Chris,A thousand thanks for your research. For my part, I researched how to let Sanjay Gupta know, and found this URL as a way to contact him - through the CNN website: http://www.cnn.com/feedback/forms/form5.html?67
I think this might be a first line of "defense": to ask Sanjay to reevaluate his approval of FC. Here's the second line of defense: email Barack's transition team. This URL gives you the option on the right of the page, in "Citizen's Briefing Book" to give your ideas, and "we'll give them to the President." (I have to assume they mean the wonderful one coming, and not the present one.) Here's the URL: http://change.gov/ And here's a third option, from the Amazing Randi's blog, which gives a suggestion for what to say if you choose the second line: Hank Schlinger, Ph.d copied us on the following missive: Dear Obama Transition Team, I am writing to express my strong opposition to Dr. Sanjay Gupta for U.S. Surgeon general. Dr. Gupta has actively promoted facilitated communication (FC) as a valid communication method for people with autism. FC has been thoroughly discredited scientifically, a fact which Dr. Gupta refuses to accept, opting instead for anecdotes and personal observation as evidence of its validity. The job of Surgeon General of the United States is too important to be offered to someone who has consistently promoted a pseudoscientific technique that has harmed so many children and their families. Thank you. Beth Benoit Granite State College New Hampshire On Fri, Jan 16, 2009 at 6:49 PM, Christopher D. Green <[email protected]>wrote: > > Dear TIPsters, > > It may dismay you to learn that Barack Obama's apparent choice for surgeon > general, Sanjay Gupta, is a supporter of the (thoroughly discredited) > Facilitated Communication as a "treatment" autism. See below. Write to him > and tell him "no." > > (And, by the way, the article cited, authored by my colleagues Bebko, > Perry, and Bryson, did NOT support FC, despite CNN's tendentious > misinterpretation of it.) > > Chris > -- > > Christopher D. Green > Department of Psychology > York University > Toronto, ON M3J 1P3 > Canada > > > > 416-736-2100 ex. 66164 > [email protected] > http://www.yorku.ca/christo/ > > ========================== > > > Begin forwarded message: > > > *From: *"Hank Schlinger, Ph.D." <[email protected]> > > *Date: *January 6, 2009 3:05:16 PM PST > > *To: *Autism3 > > *Subject: **Surgeon General* > > > Read the information below from Jim Todd and then please take a moment and > go to the Obama website below and ask the Team NOT to consider Sanjay Gupta > for Surgeon General. If enough people oppose this possible nomination, maybe > they will drop his nam from consideration. (see my comments to President > Elect Obama below) > > > http://change.gov/page/content/contact/ > > > "CNN reports that Sanjay Gupta, who has actively promoted facilitated > communication as a valid and useful communication method, is being > considered for United States Surgeon General. > > > http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/01/06/gupta.surgeon.general/index.html > > > Here are some links to Gupta's promotion of FC. > > > > http://www.cnn.com/HEALTH/blogs/paging.dr.gupta/2007/10/giving-autism-voice.html > > http://www.cnn.com/CNN/Programs/presents/shows/autism.world/fc/index.html > > http://edition.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0804/02/acd.02.html > > > http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/swift-blog/121-swift-november-9-2007.html > > > Gupta also seems to believe that autism activist Amanda Baggs actually has > autism. Baggs is unique among people with autism for having "regressed" to a > semi-nonverbal, semi-ambulatory state in her late teens after attending > Simon's Rock College and the Johns Hopkins Center for Talent Youth. When I > last saw her a few months ago, she was laying on the floor on a cot at a > meeting being fed by someone. Her problems do not seem to preclude her > signing and making YouTube videos. > > > > http://www.cnn.com/HEALTH/blogs/paging.dr.gupta/2007/11/autism-finding-amanda.html > > > As far as developmental disabilities are concerned, Gupta seems not to > understand the depth of his ignorance. Real people suffer real harm because > of his advocacy of autism pseudoscience and his promotion of ersatz experts > over real scientists." > > > > Dear Obama Transition Team, > > > I am writing to express my strong opposition to Dr. Sajnay Gupta for U.S. > Surgeon general. > > > Dr. Gupta has actively promoted facilitated communication (FC) as a valid > communication method for people with autism. FC has been thoroughly > discredited scientifically, a fact which Dr. Gupta refuses to accept, opting > instead for anecdotes and personal observation as evidence of its validity. > > > The job of Surgeon General of the United States is too important to be > offered to someone who has consistently promoted a pseudoscientific > technique that has harmed so many children and their families. > > > Thank you. > > > > > > -- > James A. Mulick, Ph.D. > > We tried sometimes to examine a > question to determine the truth by > logic. For as we said, what use to > chase the Spartans from Attic soil > if we grow Doric wits ourselves? > > Visit and leave a comment on my Blog at http://mulick.blogspot.com/ > Buy my book: > http://www.springer.com/psychology/child+%26+school+psychology/book/978-0-387-88714-2 > > > > --- > To make changes to your subscription contact: > > Bill Southerly ([email protected]) > > -- "We will not learn how to live in peace by killing each other's children." - Jimmy Carter "Are our children more precious than theirs?" --- To make changes to your subscription contact: Bill Southerly ([email protected])
