Professors offer more than $10,000 for proof that Bachmann’s story about HPV is true

Yahoo News ^ | 09/15/2011 | Chris Moody

[SeekAndFind]

Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann's story about a woman who claimed that her daughter suffered "mental retardation" after receiving a vaccine against HPV could fetch the woman's family thousands of dollars. But the family can only collect if Bachmann or the unnamed woman can prove the story is true.

Two bioethics professors have offered to pay more than $10,000 for medical records that prove the anecdote Bachmann told after Monday night's Republican presidential debate is true, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports:

Steven Miles, a U of M bioethics professor, said that he'll give $1,000 if the medical records of the woman from Bachmann's story are released and can be viewed by a medical professional.

His offer was upped by his former boss from the University of Minnesota, Art Caplan, who is now director of the University of Pennsylvania Center for Bioethics. Caplan said he would match Miles' challenge and offered $10,000 for proof of the HPV vaccine victim.

"'These types of messages in this climate have the capacity to do enormous public health harm,'" Miles said of why he made the offer. 'The woman, assuming she exists, put this claim into the public domain and it's an extremely serious claim and it deserves to be analyzed.'"

Bachmann told the story after she criticized opponent Texas Gov. Rick Perry for using an executive order in 2007 to mandate that all girls entering the sixth grade receive a vaccination against the Human papillomavirus, a sexually transmitted disease that can cause cervical cancer.

[GunRunner]

Easy bet, because there is no proof.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

Put up or shut up.

[TigersEye]

$10,000 dollars says they can’t prove it is not true.

[Maverick68]

Consensus = proof nowadays.
All she needs is a gaggle of “professionals” to agree with her....done!

[traderrob6]

You know you can’t prove a negative.

She said it and it’s up to her or her supporters to prove what she said is accurate.

[4rcane]

I bet the professor $1million that what Obama said of Obamacare won’t increase deficit is false. Obama/Biden lies all the time and the media never call them on it

[Carling]

Don't forget the finger-wagging FReepers who are convinced Gardisil is a colossal killer, regardless of any empirical data or FDA action.

[Longbow1969]

Bachmann really stepped in it.

She managed to take a good debate performance and wreck it by creating this controversy. She just couldn’t resist going overboard with the Gardasil thing.

I think she’s done now. She wasn’t likely to win the nomination anyway, but this thing really blew up in her face.

[miss marmelstein]

These dopes have nothing better to do with money or their time than hunt down some poor woman who talked to Bachmann after the debate?

I have always believed this story to be true whether or not Gardisil is a dangerous vaccine or not.

We need to find this woman and report her to Attack.com.

[hinckley buzzard]

I won't be holding my breath waiting for the unknown woman in the audience to produce the records. This illustrates the problem with uncritically believing any anecdote that some nobody wants to tell you. Bachmann showed very faulty judgment in repeating this claim. A note of caution to the wise, including right here on FR, where inflammatory and unsubstantiated anecdotes have been known to abound.

[She hits a grand slam tonight]

michelle is done

[fantom]

“She said it and it’s up to her or her supporters to prove what she said is accurate”. Sorry , it is up to her to move to the next attack point if she wants to continue. Leave the virus obsession to those with nothing better to think about.

[miss marmelstein]

As Joan Rivers used to say: oh, grow up, America!

Do you really think that the left needs this story to demonize a female Republican candidate for prez? How naive.

[Grunthor]

There is no proof, she is a liar.

[traderrob6]

This won’t be the first time a politician has offered up an anecdote to support their position that was later proven to be fallacious.

It generally tends to be a Democrat though.

[miss marmelstein]

Michelle IS done - she’s probably going home to Chicago. Michele, on the other hand, is still a viable candidate.

[TigersEye]

That should be easy. All she has to do is prove that some woman told her the story she said the woman told her. In the mean time these asshat professors know that proving their challenge is also proving a negative.

[traderrob6]

“Leave the virus obsession to those with nothing better to think about.”

In other words, “Move On” right, LOL. Unfortunately untill it’s addressed properly it will dog her.

[dforest]

Take a look at this. Rick Perry really stepped in it. He has given the left all they need.

He is toast, done, over, finished, unelectable, he needs to get out now. I mean right now. He is too impulsive and emotional when it comes to his alien buddies.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2778880/posts