Bleu Steel Horses

Equine 5 Minutes

I found this great article on cowboystatedaily.com about these amazinghorse sculptures in Montana and had to share it!

From cowboystatedaily.com:

Jim Dolan created one of his best-known public art sculptures as a thank you gift to Montanans, but the appreciation is as likely to come his way.

Even though it’s been 12 years since Dolan’s herd of 39 blue metal sculptures of horses, “Bleu Horses,” first appeared on a hillside along Highway 287 north of Three Forks in central Montana, he still receives about one thank you each week from motorists who were delighted by the unexpected art display.

And it’s not a lone horse in a field, he created an entire herd in natural positions that, from a distance, look just like a peaceful group of wild horses.

“Most people, when I talk to them, tell me that for the first 5 seconds they think it’s a herd of real horses,” Dolan said. “I got that ‘gotcha’ in sculpture.”

A Gift For Montanans

Art tricks aside, the sculpture comes from an earnest place. During the Great Recession, when commissioned work dried up, Dolan was inspired to create something for the people of Montana.

“I wanted to give them a big thank you for 40 years of making a living as an artist,” said Dolan, who came to Montana in the 1960s to attend college at Montana State University. 

Though he didn’t have a home for his herd — that would come later — Dolan had plenty of space in his studio north of Bozeman to build his band of horses over the course of about 15 months. But as other work picked up, eventually the horses needed to move along.

Dolan had a hillside location in mind, but he would’ve had to deal with two different landowners and it was proving to be too much of a hassle. One morning while having coffee at the Wheat Montana headquarters outside Three Forks, Dolan lamented about his homeless herd to the bakery’s owner, Dean Folkvord.

The men were looking out at the land when Folkvord offered Kamp Hill, a slice of land that isn’t suitable for farming. That conversation was a stroke of good luck and is indicative of the gratitude Dolan wanted to express with this sculpture.

“Dean and I have a handshake agreement, and that’s good for us,” Dolan said. “I don’t see them ever leaving that spot.”

Horse Heist

But some of the horses did briefly leave that spot, albeit against their will. 

Shortly after the multi-day ordeal of hauling the herd to the hill in 2013 and situating each horse into place with the help of a bunch of heavy equipment and jackhammers, three horses went missing.

Word quickly spread and thanks to the community’s vigilance, the horses turned up days later about 10 miles away. After some repairs, the horses were returned to their hillside home. 

Even if the “real goofball” of a thief didn’t make it far, the story did — newspapers in Europe even reported on the horse heist — and that helped raise the profile of Bleu Horses. In the decade-plus that the horses have been hanging around that hillside, they’ve become so beloved that Dolan made smaller replicas to commemorate them and is currently making even more.

“It’s pretty well-known now, which is cool,” Dolan said.

A ‘Totally’ Different Beast

Whereas other sculptors have created horses that are galloping or leaping or otherwise in motion, Dolan set out to depict what a herd this size might really look like: Some horses are grazing, others are laying down and relaxing in the sun. “My horses are stationary because they’re supposed to be stationary.” 

Dolan also wanted to reflect how horses interact. There’s a foursome toward the back of the sculpture set off from the others — the young teenagers, as he’s come to call them.

“I always had horses up until about 10 years ago and I know horses fairly well,” said Dolan, who recently turned 77. “There are horses that stick with others, and I try to play into that. This is how 39 horses would be together.”

If the color doesn’t give them away, the horses eventually reveal themselves to anyone who looks closely enough. Though he’s crafted horses in the past that were almost taxidermal, these horses are more abstract as they’re only about 60% covered. “The Bleu Horses were a big break for me because they’re totally different.” 

Though he has no qualms about the home he found for the herd, Dolan does wish the horses were about 30 yards closer to the road so that it would be easier for people to get close to them. “Everybody’s welcome to walk up there, but you have to climb a hill to get there and you’re in Montana and there’s rattlesnakes there,” he said.

Why 39 And Bleu

Because Dolan wasn’t commissioned for this sculpture, he got to make every creative decision — even if the reasoning behind those decisions is a bit of a mystery now. 

For example, why 39 horses? 

“I think I got tired,” he said. “I wanted a herd and five or six horses? Well, that’s not very many, but 39 horses looks like it could be a real herd.”

And why the color blue? “I don’t know.”

Perhaps, Dolan said, he drew inspiration from the painting Blue Horses by Franz Marc which depicts three blue “abstract and pretty” horses. He recalled wanting an unexpected color to catch the eye of motorists and knew that other colors wouldn’t have the same effect.

No matter, Dolan’s color choice is particularly effective when the horses are set against snow. “They’re more impressive in wintertime,” he noted.

Unlike some of the other decisions, Dolan does have a ready explanation for the name: Because Blue Horses was already taken, he opted for the French spelling. “That stuck and it’s worked out really well.”

Critters Large and Small

On Dolan’s website, the sculptor has a map of where his public art can be found. Though most of these sculptures are in Montana, he’s been commissioned for sculptures as far away as Japan. 

Wyomingites may also recognize Dolan’s work: He created the giant, stainless steel golden eagle on the campus of Laramie County Community College in Cheyenne and the elk near the front of St. John’s Health in Jackson.

Critters large and small have been a common theme of his work, including a lot of horses, birds and buffalo, and he recently finished a giant, 8-foot ant in-between commissions. “I have no idea why, I just wanted to make an ant.”

A Project With a Calling

While some sculptures come from places of inspiration unknown, there’s a very important meaning behind Dolan’s latest project. He’s completed six watermelon-red telephone booths of a total of about one dozen that will be placed alongside highways in eastern Montana. Each booth will bear messages for passing motorists — “Call Home” and “Keep in Touch” —- along with the 988 phone number for the suicide prevention helpline.

Like the Bleu Horses, these colorful sculptures will speak to the importance of community, albeit in a very different way. And there’s a personal connection: Dolan lost a family member to suicide and he said these sculptures, the can’t-miss color and the simple wording are intended to convey a powerful message about mental health. 

By placing the sculptures in rural areas of the state, the goal is to reach people who may be depressed because they’re feeling isolated and have a hard time asking for help. “That’s going to be a neat project,” he said.

And no matter the project, the artist has maintained a simple goal in his 50-year career: “Hopefully the piece you’re working on right now is the best piece you’ve ever done.”

SOURCE: COWBOYSTATEDAILY.COM

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Published by pat frederick

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87 thoughts on “Bleu Steel Horses”

  1. Morning All!
    we’re back to that cloudy, rainy, dreary pattern again, although the temp says 60* currently.
    sigh
    my plants in the garden are alive and green but not much growth because of the lack of good sunshine.

    Liked by 3 people

    1. Good morning! Been busy, busy trying to get things back into MY order vs. my Sis’s order…..and of course, I HAD to refold every single piece of laundry before putting it all in the dresser in the front bedroom…..and WITH did she put that there??!!?? LOL – I’m also disappointed that a bird has again gotten stuck in the jelly – no movement so I think it’s dead already – and I can’t do a danged thing about it…..sigh. Ah well…it is what it is. I’m waiting for Jason/Christina to come by and am hopeful he will get the feeder for me so I can take out the dead bird, refill it, then hang it back up for me. Just not ready to test my ability w/o the oxygen…..and maybe he’ll take my kitchen trash bag to the bin in my garage. I don’t want garbage on my patio that will draw mice. There’s enough junk out there, no doubt, but no food garbage.

      I would love to see these gorgeous horses sometime……

      Liked by 2 people

      1. Morning Filly!

        yeah, best to rest and get reacclimated to being at home for a while!

        i was going to stop with the jelly feeder for a bit because a male oriole was chasing hummers off the hummer feeders. that made me mad…lol

        but then the little female who made the yarn nest at on the railing singing and looking for the jelly, sigh, so i put it back out.

        on our way down the driveway this morning we saw the cutest thing! a tiny, and i mean fit in a teacup tiny, RED squirrel. we’ve seen bigger ones occasionally, but this was a baby.

        Liked by 2 people

        1. Bummer! You can’t, like, put the hummer feeders on the far side of the deck and the jelly on the opposite side? Or put out an Oriole nectar feeder? Yeah, well…..you can have the dadgum squirrels! IDK how cute they are – they are devils, pure and simple! LOL

          Liked by 1 person

          1. i normally have the jelly feeder on the far railing, but when it’s going to rain hard, it washes the jelly out and on the deck which draws ants. the male oriole (smaller one though) is the mean aggressive one–even the grosbeaks don’t bother the hummers.
            hubby came running when i told him yesterday there were 3 squirrels on the deck…lol
            but they scattered before he could shoot at any of them.

            Liked by 1 person

  3. Good morning, Pat and Filly,

    I really like those Bleu Steel Horses! They have such realistic poses, but are also expressionistic.

    Have been working on packing up Sally’s apartment. Sabrina and I have made a lot of progress working one week just 4 half days. A lot of clothes (mine and Sally’s) went to the thrift shops. I had brought all my summer and winter clothes to sort through and give away what I won’t or can’t wear. I kept a few of Sally’s things, but most also went to the Village Twice Nice clothes shop.

    Sally had a collection of vintage/antique decorative china that she had bought through the years and most of that and a few quilts went to the Village antique-collectibles shop. They also took her framed art posters and prints.

    I took photos of everything to give the family a chance in case they wanted any of it, but there were only a few pieces requested and I’ll be packing and sending those pretty soon.

    The wheelchair guy came and picked up two of the power chairs and one of the manual chairs with Wijit arm rowing attachments and other wheelchair parts and equipment.

    I’m sending a few pieces of furniture and handicap equipment to the Village second hand furniture-miscellaneous store. They do a big business with the locals.

    There are 3 second-hand shops at the Village, plus a nice gift shop, a grocery store, and a local branch bank. There is a Bistro, a Deli-ice cream shop and the cafeteria which has buffets on Sundays and holidays. They also have local arts, crafts, food sellers come several times a year and set up their wares in the parking lot of the shopping area.

    The Village has every kind of residence from mobile homes and campers, to subsidized housing apartments to nice apartments, duplexes and single family homes. There is a Summer camp and conference center that has youth camps, Tres Dias and other gatherings and a Lodge with hotel rooms.

    They also have skilled nursing and assisted living facility, as well as a clinic and a county trained emergency crew with an ambulance on duty 24/7.

    The Village gave Sally a chance to work – and she was able to work nearly 20 years and contribute her skills to the Village despite her progressive disability. For 8 years, I drove her all over the South to interview for jobs, she kept getting new certifications to try to find work (paralegal training, education certification) but only the Village was willing to give her a chance. Even the last year of her life, she was still trying to find a way to work, despite being on official social security disability.

    Liked by 3 people

    1. Morning GA!
      wow sounds like a lot of hard work, but it’s probably therapeutic as well.
      When my MIL passed, and we were cleaning out her house, i saw a box in a closet that she showed me once before. I t contained and antique applesauce maker and gadgets. she said she wanted to send it to her cousin’s wife in CA. It was still there, so I tucked a note in the box explaining what my MIL has said and sent it, I received a phone call when she got it–so happy to have a memory of Mary.
      there was also a quilt unfinished in her quilt frame–a baby quilt for her niece’s daughter’s baby. I finished it and sent it but i never heard a word about that.
      but i felt like i helped with some unfinished business.

      Liked by 2 people

      1. Since my mom died we heard a number of stories of people who were mightily impacted by blankets she used to make for new babies & a couple of elderly friends. She always personalized these blankets with the recipient’s name. For some people this was the Only Tangible Evidence of Love they experienced during very difficult seasons in their lives. For a couple people this real-world Love lead the lost & lonely person ultimately into a saving relationship with the Lord!

        You never know how what you did impacted others–it’s in God’s hands! ❤

        Liked by 2 people

        1. every winter I am compelled to crochet a small lap blanket. my Grandmother taught and winter just seems like the time to do it. I gave about 6 of them so far to my good friend who’s husband is a veteran. he gave them to veterans at his meetings in wheelchairs. they love them. i enjoy making them, but have no need for them and they have a need for them.

          Liked by 1 person

              3. Hugs. I’m not so great with my hands but my mom & both grandmas were. My mom’s mom did quite a few quilts & she’d often donate them to their church which would sell them as a fundraiser, she practically single-handedly funded the church steeple, so I heard 🙂

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    2. God be with you in these tasks and All the myriad emotions & memories you’re are also curating. What a beautiful witness to sacrificial love & selfless motherhood you have lived out over these many years. When these many tasks are finished I hope that you will find inspiration & time for yourself to explore unimagined new horizons. In Jesus’ Love ❤

      Liked by 1 person

    3. Oh, wow! You are an amazing woman, GA! I’m trying to do some house clearing/organizing on a mini scale – “stuff” just doesn’t matter any more! I also “need” to get things back in MY order vs. my Sis, bless her heart. Truly grateful for her help but…..🤷‍♀️🤷‍♀️🤷‍♀️ – I need it my way.

      My GS’s fiance is kind of in a similar situation albeit not in the same way as SallyQ. She has….I think Gage said 3 degrees now w/2 masters in the personnel management field? But the local economy simply won’t pay what she can get working on-line when you add in that going out to work would require a baby sitter for her 3 kids. It just doesn’t make sense.

      I’m so proud of him and the man he has become. LOL – when I told him I was working on donating my house to T2T when I go, he quipped, then laughed, “well, dang, there goes what I thought might be my first rental property…” He has aspirations in that direction but this house in this location wouldn’t be worth much in that realm – peanuts. Much more useful and valuable for a partially handicapped veteran.

      Liked by 1 person

  5. Liked by 2 people

    1. TBH, I’m almost ready to deport ANYONE who wasn’t born on US soil with 2 US citizen birth parents but that would include a lot of really, really good and decent people, like Melania among many.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. I’m ready to deport anyone who identifies as anything other than American. like the Afro Americans, Cuban Americans, Italian Americans and so on.
        either you’re an American or you’re not.

        Liked by 1 person

      2. i like THIS idea too!

        El Gallo

        June 9, 2025 11:37 am

        ICE needs to use ‘Skunk’ malodorant to disperse these paid Communist rioters.

        Works every time. Hard to raise hell when you cannot stop vomiting.

        Trump needs to deputize all LAPD and arrest Newscum and Bass forthwith.

        Liked by 1 person

  9. Just The News: “In perhaps the strongest sign yet that President Donald Trump’s efforts to deport illegal immigrants, encourage self-deportation, and clear the workforce of foreign competition is working, the St. Louis Fed reported that more than one million foreign-born workers left the workforce since March.

    In March of this year, the foreign-born labor force amounted to 33.719 million people, according to the St. Louis Fed. By May, however, that figure had fallen to 32.706 million, reflecting a drop of 1.013 million foreign-born workers.

    By contrast, the overall civilian labor force went from 170.653 million in March to 170.216 million in May, for a drop of 0.437 million. The noticeable disparity in exits by place-of-birth appears to reflect more than simple exits from retirement or other conventional factors.

    In March of this year, the Trump administration began to seize on data highlighting jobs growth specifically for “native-born” workers, specifically highlighting that they gained 284,000 jobs in February while foreigners lost 87,000.

    “For the first time in 15 months, the job gains for native-born Americans… exceeded job gains for migrant and foreign-born workers,” Trump celebrated at the time. “You’ve heard the same stat where foreign workers were taking up all the jobs.”

    Liked by 1 person

  10. OK – T2T has screwed the pooch one too many times! I’m sick and tired of playing their danged phone/e-mail tag games – they are ALWAYS “in a meeting!!” I’m changing my will and leaving my house to Gage since he has now proven to be a very fine young man. Let him start his real estate empire and more power to him!

    Liked by 1 person

  11. NF: And another formerly veteran-focused org screws the pooch! The almighty $$$ is a VERY powerful thing!!!!

    “Financial Giant USAA Gets Downgraded After Debanking Trump Lawyer, Going Woke: Once a low-cost haven for service members, veterans, and their families, USAA’s troubles suggest a company prioritizing leftist ideology over its mission.”

    The Federalist, By: Chuck DeVore, June 09, 2025

    USAA

    ENTIRE ARTICLE: “For almost my entire military career and beyond, USAA, the San Antonio-based insurance and financial services giant that built its reputation serving military members and their families, provided my family with auto and home insurance, and even a credit card. But as I wrote last year, I left USAA after a long slide in customer service crystalized when I heard of USAA’s debanking of conservative lawyer John Eastman. And the hard lessons for USAA continue.

    USAA’s troubles hit a new low when S&P Global Ratings downgraded its financial strength rating from AA+ to AA, following Moody’s decision to drop USAA’s rating from Aaa to Aa1 on May 19. The culprit? Persistent issues with USAA Federal Savings Bank, which has attracted regulatory scrutiny and suffered financial losses.

    S&P pointed to “new or continuing violations of law, rule, or regulation” flagged by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) in December 2024, noting that the bank’s compliance failures have eroded USAA’s overall earnings diversity. Up until 2020, the bank contributed roughly $1 billion annually to USAA’s pretax income, but since then it has posted average annual losses of $236 million. These financial stumbles, combined with a weakened resilience compared to peers, led to the downgrade.

    Once a low-cost haven for service members, veterans, and their families, USAA’s troubles suggest a company veering off course, prioritizing ideological agendas over its foundational mission.

    While USAA insists its financial strength remains “outstanding,” the downgrades tell a different story. The company’s banking arm, once a steady contributor, is now a liability, dragging down its reputation and financial stability. Instead of addressing these core issues, USAA has yet to correct its path that alienates its conservative-leaning customer base — a base that, according to a 2019 Pew Research poll, leans 59 percent Republican among veterans.

    This brings us to USAA’s embrace of woke ideology, a move that has dismayed some of its members. The 1792 Exchange, which evaluates companies for their risk of viewpoint discrimination, rates USAA as “high risk” for canceling clients or contracts based on political beliefs. In 2023, USAA debanked Eastman, a former attorney for President Donald Trump, without providing a clear reason, citing only its right to close accounts at will. This wasn’t an isolated incident, but part of a broader pattern.

    USAA scored a perfect 100 on the 2023 Corporate Equality Index from the queer activist group Human Rights Campaign, signaling its alignment with far-left priorities such as transgender medical subsidies for employees and their children, as well as ideological criteria in hiring, vendor selection, and philanthropy. Employees are subjected to mandatory trainings steeped in gender and sex ideology, a far cry from the military values USAA claims to uphold.

    The disconnect is stark. USAA’s executive council, lacking any apparent military veterans, seems out of touch with the company’s center-right clientele. In fact, new President and CEO Juan C. Andrade is USAA’s second chief in a row without any military experience.

    USAA’s drift from its military heritage mirrors a broader cultural shift within the organization, one that prioritizes left-wing activism over the needs of its members. As Daniel Cameron, CEO of the 1792 Exchange, noted last year, “USAA’s rating shows how deeply political activism has seeped into the culture of the insurance company. I suspect that most of USAA’s members would find alarming its alignment with a progressive agenda.”

    Now, USAA is scrambling to repair its image with a new television ad campaign that leans heavily on patriotic imagery and a gravelly voiced narrator evoking military pride. It’s a clear attempt to win back the trust of its core demographic after years of missteps, from debanking Eastman to regulatory fines totaling more than $240 million since 2019 for issues like unfair lending practices and failure to report suspicious transactions.

    This glossy rebrand rings hollow when juxtaposed with the company’s actions. USAA is close to becoming a corporate zombie, animated by its historical association with U.S. military members and veterans but rotting on the inside.”

    Liked by 1 person

  14. kinthenorthwest

    June 9, 2025 1:04 pm

    DAMN
    LA riots latest: Bombshell truth about how LA riots started
    Donald Trump’s border czar Tom Homan revealed that the raids that ignited the LA protests were not for immigration purposes.
    Homan explained on MSNBC that the raids that took place in downtown Los Angeles were actually part of a criminal investigation.
    ‘That’s why no one is talking about the Fashion District, it wasn’t an immigration raid. It was to service of three criminal warrants at locations based on a large criminal conspiracy that ICE is investigating,’ Homan said.
    ‘That has to do with money laundering, tax evasion and customs fraud where a company under-declared over $80 million in goods, failed to pay $17 million in fees. And it’s part of an overall conspiracy on numerous businesses that they believe that some of this money is being laundered in Mexico and Colombia, the cartel activity.
    https://mol.im/a/14793935

    Liked by 1 person

  15. ROFLMAO – OMG! Wait until you hear this story about Jake @ Sis’s w/all 7 of her other cats! She put Jake’s bed/litter/food in the closet in her bathroom, with the door open. He lays half in/half out of the closet. The youngest of her cats, named Sammy, is also declawed in front and they have been playing this “ignoring each other” game. Sammy lays halfway in the doorway from the bedroom to the bathroom and they hiss & growl at each other off and on.

    Finally, Sammy decided to approach Jake to check him out – they’re both growling and hissing, nose-to-nose but about 1 foot apart, with their front paws flying “slapping” at each other, growling, hissing, spitting w/o ever coming close enough to land a blow.

    Meanwhile, the other 6 cats are sitting around in a circle, hunkered down, watching this, looking back and forth like….”Huh? What are they doing????” Finally, Carol said “stop it you two!” – Sammy was apparently satisfied that she’d said her peace and dominated him sufficiently, and sauntered out into the living room, all proud of herself, and jumped up on the TV stand.

    Jake comes out into the bedroom now and then and Nala (the dog) even went into the bathroom once to look at him (whatcha doin?) w/no reaction from Jake. She just turned and walked away. The next time, she’s going to try to get it on video and she’ll email it so I can post it.

    Liked by 1 person

  18. Freedom Ring
    June 9, 2025 3:25 pm

    “If they spit, we will hit.” This is a statement from the President of the United States concerning the catastrophic Gavin Newscum inspired Riots going on in Los Angeles. The Insurrectionists have a tendency to spit in the face of the National Guardsmen/women, and others. These Patriots are told to accept this, it’s just the way life runs. But not in the Trump Administration. IF THEY SPIT, WE WILL HIT, and I promise you they will be hit harder than they have ever been hit before. Such disrespect will not be tolerated!

    Jun 09, 2025, 12:47 PM

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  19. Just The News: “The Justice Department (DOJ) on Monday charged a citizen of China with smuggling biological material into the United States and making false statements.

    The charges come a week after the DOJ charged two other Chinese researchers with attempting to smuggle a fungus dubbed “Fusarium graminearum,” into the U.S., which it claimed scientific research “classifies as a potential agroterrorism weapon.”

    The new case accuses Chinese researcher Chengxuan Han of trying to smuggle packages containing concealed biological material related to round worms into the country by sending multiple packages that contain the material to a lab under the University of Michigan ahead of her arrival on June 8.

    Han is getting her PhD from the College of Life Science and Technology at the Huazhong University of Science and Technology in Wuhan. 

    The Chinese national was arrested on Sunday at the Detroit Metropolitan Airport, and allegedly made false statements regarding the packages when questioned by Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) officials. She later allegedly admitted to sending the packages to the FBI, and that she lied about the packages to CBP. She also admitted it contained the biological material.

    “The alleged smuggling of biological materials by this alien from a science and technology university in Wuhan, China—to be used at a University of Michigan laboratory—is part of an alarming pattern that threatens our security,” U.S. Attorney Jerome Gorgon, Jr said in a statement. “The American taxpayer should not be underwriting a PRC-based smuggling operation at one of our crucial public institutions.”   

    The FBI, CBP and Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials are investigating the case.”

    Liked by 1 person

    1. wasn’t there just another couple arrested for trying to bring in some plant fungus to “study” which, if released, would decimate crops across the country?
      same bullshit though–chinese students.

      Liked by 1 person

  22. Grumman F8F Panther

    Uranium Lime

    USS Boise (CL-47) seen from USS Yorktown (CV-10) on May 6, 1943. A Grumman F6F-3 Hellcat is parked on the carrier’s elevator. “Note Boise’s fresh Measure 22 camouflage, and her fifteen 6/47 guns trained on her port quarter at high elevation.”

    Liked by 1 person

  25. Like

  26. Hot damn! RFKJ making his moves!!!

    “Breaking: RFK Jr. Removes All Members of CDC Vaccine Advisory Committee

    HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced late today that he is retiring all 17 members of the CDC vaccine advisory committee. “A clean sweep is needed to re-establish public confidence in vaccine science,” Kennedy wrote in an op-ed published today in The Wall Street Journal.

    by Brenda Baletti, Ph.D.Suzanne Burdick, Ph.D., June 9, 2025

    cdc logo and vaccine bottle

    EXCERPT: “U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced late today that the HHS is retiring all 17 members of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) vaccine advisory committee.

    Kennedy announced the move in an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal. “Today, we are taking a bold step in restoring public trust by totally reconstituting the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices (ACIP),” he wrote.

    Kennedy noted that some of the current ACIP members were appointed in the final moments of the Biden administration. “Without removing the current members, the current Trump administration would not have been able to appoint a majority of new members until 2028,” he wrote.

    The ACIP committee is responsible for shaping U.S. vaccine policy by issuing recommendations that become official CDC policy once adopted by the CDC director. ACIP is described as an independent, nonfederal expert body of professionals with clinical, scientific and public health expertise.

    The committee decides which vaccines should be recommended to the public, who should take them and how often — recommendations the CDC typically rubber stamps. However, most members have financial ties to pharmaceutical companies marketing vaccines, or have worked with public health agencies to promote controversial vaccines, including the COVID-19, RSV and HPV shots.

    These problems have plagued the committee for decades. A 2000 investigation by the U.S. House of Representatives found that enforcement of conflict-of-interest rules was “weak-to-nonexistent.” A 2009 HHS inspector-general report made similar findings, Kennedy wrote. Investigations by The Defender in 2021 and 2024 also found that most committee members had direct ties to pharmaceutical companies.

    Kennedy wrote that the committee has “never recommended against a vaccine — even those later withdrawn for safety reasons. He said the committee has failed to “adequately scrutinize” vaccines for babies and pregnant women…..”

    https://childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/breaking-rfk-jr-removes-all-members-of-cdc-vaccine-advisory-committee-acip/

    Liked by 1 person

  31. I am adding a short daily prayer to the board. I would invite each of you, if you wish, to also add one or maybe two of your own liking. I do not want to stifle anyone but please limit yourself to one or two religious postings. here’s one I found that I liked.





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