serious mental illness (4.9 vs. 3.5 percent), a major depressive episode (8.1 vs. 5.1 percent), and suicidal thoughts (4.0 vs. 3.8 percent). Among American ages 12 to 17, females were more likely than males to have a major depressive episode (16.2 vs. 5.3 percent) and a major depressive episode with severe impairment (12.0 vs. 3.5 percent).

Ethnicity/Race: In 2013, the percentages of adults aged 18 or older having serious thoughts of suicide in the past year were: 2.9 percent among blacks, 3.3 percent among Asians, 3.6 percent among Hispanics, 4.1 percent among whites, 4.6 percent among Native Hawaiians or Other Pacific Islanders, 4.8 percent among American Indians or Alaska Natives, and 7.9 percent among adults reporting two or more races. The percentages of adults with a major depressive episode: were 1.6 percent among Native Hawaiians or Other Pacific Islanders, 4.0 percent among Asians, 4.6 percent among blacks, 5.8 percent among Hispanics, 7.3 percent among whites, 8.9 percent among American Indians or Alaska Natives, and 11.4 percent among adults reporting two or more races.

Conclusions

The SAMHSA press release states that among American adults in 2013: 10 million American adults (4.2 percent) experienced a serious mental illness, 15.7 million adults (6.7 percent) experienced a major depressive episode, and states that "major depressive episodes affected approximately one in ten (2.6 million) youth between the ages of 12 to 17." The press release then laments how many Americans with mental illnesses are not receiving treatment.

While these statistics in the SAMHSA press release are troubling, the devil is in the details of the actual lengthy SAMHSA survey results. These results make clear that suicidality, depression, and mental illness are highly correlated with involvement in the criminal justice system, unemployment, and poverty, and occur in greater frequency among young people, women, and Native Americans.

Shouldn't researchers be examining American societal and cultural variables that are making so many of us depressed and suicidal? At the very least, don't we as a society want to know what exactly is making physically healthier teenagers and young adults more depressed than senior citizens?

About the Author

Bruce E. Levine Get Up, Stand Up: Uniting Populists, Energizing the Defeated, and Battling the Corporate Elite.

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100 Georges Turtles found dead or dying in Bellinger river, Australia

© Gemima Harvey

A sick turtle, one of many taken from Bellinger River, is examined by senior curator Greg Pickering at Dolphin Marine Magic.

An Environment Protection Authority (EPA) investigation into a large freshwater turtle kill in the Bellinger River, has given the wayterway a clean bill of health.

As many as 100 Georges Turtles have been found dead or dying in recent days from a mystery illness.

Investigation are underway to determine what is killing them.

The EPA took water samples from multiple points along the river, while vets from the Office of Environment and Heritage are examining the reptiles.

The water tests have not found any pesticides or hydrocarbons.

An EPA spokeswoman said the testing was thorough, and backs up the initial theory it was not a toxic spill that coused the turtle kill.

"EPA officers took the samples from four key locations along the river including at Myers Bluff and Thora Bridge," she said.

"The first round of results has confirmed that there are no traces of pesticide or hydrocarbon in the samples.

"These results support the initial observations that the turtle deaths are not related to a pollution incident."

Further results, including those from veterinary testing on the turtles, are likely to be delivered early next week.

Scientist trying to save the rare freshwater turtles fear the death of 100 could push the species to the brink of extinction.

Marine vet Duan March has been looking after the affected reptiles, and said most are not surviving.

"As of yesterday afternoon we had ten still left alive," he said.

"The Georges Turtle, that's where they live and this is going to be a significant impact on that population.

"Population estimates vary depending on studies, but up to 400 individuals have been identified in that stretch of river.

"So a loss of 100 is significant."

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