Gardasil and Hexavalent Chromium continued...
There are so many irons in the fire this week that I hardly know where to start. But I'll start with the last thing I was talking about before...Gardasil. Gardasil has been associated now with grand mal seizures, paralysis, coma, Anaphylactic shock. And of course death. Just read the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System reports. They are scary.
The Gardasil vaccine claim is about as big a tort reform as I have ever seen. I do not believe the big drug companies should be able to do what they want to do, unchecked. The high ceiling of damages is about the only thing that can touch, reach and affect a huge corporation. The problem with tort reform is that it is legislation designed to reduce liability costs through limits on damages and modification of liability rules. Simply, that means reducing the damage to fat cat Merck who has made upward of a billion and a half in profits, leaving behind a marketing battlefield scattered with the shells of sick and dying girls. (Even ONE is too many--what if she were YOUR daughter?) This kind of reform is meant to protect the corporation and allow them keep raking in money hand over fist--over the bodies of our injured daughters.
The safety and effectiveness of Gardasil is very much in question, as well it should be. Currently there are girls with damaged--and lost--lives whose very real issues are being dismissed as "anecdotal evidence." Such evidence should be evaluated for further research, rather than being dismissed as useless. Scientists talk about everything needing scientific proof, but the reality is that everything hinges on the interests or bias of the researchers.
Talking about scientific proof reminds me that Gardasil is not my only issue--I am reminded of the justification I felt last year when scientists finally at last found tangible proof that swallowing hexavalent chromium is as harmful as inhaling it. After a two-year animal study, the National Toxicology Program said there is "clear evidence of carcinogenic activity" if the chemical is consumed in drinking water.
Yes, my old nemesis hexavalent chromium is still around. That same chemical is an issue here in the US, Greece, Italy and Australia. In fact--I just got an interesting problem in from Australia concerning a large group of paramedics whose dyed clothing contains hexavalent chromium, and they are all getting sick. But I will let everyone know more about what is going on there after I start investigating. I mentioned Greece--HVC-contaminated sites in Greece cover a huge area. Remember the Asopos River has 400,000 times the amount of HVC that should be in groundwater. The Greek government made public promises to update their freshwater and wastewater handling, and fined twenty companies 1.4 million for illegal dumping; but some of the companies are protesting the fines. And the river and groundwater are still contaminated. I mentioned Italy. In Italy, there is some research on controlling HVC contamination with the use of activated carbon filtration, but people are dying of cancer there--like the fourteen employees of PM Galvanica di Tezze sul Brenta. If that doesn't convince you there's an Italian problem with HVC, do an internet search on Samanta Di Persio's book Morti Bianche, (White Death.) It's a harrowing account of pollution, corruption, exploitation and loss.
Hexavalent Chromium is like a disease that keeps spreading. No wonder the film Erin Brockovich rocked the boat. It opened Pandora’s box. It opened the door.
It opened our eyes.
Not only could it and did it affect the families featured in the film...
Not only could and did it affect my neighbors...
Not only could and did it affect people a world away...
It can and is affecting you and me right now.
It's not like Hexavalent Chromium is the only dangerously mishandled chemical there is. There are more mishandled toxic chemicals out there than any of us would like to consider. But we have to consider them all. This is our wake up call. Not a call to arms, but a call to Green.
It is time for us to live as Green as possible. That means corporate and personal responsibility. It means not spreading toxic chemicals, not causing destruction. As human beings, we can choose to live gently on the land. We can choose to give back instead of take.
Because the philosophy of being green is not so strange. It is just the philosophy of life. We have to consider what is important to us as human beings.
Do we worship at the altar of the Mighty Corporation? I say no. If we don’t address these issues, if we don’t stand up against tort reform, we lose our only defense against Industry. Public health and safety will be sacrificed. We the people are the only thing in the way; and we the people are only thing that will be reformed. And not in a good way.
Also, I wanted to reassure some of you, in case some of you may have noticed a change in my presence on the web. I'm just in the process of consolidating my resources, and putting together a new web page. I'm still here, and trust me, I'm not giving up or going away any time soon.
Stick-to-it-iveness is still my motto.
Currently, I am the President of the consulting firm, Brockovich Research & Consulting, where I am involved in numerous major environmental cases 
Comments
Hi Erin, Please let me know if you know a vaccine attorney on the east coast. My 23 year old daughter Danielle has been extremely ill for over a year from the Gardasil Vaccine, numerous doctors and hospitals and no diagnosis given. At this point we are trying to detox her from the chemicals from this vaccine. I had contacted Weitz and Luxenberg, but they were not familiar with any cases like this. Please advise me. Thanks you for your time.
Posted by: Debra Nicosia | December 2, 2008 5:28 AM
Hi Erin,
I cannot believe my naivity. Just like many other parents, I listened to the doctor and did not do my own research on Gardasil. I am truly horrified after reading your blog. I wish that I had read it before my daughter had all of three of the required vaccinations.
Thankfully, at the moment, my daughter is not experiencing any symptoms. I will be keeping a close eye on her though.
Thanks for doing what you do best.
Posted by: Lisa | December 9, 2008 5:23 PM
To Erin & others:
Something about the Gardasil Vaccine fiasco reminds me of the Swine Flu Vaccine fiasco of 1976. That had more US Gov't. involvement to prevent the possibility of a major flu outbreak, but the "side affects" of both make me wonder how much study is done on Vaccines. Of course, my son in the Army has had Anthrax Vaccines, and those have also caused serious health problems in some.
Yes, HVC is not the only toxic around. This area (Silicon Valley) used to be mostly orchards, and the growers used to use Lead Arsenate as a pesticide! So, 2 cumulative poisons that don't go away are another toxic worry here.
Thanks for the blogs.
Posted by: Mike H. | January 19, 2009 12:50 AM
Hi Erin. I too have a daughter, 15 years old, who has been given all three injections of Gardasil. I have been kicking myself ever since, I am a nurse and I had reservations about this. I have no family history of cervical cancer. There is no history of cervical cancer in her dad's family. Why in the world should I have allowed her to take a precaution against something that she has no family history of what-so-ever, going back six generations. I am very interested in knowing what steps I should take next. We have ruled out appendicitis, gallbladder issues, and Crohn's disease. She has no diagnosis, but is having headaches, abdominal pain, cannot hold in anything she eats, is losing weight and feels miserable. NO ONE'S CHILD SHOULD HAVE TO GO THROUGH THIS. I feel like a complete idiot for trusting something that was supposed to do good. Instead, it has caused my daughter to be out of school, missing her friends, social life, and all that being a 15 year old is meant to be. Thank you for your work. You are truly an inspiration.
Posted by: Crystal Mapp | February 3, 2009 10:04 AM
drug companys dont care about people,they want the whole world on drugs for the rest of there lives.Its all about the money.
Posted by: Anonymous | March 3, 2009 9:02 PM
Hi again Erin:
First: National Toxicology Program scientists have concluded at the end of a two-year animal study that the compound Hexavalent Chromium is carcinogenic in drinking water.
Then: KBR, the top US Defense Department contractor in Iraq who has alternately been accused of poor construction work leading to 13 US soldiers’ electrocution deaths, the profit-driven inflation of imported gas prices, the abysmal treatment of migrant workers, the rapes of women workers, and the trafficking of human beings, is now being investigated for knowingly exposing American soldiers to cancer-causing toxins:
Sodium dichromate, a form of Hexavalent Chromium!
Posted by: Mike H. | March 17, 2009 4:56 PM
l have a daughter who had the gardasil injection. We were not told about it by the doctor as she had to have other injections at that visit. The doctor assumed that she wanted it done!!!!!!!!!!! Within two days she was in hospital with abdo pain, nausea, and dehydration. She has been ill for 12 months now and l fear for her future. DONT LET ANY DOCTOR GIVE YOUR DAUGHTERS THIS INJECTION, IT IS JUST TOO RISKY.
Posted by: jenny | March 31, 2009 5:48 AM
CRESTWOOD, ILLINOIS WATER
When I heard about this I was shocked and thought that maybe this is something I need to look into.
My husband and I moved to Crestwood in 1995 to a condo at 13543 Lamon. Shortly afer that my husband was diagnosed with a neruological disease in 2001. The doctors at Northwestern and VA all said it was a FORM of Als but didn't know where it came from or how it started since it wasn't genetic. We lived at the above address for 12 years on the second floor but were forced to move into another condo in Crestwood on the first floor because he became wheel chair bound. He lost all the muscles in his arms and legs due to nerve damage. We lived there until my husband passed away in November of 2006.
I'm not saying the water was the cause, but I felt I needed to look into this more. I sure would hate to think this happened out of neglect in a place we loved to live. If you could forward me any details about the water situation I would appreciate a response.
Thank You
Connie
connabell@aol.com
Posted by: Connie | April 24, 2009 4:47 PM
CRESTWOOD, ILLINOIS WATER
When I heard about this I was shocked and thought that maybe this is something I need to look into.
My husband and I moved to Crestwood in 1995 to a condo at 13543 Lamon. Shortly afer that my husband was diagnosed with a neruological disease in 2001. The doctors at Northwestern and VA all said it was a FORM of Als but didn't know where it came from or how it started since it wasn't genetic. We lived at the above address for 12 years on the second floor but were forced to move into another condo in Crestwood on the first floor because he became wheel chair bound. He lost all the muscles in his arms and legs due to nerve damage. We lived there until my husband passed away in November of 2006.
I'm not saying the water was the cause, but I felt I needed to look into this more. I sure would hate to think this happened out of neglect in a place we loved to live. If you could forward me any details about the water situation I would appreciate a response.
Thank You
Connie
connabell@aol.com
Posted by: Connie | April 24, 2009 4:47 PM