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EMFacts Blog

    • 15 NOV 12

    Tasmanian Greens push for smart meters in Tasmania

    So the Tasmanian Greens, totally ignorant of the smart meter health controversy, have pushed the state government into spending $200,000 to investigate the use of “smart grid” technology in Tasmania, and if independent consultants recommend the introduction of a smart grid for Tasmania, the Government will commit $10 million towards the project.

    Well, I wonder how they will address the health effects issue for I sure a shell will be making them aware of it. Perhaps the government should allocate some of the $200,000 to investigate the health issue?

    And I wonder just whom the so called independent consultants will be?

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    • 12 NOV 12

    Two New Zealand smart meter sites of interest

    1) New Zealand smart meters – the issues, concerns, implications and
    what you can do

    Smart Meters are being installed in homes around the world as part of a global roll-out of smart power grids. We don’t believe in coincidences. We have a number of concerns with regard smart meters, which can be used to measure electricity, gas and water consumption – although this site is focused on electricity meters. Our concerns fall into these categories:
    SNIP
    2) Stop Smart Meters NZ

    How To Avoid Getting A “Smart Meter”. “Smart” or “advanced” meters are not compulsory, even though some representatives of and/or contractors to electricity companies have been apparently telling customers that it is compulsory to have a “smart meter”. (Personal communication.)

    SNIP

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    • 11 NOV 12

    News Flash: Former Motorola Strategic Director directing the Victorian Government’s response to smart meter health complaints

    In a recent letter to a concerned Victorian citizen from the Office of the Minister for Energy and Resources, the Minister discounted the potential for any health impacts of smart meters partially based on the expert advice of the Victorian Radiation Advisory Committee. To Quote:

    Victoria’s Chief Health Officer has endorsed the advice of the Victorian Ministerial radiation Advisory Committee, consisting of doctors and experts in the field of radiation, which found “that there is no substantive evidence to suggest that exposure to radiofrequency radiation such as from Smart Meters can increase the risk of chronic health effects, such as cancer”. Further information is available on the Chief Health Officer’s website at http://www.health.vic.gov.au/chiefhealthofficer/smart-meters”>www.health.vic.gov.au/chiefhealthofficer/smart-meters.

    So, I wondered just who were the non-ionizing radiation experts on the Radiation Advisory Committee?

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    • 10 NOV 12

    EHS: Itʼs all in your head but we wonʼt hold it against you

    From John Weigel

    I would like to draw you attention to a new technique being used in Ireland to foster the idea that electromagnetic sensitivity is a psychological disorder. Unlike Sweden which has declared EHS a disability, Ireland has chosen to deny the condition exists. At present there is a concerted effort to remove the stigma attached to mental illness. What is curious is the individuals and companies that are seeking to address the issue. In this instance they are drawn from the business community – and nearly all of the members of the board of the Network for Responsible Business are currently or past employees of the microwave industry.

    It is also important to note that Ireland plans to be an incubation centre for technologies using the Smart Grid which is currently under construction across North America and elsewhere through partnership between government and business.

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    • 09 NOV 12

    Why Are More Men Getting Brain Tumors in Denmark?

    From Louis Slesin, Microwave News:

    The number of men who have developed aggressive brain
    tumors in Denmark has nearly doubled over the last ten years.

    No one is offering an explanation for the increase
    –at least not yet.

    Read more →
    • 06 NOV 12

    Melbourne workshop: Science and Wireless 2012: Epidemiology, Assessing Risks, Reviewing Standards

    I will refrain from making comments about the forthcoming workshop other than say that I am very interested in following the progress (or otherwise) of the “new” Australian Centre for Electromagnetic Bioeffects Research (ACEBR) headed by Rodney Croft. Will ACEBR take up the contentious issue of possible health effects from smart meters? If so, will we see the same dismissive antics that characterized the old ACRBR? Can a leopard, in fact, change its spots? We will see………..Swinburne’s Brain and Psychological Sciences Research Centre (BPsyC) and the new Australian Centre for Electromagnetic Bioeffects Research (ACEBR) Host “Science & Wireless 2012”. The annual “Science & Wireless” event provides a unique opportunity for scientists, regulators, industry specialists and members of the community to meet and exchange views on mobile phones and health in a public forum.

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    • 01 NOV 12

    Impressions from Monte Verit

    From the blog “Between a Rock and A Hard Place” by Dariusz Leszczynski:

    Excerpts

    The 2nd Monte Verita was a well organized meeting, having representative group of scientists but the final outcome feels rather slim. Once again the scientific gathering of the bioelectromagnetics researchers has shown that not only the research does not progress because of the lack of funding, but rather because of the lack of new ideas. In a one word, it is – stagnation.

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    • 31 OCT 12

    Book Review: Seeds of Deception By Jeffrey M. Smith

    When eminent scientist Arpad Pusztai went public about his accidental discovery that genetically modified (GM) potatoes severely damage the immune system and organs of rats, he was suspended from the prestigious Scottish research institute where he had worked for thirty-five years. He was silenced with threats of a lawsuit while the Institute denied or distorted his findings.

    In the ensuing war over public opinion, biotech advocates tried to spin the science in favor of GM foods, but were thwarted at each attempt by leaked documents and compelling evidence. Pusztai, who describes this chapter as “the most thorough and accurate report on the topic,” was ultimately vindicated when his potato study was published in the Lancet. His remains the only independent safety assessment in a peer-reviewed journal.

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    • 31 OCT 12

    Australian government to launch a smart meter “intensive public education” spin

    Moving bravely ahead with a national roll-out of smart meters, despite the mounting evidence that there is a significant health issue that urgently needs to be investigated, the Australian federal government will now be spending $$$ millions on a nation-wide smart meter “intensive public education” campaign. Why not spend some of that money to investigate the health issue? Of course not. God forbid! They may even find that the current crop of smart meters that they have committed themselves to are a health hazard – and then what for their big investment?

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    • 31 OCT 12

    Great interviews with Alasdair of Powerwatch and emergency physician Erica Mallery-Blythe

    From Andre Fauteux, editor La Maison du 21e siecle:

    Electrosensitivity Sufferers: Hear how ES affects our lives by Alasdair Philips – Powerwatch Scientist and Erica Mallery-Blythe – Emergency Medicine Doctor.

    Read more →
    • 29 OCT 12

    Dr David Black in an interview from “Is Your Cell Phone Killing You?”

    A very quotable quote!

    Recommended viewing is a clip from the New Zealand documentary “Is Your Cell Phone Killing You” which has been placed on YouTube. It is a statement by David Black, President of the Bioelectromagnetics Society (with the help of the US Air Force) and consulting expert for ICNIRP.

    Read more →
    • 26 OCT 12

    Raytheon, Boeing and the US Airforce’s flying microwave oven – guaranteed to cook your microchips

    The missile launched from the wing pylon of a B-52 heavy bomber and streaked over the desert of western Utah. At pre-set coordinates, a microwave emitter installed in the winged, jet-propelled cruise missile blasted a target building. But there was no big bang, no billowing clouds of dust and debris. Instead, the building was struck with disruptive, high-frequency microwaves. The goal of the test on the morning of Oct. 16 was “to render … electronic and data systems useless,” according to Boeing, the lead contractor for the three-year, $40-million Counter-electronics High-powered Microwave Advanced Missile Project, or CHAMP, initiated in 2009.

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    • 25 OCT 12

    The Swedish Government report: “Trotthet & vark” by Robert Olin

    Background to the report:

    The report “Trotthet & vark” was written by Robert Olin, MD and Professor Emeritus of Preventive Medicine on behalf of a Parliamentary Commission appointed by the Swedish government. It was published in October of 1999. I have a copy of the 2002 update which is 121 pages in length. With the current smart meter health crisis I consider that a full English translation is called for. Note that the report critically examines the psychosomatic controversy (the nosebo effect).

    The Olin report was commissioned as a result of ongoing research carried out by several organisations, including the Karolinska Institute, The Swedish National Institute of Occupational Health, the Swedish Union of Clerical and Technical Employees in Industry, Lule College and Institute of Technology, Lund University and the Orebro Medical Centre in Sweden. The report represents the high point of organised Swedish research into both chemical and electromagnetic impacts on health before the whole research effort was squashed by the conservative Swedish government for economic reasons.

    Read more →
    • 24 OCT 12

    Update: Italian Supreme Court Affirms Cell Phone Tumor Risk

    From Louis Slesin, Microwave News:

    Many of you may have already heard that the Italian Supreme Court has affirmed a worker’s compensation
    claim filed by a man who developed a tumor after using wireless phones daily for 12 years. This is the first time
    a court has ruled in favor of such a link.

    Read more →
    • 22 OCT 12

    ICNIRP to the rescue: Downplaying the Italian court ruling on mobile phone use

    I was wondering how long before ICNIRP came out downplaying the recent Italian supreme court ruling finding a “causal link” between heavy mobile phone use and cancer. Now we have ICNIRP’s Paolo Vecchia (below) spinning out the court ruling, claiming that the Italians got it all wrong and what they need to do to improve the “quality” of their expert witnesses in legal proceedings. He recommends that this could be achieved by following the recommendations issued by professional associations such as EBEA and BEMS.

    The problem here is that both of these organizations are firmly tied to the ICNIRP in their approach to science

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    • 20 OCT 12

    More on Italian court ruling on mobile phone use and brain tumours

    And here is the The Sun newspaper article on the groundbreaking Italian court ruling (last message). I wonder how the denialist Cancer Council of NSW and their colleagues at the Australian Mobile Telecommunications Association (AMTA) will try to spin this one.

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    • 20 OCT 12

    Italian court ruling links mobile phone use to brain tumour

    Contrary to the denials of many heath agencies in the U.S. and some other countries, the Italian courts have recognized a “causal” link between heavy mobile phone use and brain tumor risk.

    Interestingly, the Italian courts dismissed the research that was co-financed by the mobile phone industry including the WHO Interphone study. Instead, the courts relied on the epidemiologic research conducted by Lennart Hardell and his colleagues in Sweden which shows consistent evidence of increased brain tumor risk associated with mobile phone use.

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    • 19 OCT 12

    Productivity Commission critizes the Victorian smart meter rollout

    In today’s Herald Sun newspaper on page 19 it is reported under the headline Power to plummet by Matt Johnston, that the Productivity Commission has criticized the roll out of smart meters in Victoria. in its 772 page report on Australia’s electricity network. According to the Herald Sun, the report states:

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    • 18 OCT 12

    International Doctors´ Freiburg Appeal 2012

    Ten years ago, physicians of the Freiburg Appeal called on their colleagues, the public, and the politicians and health officials in charge because they were deeply concerned about the health of their fellow citizens. This Doctors´Appeal, in which they strongly warned about the dangers of wireless radiation, was translated into many languages and supported by more than 1000 physicians and more than 36,000 people worldwide.

    Over the past decade, the evidence of serious risks has been increasing and accumulating worldwide. As physicians, we observe a clear increase in health symptoms when radio-frequency exposure levels increase with regard to distance and time–especially in the case of heavy cell phone use, and in the vicinity of DECT cordless phones, Wi-Fi, and cell towers–including problems falling asleep and staying asleep, chronic fatigue, headaches, migraine, vertigo, tinnitus, unhealthy blood pressure levels and arrhythmias, concentration and memory problems, learning and behavioral disorders, a more frequent incidence of ADHD among children. And numerous studies of independent scientists have now confirmed many of these observations made by physicians.

    Read more →
    • 15 OCT 12

    End the not-so-smart spin with real smart meter research

    To give an idea of what kind of research those promoting smart grid/meter technology spend their money on see the latest spin put out by the British Department of Energy and Climate Change. Titled, Quantitative Research into Public Awareness, Attitudes and Experience of Smart Meters, the report assessed consumer awareness of, attitude to, and understanding/experience of smart meters and in-home displays (IHDs). In answer to the widespread reports of adverse health effects in countries after the introduction of smart meters, the researchers simply claim that that the negative issues identified could probably be resolved by reassurance, and that consumers would still be willing to accept the technology. This conclusion suggests that concerns over possible health hazards from smart meters are probably a result of public misunderstandings and unfounded fears – in other words, ignorance.

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