Eileen Brokaw
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dawneileen.bsky.social
Eileen Brokaw
@dawneileen.bsky.social
110 followers 510 following 26 posts
Ready to burn it all down. From the privacy of my couch.
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dawneileen.bsky.social
As a grateful alum of The University of California, Berkeley- #StandUpforUC in the face of this administration’s blatant protection racket.

www.universityofcalifornia.edu/get-involved...
Stand Up for UC
www.universityofcalifornia.edu
August 25, 2025 at 10:07 PM
Reposted by Eileen Brokaw
ansirh.bsky.social
The federal government’s $1B demand is designed for one purpose and one purpose only: to devastate UCLA and its critical mission. #StandUpForUC to defend University of California —America’s greatest public university system—and support its life-saving work.
Stand Up for UC
We must stand together to protect our students, staff, faculty and our mission.
bit.ly
August 19, 2025 at 9:43 PM
Reposted by Eileen Brokaw
chicanavieja.bsky.social
The federal government’s $1B demand is designed for one purpose and one purpose only: to devastate @UCLA and its critical mission. Join me and #StandUpForUC to defend @uofcalifornia and support its life-saving work. www.universityofcalifornia.edu/get-involved...
Stand Up for UC
www.universityofcalifornia.edu
August 22, 2025 at 2:05 AM
dawneileen.bsky.social
#StandUpforUC
blakeprof.bsky.social Blake Emerson @blakeprof.bsky.social · Aug 15
🚨 150 University of California law professors (and counting) have now signed this open letter to the UC Regents and other officials, explaining the flagrant illegality of the Trump Administration’s UCLA funding cut offs, and urging the UC to fight back. sites.google.com/view/uclawfa...
Dear President Milliken, Regents, and Governor Newsom, As faculty members of University of California law schools, we endorse Governor Newsom's commitment to resist the Trump Administration's unlawful actions taken against the University of California, Los Angeles. The Governor is on firm legal ground. The Trump Administration's termination and suspension of federal funds has violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 in numerous ways. Governor Newsom and the University of California Regents will protect the vital interests not only of Californians but of all Americans if they defend the University of California's rights. The U.S. Department of Justice notified UCLA on July 29, 2025, that it had found that UCLA had "violated its obligations under the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964." Chancellor Frenk subsequently announced that "the federal government claims antisemitism and bias as the reasons" for federal grant terminations. UCLA faces losses of at least $584 million, funding that has supported vital research on matters ranging from treatments for pancreatic cancer to advances in online security. The Trump Administration has made no pretense of following the law. Title VI permits a federal agency to terminate funding only if it has found that the particular program receiving that funding has violated the law's non-discrimination provisions. Funding cannot disappear just because the agency's policy or political preferences differ from the institution's. Moreover, the agency can act only after following specific procedural steps. Importantly, Title VI requires a formal administrative hearing—a proceeding much like a trial-before the agency can terminate funding. At the hearing, the agency would have the burden of proving the university's alleged violations of Title VI before an impartial decision-maker. If the agency prevails at the hearing, the university or other interested persons could appea… factually supported and consistent with civil rights laws. Without the steps Title VI requires, there is no protection against an administration alleging discrimination as a pretext to force compliance with its policy or partisan preferences. Title VI's procedures guarantee the constitutional due process requirement that no person can be deprived of liberty or property without fair notice and opportunity to be heard. They protect the university and its members' academic freedom, an endowment essential to scientific research, intellectual discovery, and open debate. We are deeply committed to the core principle of non-discrimination codified in Title VI and in the Constitution's Equal Protection Clause. The principle that no person may suffer discrimination because of race, color, or national origin protects equality and ensures fairness in political as well as social life. Allegations of discrimination deserve serious and careful consideration and, where established, effective redress. But this enforcement effort must follow the law. We urge Governor Newsom and the UC Regents to continue to stand up for the fundamental principles of the rule of law, due process, and equal protection. A defense of the University of California's rights in court will model respect for these bedrock principles of equality and fairness, and it will ensure that the government honors them. The Trump Administration's failure to abide by the law subverts these principles by denying the University of California a fair opportunity to contest the government's charges of unlawful discrimination before an impartial decisionmaker. It is precisely because we cherish the principles of the Civil Rights Act and the Constitution that we encourage Governor Newsom, the UC Regents, and the University of California to fight back. Through its grantmaking powers, the federal government wields vast influence over social and economic life. If not held to account by the procedural protections enacted by Congres…
August 25, 2025 at 10:03 PM
dawneileen.bsky.social
Cuts to the chase:
elizabethjacobs.bsky.social Elizabeth Jacobs, PhD @elizabethjacobs.bsky.social · Aug 23
-Overall life expectancy was 70 years; it’s about 77 years now.

Many of you know this, but RFK Jr. doesn’t actually care about your health. He simply despises people who are overweight, poor, sick, or living with disabilities. He views it as weakness. End of.
August 23, 2025 at 5:47 PM
dawneileen.bsky.social
Infant MORTALITY. OP has already corrected deeper in the thread.
elizabethjacobs.bsky.social Elizabeth Jacobs, PhD @elizabethjacobs.bsky.social · Aug 23
RFK Jr. likes to wax nostalgic about how “healthy” America was in the 1960’s. He bases this on one datapoint, the prevalence of obesity.

But let’s dip our toes into reality. In 1965:

-42% of American adults smoked; it’s 11% now.

-The infant morality rate was 24.7/1000; it’s 5.6/1000 now
August 23, 2025 at 5:45 PM
Reposted by Eileen Brokaw
maxwellfrost.bsky.social
I just left the Everglades Immigrant Interment Camp. No, I’m not using their ridiculous name. It was a very tough to witness humans in those cages. Every Floridian should be ashamed that our taxpayer money is being used for this.
July 12, 2025 at 11:28 PM
Reposted by Eileen Brokaw
enirenberg.bsky.social
given that this year has seen a lot of pertussis activity already and that situation is likely to worsen in the coming years, it is worth seriously considering a booster. James Cherry, an expert pertussis specifically, has argued that we should be getting them every ~3 years. Be aware that their...
The 112-Year Odyssey of Pertussis and Pertussis Vaccines—Mistakes Made and Implications for the Future
Abstract. Effective diphtheria, tetanus toxoids, whole-cell pertussis (DTwP) vaccines became available in the 1930s, and they were put into routine use in
academic.oup.com
February 13, 2025 at 8:51 PM
Reposted by Eileen Brokaw
auntsmeepy.bsky.social
Thought for the day:
February 13, 2025 at 3:38 PM
Reposted by Eileen Brokaw
achronicvoice.com
“Overdoing it. Walking too much. Doing too much work ard the house. I want to pace all the time, but sometimes my brain thinks ‘Hey we can do this’ & my body is like ‘What the hell, man!'” – Nikki Albert/@brainlessblogger.bsky.social - Read more: https://buff.ly/2JlylFZ #PainFlares #ChronicPain
January 15, 2025 at 9:30 PM
Reposted by Eileen Brokaw
d-macphee.bsky.social
Natural conception methods are very problematic especially fertility or period tracking apps. Beware the misinformation.
#ReproSky #Fertility
www.bbc.com/news/article...
Women seeking abortions after using 'natural' contraception
Researchers have seen a shift from "more reliable" hormonal contraceptives to fertility tracking apps.
www.bbc.com
January 14, 2025 at 1:38 PM
Reposted by Eileen Brokaw
susanaramirez.bsky.social
Conversation re: #alcohol & #cancer in news/social chatter is mostly missing the ways industry corrupted the science & public health guidelines for decades. This should inform regulatory policy. Scientists & agencies are now standing up to clarify, not shame individuals. #healthcommunication #CDoH
January 4, 2025 at 5:52 AM
Reposted by Eileen Brokaw
flodebarre.bsky.social
Five years ago (Saturday 4 Jan 2020), first communications by the World Health Organization about the Wuhan outbreak, via tweets: at 5:27 UTC by the Western Pacific Region account, and at 18:13 UTC by the main WHO account

xcancel.com/WHOWPRO/stat...
xcancel.com/WHO/status/1...
screenshot of the linked tweets by the Western Pacific WHO account. Text: 1) @WHOWPRO · Jan 4, 2020 #China has reported to WHO regarding a cluster of pneumonia cases in Wuhan, Hubei Province.The Govt has also met with our country office,and updated @WHO on the situation. Govt actions to control the incident have been instituted and investigations into the cause are ongoing. 1/3 2) @WHOWPRO · Jan 4, 2020 We’re closely monitoring the situation in Wuhan & are in active communication with our counterparts in China. We’ve activated our incident management system across the 3 levels of @WHO (country office, regional office, HQ) & can launch a broader response, if needed. 2/3 3) @WHOWPRO · Jan 4, 2020 #China has extensive capacity to respond to public health events and is responding proactively & rapidly to the current incident in Wuhan – isolating patients, tracing close contacts, cleaning up the market, and searching for the cause and for additional cases. 3/3 Screenshots of the linked tweets by the WHO main account: 1) @WHO · Jan 4, 2020 #China has reported to WHO a cluster of #pneumonia cases —with no deaths— in Wuhan, Hubei Province 🇨🇳 . Investigations are underway to identify the cause of this illness. 2) @WHO · Jan 4, 2020 WHO is closely monitoring this event and will share more details as we have them. WHO is working across the 3 levels (country office, regional office, HQ) to track the situation. #pneumonia #China
January 4, 2025 at 9:06 AM
Reposted by Eileen Brokaw
DEA contined to decrease the opioid medication supply for 2025 despite comments from patients, hospitals and health professionaks concerned about shortages. The DEA says it has no control over pharmacies being out-of-stock. www.painnewsnetwork.org/stories/2024...
DEA Keeping Supply of Rx Opioids Unchanged in 2025 — Pain News Network
By Pat Anson The Drug Enforcement Administration says it can’t do anything about shortages of opioid pain medication at U.S. pharmacies and will keep the 2025 opioid supply essentially unchanged from...
www.painnewsnetwork.org
January 1, 2025 at 9:11 PM
Reposted by Eileen Brokaw
drericding.bsky.social
5 years ago—Wuhan doctor Li Wenliang warns his colleagues on Dec 30 2019 that 7 people in Wuhan have been diagnosed with COVID. He was subsequently arrested for "spreading rumors". Dr Li died while treating patients on the front lines, of the disease he first tried the world about.
December 30, 2024 at 5:31 PM
Reposted by Eileen Brokaw
boghuma.bsky.social
Science affords us the luxury of forgetting the impact of infectious diseases
- In the 1st half of the 19th century 40-50% of children in US did not make it past the age of 5
- TB killed 1 in 7 people in US and Europe
- smallpox killed 80% of infected children
theconversation.com/infectious-d...
Infectious diseases killed Victorian children at alarming rates — their novels highlight the fragility of public health today
Between 40% and 50% of children didn’t live past 5 in the US during the 19th century. Popular authors like Charles Dickens documented the common but no less gutting grief of losing a child.
theconversation.com
December 29, 2024 at 5:34 PM
Reposted by Eileen Brokaw
atranscendedman.bsky.social
Study in Greece (2020–2023, 10M people) found COVID-19 linked to rises in rheumatoid arthritis (+20%), lupus, psoriatic arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, and systemic sclerosis.

SARS-CoV-2 may trigger autoimmunity.

link.springer.com/article/10.1...
COVID-19 is a trigger of autoimmune rheumatic diseases: a hypothesis tested over time - Rheumatology International
We discuss the paper recently published in Rheumatology Internationa. This article reflects on the prevalence of autoimmune rheumatic diseases (ARD) during the COVID-19 pandemic (2020–2023) and compar...
link.springer.com
December 29, 2024 at 3:00 PM
Reposted by Eileen Brokaw
taylorlorenz.bsky.social
The Washington Post is spreading the extremely dangerous and false anti vaxx “immunity debt” conspiracy theory. This anti vaxx conspiracy has been debunked repeatedly by scientists and yet WaPo continues to push it. Extremely dangerous www.thegauntlet.news/p/with-immun...
Wapo saying that “lockdowns” (which we didn’t have) 4 years ago are leading to more whooping cough cases. In fact that has nothing to do with it
December 26, 2024 at 4:26 PM
Reposted by Eileen Brokaw
bettycjung.bsky.social
December 27, 2024. CDC-Wastewater Map -
#FLU
Last updated 12/21/2024
{https://www.cdc.gov/respiratory-viruses/data/activity-levels.html} Take precautions! 😷💉
December 28, 2024 at 3:46 AM
Reposted by Eileen Brokaw
rheumatoidart.bsky.social
December 10, 2024 at 2:58 PM
Reposted by Eileen Brokaw
miguelhernan.org
Upgrade your #causalinference arsenal.

A revision of our book "Causal Inference: What If" is available at miguelhernan.org/whatifbook

Thanks to everyone who suggested improvements, reported typos, and proposed new citations and material.

Enjoy the #WhatIfBook plus code and data. Also, it's free.
December 23, 2024 at 9:28 AM
Reposted by Eileen Brokaw
georgetakei.bsky.social
As Republicans showed themselves to be the chaos agents that they are, completely unable to govern, Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries took to the House floor to expose their government spending hypocrisy. It's a must-watch.
Our Wins Of The Week
Well, so much for Donald’s honeymoon.
thinkbigpicture.substack.com
December 22, 2024 at 8:00 PM
Reposted by Eileen Brokaw
reallandsend.bsky.social
This past year of COVID has felt like a blur of denial, protest, abandonment and repression. We’re working on our episode about everything that’s happened this year, and I want to hear your answer to a question that I keep asking myself: What moments defined it for you?
reallandsend.bsky.social Beatrice Adler-Bolton @reallandsend.bsky.social · Dec 16
We’ve spent weeks retracing everything that happened in the 5th year of COVID. From new levels of denial, to criminalizing masking & the ongoing fight for care amid true end of pandemic safety net—so much of it shows not just where we’ve been, but exactly where we’re headed next
December 18, 2024 at 6:53 PM
Reposted by Eileen Brokaw
kaylan.bsky.social
Btw, not just polio we’ll have to worry about👇
December 14, 2024 at 9:08 AM
Reposted by Eileen Brokaw
nicumusings.bsky.social
Under no circumstances can history be allowed to repeat itself
#vaccination #polio #IDSky
jsalomon.bsky.social Joshua Salomon @jsalomon.bsky.social · Dec 13
Good day to recall some milestones in US polio history

1953 Worst recorded US outbreak kills more than 3000
1955 First polio vaccine licensed
1979 Polio considered eliminated from the United States
1994 Polio considered eliminated in North and South America

ourworldindata.org/grapher/repo...
Line graph titled "Reported paralytic polio cases and deaths, United States, 1910 to 2019." The graph displays two lines: one representing the number of reported polio cases and the other indicating reported deaths over the years. The case count peaks in the 1950s, with deaths showing a similar trend. The x-axis represents the years (1910 to 2019), while the y-axis shows the number of cases and deaths.
December 13, 2024 at 7:27 PM