UPDATE BELOW
If you want to draw attention to a problem, try hiding it. That's the strategy of several military bases when it comes to the H1N1 vaccine.
Shortly after the Pentagon announced that all Armed Services personnel would soon be facing a mandatory H1N1 vaccination program, I started receiving email from soldiers, airmen, marines and sailors because of a previous story I had written on the anthrax vaccine. Mandatory vaccine programs are a sensitive subject in the military, so it's not a huge surprise that swift and visceral reactions to the program gained speed.
With a vaccine that was so new and little known about it, like many Americans, troops were heading to the web to find answers to their very legitimate questions -- not only for themselves, but for their families who have the option of receiving the vaccine on base. What they found instead is that several websites and blogs with key information asking critical questions had been blocked from their viewing.
Among those that were repeatedly mentioned as blocked sites are the National Vaccine Information Center (NVIC), the site for Gary Matsumoto's book Vaccine-A, and vaccine expert Dr. Meryl Nass. NVIC is a national, non-profit founded in 1980s that, through public education, advocates "vaccine safety and informed consent protections in the mass vaccination system." Matsumoto's site contains a forum in which thousands upon thousands of service members have posted testimonies regarding their experiences with the anthrax vaccine. And Nass is one of the world's foremost experts on vaccines who has testified in front of Congressional committees -- and, I might add, never has had a malpractice suit brought against her.
The Center for Disease Control (CDC), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) sites, however, are all available for military personnel. The official word from governmental agencies is welcome but critics, regardless of whether they were considered experts, are not.
According to the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs, the only blocking of websites Pentagon-wide was in 2007, when a number of heavy-trafficked sites that "used lots of bandwidth" had to be denied to reduce the wear on networks "to ensure they continued to be available for mission requirements."
That turns out not to be entirely accurate.
Some of you may recall the reporting earlier this year when wired.com's Danger Room blog reported that the Pentagon was blocking not only YouTube, but even their own TroopTube.
When TroopTube launched last November, for instance, it was billed as an answer to the bandwidth and security concerns surrounding other video sites. TroopTube "crunches video files into several sizes and automatically plays the one that best suits viewers' Internet connection speeds," the Associated Press reported at the time. And "a Pentagon employee screens each [upload] for taste, copyright violations and national security issues."
Nonetheless, the public affairs office at the Pentagon further instructed me that "anything that may be blocked at the Service or base level should be addressed there -- it's a local issue."
Since I had the most information (and the most complaints) about Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio, that's where I directed my questions. After repeated email and phones calls, nearly two weeks later a spokesperson for Wright-Patterson told me that:
The Air Force general policy is all websites are placed into categories based upon their content and intended audience. All unethical categories are blocked as are any sites that are uncategorized. Currently the sites referenced are blocked because they are uncategorized.
A wholly unsatisfactory answer that side-stepped the question, I took this statement to mean that blocking these websites had nothing to do with bandwidth use as in the Pentagon statement and everything to do with the content.
I asked the follow-up question: Since this is a recent decision to block them, why would they not just be categorized rather than being uncategorized? As a result, they would not be blocked for educational purposes of service personnel who have a mandatory H1N1 vaccination program?
Wright-Patterson did not respond to this question.
Making sure that servicemen and servicewomen consent to the vaccine and are informed is apparently not a concern for the Department of Defense. But the message is very clear for one service member who contacted me: "All you need to know is what we're telling you, so shut up and take the vaccine with no questions asked."
Nass, one of the experts whose site has been blocked, points out the real shame in all of this: "It's unfortunate that the service members who are defending our civil rights are not afforded the same consideration."
Note: If you're on a base that has blocked websites related to the H1N1 vaccine, I'd love to know what sites are blocked and what base you're on. You can post the info in the comments below or contact me directly.
UPDATE (11/18/09): See my piece on how the Air Force is now requiring that children in on-base daycare to get the vaccine.
Follow Allen McDuffee on Twitter: www.twitter.com/allen_mcduffee
Andy Stern: Goldman Sachs: It's Time to Put Country Before Company
We're taking to the streets because it seems as if companies like Goldman Sachs love their company more than their country. Goldman Sachs seems to salute no flag but their own corporate logo.
Loading comments… 
Mr. Betz, from the government who opposed Dr. Tenpenny & Dawn, introduced his colleagues with him as his "partners in crime" & I don't think he was kidding.
Debate;
http://www
to be used, manipulate
where ? are the Brave ones in the land called freedom !
lungs look burnt Doc said !!
It was stated when this comes out, it will make the Walter Reed scandal pale in comparison
NBC reports on secret shots leaving many on the brink of death in the military & it was found the mystery shots were flu vaccine.
A highly praised Department of Defense Medical Officer disclosed that thousands are having severe reactions & he believes they are being used as guinea pigs in experiment
"The ‘big lie" H1N1 coincidenc
Part 1
http://www
Part 2
http://www
As far as I understand
Now, if the military base decided to start regulating the internet that went to their soldier who reside in military housing, then there would be a problem!
Why are you giving every excuse for the military and ignoring exactly what they're explicitly stating? The Wright-Pat
I am not making excuses for the military. And it very well might be the content. But think about what that means. It could be alot more than just anti vaccines. It could be both content and security issues. Really, all it comes down to is that in this instance, they are not taking any rights away from the soldiers by not allowing them to view most webpages, and the soldiers shouldn't be at work surfing the net anyhow. That's what their home computers are for, or they also have computer shops for those in AIT where they can go and surf for a fee. The same thing happens in alot of big companies! It's nothing new.
I think there's alot more inportant things to talk about when it comes to the military and vaccines. Like their lack of recognizin
I thought this was just a friendly debate, not a fight. I didn't post anything agressive. Can we talk in a non agressive way?
Something flat out wrong about a substance that has had no study time, no proven history of effectiven
Blog: http://nat
I'm also organizing a protest against forced vaccinatio
And the H1N1 flu frauds catagory on my blog has a complete roundup of videos, links, articles and more: http://nat
Jenny Hatch
"Just get your damn vaccine"
http://www
After the second booster shot and completing my tour of duty I was at home in bed. At 2:30 AM I woke up and could not breath. I was taken by ambulance to the ER. The army did not know what I had. It felt like a ton of bricks was on my chest. Eventually I was diagnosed with sleep apnea. It appeared to be a brain dysfunctio
Be careful and chose wisely! God Bless- I am out due to retirement and disability
Beware soldiers! Don't be used. Tanox was the biggest biotech IPO at the time...fol