Another day - Another Courier Mail Hit Piece
Laura Chalmers - Courier Mail 'Journalist'
by Meryl Dorey
I don't know why Laura Chalmers from the Courier Mail even bothers to contact anyone from the AVN before writing about us?
This is the third time she's been in touch with me about a story in recent weeks and yet, she has never reporting anything I've said. A few weeks ago, she even sent me a 2 or 3-page summary of our talk so I could approve it before she went to print - and she never used one word of what I had to say.
Let's look at the bright side though - if she isn't reporting fairly or in a balanced manner, at least she isn't misquoting me or taking me out of context.
She has done the same thing with the AVN's President, Greg Beattie - wasting so much of our time for nothing. Is this just window dressing for the Courier Mail? Are they just pretending that they really care or are interested in presenting both sides whilst continuing to report whatever will make their Board and their advertisers happy?
Who knows. But here, for the record, is what I sent Laura Chalmers last week when she contacted me about this 'story' (you can read the entire 'hit piece' by using the link at the bottom of this blog post) - and how ironic is it that the media is openly calling for censorship on ANY subject? Such a slippery slope!:
Dear Laura,
This is not the first time that attempts have been made to block the presence of someone from the AVN at a public event. SAVN did this a few years ago at Woodford and it resulted in a record number of people in attendance at the vaccination discussion. They were literally standing in the aisles and lined up out in the street 8 or 10 deep to hear the talk. The same thing can and most probably will happen if a similar campaign is run regarding my talk at this event.
Don’t forget that one of the SAVN stalwarts, Peter Bowditch, publicly confirmed he would debate me at the Healthy Lifestyle Expo and then, backed out, reneging on his promise to attend. The organisers have been actively seeking someone from the medical fraternity to come and present the other side for over 6 months, but nobody was willing to defend the anti-choice stance. Since SAVN and the medical community appear to be incapable of holding their own on this issue before a live audience, they want to stop anyone else from hearing what I and the AVN stand for.
Censorship sometimes backfires and as a journalist, you should be aware of that. Perhaps you’d like to read some of the articles at this website: http://www.bmartin.cc/pubs/backfire.html
Kind regards, Meryl Dorey
For those who are interested in hearing about some of the potential issues with vaccination, please do come and hear me speak or just say hi to me at the AVN's stand at the Healthy Lifestyle Expo in Caloundra. Here's a discount ticket for you and your family. The organisers have literally been through hell and back over this issue. They have had their website hacked, threatening calls made to them and to the other stall holders and they have had to get the police involved. Yet, they are standing firm in support of freedom of speech and freedom of choice. If you believe in what they are doing, please take a moment to visit their website (click the discount ticket image below) and use the contact form there to drop them a line and say - WELL DONE!:
In the meantime, below is a link to the article in today's Courier Mail calling for the Expo to ban me from speaking. If the medical community and the media are fighting this hard to shut the AVN up, it means that we are on the right track. Those who have evidence to back up their beliefs do not try to censor opposition. They are happy to debate and discuss these issues in an open and respectful manner.
It is only those who have no data to defend their assertions who will, in desperation, take the immoral step of trying to censor those they disagree with.
Please note: Blog posts are opinion pieces which represent the views of the authors. They do not necessarily represent the viewpoints of the AVN National Committee. The AVN is a forum, support and information organisation and outlet for discussion about the relative benefits and risks of vaccinations in particular - and medical procedures in general. We do not provide medical advice but believe that everyone has the opportunity and the obligation to do their own research before making decisions for their families. The information we provide (including your personal review of the references we cite) should be taken in conjunction with a range of other data, including that obtained from government, your health care provider and/or other medical source material to assist you in developing the knowledge required to make informed health choices.