How an Ebola outbreak in US could protect vaping and benefit public health

[Kent C]

A second Ebola case in TX.
BBC News - Ebola outbreak: Officials seeking people who flew with nurse

C'mon DC poly-ticks! Subpoena Frieden for a grandstanding witch trial and call for his resignation. It's only going to help your mid-term campaign...

Contacting other people on that flight despite the fact she showed no symptoms, and Frieden had said it isn't contagious when the person shows no symptoms. So which is it Tom??

 

[catlady60]

If there is an outbreak, vaping is the least of my concerns. I'm on the next plane out to Prague...

Incompetence is a theme of this Administration...

I'd put the blame more on the cut-happy House than the Administration. It's hard, in fact damn near impossible, to contain such an outbreak with the severe budget cuts to the CDC.
There are limits on the ability to do more with less. And to contain an epidemic like Ebola requires more funding than Congress allowed.

 

[TomGeorge]

I'd put the blame more on the cut-happy House than the Administration. It's hard, in fact damn near impossible, to contain such an outbreak with the severe budget cuts to the CDC.
There are limits on the ability to do more with less. And to contain an epidemic like Ebola requires more funding than Congress allowed.

Which budget cuts are you referring too? The CDC received 300,000,000$ more than they asked for...from the house, and not Obama. Oh maybe you are referring to the cuts to national defense...

 

[Kent C]

I'd put the blame more on the cut-happy House than the Administration. It's hard, in fact damn near impossible, to contain such an outbreak with the severe budget cuts to the CDC.
There are limits on the ability to do more with less. And to contain an epidemic like Ebola requires more funding than Congress allowed.

Tom George is right. It was Congress who increased CDC's budget over the amount of the President's request.

"The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will see an 8.2 percent budget increase for fiscal 2014, thanks to a $1.1 trillion spending bill announced by Congress Jan. 13.

This influx of cash will raise the CDC budget to $6.9 billion, which is $567 million more than it received in 2013. This is more than the agency anticipated, because the president's fiscal year 2014 budget request for it was just $6.6 billion -- a decrease of $270 million from fiscal 2012."

CDC wins in budget deal - Atlanta Business Chronicle

 

[Stosh]

But the money the CDC get is always spent wisely......NOT

How the CDC really spends your tax dollars....How the CDC really spends your tax dollars - NaturalNews.com

the new $106 million communications and visitors center which comes complete with waterfalls, plasma televisions and much more. A $200,000 fitness center boasts $30,000 saunas, "quiet rooms" and "zero gravity chairs" that provide "mood-enhancing light shows" for CDC employees.

 

[NorthOfAtlanta]

Lets not forget the $212 million in propaganda grants to the states.

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/fda-regulations/607773-cdc-announces-212-million-grants-all-50-states-reduce-chronic-diseases-tobacco-use-probably-vaping.html

 

[Kent C]

Lets not forget the $212 million in propaganda grants to the states.

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/fda-regulations/607773-cdc-announces-212-million-grants-all-50-states-reduce-chronic-diseases-tobacco-use-probably-vaping.html

Stosh, N.Atl. - Although I provided the facts, despite the recent Democrat ad saying the opposite - which is likely where some people got the idea - or media matters, huffpo, etc. I'm not saying it was right or good

 

[Davey59]

Claiming to not have enough money to properly address a problem is a tired excuse. Like almost all facets of government, money has nothing to do with why they can't get the jobs done that they have been tasked with doing. Literally no amount of money is ever going to help.

Would be nice if they allocated money and resources to more pressing threats but I am not holding my breath.

 

[Sundodger]

The bureaucracy known as the CDC (Centers for Dysfunction and Confusion) is just another over bloated, over financed road to a government retirement pension for most involved. This bunch is involved in everything from National Helmet laws, e-cigs, and you name what ever else. This is the type of agency that needs to do what it was designed to originally do and that is to STOP things like ebola, not whether consenting adults wish to vape or ride motorcycles without helmets.

I see some posting don't like how the OP worded the original post. To that I say "don't shoot the messenger." While I can see where one might feel that way the way I feel is that while ebola can and will kill many around the world in this latest outbreak, many will also die because of the FDA and CDC protecting BT/BP and the tax man. I wish no death to anyone, including smokers, it just happens that this outbreak may indeed slow or stop the attack on vaping giving time for more thoughtful scientist to chime in and hopefully changing the direction that the FDA and CDC are heading. I'm not happy about Ebola's outbreak, just understand the implications that it may have beyond those getting that horrible disease is that maybe the FDA and CDC will focus on more important issues to the entire country/world than helmets, playground equipment and vaping.

 

[Luisa]

If an Ebola outbreak occurs in the US, it appears increasingly likely (in my view) that CDC Director Tom Frieden could be looking for a new job, which would benefit vaping (since Frieden has been demonizing and trying to ban vaping since 2009, has given hundreds of millions of CDC dollars to state and local health departments to ban vaping, and has been the Obama administration's biggest cheer leader for the FDA deeming regulation).

Although nobody wants an Ebola outbreak to occur in the US, it would trigger even more fear mongering news stories, a public panic, and a lot more criticism (primarily by tea party / conservative Republicans) of Obama's CDC director Frieden, which could result in Frieden's firing (remember what happened to the Secret Service director after the knife wielding man jumped the security fence and broke into the White House two weeks ago) especially if an Ebola outbreak occurs in the next week or two (as even liberal Democrats and some left wing media might call for Frieden's ouster just to prevent a disaster for Democrats in the Nov 4 election).

A NY Times article delineates the CDC's new policy to screen travelers arriving from West African countries at 5 large US airports
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/09/us/us-to-begin-ebola-screenings-at-5-airports.html?_r=0

ACSH criticizes and ridicules CDC's most recent policy action (screening for Ebola at several airports)
Preventing Ebola: Screen

Although we haven't been able to convince the US House E&C Cmte to conduct a hearing on vaping and grill CDC Director Tom Frieden about his many false fear mongering claims about vaping, I wouldn't be surprised if the US House E&C Cmte holds a hearing in the next several days or weeks to grill and criticize Frieden on his evolving and changing responses to the Ebola epidemic .

Two days ago, Frieden backtracked from previous "no need to worry" statements by saying “The plain truth is we can’t make the risk zero until the outbreak is controlled in West Africa. What we can do is minimize that risk, as is being done now in Dallas.”

At least the whole world has seen Frieden for what he is--full of truth distortions and maybe not too bright.

 

[Gato del Jugo]

Since we'll all be dead from Ebola by Christmas, does that mean we're now free to vape all the diacetyl we want?


I have a slightly different take than the OP, and that is more money & focus will probably be geared towards more pressing issues, now & in the future, other than their war on vaping..

Weakening one enemy here, one enemy there.. Before we know it, things may very well begin to tilt in our favor..

 

[Luisa]

Wow.

I've re-read the OP several times.

The premise of mishandling of Ebola helping the cause of vaping is just wrong.

Yes, I have read the OP several times.

Wow.

Sad.

I do not think that was really the intent. The handling of the Ebola crises only showcases the other horrible blunders of other instances of Friedens" incompetence and truth distortion. Remember the mishandling of Antrax,the last available sample of the smallpox virus being mishandled and several other very serious mishaps which reflect the rampant dysfunction at this agency and its" Director. Frieden must go as he appears incompetent and has a habit of truth distortion.

 

[Luisa]

I'd put the blame more on the cut-happy House than the Administration. It's hard, in fact damn near impossible, to contain such an outbreak with the severe budget cuts to the CDC.
There are limits on the ability to do more with less. And to contain an epidemic like Ebola requires more funding than Congress allowed.

Actually,the CDC was given 3 million(million or billion--I am not sure) more by the House than the President requested. The CDC not only did not receive cuts but the House gave them more than had been asked. I just hope the CDC is actually using that extra money on this crisis.

 

[Luisa]

But the money the CDC get is always spent wisely......NOT

How the CDC really spends your tax dollars....How the CDC really spends your tax dollars - NaturalNews.com

Oh,I bet all those things were Friedens" idea. I also imagine their are no soft drinks--only vegetable drinks and spring water.

 

[DC2]

What is the CDC doing with respect to electronic cigarettes?
http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/search.php?searchid=27228869

These threads should also be posted here...
http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/fo...ry-sebelius-over-use-cdc-grants-lobbying.html
http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/fo...eff-stier-oversight-cdc-grants-necessary.html

 

[vapero]

I personally am not worried about ebola coming through an airport as we can control about anything that comes in that way, see Dallas.

What worries me is it getting loose in any Central American country or Mexico and people coming North through our basically uncontrolled southern border in the hope of getting decent medical care. That is the 800 pound ebola gorilla in the room.

This problem goes back to amnesty one and the border that wasn't controlled at that point. Every administration since has kicked the can down the road and we may now pay the price for that.

don't worry if I get ebola here in mexico I will cross the border and start runing naked and sneezing to everybody

 

[Bill Godshall]

Conservative columnist Michelle Malkin highlights how CDC has spent lots of money and time focusing on things other than disease control, but she forgot to mention CDC's war on e-cigs.

CDC’s mission creep
CDC's mission creep | TribLIVE

But now that Obama has appointed an "Ebola Czar" who is a partisan PR fixer upper for Democrat politicians (who has no public health experience, training or education), it appears that CDC director Tom Frieden's job may no longer be in jeopardy.

Instead, Republicans will now be criticizing/blaming Obama and his new Ebola Czar for CDC's past inaccurate claims about Ebola and CDC's ever changing policies and protocols regarding the prevention, transmission, detection, treatment, quarenteen, and surveillance for Ebola.

 

[pamdis]

Couldn't find the 'Friends of CDC' mentioned in the article. But did find the CDC Foundation:

CDC Foundation |

Helping CDC Do More, Faster

Established by Congress as an independent, nonprofit organization, the CDC Foundation connects the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) with private-sector organizations and individuals to build public health programs that make our world healthier and safer.

So, essentially, instead of Congress approving projects and budgets for those projects, they created a foundation that dictates projects funded with corporate and private donations. And call them partners.

Added Value for Our Partners

Partnering with the CDC Foundation offers benefits beyond the value of a typical charitable donation. Businesses, philanthropies and organizations find that working with the CDC Foundation:

Accelerates and expands important public health initiatives that align with their mission and work
Creates mutually beneficial collaborations with world-renowned CDC scientists
Simplifies the process of partnering with a complex federal agency
Ensures accountability and transparency

Wow. Just wow. Corporations pursue their own private agendas using CDC imprimatur , and the govt calls it flexibility for the agency.

 

[DC2]

Wow. Just wow. Corporations pursue their own private agendas using CDC imprimatur , and the govt calls it flexibility for the agency.

You know, sometimes I worry...

I worry that this section of the forum has a very obvious political bent.
And I worry that many people who NEED to read about this stuff just stay away.

But what are we to do?

It makes me lie awake in bed at night sometimes, realizing the need for the public to wake up and take action.
But the public appears to have been lulled to sleep, and they don't even know their eyes are closed.

Crap.

 

[Kent C]

CDC Foundation

Some of the same Usual suspects again:

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Bloomberg Philanthropies
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (Johnson&Johnson)
Bristol-Myers Squibb Company
Genentech, Inc
Pfizer Inc
Procter & Gamble Company
The National Association of Retired Federal Employees
Merck