Paul Offit & Peter Hotez were offered the opportunity of a lifetime- to refute skeptics of vaccine science in front of the committee making recommendations (& the public). So why did they decline?
When Aaron Siri deposed Stanley Plotkin and Kathryn Edwards, two of the authors of Plotkins' "Vaccines" -- the bible of vaccinology -- they both were forced to admit under oath that they had no evidence that vaccines didn't cause autism and that there were no placebo controlled trials for any product currently on the schedule (the depositions were before the COVID vaccine, which did have a placebo RCT).
THAT's why Offit and Hotez didn't show up. Their arguments don't do well when Aaron Siri is around.
That certainly seems like a plausible reason that someone would choose NOT to show up. It's hard to counter arguments when there are experts in attendance who have the data memorized. The Institute of Medicine seems to agree with the assessment of Plotkin and Edwards that the evidence base does NOT prove that vaccines do NOT cause autism. Would have been hard (impossible) to refute.
When Aaron Siri deposed Stanley Plotkin and Kathryn Edwards, two of the authors of Plotkins' "Vaccines" -- the bible of vaccinology -- they both were forced to admit under oath that they had no evidence that vaccines didn't cause autism and that there were no placebo controlled trials for any product currently on the schedule (the depositions were before the COVID vaccine, which did have a placebo RCT).
THAT's why Offit and Hotez didn't show up. Their arguments don't do well when Aaron Siri is around.
That certainly seems like a plausible reason that someone would choose NOT to show up. It's hard to counter arguments when there are experts in attendance who have the data memorized. The Institute of Medicine seems to agree with the assessment of Plotkin and Edwards that the evidence base does NOT prove that vaccines do NOT cause autism. Would have been hard (impossible) to refute.