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Belief in Erwin Alber is a form of delusional insanity

Let me introduce Erwin Alber. Erwin is an antivaxxer.



he runs a few conspiracy-themed antivax groups on facebook, and occasionally trolls skeptical pages. He's only got one trick though. Are you ready for it? Here it is:



Yes, you read right. Erwin's trump card is a quotation from Dr Herbert M. Shelton, one of the 20th Century's greatest quacks. A quack who didn't merely rip off his patients. Didn't merely make his patients sick, but actually starved his patients to death, and after doing so, continued to practice without a licence, causing yet more death. A man who believed he could cure his own Parkinson's disease though fasting and raw food. It didn't work.

I've been posting this simple response to Erwin's pathetic trolling attempts for months now, and still he persists in trying to use it. Frankly, it's got to the point where I can only conclude that Erwin himself is the one suffering delusional insanity, and that anyone who believes him is frankly as nuts as he is.

So if you spot him, you now know what response to give.

posted @ Wednesday, February 24, 2010 11:49 PM

 
 
 

Comments on this entry:

# re: Belief in Erwin Alber is a form of delusional insanity

Left by alison at 9/16/2010 6:13 PM
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Thank you! Very useful information to have in hand :)

# re: Belief in Erwin Alber is a form of delusional insanity

Left by Liora at 10/25/2010 5:37 PM
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My daughter was damaged by a vaccine reaction. If I had listened to the doctors, and kept vaccinating her, she'd have been autistic...or much, much worse. She cried for 10 months, arched, constant pain, woke up screaming every time, green chronic diarrhea, and severe vomiting.

Erwin Alber makes a hell of a lot of sense to me. Seems like your bias is keeping you from learning some important truths about the Alphabet Soup agencies who think collateral damage like my daughter are a-ok.

Liora
now, mom of 3 - zero are vaccinated (stopped after DD#1's 2 month old vaccine reaction)

# re: Belief in Erwin Alber is a form of delusional insanity

Left by Jason at 10/25/2010 7:24 PM
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I sympathise with you for the pain you feel over your daughters illness, but your phrasing implies that your belief that vaccines caused it is *against* all medical advice. As though the doctors have tried to explain to you, but you refuse to believe them or understand the science.

Is this, in fact, the case?

If it is, you're part of the problem.

Erwin is quite possibly a functional paranoid schizophrenic. You'd be best off not following his advice. Really.

# re: Belief in Erwin Alber is a form of delusional insanity

Left by Liora at 10/26/2010 2:49 PM
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My daughter has subsequently been diagnosed with neurological problems. Photos taken two days after her two month vaccines show a sleep deprived, painfully ill looking child with major swollen facial tissue (Edema, it's on all the package inserts as a pretty common reaction).

You need to read a few package inserts. They know these things *can be* dangerous.

And yes I know it was the vaccine, in our case. She went to normal and happy to a nightmare.

By the way, my child at age 3.5 was diagnosed with food allergies and more importantly, IgA deficiency, an immunodeficiency condition for which live virus vaccine is contraindicated, yet she received the Oral Polio vaccine.

The whitecoats don't bother to test every child for this immune system problem, or any other susceptibility by the way. But one in 500 to 600 has IgA deficiency. They just jab them all and ask questions later. I guess it's ok with the current system if they "lose" a few babies as long as public confidence in their holy vaccine does not decrease. This is totally antithetical to my way of thinking, and against our right to choose.

I was never informed of any risks. Only that it was my "duty" as a "responsible parent" to "protect her".

What about "First Do No Harm?" What about "Informed Consent"? Now that is my job. I am a patient rights and consumer rights advocate.

Because we have been lied to about everything. Look up your soap and Johnson's and Johnson's baby shampoo, too, at Cosmetics Database.com and see what some of the most influential corporations in the world think are just wonderful to wash yourself and your babies in.

There's BPA in our food containers and water bottles, and before people like me started making a fuss, also in baby bottles.

In two of our local flu vaccines (Vaxigrip European formulation and Fluarix) there are seriously disturbing ingredients. The first has Octocynol-9, a spermicide once used regularly as such in the U.S. (in 2002 it lost GRAS status, the manufacturer did not even try to run safety study to gain FDA approval- it's still used overseas).

And the Fluarix is U.S. licensed vaccine. It contains Triton-X 100. It is an industrial detergent. Verbatim, and I bold and add nothing, from the MSDS (Materials Safety Data Sheet:)
"Potential Chronic Health Effects: CARCINOGENIC EFFECTS: Classified 4 (No evidence.) by NTP, None. by OSHA, None. by NIOSH. MUTAGENIC EFFECTS: Mutagenic for mammalian somatic cells. TERATOGENIC EFFECTS: Not available. DEVELOPMENTAL TOXICITY: Classified Reproductive system/toxin/female [POSSIBLE]. "

Liora back here. So, you tell me if the people claiming that certain vaccines like Flu vaccines affect sterility are conspiracy therorists, or if it's possible there's something like a real conspiracy going on.

I just called IMC clinic, run by expats, in Beijing, and where they administer this flu vaccine daily. Nobody spoke English well enough, so they asked a Doctor to the phone. The doctor told me that this is a SAFE VACCINE and that there were no "concerning ingredients"

And no, I am not part of any problem. Our medical system is sick. Very sick.

# re: Belief in Erwin Alber is a form of delusional insanity

Left by Jason at 10/26/2010 3:01 PM
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> They know these things *can be* dangerous.

And so do I. Crossing the road can be dangerous too, but avoiding it won't get me to the shops. Take your strawman argumnent and shove it.

You have just admitted that your daughter's condition is diagnosed as vaccine related ONLY BY YOU.

You are not qualified to make that diagnosis.

You are also employing the same old stock-standard, fallacious antivaxer arguments

There IS a small risk of injury with vaccines. allergic reactions happen to some ingredients. inflammation happens (it's a designed-in effect, actually). Some kids react badly. The studies show this, and the rate of reaction is a known, monitored variable, and it is lower than the risk from the disease the vaccination prevents. If it wasn't, there'd be no way the vaccine would make it to market.

But what you are putting forward is a post-hoc ergo propter hoc assertion without any evidence. You have to understand that if you don't have evidence, then you don't have evidence. Belief is not justified without it. If you have evidence beyond your own assertion of belief, please feel free to share it.

Again, I sympathise that your child is sick, but think about it. What if you're blaming the wrong cause? You and your antivax compatriots are lowering the immunity rates in communities all over the world, and children are suffering. Many are dying. Because of your guess.

Pertussis recently killed ten kids in california, and antivaxers are still refusing vaccines based on GUESSES by parents who don't have the facts and don't have the logical framework to make epidemiological determinations. If you're blaming the wrong cause based on a GUESS, then the anti-vaccination community has just killed ten californian kids for no reason. Ten children.

I've asked you for evidence twice now. There won't be a third request

# re: Belief in Erwin Alber is a form of delusional insanity

Left by Jason at 10/26/2010 3:13 PM
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And just another thought....

What if you're blaming vaccines and in fact the cause is something else. Something you don't know about?

You have other kids, right? What about them? You're "protecting" them from vaccines, but what if kid #1 reacted to something environmental, not the vaccine? Let's face it, you have no evidence that it was the vaccine, beyond the fact that it happened sometime after a vaccination. Lots of things might have happened in that period.

What if it was a bacterium or virus? Or a pollutant or household chemical? Or a natural toxin? Or a dietary factor? Ciguatera perhaps? Or what if it was just genetic?

You're scared of vaccines. I'd be more scared by what I didn't know, if I were you.

# re: Belief in Erwin Alber is a form of delusional insanity

Left by Jason at 10/26/2010 3:15 PM
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In case you don't know what ciguatera is:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ciguatera

Hallmark symptoms of ciguatera in Humans include gastrointestinal and neurological effects.[4][5] Gastrointestinal symptoms include nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea, usually followed by neurological symptoms such as headaches, muscle aches, paresthesia, numbness, ataxia, and hallucinations.[1][5] Severe cases of ciguatera can also result in cold allodynia, which is a burning sensation on contact with cold (commonly incorrectly referred to as reversal of hot/cold temperature sensation).[4] Doctors are often at a loss to explain these symptoms and ciguatera poisoning is frequently misdiagnosed as multiple sclerosis.[6]

Dyspareunia and other ciguatera symptoms have developed in otherwise healthy males and females following sexual intercourse with partners suffering ciguatera poisoning, signifying that the toxin may be sexually transmitted.[7] Diarrhea and facial rashes have been reported in breastfed infants of poisoned mothers, it is likely that ciguatera toxins migrate into breast milk.[8]

The symptoms can last from weeks to years, and in extreme cases as long as 20 years, often leading to long-term disability.[9] Most people do recover slowly over time.[10] Often patients recover, but symptoms then reappear. Such relapses can be triggered by consumption of nuts, alcohol, fish or fish-containing products, chicken or eggs, or by exposure to fumes such as those of bleach and other chemicals. Exercise is also a possible trigger.[1] Filipino and Chinese people may possibly be more susceptible.[1]




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