RFKjr Tapped to Head HHS

[Anonymous]

If RFK can outlaw french fries, burgers and Big Gulps, good for him. MAGA might not be happy though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m ok with RFK because I’m so tired of the arrogance of medical professionals telling me what to take, requiring doctors visits, etc. Stop telling me to not do ADHD or weight loss drugs because it’s weak. If there’s a medical reason to not do them, great. But many doctors are so judgmental.

Goddamn those scientists and doctors who know more about science and medicine than me! The Google and WebMD told me about how to treat my condition, therefore I know more than them.

Yes, stick it to all those “experts”

Experts are still people at the end of the day. They have biases, blindspots, and many are not nearly as intelligent as you might hope. Many are simply closed off to new information, hence the quote: "A new scientific truth does not triumph by convincing its opponents and making them see the light, but rather because its opponents eventually die and a new generation grows up that is familiar with it ..."

Then you have to factor in institutional capture and self interest...

Experts haven't exactly been covering themselves in glory of late. Why should we defer to them when it’s so easy to poke holes in their orthodoxy?

Experts have been doing just fine. The frequency of people disagreeing with them on the basis of no evidence has increased, though. This is because a certain person repeatedly sought to benefit himself politically by telling everyone not to trust those experts.

Trump told people to ignore all COVID safety measures so he wouldn’t be stuck with a bad economy in October 2020. Now his voters think they shouldn’t trust the vaccines that make you safer from COVID. It’s that simple.

The reason you all think ivermectin is a miracle cure for COVID is, again, because Trump wanted a way to keep people from staying inside so the economy didn’t sputter. Now you all take horse dewormer for the disease you also claim isn’t a big deal but was created by the Chinese military and Anthony Fauci.

But it’s the experts’ fault you don’t trust basic science.

Let's keep in mind that during Covid we shut down schools, churches, parks and gyms but kept liquor stores open on the recommendations of experts. That's just the tip of the iceberg of Covid absurdities from the experts btw.

Look, I agree that it wasn't perfect. It is wrong schools were shutdown while liquor and video game stores were open. I remember game stop finagling the system in order to remain open. But it was unprecedented times. You can't expect perfection during a catastrophic pandemic. Even the whole PPP loan handout had a lot of bad case study examples of where it was abused, but overall, the problem helped a ton. Issues like these are never binary and they're never all good or only all bad. Perfection cannot be the enemy of good.


It's also easier to sit there in hindsight and cast judgment on what should have been done so response was perfect. Much different story when we were actually in the trenches during the peak of a global pandemic.

Many of us were fighting this battle at the time, because it was as absurd then as it looks in hindsight. The experts were wrong on almost everything during Covid. The way we moved on from Covid is how we should have treated it from the beginning, and that is by treating it like the flu. Experts had to be fought tooth-and-nail at every step. They were downright harmful, and predictably so.

The only reason people carry water for them is because they've blocked this sordid episode out of their minds.

The experts were not wrong on “almost everything.”

Yes, they were.

No, they weren’t. Trump lied to you because he wanted you to make his economy look better.

[Anonymous]

Well lookie here...the MAGA-loving New York Post's editorial board DOES NOT approve of the choice of RFK Jr.. Below is the whole article. Trump reads this paper and will not like this.

Putting RFK Jr. in charge of health breaks the first rule of medicine

By Post Editorial Board Published Nov. 14, 2024, 7:36 p.m. ET

The overriding rule of medicine is: First, do no harm.

We’re certain installing Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to head Health and Human Services breaks this rule.

Maybe he’s sworn to focus narrowly on areas where he clearly can help — inspiring Americans to embrace healthier diets and more exercise, etc.

But . . .

We sat down with RFK Jr. back in May 2023, when he was still challenging President Biden for the Democratic nomination.

As we noted then, he’s an independent thinker who sees through a lot of bull, an incisive critic of some of Biden’s worst policies, who saw that “the Democratic Party lost its way most acutely in reaction to” Donald Trump’s first election.

But the insights we were impressed with had nothing to do with health.

When it came to that topic his views were a head-scratching spaghetti of what we can only call warped conspiracy theories, and not just on vaccines.

“Neocons” are responsible for America’s policy ills. “Pesticides, cellphones, ultrasound” could be driving an upswing in Tourette syndrome and peanut allergies.

He told us with full conviction that all America’s chronic health problems began in one year in the 1980s when a dozen bad things happened.

Convincing to the gullible conspiracy-hungry crowd on Twitter, but not to the rest of us.

In fact, we came out thinking he’s nuts on a lot of fronts.

And even where he makes fair points as a critic, it’s hard to see how he’s the guy to lead HHS and its staff of 83,000 to practical solutions.

The relationship between Big Pharma and the feds is deeply dysfunctional, for example — but drug companies do a lot of good, and employ a lot of people.

Sending the industry — or even just its stocks — into a tailspin would be a disaster in its own right.

His views also put him at odds with Trump’s aim of supporting energy and farmers, as RFK Jr. wants to ban fracking and many pesticides and fertilizers.

Look: The HHS chief oversees over 100 programs across 11 operating divisions; keeping the trains running is a major job in its own right.

A radical, prolonged and confused transition ordered by a guy like RFK Jr., who will use his high office to spout his controversial beliefs, leaves a lot of room for things to go wrong — and for people to wind up harmed or even dead.

All that, of course, if the Senate actually confirms RFK Jr., which will be a challenge in its own right: Republicans only have three votes to spare.

Donald Trump won on promises to fix the economy, the border and soaring global disorder; his team needs to focus on delivering change on those fronts — not spend energy either having to defend crackpot theories or trying to control RFK Jr.’s mouth.

We fear the worm that he claims ate some of his brain some years ago is contagious and there’s been an outbreak at Mar-a-Lago.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Americans are sicker and unhealthier than any other major country because we don't have universal health care, unlike every other major country.

Exactly.
Increase healthcare access, decrease work hours (encourage an hour break during work for exercise time), drastically improve funding for school lunches so they can provide quality foods, teach cooking in schools so people have that skill, and that can go a long way in improving health.

+1

When I was in school, we had lunch ladies who actually cooked the food. Most of it anyway. Why was that done away with?!

Also we (all students) had Home Economics in high school- which involved teaching about cooking, meal planning, budgeting etc. It was either for a semester or a full year not sure. Why was that gotten rid of?

Not saying either of things are perfect either- but a vast improvement to what is occurring now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If RFK can outlaw french fries, burgers and Big Gulps, good for him. MAGA might not be happy though.

McDonald’s fries in Europe have 3 ingredients.
Why do McDonald’s fries here have 17 ingredients?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Well lookie here...the MAGA-loving New York Post's editorial board DOES NOT approve of the choice of RFK Jr.. Below is the whole article. Trump reads this paper and will not like this.

Putting RFK Jr. in charge of health breaks the first rule of medicine

By Post Editorial Board Published Nov. 14, 2024, 7:36 p.m. ET

The overriding rule of medicine is: First, do no harm.

We’re certain installing Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to head Health and Human Services breaks this rule.

Maybe he’s sworn to focus narrowly on areas where he clearly can help — inspiring Americans to embrace healthier diets and more exercise, etc.

But . . .We sat down with RFK Jr. back in May 2023, when he was still challenging President Biden for the Democratic nomination.

As we noted then, he’s an independent thinker who sees through a lot of bull, an incisive critic of some of Biden’s worst policies, who saw that “the Democratic Party lost its way most acutely in reaction to” Donald Trump’s first election.

But the insights we were impressed with had nothing to do with health.

When it came to that topic his views were a head-scratching spaghetti of what we can only call warped conspiracy theories, and not just on vaccines.

“Neocons” are responsible for America’s policy ills. “Pesticides, cellphones, ultrasound” could be driving an upswing in Tourette syndrome and peanut allergies.

He told us with full conviction that all America’s chronic health problems began in one year in the 1980s when a dozen bad things happened.

Convincing to the gullible conspiracy-hungry crowd on Twitter, but not to the rest of us.

In fact, we came out thinking he’s nuts on a lot of fronts.

And even where he makes fair points as a critic, it’s hard to see how he’s the guy to lead HHS and its staff of 83,000 to practical solutions.

The relationship between Big Pharma and the feds is deeply dysfunctional, for example — but drug companies do a lot of good, and employ a lot of people.

Sending the industry — or even just its stocks — into a tailspin would be a disaster in its own right.

His views also put him at odds with Trump’s aim of supporting energy and farmers, as RFK Jr. wants to ban fracking and many pesticides and fertilizers.

Look: The HHS chief oversees over 100 programs across 11 operating divisions; keeping the trains running is a major job in its own right.

[b]A radical, prolonged and confused transition ordered by a guy like RFK Jr., who will use his high office to spout his controversial beliefs, leaves a lot of room for things to go wrong — and for people to wind up harmed or even dead.

All that, of course, if the Senate actually confirms RFK Jr., which will be a challenge in its own right: Republicans only have three votes to spare.

Donald Trump won on promises to fix the economy, the border and soaring global disorder; his team needs to focus on delivering change on those fronts — not spend energy either having to defend crackpot theories or trying to control RFK Jr.’s mouth.

We fear the worm that he claims ate some of his brain some years ago is contagious and there’s been an outbreak at Mar-a-Lago.

Forgot link:
https://nypost.com/2024/11/14/opinion/putting-rfk-jr-in-charge-of-health-breaks-the-first-rule-of-medicine/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If RFK can outlaw french fries, burgers and Big Gulps, good for him. MAGA might not be happy though.

McDonald’s fries in Europe have 3 ingredients.
Why do McDonald’s fries here have 17 ingredients?

Because Big Food likes it that way. Have you ever read Fast Food Nation? But, again, RFK Jr. is not the right person to change this terrible situation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Well lookie here...the MAGA-loving New York Post's editorial board DOES NOT approve of the choice of RFK Jr.. Below is the whole article. Trump reads this paper and will not like this.

Putting RFK Jr. in charge of health breaks the first rule of medicine

By Post Editorial Board Published Nov. 14, 2024, 7:36 p.m. ET

The overriding rule of medicine is: First, do no harm.

We’re certain installing Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to head Health and Human Services breaks this rule.

Maybe he’s sworn to focus narrowly on areas where he clearly can help — inspiring Americans to embrace healthier diets and more exercise, etc.

But . . .

We sat down with RFK Jr. back in May 2023, when he was still challenging President Biden for the Democratic nomination.

As we noted then, he’s an independent thinker who sees through a lot of bull, an incisive critic of some of Biden’s worst policies, who saw that “the Democratic Party lost its way most acutely in reaction to” Donald Trump’s first election.

But the insights we were impressed with had nothing to do with health.

When it came to that topic his views were a head-scratching spaghetti of what we can only call warped conspiracy theories, and not just on vaccines.

“Neocons” are responsible for America’s policy ills. “Pesticides, cellphones, ultrasound” could be driving an upswing in Tourette syndrome and peanut allergies.

He told us with full conviction that all America’s chronic health problems began in one year in the 1980s when a dozen bad things happened.

Convincing to the gullible conspiracy-hungry crowd on Twitter, but not to the rest of us.

In fact, we came out thinking he’s nuts on a lot of fronts.

And even where he makes fair points as a critic, it’s hard to see how he’s the guy to lead HHS and its staff of 83,000 to practical solutions.

The relationship between Big Pharma and the feds is deeply dysfunctional, for example — but drug companies do a lot of good, and employ a lot of people.

Sending the industry — or even just its stocks — into a tailspin would be a disaster in its own right.

His views also put him at odds with Trump’s aim of supporting energy and farmers, as RFK Jr. wants to ban fracking and many pesticides and fertilizers.

Look: The HHS chief oversees over 100 programs across 11 operating divisions; keeping the trains running is a major job in its own right.

A radical, prolonged and confused transition ordered by a guy like RFK Jr., who will use his high office to spout his controversial beliefs, leaves a lot of room for things to go wrong — and for people to wind up harmed or even dead.

All that, of course, if the Senate actually confirms RFK Jr., which will be a challenge in its own right: Republicans only have three votes to spare.

Donald Trump won on promises to fix the economy, the border and soaring global disorder; his team needs to focus on delivering change on those fronts — not spend energy either having to defend crackpot theories or trying to control RFK Jr.’s mouth.

We fear the worm that he claims ate some of his brain some years ago is contagious and there’s been an outbreak at Mar-a-Lago.

“Look: The HHS chief oversees over 100 programs across 11 operating divisions; keeping the trains running is a major job in its own right.”

OMG now MAGA is all of a sudden worried about our core institutions and the services that they provide? Burning it all down might actually ruin some good things?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If RFK can outlaw french fries, burgers and Big Gulps, good for him. MAGA might not be happy though.

McDonald’s fries in Europe have 3 ingredients.
Why do McDonald’s fries here have 17 ingredients?

Because Big Food likes it that way. Have you ever read Fast Food Nation? But, again, RFK Jr. is not the right person to change this terrible situation.

Remember when MAGA all conspicuously carried around Big Gulp sodas to “stick it to the libs” who wanted to improve public health? How can they be serious that NOW they care about health?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Americans are sicker and unhealthier than any other major country because we don't have universal health care, unlike every other major country.

Exactly.
Increase healthcare access, decrease work hours (encourage an hour break during work for exercise time), drastically improve funding for school lunches so they can provide quality foods, teach cooking in schools so people have that skill, and that can go a long way in improving health.

+1

When I was in school, we had lunch ladies who actually cooked the food. Most of it anyway. Why was that done away with?!

Also we (all students) had Home Economics in high school- which involved teaching about cooking, meal planning, budgeting etc. It was either for a semester or a full year not sure. Why was that gotten rid of?

Not saying either of things are perfect either- but a vast improvement to what is occurring now.

You would have to staff more cafeteria staff for longer hours and higher food costs than the prepackaged we have now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If RFK can outlaw french fries, burgers and Big Gulps, good for him. MAGA might not be happy though.

McDonald’s fries in Europe have 3 ingredients.
Why do McDonald’s fries here have 17 ingredients?

Because Big Food likes it that way. Have you ever read Fast Food Nation? But, again, RFK Jr. is not the right person to change this terrible situation.

In your mind, who is the right person to make America healthy again?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a long time healthy volunteer at NIH and the VRC, vaccines only started full double blinded placedo testing in 2018 after RFK sued. Fun fact, the Covid phase 1 testing cut corners.

You have a link that shows this?

DP, but someone compiled this data for many vaccines based on what is stated in the package insert:

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:In Europe people walk a ton, even the elderly. They think nothing of it.

+1 even in cities in America you don’t see a lot of truly obese people. When I visit family back in my small town in NC I regularly see people using walkers and wheelchairs struggling to get around because of their size.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:RFK is for vaccines if properly tested... silence

Big pharma has control over the Democrats... silence

RFK will Make America Healthy Again.... UGGHHH!

Vaccines are properly tested. That's what anti vax nitwits don't understand. Or they do understand it and refuse to believe it because the data show vaccines are overwhelmingly safe and effective. Vaccine are tested in clinical trials. They even publish the results publicly in peer reviewed journals.

So many idiots on the Internet can't understand it and will just say 'corruption!!!' when the trial data don't go their way.

DP. What is considered "proper" is widely debated. Many of us skeptics would like vaccines to be tested against inert placebos, instead of using other vaccines as a "control." We also are inherently suspicious of the "vaccine court" and its impartiality.

Personally, I won't trust vaccines until we get a longitudinal study with the current vax schedule, an older vax schedule and an unvaccinated control group. I suspect vaccine utility peaked decades ago, but no one will touch this with a 10-foot pole.

Please describe a clinical trial testing a vaccine against a placebo. Do you give 500 children the vaccine, 500 get the placebo, and expose them all to the disease and see which ones survive? I’m genuinely interested in your description of this trial.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here are facts, real unadulterated numbers that basically go against everything the nonvaxers, antipharma, no-fluoride raw milk drinking posters seem to be overlooking, the average life expectancy in the United States per decade from 1820

• 1820s-1830s: ~35-40 years
• 1840s-1850s: ~40 years (increased due to public health measures)
• 1860s-1880s: ~45 years
• 1900s: ~47-50 years
• 1920s: ~55-60 years
• 1940s: ~65 years
• 1960s: ~70 years (medical advancements)
• 1980s: ~74 years
• 2000s: ~77 years
• 2020s: ~79 years

How do you explain these number? Why are we living longer?

Perhaps the “increases” in cancer and other illnesses/diseases is just a signal of advancement in the medical field, identification/diagnosis and detection. Why turn to some sinister conspiracy. I’m not saying that there isn’t serious room for improvement but thinking that the big bad government is poisoning you on purpose and that some anti science conspiracy theorist is some how going to save you is not rational.

Fluoride? How is this affecting longevity exactly? You can topically apply fluoride via toothpaste or mouthwash or get a dental treatment. There is no benefit in drinking it and putting this through your digestive system.

Also think about these numbers and how they are produced. You never know mortality rate of the younger generation because they haven't lived to the old age yet.. Statistical distribution of different age groups also has to be considered. We have more older people now than before and our ability to keep them alive skews statistics. This doesn't mean we got better being healthier when it comes to all age groups, it simply means we have a lot of older people and made advances to keep them alive despite age related illness. This doesn't mean they are alive now because of the advances that happened when they were young.

Many decades ago or centuries ago if you are frail and old you died, you were not cared for if you family didn't have the means to provide nursing services not to mention unlimited access to any type of medical treatment for the diseases of old age. It's still true in poor countries despite modern advances of the world at large.

Bottom line is: old people are sicker overall, if you focus on taking care of them you can prevent them from dying which will make society believe that we are living longer now. If you ignore older people and focus on younger generation then you might see decline in life expectancy because older people will not live this long but you won't know yet if the measures you took to help younger gen to get healthier make any diff.

MAHA tends to focus on the health of younger generations, obesity rates, mental health issues, prevalence of chronic conditions, hormonal issues and fertility, and mortality in younger cohorts from diseases of older age like cardiovascular and cancer. If young today are in worse shape health wise than the young many decades ago then we are having a problem. Even if we make advances to keep people living longer if this generation starts dying younger eventually your life expectancy stats will go down.

These numbers are facts, they represent the average age of death during the referenced decades (they come from the us census, cdc, human mortality database) but for the block for 2020’s (79 is the average life expectancy from 2020-2024) they are not projections. The point is, the system that folks are saying is broken and needs to be made great again actually isn’t broken, it’s working as you yourself proved and I highlighted in bold.

No one said fluoride extends life but anyone with knowledge about actual medical care knows there is a correlation between oral health and overall health. Do you know anyone who needs to have open heart surgery for example? They need clearance from their dentist before they can undergo a procedure, do you know why? Additionally, while it’s wonderful to say that toothpaste and the dentist can deal with this, your failing to take into inconsideration the population that doesn’t have access to the twice a year cleanings, once a year exams, and sometimes doesn’t have toothpaste. It’s a small thing that makes a big difference with little if any adverse effects. The point here is actual real information combined with critical thinking is needed to formulate any type of meaningful position on serious matters. Fluoride in water or not is not a hill to die on, people with money and access will continue to hav beautiful healthy smiles, but it signifies a focus on nonissues that makes one very concerned about how real true problems will be addressed.