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About this blog: I am a native of Alameda County, grew up in Pleasanton and currently live in the house I grew up in that is more than 100 years old. I spent 39 years in the daily newspaper business and wrote a column for more than 25 years in add...  (More)

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Cancelling opinions and people's jobs

Uploaded: Dec 29, 2020
The cancel culture that has infected colleges for years now sadly is spreading throughout the sciences and beyond.

The latest example, as reported by KTVU, is Dr. Michael deBoisblanc, a Walnut Creek-based surgeon who practices at John Muir Medical Center. At the request of parents, the doctor and two colleagues wrote a letter to the Contra Costa County Public Health Director questioning the latest lockdowns.

The result: John Muir eliminated his contract as the director of trauma services at the hospital. The John Muir statement read, “"The doctor is employed through an outside contract," And after careful consideration, John Muir Health is not continuing with Dr. Deboisblanc in that position." The statement, given to NBC Bay Area News, was read by Fox News anchor Sandra Smith during its report on the firing last Wednesday.
When I reached out to Dr. deBoisBlanc’s office asking for comment, my call Thursday was not returned and the woman who answered his office phone Monday simply said no when asked if I could interview him. Notably, the doctor is a member of the Army Reserve and has been deployed as a surgeon to the Balkans, Iraqi and Afghanistan combat theaters. That’s experience that’s ideal for a trauma center surgeon.
There’s no question that the continuing remote school is significantly damaging children’s education to say nothing of their mental health. That’s despite research that shows children are at almost no risk for the COVID-19 virus and do not spread it. As I reported two weeks ago, a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association the spring shutdown alone resulted in 5.53 million fewer years of life based on educational attainment. The same report estimated 1.47 million years of life would have been lost if schools had remained opened.
Remember, that’s just the spring and the entire fall semester for most students has been remote as well. That’s nearly twice as many school days missed.
The Contra Costa physicians are certainly not alone in questioning the wisdom of the lockdowns. Dr. Scott Atlas of the Hoover Institute at Stanford University, who advised President Trump on the virus during the fall, has been an outspoken critic. He wrote in the Wall Street Journal, “… nearly all states used the same draconian policies that people now insist on hardening, even though the number of positive cases increased while people’s movements were constrained, business activities were strictly limited, and schools were closed. Governors in all but a few states—Florida and South Dakota are notable exceptions—imposed curfews, quarantines, directives on group gatherings, and mask mandates.
Mobility tracking verifies that people restricted their movement. Gallup and YouGov data show that 80% to 90% of Americans have been wearing masks since early August. Lockdown policies had baleful effects on local economies, families and children, and the virus spread anyway. If one advocates more lockdowns because of bad outcomes so far, why don’t the results of those lockdowns matter?”
Amen.
Public health directors and governors are viewing the virus through a myopic periscope instead of considering the broader effects of their actions.
Atlas later wrote, “Yet empirical data from the U.S., Europe and Japan show that lockdowns don’t eliminate the virus and don’t stop the virus from spreading. They do, however, create extremely harmful health and social problems beyond a dramatic drop in learning, including a tripling of reported depression, skyrocketing suicidal ideation, unreported child abuse, skipped visits for cancer and other medical care.
It adds up to a future health disaster. “For younger people, the lockdowns are so harmful, so deadly, there’s really no good justification,” says Stanford’s Jay Bhattacharya, especially when considering their extremely low risk from Covid-19.”
Bhattacharya is one of three authors of the Great Barrington Declaration, which has been signed by more than 54,000 medical professionals as well as more than 712,000 other people. It argues the right action is to protect vulnerable populations, but let other people resume normal activities.
Dr. Atlas concludes his opinion piece, “The media has done its best to misinform the public with political attacks about who is to blame for this pain and misery even as it diminishes the great achievement of the new vaccines. The decline of objectivity in journalism has been evident for years. Now we see that even respected scientific journals, which are supposed to vet and publish the best objective research, have been contaminated by politics. Social media has become the arbiter of allowable discussion, while universities intimidate and suppress the free exchange of ideas necessary to uncover scientific truths.
It is not at all clear that American society with its cherished freedoms will survive, regardless of our success in defeating the pandemic threat.”
Well said.

Community.
What is it worth to you?

Comments

Posted by Lahommed, a resident of Dublin,
on Dec 29, 2020 at 9:56 am

Lahommed is a registered user.

Cancel culture is the Cancer that is hurting American and Americans. Time to get back to basics, common sense and lawfulness. Our colleges are breeding grounds for insane liberalism ideology that simply does not work. Our Politicians must be held to a much higher standard and if they fail us then they pay a higher price. At the rate we are going now we will a third world country by the end of the decade! Time to go old school in politics, schools and society. I could go on but I think I have made my point! If I haven't then we are truly lost!


Posted by DublinMike, a resident of Dublin,
on Dec 29, 2020 at 10:18 am

DublinMike is a registered user.

What about insane conservative ideology at Hoover? Guess that doesn't count.

I do agree with "Our Politicians must be held to a much higher standard."

Nothing like a little biased commentary. BTW, Dr. Atlas is a professor of NEURORADIOLOGY not infectious diseases.


Posted by BobB, a resident of Vintage Hills,
on Dec 29, 2020 at 10:40 am

BobB is a registered user.

DeBoisblanc likes to play fast and loose with the facts, and that is a problem.

Have a look at this. Web Link

"This Doctor Said His Hospital Had Seen "A Year's Worth Of Suicide Attempts" In Four Weeks Because Of The Coronavirus Lockdowns. That Wasn't True."

"But in an interview with BuzzFeed News, deBoisblanc said his comment about the hospital seeing "a year's worth of suicide attempts in the last four weeks" was inaccurate. He added that at the time he didn't know what the true numbers were."

"Numbers provided by the hospital and the coroner's office also show that the "sharp rise" in suicides initially claimed by deBoisblanc, which alarmed political pundits criticizing quarantine orders, were either overblown or outright false."

And so on. Seems to me that John Muir Medical Center made a sound decision to remove him from the director position. This isn't an example of "cancel culture".

The same can be said for Scott Atlas. He hasn't been cancelled at all. He is still employed and publishes articles and gives interviews. Atlas's pronouncements regarding COIVID-19 policy generally aren't taken very seriously. That is a good thing. His own criticism is being criticized by people who know what they are talking about.


Posted by Kevin, a resident of Castlewood,
on Dec 29, 2020 at 11:25 am

Kevin is a registered user.

Right on, BobB and DublinMike! Thank you for bringing sanity to the blog post. Tim is quoting discredited so-called experts. Tim and his team of Trump supporters in this forum go to extremes to find losers and discredited data to support conclusions they have already reached. Sane and objective people look for real data and real experts with different interpretations and opinions to come to a conclusion. That is why Tim and his camp are in minority in this country when it comes to Covid. Thank God!


Posted by Kevin, a resident of Castlewood,
on Dec 29, 2020 at 7:26 pm

Kevin is a registered user.

Infectious Disease Society of America (IDSA) opinion on herd immunity - which is what Scott Atlas and the Great Barrier Declaration is promoting.

Web Link

I read and listened to several articles and talks about pros/ cons of herd immunity including Scott Atlas's opinion in Wall Street Journal Editorial section (not sponsored by Wall Street Journal since it is one person's opinion). I am convinced that National Institute of Health (Dr. Fauci) and the IDSA and thousands of other healthcare providers are right. Tim, Trump and Atlas are wrong!

It does not mean that all the policies and restrictions are perfect! There is a lot of pain and suffering on all fronts - small businesses, families, kids and most impactful the people who have died from Covid, their families.


Posted by Michael Austin , a resident of Pleasanton Meadows,
on Dec 29, 2020 at 7:49 pm

Michael Austin is a registered user.

I do not like President Donald Trump.

I did not vote for him when he ran for president against Hillary Clinton.

However, I liked how the economy responded to Trumps election as president, I liked how Trump nominated conservative judges to the U.S. Supreme Court.

I voted for Trump in his race for president against That other guy, I can't remember other guys name.


Posted by Michael Austin , a resident of Pleasanton Meadows,
on Dec 29, 2020 at 7:58 pm

Michael Austin is a registered user.


BREAKING NEWS! December 29, 2020:

President Donald Trump wins title of "Americas most admired man".


Posted by American, a resident of Danville,
on Dec 30, 2020 at 8:56 am

American is a registered user.

@Kevin: "sane and objective people look for real data and real experts with different interpretations and opinions to come to a conclusion". Yes, I agree 100% with your statement. However, I find little to nothing that you have posted recently that suggests you follow that statement. Rather, you start with a conclusion that:(1)Everything about President Trump and his polices are horrible and evil and lets try to find things to support this;(2) Everything about Tim and his blog is horrible and evil and lets try to find things to support this;(3) Everything about Christian churches are horrible and evil and lets try to find things to support this.

If you are truly "objective", you should be able to come up with at least 5 things about President Trump, Tim, and Christian churches mentioned above that are positive and that you support. It is very easy to find something negative about any person or entity, as nobody or no thing except God is perfect and faultless.

For example, while I do not agree with President elect Biden on most policies, objectively, I can find at least 5 things I support. I support him or his policy on: Encouraging everyone to wear a mask; Refusing to agree with "Progressives" on their call to defund the police; Requiring health insurance policies to cover pre-existing conditions; Mentioning that his Catholic faith helped him overcome the despair of the death of his first wife and children; Publicizing and encouraging the adoption of rescue dogs rather than "puppy mills" and bringing a rescue dog to the Whitehouse.

You would have some credibility, and actually be "objective", if you acknowledged policies that your "enemies" support, rather than bringing a flamethrower to every post crucifying them.


Posted by Jill Miller, a resident of Vintage Hills Elementary School,
on Dec 30, 2020 at 10:00 am

Jill Miller is a registered user.

You lost me when you cited Scott Atlas to make your point.


Posted by Kevin, a resident of Castlewood,
on Dec 30, 2020 at 10:39 am

Kevin is a registered user.

American, my poor opinion of Trump goes way back to when he was in Casino business in New Jersey. I lived in New York and then New Jersey back then and learned about how he went into bankruptcy to save himself while destroying a lot of small businesses that he owed money to. Based on what I have seen and experienced, Trump is inherently evil. I can think of an overwhelming amount of negatives about him that drown any positives he may have done!

As for Tim, I am all for his blogging about local pleasanton news. Examples are news about 10x Genomics expansion, etc. once he dabbles in politics aboard Trump bandwagon and starts sharing lies and rumors, I am going to be right on top of him. I am not going to be a bystander in Trump and post-Trump era - I am going to call out BS and garbage from Tim and anyone else in any forum.

As for Christianity, My problem is not with the religion or Jesus Christ. It is with people like Tim (as an elder of GraceWay church in Pleasanton) and other Christian leaders who do opposite of what they pretend to believe. They spread hatred, rumors and criticize. Jesus is about gospel, grace and love. They are the reason church is in decline especially with the youth.


Posted by PToWN94566, a resident of Another Pleasanton neighborhood,
on Dec 30, 2020 at 10:51 am

PToWN94566 is a registered user.

Jesus- nothing like spouting off asinine statements that haven't even been studying ("...extremely harmful health and social problems beyond a dramatic drop in learning, including a tripling of reported depression, skyrocketing suicidal ideation, unreported child abuse, skipped visits for cancer and other medical care.)

Where's the data to back up your claims Tim? Can we cancel you for reporting on studies that haven't even been complete? You're just as bad as trump for pushing ideas that aren't backed in science. National statistics haven't even been released yet ya'll want to scream "skyrocketing suicides". And if these numbers ever turn up in the future, how do you know the suicides weren't committed because of a family member dying from covid?

The last paragraph is quite comical too. The media doing its best to misinform people, colleges and universities suppressing ideas, and social media being the end all to any discussions. You literally support someone that pushed his hoax beliefs and "it'll disappear after the election". You support someone who uses social media to diminish others based on physical characteristics. Did you see his tweet from last night trying to tie Brad Raffensperger to aa nonexistent brother? If you want to be believable at least support someone who doesn't push straight up lies and uses social media to attack others based on looks.

Pleasanton Weekly, maybe it's time to find a conservative that doesn't push ridiculous tea party thoughts. These articles by Tim are just as bad and dangerous as listening to Dr. Michael deBoisblanc or the crazy voodoo doctor we all saw on television (that one that believes STD's are from demon sex).


Posted by Malcolm Hex, a resident of San Ramon,
on Dec 30, 2020 at 11:00 am

Malcolm Hex is a registered user.

A repost for Kevin (The Crier of Castlewood)

The Spanish Flu (New York Times March 20, 2020) A left leaning rag. Read on:

“On Sept. 17, 1918, Royal S. Copeland, a homeopathic physician, was appointed New York City's health commissioner. He arranged with businesses to stagger work hours. White-collar offices would open at 8:40 a.m. and close at 4:30 p.m.; wholesalers would start their days earlier, non-textile manufacturers would start later. Stores selling food and drugs were exempt.

Schools, he reasoned, were often more sanitary than housing, particularly in the slums. New York City schools, moreover, boasted a well-established system of child health monitoring and care. Copeland, accordingly, KEPT THE SCHOOLS OPEN. In addition, Copeland also allowed certain theaters to reman open.

More pertinent is the fact that New York's death rate per 1,000 residents was 4.7, a figure dramatically lower than that of comparable cities ?" Boston's was 6.5 and Philadelphia's was 7.3."

So, New York's death rate was significantly LOWER than that of comparable cities. Huh, imagine that. And SCHOOLS and BUSINESSES remained OPEN. Least I forget that NY, as well as the rest of the country back then, did not have hygiene standards that are in practice today. Also, NY had better leadership from its mayor and governor compared to the two idiots that currently serve there now. BTW, that goes for California too.

Oh but wait! Here is the best part!

Kevin from Castlewood blames Trump for for our current predicament regarding the Spanish Flu. Interesting. Interesting because Woodrow Wilson (a Democrat) was President of the United States in 1918. Here's more from The NY Times article:

“The virus arrived on Aug. 11, 1918, aboard the Norwegian vessel Bergensfjord. The ship had wired ahead that 10 passengers had taken ill and three had died at sea. The boat was met at the pier by ambulances and health officers, who whisked the sick to Brooklyn's Norwegian Hospital. On Aug. 16 the Nieuw Amsterdam out of Rotterdam made landfall bearing 22 stricken, and on Sept. 4 the French liner Rochambeau brought in 22 more. The city's Department of Health placed the afflicted in isolation at the Willard Parker Hospital on East 16th Street and the French Hospital on West 34th.

On Sept. 15, 1918, the first death from what was being called the Spanish influenza was recorded. (There was nothing Spanish about the supremely contagious disease; it was rampant among all Europe's combatant armies and countries, but under reported, due to military censorship, except in neutral Spain, where coverage was unchecked)."

Well, well, well... Looks like the Chinese did their own form of censorship too, right Kevin?

President Wilson, as well of the rest of the country, knew the flu was rampant in Europe. Yet Wilson allowed travelers from Europe entry into the United States. When Trump attempted to stop flights coming in from China, Pelosi called him a racist.

I do not blame President Wilson or President Wilson for past and current deaths related to the pandemic. But I will say this: Thank you President Trump for Operation Warp Speed!!!! And I'm sure President Wilson would have done the same thing had he had our technology back then.

Kevin, you might want to stay in your little fortress up there in la la land. But should you venture out, take comfort in the fact knowing that we are moving ahead... At WARP SPEED.

What say you, Castlewood Crier? What say YOU?

FACTS: Web Link


Posted by Kevin, a resident of Castlewood,
on Dec 30, 2020 at 11:03 am

Kevin is a registered user.

I totally agree with you Jill Miller! Tim is citing an editorial by Scott Atlas in Wall Street Journal Opinion section. Does Tim even know what Scott Atlas's qualifications ( or lack thereof) are? The only reason He worked for Trump is because he is a “yes sir" guy.


Posted by Kevin, a resident of Castlewood,
on Dec 30, 2020 at 11:28 am

Kevin is a registered user.

Malcolm Hex, DHKSK, Dan or whatever your name is, you are all over the place with your post. I don't know how to respond. But thanks for link to the NYTimes piece about NY during the Spanish flue.

As for operation warp speed, you apparently have not followed latest news that they are not hitting the targets they (Trump's team) had set. We have great scientists who developed the vaccine in record time and We have a great military team that is in charge of delivering vaccines to the states. But, Trump's team did not consider and did not plan for getting the vaccines from the point of delivery by the military into a syringe into people's arms.

Here is an article with links to Operation Warp Speed news conference reporting that they are way behind.


Posted by Kevin, a resident of Castlewood,
on Dec 30, 2020 at 11:29 am

Kevin is a registered user.

Web Link

The link


Posted by Mr. Kalugin, a resident of another community,
on Dec 30, 2020 at 11:45 am

Mr. Kalugin is a registered user.

Kevin,

Sir, you contradicted yourself. First, you said your problem is not with religion, or Jesus Christ. You said your problem is with Tim as an elder at Grace Way Church in Pleasanton. You also stated that you have problems with Christian leaders.

In essence, you have a problem with religion.


Posted by DKHSK, a resident of Bridle Creek,
on Dec 30, 2020 at 2:32 pm

DKHSK is a registered user.

Wanna see the difference between irrational and rational public health policy?

Look up the cases and deaths from COVID in California and compare them with Texas and Florida.

You're welcome.

Dan


Posted by American, a resident of Danville,
on Dec 30, 2020 at 3:48 pm

American is a registered user.

@Kevin: I think you made my point when you noted "Trump is inherently evil"...You start with that premise which obviously makes you anything but objective and open minded to conflicting facts with your premise...I am guessing from reading your regular posts that you are younger than me. I have learned over the years that almost nobody is "inherently good or evil". There is usually some good in "bad people" and some bad in "good people"...If you look beyond the surface and actually dig deep you will find this to be true. It is rare to find a Charles Manson or a Mother Teresa. I know you are apparently not a fan of organized religion, but in the New Year just consider watching one on line Mass on Catholic T.V.-see if you have less anger, and more empathy for others who may not think or act like you.God bless.


Posted by Michael72688, a resident of Vineyard Avenue,
on Dec 30, 2020 at 4:23 pm

Michael72688 is a registered user.

I keep telling myself to donate to Pleasanton Weekly and then one of these Tim Hunt columns appears; it's like the opposite of investigative journalism.


Posted by Grumpy, a resident of Vineyard Avenue,
on Dec 31, 2020 at 7:07 am

Grumpy is a registered user.

Ugh, this was an unpleasant blog to read.

This is why I keep on asking why Tim has a blog. I'm not at all saying that he should be cancelled. I'm sure his blog costs nothing anyway. I just don't know why PW doesn't try to get someone different to feature. Surely Pleasanton has many conservative leaders of major public corporations whose views might be well thought out and enlightening to a possibly disagreeing audience.

The whole blog feels rushed. Typos, formatting errors, gaps in logic, and a dose of bile make for an awkward read.


Posted by DKHSK, a resident of Bridle Creek,
on Dec 31, 2020 at 8:57 pm

DKHSK is a registered user.

"Cancelling opinions and people's jobs"

So Grumpy responds: "This is why I keep on asking why Tim has a blog."

And follows up with: "I'm not at all saying that he should be cancelled."

Then goes on to ironically state: "I just don't know why PW doesn't try to get someone different to feature."

You seem confused, G.

Dan




Posted by Kevin, a resident of Castlewood,
on Jan 1, 2021 at 6:32 pm

Kevin is a registered user.

Post version 2.0 since my first version was deleted and topic was closed:

The rejection of science by Trump and his supporters is similar to instances of history when dictators and their supporters rejected and twisted facts and science that did not support them. Trump and his supporters including elected officials in the Republican Party are rejecting result of election without any evidence. Another action of dictatorship and blind followers.

I am thankful for living in the US with a majority that believes in democracy and our constitution. Our dictator Trump has been overthrown!!


Posted by DKHSK, a resident of Bridle Creek,
on Jan 2, 2021 at 11:13 am

DKHSK is a registered user.

"Our dictator Trump has been overthrown!!"

No really, how old are you?


Posted by BobB, a resident of Vintage Hills,
on Jan 2, 2021 at 1:41 pm

BobB is a registered user.

Covid deaths as of 1/2/2021 (Google)

CA -- 26,236
TX -- 28,434

Current population:

CA -- 39.51 million
TX -- 29 million

"Texas started 2021 with a record number of people hospitalized for COVID-19"

"Under Gov. Greg Abbott's plan to revive the economy, businesses started reopening in May. But Abbott paused further reopening plans and scaled back others in June, telling one TV station he regretted reopening bars too quickly."

Web Link

Missing your point.


Posted by Kevin, a resident of Castlewood,
on Jan 3, 2021 at 11:16 am

Kevin is a registered user.

Thank you BobB for posting facts and data that supports the facts!

I encourage all readers to take the time to react to Tim's posts - silence should not be acceptable- voice your opinions and vote in elections!

In Trump's world, facts don't matter if they in anyway oppose him. Tim and Trump supporters don't care about data, science, facts. They support Trump and oppose anything else. They go to extreme to find people like Scott Atlas to support their garbage and reject experts like National Institute of Health.

They are making a mockery of US election results even though the data, process and facts have been established again and again. We are thankful that the majority of Americans see through their BS and voted out the dictator. The Trump supporters will continue to decline in numbers and morality as long as they keep this up and have people like Tim as their spokesperson.

Listen to tape of Trump threatening and pressuring the Georgia Republican state election officials.

Web Link

Or Lin Wood, pro-Trump attorney is tweeting that Mike Pence should be arrested and face death by firing squad if he allows the election results to stand.

Web Link



Posted by DKHSK, a resident of Bridle Creek,
on Jan 3, 2021 at 2:36 pm

DKHSK is a registered user.

BobB,

Actually , the latest numbers from Texas at mid-27k but lets not quibble. My point is that Texas, for the most part, has an open economy and they are tracking fairly close to California, which has a closed economy and has stricter mandates.

I did notice you somehow forgot to post what was happening in Florida, eh?

Here it is: Web Link

21,987 deaths for a population of 21.5 mil. The economy there is much like Texas. Totally open.

Tell me again why closing down a state due to a virus is significantly better than not closing it down?

I await your response.

Dan


Posted by BobB, a resident of Vintage Hills,
on Jan 3, 2021 at 5:20 pm

BobB is a registered user.

DKHSK,

I'll summarize.

"Totally open". No partially open.

Web Link

Texas more open. More deaths.
CA less open. Fewer deaths.

Texas regretted being too open too soon. Just like Sweden. They both publicly admitted it.


Posted by DKHSK, a resident of Bridle Creek,
on Jan 6, 2021 at 7:41 am

DKHSK is a registered user.

BobB,

California within the top 3 infectious States:

Web Link

Yeah BobB, keep talking...

Dan


Posted by BobB, a resident of Vintage Hills,
on Jan 6, 2021 at 8:21 am

BobB is a registered user.

DKHSK,

You didn't address what I said at all, but that's okay.

On another subject, we just had our first covid-19 death in the office. He was a good friend. I'm still processing it. Totally unexpected.


Posted by Kevin, a resident of Castlewood,
on Jan 6, 2021 at 9:35 am

Kevin is a registered user.

BobB, I am sorry for your loss. Thank you for taking the time and effort to post and respond to garbage that these people like DHKSK put up here.

My wife's aunt is in ICU. She had visitors from LA area and one of them got sick. It turned out he had Covid and gave it to her. She is 84 years old and a retired nurse. The visitor feels horrible.

These are the realities out there in the world. DHKSK and these people are out of touch!!


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