Tag Archives: lobby

Cyberbullying, doxxing, vitamin C injections and cancer

Have you heard about the petition in Quebec that gained nearly 120,000 signatures, asking the government to “approve and reimburse” vitamin C injections for people with cancer?

And about how it almost succeeded through political lobbying?

I spent several months working on this case, trying at first to help people understand the issues and pitfalls with this petition, and then addressing politicians directly, and trying to rally scientific associations. I did this because the petition was moving forward rapidly and very few people were raising doubts about it.

As a result, a group of vitamin C supporters tried to make me lose my job. I was doxed. A smear campaign was organized against me. My family was harassed and threatened.

Eventually, after months of cyberbullying, I came forward publicly with what was going on behind the scenes. The result was a massive outcry from the scientific community, which could not be ignored by the government this time.

Ultimately, the petition did not go forward into parliamentary proceedings.

But more importantly, these events had positive consequences for the future: a government task force was created in order to protect scientists who speak publicly about sensitive topics (I am fortunate enough to be involved in it). Also, an inter-professional advisory committee was created to help healthcare professionals, such as myself, speak publicly without fear of disciplinary action.

 

This case received little attention in the English-Canadian press, so here are translations of a few articles on what happened.

(Please note that these were translated automatically by the Google Translate URL tool with no revision, so some of the text is weird and possibly funny-sounding)

 

A summary of the events in March 2019 by Radio-Canada (CBC) :


Another one, focusing on the challenges and personal risks of doing science communication:

 

 

The events were also discussed in France, and generated support from the French Association for Scientific Information:

 

 

The government can no longer ignore what is going on:

 

 

And the conclusion…


Fellow science communicator Jonathan Jarry, from the McGill Office for Science and Society, was kind enough to write a post on the topic too. Thanks so much Jonathan!

https://jonathanjarry.com/2019/03/07/harassing-a-skeptic-into-silence/

 

For those interested in reading my original article on the topic, there’s a  complete translation here.

5 badly informed opinions about vaccines

5 badly informed opinions about vaccines

Initially, I wanted to create a comic about the influenza (flu) vaccine.

My goal was to convince you that this vaccine is effective, safe and essential to modern society. Because that’s what I think.

But by doing this, I would have skipped steps … because before trusting the flu vaccine, you must first trust vaccines.

You’ve probably heard of some public figures’ efforts to limit vaccination in the USA:

jenny mccarthy vaccines

But they’re not the only ones. All over the world, tons of people are opposed to vaccines. Many of them are intelligent, highly educated people who seem to know the topic extremely well. Some of them are even healthcare professionals, including physicians.

So, who should you believe? I can easily understand why you’re confused when you hear stuff like:

  • “Vaccines cause autism!”
  • “Vaccines are released on the market before we know they’re safe!”
  • “The diseases we vaccinate against are long gone!”

There’s much to do to put the record straight.

So the flu vaccine will have to wait for another comic. In the meantime, let’s start from the beginning.

Translation by Olivier Bernard, proofreading by Lauren Knight.

5 badly informed opinions about vaccines

Live attenuated and inactivated vaccine

Subunit and conjugate vaccine

The great paradox of vaccination

Poliomyelitis , measles , meningitis and preventable diseases

Vaccines are not 100% safe , but nothing is

Making vaccines isn't even good business for big pharma

There is no single scientific evidence that vaccines systematically cause autism

The Wakefield study , thimerosal and aluminum adjuvants

Homeopathic vaccines , gluten-free diet ... nothing can replace a vaccine

Open letter to people and parents worried about vaccines

Open letter to the anti-vaccine lobby

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