iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

New Autism Committee Chair Founded a Leucovorin Telehealth Company

Grifters are in charge of this griftocracy. "there is no real evidence that leucovorin is helpful for patients with autism." Said Art Caplan, prof. emeritus of medical ethics at NYU Grossman School of Medicine, "There are many people who are being appointed... www.medpagetoday.com/washington-w...

medpagetoday.com

Drug has been promoted as a treatment for autism

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Trump Administration Suppressed USPSTF Recommendations, Past Chair Says

Bobby Kennedy has had a "particular disdain" for the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, which makes recommendations re: preventative screenings & health interventions (& so, determines what insurance must cover). www.medpagetoday.com/washington-w...

medpagetoday.com

Group's recommendations on cervical cancer screening, cardiovascular prevention were blocked

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Pennsylvania Department of Health Confirms Fifth Measles-Associated Death, Provides Statewide Update on Outbreak as Cases Reach 943 in 39 Counties

I would joke about prediction markets wagering on how many measles deaths the US will have this year, but I think they already do. Lancaster PA's had its 5th measles death, now. No age or sex reported as yet. www.pa.gov/agencies/hea...

pa.gov

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A ‘freaked out’ US food industry is hitting back at Maha – with social media influencers

Commentary: This piece suggests the food industry is using psychology to wage war on RFK's food goals. But I'm not sure that's the best characterization of the outcome. If you reject the flawed premise that RFK actually intended to make US food safer and... 🧵 www.theguardian.com/business/202...

theguardian.com

Cross-partisan support in Washington on issues like pesticides and food additives pose a threat to the industry’s bottom line

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J. Offir, PhD @joffirphd.bsky.social · 17h

The UConn Indoor Air Quality Initiative has been working for a few years on getting CR boxes (which the article doesn't name as such) into CT schools. (I've written about this before; the CT state legislature provided funding for the endeavor.) "The program is... 🧵 ctmirror.org/2026/09/28/c...

ctmirror.org

UConn is giving CT students a science project to address air quality

Student-built air purifiers can partially address poor school air quality, but teachers said CT must focus on a larger, long-term fix.

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J. Offir, PhD @joffirphd.bsky.social · 18h

When the evidence points to murder, anti-vax MAHA defend the accused. "The mother has the support of an anti-vaccine group founded by Robert F. Kennedy, Jr....Her fate will be in the hands of a jury in a place where skepticism about vaccines runs deep." Gift link. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/30/w...

Andrea Shaw Says Vaccines Killed Her Twins. Authorities Say She Suffocated Them. (Gift Article)

In a small Idaho town, a young mother is accused of killing her young twins. She blames the childhood vaccines they received.

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J. Offir, PhD @joffirphd.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Tick tock! If you haven't yet participated in any voter mobilization efforts, time's running out. We win when we show up - & we've lost, in the past, b/c folks thought that was a fait accompli. It's *not.* Don't wait for others to get this done. Contact a group below to donate a couple of hours!

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J. Offir, PhD @joffirphd.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

A new study "linked 2.3 million new cancer cases to an infection. Most were caused by just five pathogens: Helicobacter pylori (4%), human papillomavirus, or HPV (4%), hepatitis B (2%), Epstein-Barr virus (1%) and hepatitis C (under 1%). These infections can... theconversation.com/one-in-eight...

theconversation.com

One in eight cancers are likely caused by an infection worldwide – new study

Four viruses and one bacteria were responsible for 12% of the world’s cancer cases in 2024. Does this mean they’re preventable?

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J. Offir, PhD @joffirphd.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

"The Trump administration said Monday it has rescinded a Biden-era policy that extended the federal ban on sex discrimination in schools to also protect L.G.B.T.Q. people, a change that prompted warnings from advocates for sexual assault survivors." #WeAreNotThem www.nytimes.com/2026/09/28/u...

Trump Officials Revise How Title IX Sex Discrimination Rules Are Enforced (Gift Article)

The change follows a court ruling barring Title IX from protecting L.G.B.T.Q. people and has angered advocates for sexual assault survivors.

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NBC Nightly News just showed video of a dogfish shark swimming down a New Jersey street, thanks to the nor'easter. I really don't think that's supposed to happen.

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A lot of people who read my posts care about infection mitigation & disability rights, so I'm reposting this thread ICYMI. The NYT article I shared missed every important issue the story really tells, but I elucidate five that the media could (& should) be reporting on.

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Elsinore - Official Trailer (2026) - Johnny Flynn, Andrew Scott, Olivia Colman

This opens in November and I'm so excited to see it! Early reviews say Andrew Scott is tremendous as the late actor Ian Charlson, who died of AIDS in 1990 after performing the title role in a National Theatre production of Hamlet. youtu.be/L77dFMPjZg8?...

youtu.be

YouTube video by Regal

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Reposted by J. Offir, PhD

MeidasTouch @meidastouch.com · 28/09/2026

NEW: Food banks across America are being overwhelmed by surging demand. Scott MacFarlane went inside to see the crisis firsthand. Here’s what he found:

meidasnews.com

“They don’t understand the scale of the hunger!”- An unfolding crisis at the nation’s food banks

Weeks before the midterm elections, the cost crisis is hammering food pantries in red and blue states

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How can you keep a business accessible to immunocompromised folks yet stay out of the red? This was the question the NYT should have asked (& tried to answer), but didn't. Instead, this piece was both pointless & smarmy. So I went looking elsewhere for info: 🧵 www.nytimes.com/2026/09/27/u...

Saturday Night, No Mask Required, at the Last Ditch Lesbian Bar in Massachusetts (Gift Article)

Last Ditch, a bar and art space, ended its Covid mask requirement as a way to attract more people. What it got instead was outsized attention.

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US healthcare: She went to the ER for migraine. They did vitals & then told her to sit in the waiting room. After vomiting every 10 minutes for hours, she left for another ER. The 1st one charged her $410, & her insurance refused to pay because she'd left. www.washingtonpost.com/wellness/202...

She waited for hours and left untreated. The ER billed her anyway.

The hospital said her visit began as soon as “care,” which could mean registration and nursing assessment, was initiated.

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Told ya' this would happen. We have *no stamina.* Trump, OTOH, fixates like a food-motivated canine. Great staying power; like nobody's ever seen, as he'd say. "Network leaders...believe an indefinite suspension may be untenable," even though CNN is still excluded. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/26/b...

TV Networks to Resume Trump Coverage, Even as White House Excludes CNN (Gift Article)

The White House TV pool went dark this past week amid a standoff between CNN and the president. Network leaders, however, believe an indefinite suspension may be untenable.

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"The agency has lost its independence and nearly a third of its staff [including most leadership], as Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and associates have tightened control." What a hot mess. Gift 🎁 link. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/26/h...

‘Zombified’ C.D.C., Hobbled by Cuts, Struggles to Fulfill Scientific Mission (Gift Article)

The agency has lost its independence and nearly a third of its staff, as Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and associates have tightened control.

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Reposted by J. Offir, PhD

OG @oliviagoddess.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Just all of this! 🧵 ⏬

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What a pathetic attempt to legitimize horrible Great Barrington Declaration co-author Jay Bhattacharya. How embarrassingly transparent & ridiculous. In social psychology, this is an example of BIRGing - "basking in reflected glory." In advertising and political propaganda, it's called "transfer."

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Oh no. Hell no. These people have absolutely no shame. Btw, you can reach the Teton County Board of County Commissioners here: tetoncountywy.gov/246/Board-of... & WY governor Mark Gordon at 307-777-7434, if you suddenly have an urge to talk to them. www.washingtonpost.com/climate-envi...

Trump administration considers building baseball park in Grand Teton National Park

Major League Baseball contacted the administration about hosting a game in a national park, with an agency official scouting Grand Teton as a possible location.

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Cool doggo receptive language news: "In a brain activity study, dogs seemed to listen for consonants to figure out when one word ends and another begins." We humans do the same thing, btw. www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/20...

Dogs use a surprising method to understand human language, new study suggests

In a brain activity study, dogs seemed to listen for consonants to figure out when one word ends and another begins.

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Of course they do. Gotta get out the vote, folks - right now & in 2028. On Monday, the new Transportation Dept rule "is expected to significantly weaken federal mileage standards," in effect "gutting one of the government’s most significant efforts... Gift 🎁 link. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/26/c...

Trump Administration Plans to Gut Clean Car Rules (Gift Article)

New fuel-economy standards, which President Trump said he finalized Saturday, would kill a federal effort to speed the transition to electric vehicles.

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Perhaps I should have more sympathy for these ex-tradwife influencers (who are still influencing away), but I have none. Let me tell you why: These women chase fame & make money by showcasing a fantasy lifestyle that many later confess was false, & by... Essay 🧵 www.nytimes.com/2026/09/24/s...

Her Brand Was Tradwife. Now She’s Divorced. (Gift Article)

What happens when a trad influencer leaves her husband, questions her beliefs, stops selling anti-feminism T-shirts — and still needs to make a living online?

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Vote, vote, vote. And before you go to the polls in 38 days, please call some neighbors who might need transportation help, & then pick them up. DoJ records show "57 desegregation orders have been dismissed since the start of President Trump’s second term." ... www.nytimes.com/2026/09/24/u...

Justice Department Scraps Dozens of School Desegregation Cases (Gift Article)

Critics said the changes, mostly in the South, moved the nation “back toward the Jim Crow era.” Justice Department officials said the decrees were outdated.

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What could go wrong? The US & Russia "weakened a range of safeguards in a landmark U.N. effort to try to regulate the use of lethal autonomous weaponry.... On the last day of [UN] negotiations, the talks turned aggressive....U.S. and Russian diplomats... www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2...

U.S., Russia stripped human oversight from global AI weapons pact

The two nations weakened a range of safeguards in a landmark U.N. effort to try to regulate the use of lethal autonomous weaponry. The global negotiations earlier this month marked the furthest progre...

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🚨🚨 The takeaway is that power breeds contempt, hubris, amnesia & selfishness - & we're the worst. Here are some important details & notes: 🔹️The US rejected the UN declaration on pandemic preparedness. It didn't set specific rules & wasn't legally binding, but... 🧵 www.nytimes.com/2026/09/25/u...

U.S. Rejects U.N. Declaration on Preparing for Future Pandemics (Gift Article)

Most member nations spoke in support of the declaration, but some rich countries had strong objections.

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If you aren't yet calling this "Trump's War," when you talk about it to IRL friends & colleagues, please start. We are 38 days away from election day! Trump rejects Iran’s proposal to reopen Strait of Hormuz, restart peace talks www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...

Trump rejects Iran’s proposal to reopen Strait of Hormuz, restart peace talks

Tehran’s proposal, delivered to U.S. officials through mediators, would reopen the Strait of Hormuz and restart peace talks within seven days.

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The NYT says "The decision [to ban CNN from the flight] immediately raised the question of whether the television pool would cover the president’s trip." That's my concern. We have a history, w/ Trump, of expressing outrage & solidarity the *first* time he tries... www.nytimes.com/2026/09/25/b...

White House Blocks CNN From Air Force One (Gift Article)

CNN won’t be able to join President Trump on a Saturday trip to Tennessee. He had banned CNN and two other news outlets from the White House, but a court order on Thursday restored their access.

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Ffs. Trumps's like the school bully who doesn't give a fig for the rules or about in-school suspensions, until he's finally expelled. Except we don't have the votes to expel him, so we just keep living w/ the bullying as our constitution goes down the drain. www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...

White House blocks CNN from trip on Air Force One

The White House’s decision puts the state of the rotational TV pool, which resumed on Friday, in jeopardy once more.

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WaPo starts this piece, "Earlier this year, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. seemed poised to challenge the powerful food industry." But did he, though? I can't imagine why anyone would think RFK was doing anything other than making "a chicken... 🧵 www.washingtonpost.com/health/2026/...

White House has not acted on RFK Jr.’s push for proof ultra-processed foods are safe

A draft letter obtained by The Post shows Kennedy’s favorable response to a petition that food experts said could lead to significant changes for the industry.

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Mayday at 30,000 Feet: Senator Tuberville Unveils the Terrifying Threat of Cockpit Furries

Tommy Tuberville is tripping. Sen. Tuberville [R-AL] "alleged, without evidence, that 'many airline pilots, flight attendants, and air traffic controllers are part of the furry community.' [He] offered no data, study, or official source to support that assertion." www.yahoo.com/news/politic...

yahoo.com

Sen. Tuberville claimed furries threaten aviation safety on the Senate floor, but his office provided no evidence, data, or official source.

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More reporting: "The government acknowledged internally that the database could misidentify eligible voters as noncitizens and has an error rate of as high as 81 percent in some localities." www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...

Government can use Social Security data to identify noncitizen voters, Supreme Court rules

President Donald Trump wants to let states use a federal database that includes voters’ personal information to check for noncitizens on voter rolls.

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This is very, very bad. (Gift 🎁 link) Summary: 🔹️SCOTUS has ruled in favor of Trump's national voting database. "Critics fear that states could use the system to purge large numbers of valid voters from their rolls ahead of the midterm elections." 🧵 www.nytimes.com/2026/09/25/u...

Supreme Court Allows Expansive Federal Database for Voter Screening (Gift Article)

Critics of a citizenship database built by the Trump administration have raised alarms about privacy and improper voter purges.

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Community support — Save Skin Cancer Care

📢 I'm not a huge fan of petitions, but this one from the American Academy of Dermatology protesting upcoming Medicare cuts to skin cancer care takes literally 10 seconds to sign & couldn't hurt. Please sign: saveskincancercare.org/sign-the-sta...

saveskincancercare.org

Sign the Community Statement urging CMS to withdraw the proposed Medicare cuts to skin cancer care, and see the roll of signers.

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The Senate failed to pass a resolution today to block Trump from ordering more strikes on Iran. (The House passed it on Sept. 15.) This is how the vote played out - whete tf was Angela Alsobrooks? (link in alt text):

Graphic showing 50 votes against the resolution (all Republicans except for the DINO Fetterman) and 49 in favor - 43 Democrats, 2 Indies, & 4 Republicans (Collins, Murkowski, Paul & Tillis). Somehow, MD Senator Angela Alsobrooks didn't show up for the vote.

Cit: https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/interactive/2026/09/24/how-every-senator-voted-iran-war-powers-resolution/?itid=hp_top_table_main&utm_source=webview&utm_medium=referral_&utm_campaign=pb_2608%3Avariant%3Bdr_2503%3Apersonalized%3B

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This sheriff reminds me a whole lot of the sheriff in Ari Aster's film Eddington. (I don't even know what the genre of that flick was supposed to be, beyond "upsetting.") Gift link: www.nytimes.com/2026/09/24/u...

Republican Sheriff Illegally Seized California Ballots, Court Rules (Gift Article)

The California Supreme Court ordered Sheriff Chad Bianco of Riverside County to return ballots to election officials after he confiscated them for an investigation.

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But wait, there's more: "Kennedy also received free flights to and from Fiji and Greece and the use of a vacation home in Washington, D.C. [from an anti-vax author.] Their value totaled more than a quarter of a million dollars, according to the financial disclosure." www.npr.org/2026/09/24/n...

npr.org

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A good Democrat: As a NY State Supreme Court Justice, Edward Lehner "reject[ed Trump's] efforts...to seize control of the Empire State Building." As a state legislator, he championed tenants' rights & got the dog poop off NYC streets. May his memory be a blessing. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/24/n...