What Cancer Epidemic?

Every place I have lived people claimed some kind of Cancer epidemic.
Cancer is a disease of the aged, and the common element of the cells is multiploidy or multiples of the normal genome compliment.
Cancer is on the decline inspite of the EPA claim that they find carcinogens everywhere.
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/cncr.28509/abstract
From the National Cancer Institute’s article
For the past two decades, both the incidence and mortality of cancer in America has been in decline. Earlier, in the 1990s, the rate of decline was quite rapid, all things considered, largely due to rather astounding reductions in smoking that followed the first Surgeon General’s report in 1964 (cancers from smoking both develop over at least a decade or more, and decline with a similar lag period after quitting).
A new report published in the journal Cancer documents the continuation of this salutary trend. However, the rate of reduction in both death and incidence (new cancers) has slowed quite a bit, again owing largely to the slower fall in smoking rates over the past 10 years or so.
From 2001 through 2010, death rates for all cancers combined decreased by 1.8 percent a year among men and by 1.4 percent a year among women, according to the joint report from some of the nation’s top cancer institutions (including the CDC, the NCI and the American Cancer Society).
“The four major cancers — lung, colorectal, breast and prostate — represent over two-thirds of the decline,” study author Brenda Edwards, a senior advisor for cancer surveillance at the U.S. National Cancer Institute, told HealthDay News.
Let’s see, EPA says cancer is a big problem, and air as well as every other thing they have identified as a carcinogen in their silly rat tests is raising havoc int he population, but the NCI says that cancer is in decline.
Maybe we should reconsider the EPA effort to take us back to those good old days?

That's the Culprit, the Thing

Remember that The Thing was a monster discovered from an alien landing in Antarctica.
Now Antarctica is biting back.
Here is the NYT warning us about Antarctic ice–like it’s malicious.

1969 New York Times: Princeton scientists worried that Antarctic ice would start a new ice age

Sweet Revenge

in olden days some guy named Mawson was sailing (that’s what they had before those evil fossil fuel engines) along on the shores of the Antarctica.
Now the people trying to duplicate his cruise of discovery are trapped and their saviors are trapped.
Now I will admit that I, a stupid emergency physician, advised against this cruise, given a colder trend in the Northern hemisphere that did not bode well for teh Southern, but no one listened.
I also agree that no matter what they say, if there is warming–and there ain’t, it could circulate more water vapor and cause more snow and ice in a perpetually cold place like Antarctica
http://stevengoddard.wordpress.com/2013/12/28/antarctica-the-canary-in-the-cuckoo-mine/

2013 Dumb, 2014 Dumber

Here they come, the true believers.
And there is no denying that the true believer thugs have no fear–they will roll the opposition unless the opposition sucks it up.

Climate change debate ready to heat up in 2014 as major aspects of Obama’s climate plan come to fruition

Clarice, 1984, and a Salute to Milloy.

JunkScience.com asks questions and challenges assumptions on matters of scientific inquiry that impact public opinion and political policy making.
Pretentions of establishment funded and designated “experts” are evaluated with a skeptical eye.
Continue reading Clarice, 1984, and a Salute to Milloy.

Alternative Medicine (cont.)

A JunkScience.com fan sent a note of inquiry about a surge in alternative medicine talk and linked me to an item on WebMD about Alternative and Complementary methods of treating pain. Actually that is one place where the placebo effect of unscientific medicine can have good effects.
Let’s consider. Medicine for pain and psych stuff should always be liberally sprinkled with placebo laced methods. They work.
Benefits from placebo effect don’t mean you’re faking, it means you are cooperating and finding some chemical neurohumeral and psychological benefits.
Continue reading Alternative Medicine (cont.)

Sewerage? Now there's a Wonderful Idea

In a good share of the world public health policy making is about important stuff–not big gulps and sugary drinks, but real progress like sewers and toilets and a safe water supply. India is developing or developed country (in some areas), just like any 3rd world country, they have a way to go for much of their population.
http://www.newindianexpress.com/editorials/Building-Toilets-Key-to-Improving-Public-Health/2013/12/28/article1968656.ece