From The Streets (page 2)

The researchers conclude in this study, "Results of this semiecologic study suggest that living in areas with higher ambient levels of HAPs, particularly heavy metals [i.e. mercury]...during pregnancy or early childhood, may be associated with a moderately increased risk of autism."

This epidemiological study, whose researchers are from the Division of Environmental and Occupational Disease Control, California Department of Health Services and Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Program, Division of Research, evaluated 284 children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and 657 controls, born in 1994 in the San Francisco Bay area. They assigned exposure level by census tract of birth residence for 19 chemicals identified as potential neurotoxicants, developmental toxicants, and/or endocrine disruptors from the 1996 HAPs database. They calculated ASD risk in the upper quartiles of these group scores or individual chemical concentrations compared with below the median, adjusting for demographic factors.

These researchers found mercury exposure, among the individual compounds examined, was the most statistically significantly associated with ASD (adjusted relative risk = 1.92, 95% CI = 1.35-2.71).

First, I'm going to tell you a little about me and my family. My name is Jeff. I am a Police Officer for a city which is known nationwide for it's crime rate. We have a lot of gangs and drugs. At one point we were # 2 in the nation in homicides per capita. I also have a police K-9 named Thor. He was certified in drugs and general duty. He retired at 3 years old because he was shot in the line of duty. He lives with us now and I still train with him because he likes it. I always liked the fact that there was no way to bring drugs into my house. Thor wouldn't allow it. He would tell on you. The reason I say this is so you understand that I know about drugs.

I have taught in schools about drugs. My wife asks all our kids at least once a week if they used any drugs. Makes them promise they won't.

I like building computers occasionally and started building a new one in February 2005. I also was working on some of my older computers. They were full of dust so on one of my trips to the computer store I bought a 3 pack of DUST OFF. Dust Off is a can of compressed air to blow dust off a computer. A few weeks later when I went to use one of them they were all used. I talked to my kids and my two sons both said they had used them on their computer and messing around with them. I yelled at them for wasting the 10 dollars I paid for them.

On February 28 I went back to the computer store. They didn't have the 3 pack which I had bought on sale so I bought a single jumbo can of Dust Off. I went home and set it down beside my computer.

On March 1st, I left for work at 10 PM. Just before midnight my wife went down and kissed Kyle goodnight. At 5:30 am the next morning Kathy went downstairs to wake Kyle up for school, before she left for work. He was propped up in bed with his legs crossed and his head leaning over. She called to him a few times to get up. He didn't move. He would sometimes tease her like this and pretend he fell back asleep. He was never easy to get up. She went in and shook his arm. He fell over. He was pale white and had the straw from the Dust Off can coming out of his mouth. He had the new can of Dust Off in his hands. Kyle was dead.

If you're tired of constant tax-increase proposals, or just mad about the $1.2+ million missing from the Municipal Court, come by or mail in suggestions and complaints. Make your voice heard!