Outside the USA, the rest of the World watches in horror as institutions such as the CDC, EPA, FDA, and NIH are under attack from the highest office in the country. Who would have imagined communications between and from these highly respected establishments would be blocked... As an epi, I fear for ProMED! But I also believe that independent sources of information and platforms for sharing opinion, such as YLE might actually become more important. Keep up the excellent work, Katelyn!
Thank you for this post. I went to take your survey but the first question is has your job or livelihood been affected by the freeze. I answered no, which is the truth, and that was the end of that. But you asked if it affected people we serve and as a board member for a nonprofit my answer is a resounding yes. Is there a way to collect data from those of us who are impacted this way?
Katelyn - I suggest you contact Jen Rubin and Norm Eisen, founders of the just established "The Contrarian." Your voice would be a powerful addition to their output.
Trump has violated the Constitution by trying to end birthright citizenship in the 14th Amendment; he is impounding funds against a clear Supreme Court decision after Nixon’s illegal impoundment. Time to write to your Congressmen and Congresswomen and demand that they file a resolution for Trump’s impeachment. It won’t get any better.
Phone calls are more effective. You can call every day. The calls are logged daily. Many go to voicemail. Today the voicemails of CA senators were full. We can guess why.
Thank you for your insights and for taking action and standing up for the rights of Americans.
I have one more immediate concern to add: RFK Jr. confirmation hearings are about to start. Among many other problems with his potential appointment is his being against vaccines and the potential for him to deny vaccine access to us, disallow public school vaccine requirements, or to interfere with research to create updated Covid and flu vaccines. I am worried that if there are more occurances of preventable disease, there will be more likelihood of mutations that we are not prepared to deal with. We may be able to fight political threats or improve economics, but we may not get a second chance when it comes to Mother Nature, especially if our research and medical institutions are damaged.
No, I have not been affected directly yet. I think of what one of my heroes, John Lewis, always said, “see something, say something, do something. I have been pleasantly surprised as I respond to misinformation online or in person. Folks notice and THAT is the point. My favorite response was “science!” I think of it this way, it takes a village and every time we speak up, someone else reads it and they may rethink. Think of it as 5° of separation, the more we can reach out to others the more we will affect others. Reach enough folks and it’s a very, very formidable force. Everyone be well be safe and yes, we’re in this together. Do not give up.
I had to spend my evening purging anything that could be construed as related to DEI from our organization’s website. The Texas legislature has been absolutely dogged in their attacks on the academic system over the last few years, trying to eliminate tenure and faculty senates. I figured it was only a matter of time before they escalated the attacks to the federal level, but I had hoped that we would have a bit more time.
I have sent 5 messages to my elected officials today. (I use “Resistbot,” an app that enables you to write, add your signature to the letter of others, or use AI to write for you.) But, however you do it, I encourage us all to flood them with our opinions. I believe there is strength in numbers but, above all, I believe we all need to do everything we are capable of doing to fight insanity and injustice. Even if it ultimately doesn’t change the outcome, we are functioning with integrity. (And, to add to what others have said, restack this newsletter!)
Thank you for reminding us today, and also for your years of distilling public health information for the general public, especially as it makes it easy to share such information with our patients. Thank you.
We need to fight back, on all fronts. Flooding the zone of public awareness is precisely the point, and intended to demoralize. Don’t take the bait. Speak up and out. This is wrong. Issues surely exist which can be improved upon, but don’t take a wrecking ball to fix a loose board! Thank you Katelyn for helping folks stay focused on what is important vs. what is fabricated chaos and noise.
Outside the USA, the rest of the World watches in horror as institutions such as the CDC, EPA, FDA, and NIH are under attack from the highest office in the country. Who would have imagined communications between and from these highly respected establishments would be blocked... As an epi, I fear for ProMED! But I also believe that independent sources of information and platforms for sharing opinion, such as YLE might actually become more important. Keep up the excellent work, Katelyn!
Thank you for your clear-sighted steadiness in this storm. I have restacked.
Thank you for this post. I went to take your survey but the first question is has your job or livelihood been affected by the freeze. I answered no, which is the truth, and that was the end of that. But you asked if it affected people we serve and as a board member for a nonprofit my answer is a resounding yes. Is there a way to collect data from those of us who are impacted this way?
Katelyn - I suggest you contact Jen Rubin and Norm Eisen, founders of the just established "The Contrarian." Your voice would be a powerful addition to their output.
Yes! Please do! It would spread your message a lot further!
Trump has violated the Constitution by trying to end birthright citizenship in the 14th Amendment; he is impounding funds against a clear Supreme Court decision after Nixon’s illegal impoundment. Time to write to your Congressmen and Congresswomen and demand that they file a resolution for Trump’s impeachment. It won’t get any better.
Phone calls are more effective. You can call every day. The calls are logged daily. Many go to voicemail. Today the voicemails of CA senators were full. We can guess why.
Thank you for your insights and for taking action and standing up for the rights of Americans.
I have one more immediate concern to add: RFK Jr. confirmation hearings are about to start. Among many other problems with his potential appointment is his being against vaccines and the potential for him to deny vaccine access to us, disallow public school vaccine requirements, or to interfere with research to create updated Covid and flu vaccines. I am worried that if there are more occurances of preventable disease, there will be more likelihood of mutations that we are not prepared to deal with. We may be able to fight political threats or improve economics, but we may not get a second chance when it comes to Mother Nature, especially if our research and medical institutions are damaged.
No, I have not been affected directly yet. I think of what one of my heroes, John Lewis, always said, “see something, say something, do something. I have been pleasantly surprised as I respond to misinformation online or in person. Folks notice and THAT is the point. My favorite response was “science!” I think of it this way, it takes a village and every time we speak up, someone else reads it and they may rethink. Think of it as 5° of separation, the more we can reach out to others the more we will affect others. Reach enough folks and it’s a very, very formidable force. Everyone be well be safe and yes, we’re in this together. Do not give up.
I had to spend my evening purging anything that could be construed as related to DEI from our organization’s website. The Texas legislature has been absolutely dogged in their attacks on the academic system over the last few years, trying to eliminate tenure and faculty senates. I figured it was only a matter of time before they escalated the attacks to the federal level, but I had hoped that we would have a bit more time.
We need your voice, especially now. Thank you for your clarity and guidance.
Beautifully said, and thanks.
One day at a time, one thing at a time. Thank you for your consistent good sense.
I have sent 5 messages to my elected officials today. (I use “Resistbot,” an app that enables you to write, add your signature to the letter of others, or use AI to write for you.) But, however you do it, I encourage us all to flood them with our opinions. I believe there is strength in numbers but, above all, I believe we all need to do everything we are capable of doing to fight insanity and injustice. Even if it ultimately doesn’t change the outcome, we are functioning with integrity. (And, to add to what others have said, restack this newsletter!)
Thank you for reminding us today, and also for your years of distilling public health information for the general public, especially as it makes it easy to share such information with our patients. Thank you.
We need to fight back, on all fronts. Flooding the zone of public awareness is precisely the point, and intended to demoralize. Don’t take the bait. Speak up and out. This is wrong. Issues surely exist which can be improved upon, but don’t take a wrecking ball to fix a loose board! Thank you Katelyn for helping folks stay focused on what is important vs. what is fabricated chaos and noise.
Thank you for delineating a concrete plan of action
Thank you for your comments.