J. Offir, PhD
@joffirphd.bsky.social
Ph.D. in social psychology. Former researcher in pandemic behavioral risk reduction (non-pharma intervention). Only here to keep up. @[email protected]
Pinned
J. Offir, PhD
@joffirphd.bsky.social
· Aug 23
In The Bad Place, I have a pinned thread of my covid essays & threads, w/ short descriptions of ea. Here's one for This Place, though w/o descriptions, b/c I'm tired. As is true there, I've put them in reverse chrono order, but anything new will post at the end. I flagged ones people liked best:
Updated 📌 list of my essays on the psychology of public health (inc. topics like covid, HIV & reproductive health). As of 8/22/25, there are *31* long-form pieces in this 🧵.
The list starts in reverse chrono. order, but in Oct. 2024 starts rolling forward, so oldest posts are in the middle. Doh.
The list starts in reverse chrono. order, but in Oct. 2024 starts rolling forward, so oldest posts are in the middle. Doh.
I'm watching Harold & Maude while I work, & it just cut to a car commercial that featured Malvina Reynolds' song Ticky Tacky (also once sung by Pete Seeger), & I think if she knew they'd done that, she would be very, very, very, very upset.
Who's idiotic idea was *that*? They've missed the point.
Who's idiotic idea was *that*? They've missed the point.
February 12, 2026 at 2:11 AM
I'm watching Harold & Maude while I work, & it just cut to a car commercial that featured Malvina Reynolds' song Ticky Tacky (also once sung by Pete Seeger), & I think if she knew they'd done that, she would be very, very, very, very upset.
Who's idiotic idea was *that*? They've missed the point.
Who's idiotic idea was *that*? They've missed the point.
218-13. Texas Rep. Henry Cuellar, who always votes wrong, was the only Democrat (of 214, total) to vote yea.
Just think if we'd held a majority in the House.
Elections matter, and #WeAreNotThem.
Just think if we'd held a majority in the House.
Elections matter, and #WeAreNotThem.
Breaking: House passes new version of SAVE Act, worst voter suppression bill considered by Congress. Could disenfranchise:
-21 million Americans w/out access to citizenship papers
-69 mil married women who took partner’s name
-21 mil w/out valid drivers license
www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
-21 million Americans w/out access to citizenship papers
-69 mil married women who took partner’s name
-21 mil w/out valid drivers license
www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
The GOP’s “show us your papers” bill Is the latest effort to help Trump take over elections
“If the SAVE Act were to pass, it would be the worst voter suppression law that Congress has ever enacted"
www.motherjones.com
February 12, 2026 at 1:10 AM
218-13. Texas Rep. Henry Cuellar, who always votes wrong, was the only Democrat (of 214, total) to vote yea.
Just think if we'd held a majority in the House.
Elections matter, and #WeAreNotThem.
Just think if we'd held a majority in the House.
Elections matter, and #WeAreNotThem.
Sang Cat:
"You know it's up to you, anything you can do
And if you find a new way
Well, you can do it today
Well, you can make it all true
And you can make it undo
You see, it's easy,
You only need to know...."
Hear it here: youtu.be/KGun4jqDGKo?...
"You know it's up to you, anything you can do
And if you find a new way
Well, you can do it today
Well, you can make it all true
And you can make it undo
You see, it's easy,
You only need to know...."
Hear it here: youtu.be/KGun4jqDGKo?...
February 12, 2026 at 12:50 AM
Sang Cat:
"You know it's up to you, anything you can do
And if you find a new way
Well, you can do it today
Well, you can make it all true
And you can make it undo
You see, it's easy,
You only need to know...."
Hear it here: youtu.be/KGun4jqDGKo?...
"You know it's up to you, anything you can do
And if you find a new way
Well, you can do it today
Well, you can make it all true
And you can make it undo
You see, it's easy,
You only need to know...."
Hear it here: youtu.be/KGun4jqDGKo?...
Bud Cort, Who Starred in 1971’s ‘Harold and Maude,’ Dies at 77
www.nytimes.com
February 12, 2026 at 12:50 AM
We're rightly furious with anti-vaxxers for being so irresponsible w/ everyone's health. But we have responsibilities, too: to know what the enemies of public health are up to, & to work against them. Pls. read this 🧵 to learn how the anti-vax crusade is at work in every state & what to do about it.
🚨 Mandates are critical to vaccine uptake. Having recently undermined both so successfully through the CDC ACIP, antivaxxers are now taking their fight to state legislatures.
This is an important piece, w/ links to those state fights. What to know & what to do:
🧵
www.statnews.com/2026/01/29/v...
This is an important piece, w/ links to those state fights. What to know & what to do:
🧵
www.statnews.com/2026/01/29/v...
With new vaccine schedule secured, RFK Jr. allies head to statehouses
The overhaul of the federal vaccine schedule sent shockwaves through American health care. Now battles over vaccine laws are moving to statehouses across the country.
www.statnews.com
February 12, 2026 at 12:13 AM
We're rightly furious with anti-vaxxers for being so irresponsible w/ everyone's health. But we have responsibilities, too: to know what the enemies of public health are up to, & to work against them. Pls. read this 🧵 to learn how the anti-vax crusade is at work in every state & what to do about it.
James Van Der Beek has died of colorectal cancer at age 48.
The American Cancer Society now recommends that people at average risk of colorectal cancer start colonoscopy screenings at age 45, b/c so many younger folks are getting ill.
Get yer' colonoscopy, Gen X!
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/11/a...
The American Cancer Society now recommends that people at average risk of colorectal cancer start colonoscopy screenings at age 45, b/c so many younger folks are getting ill.
Get yer' colonoscopy, Gen X!
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/11/a...
James Van Der Beek, Teenage Heartthrob of ‘Dawson’s Creek,’ Dies at 48
www.nytimes.com
February 11, 2026 at 8:37 PM
James Van Der Beek has died of colorectal cancer at age 48.
The American Cancer Society now recommends that people at average risk of colorectal cancer start colonoscopy screenings at age 45, b/c so many younger folks are getting ill.
Get yer' colonoscopy, Gen X!
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/11/a...
The American Cancer Society now recommends that people at average risk of colorectal cancer start colonoscopy screenings at age 45, b/c so many younger folks are getting ill.
Get yer' colonoscopy, Gen X!
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/11/a...
🔺️ Here's American Families for Vaccines, the first pro-vaccine political advocacy organization in the US. Now would be an excellent time to get involved with them and support their work:
share.google/9bto1tg5hBth...
share.google/9bto1tg5hBth...
American Families for Vaccines
share.google
February 11, 2026 at 8:30 PM
🔺️ Here's American Families for Vaccines, the first pro-vaccine political advocacy organization in the US. Now would be an excellent time to get involved with them and support their work:
share.google/9bto1tg5hBth...
share.google/9bto1tg5hBth...
🔹️Said a member of Texans for Vaccine Choice, "We cannot control other people’s risk factors. We definitely can’t control whether or not people are taking care of themselves to prevent disease." But that's exactly what public health is supposed to do, & as citizens, we must fight for that protection.
February 11, 2026 at 8:27 PM
🔹️Said a member of Texans for Vaccine Choice, "We cannot control other people’s risk factors. We definitely can’t control whether or not people are taking care of themselves to prevent disease." But that's exactly what public health is supposed to do, & as citizens, we must fight for that protection.
🔺️ You can help! "American Families for Vaccines has chapters in 12 states and expects to add two more...soon." Join a state chapter or help form one, or with a small group of friends, go to your statehouse to meet with your state legislators & "make the case for the current vaccine system."
Me ⬇️
Me ⬇️
February 11, 2026 at 8:27 PM
🔺️ You can help! "American Families for Vaccines has chapters in 12 states and expects to add two more...soon." Join a state chapter or help form one, or with a small group of friends, go to your statehouse to meet with your state legislators & "make the case for the current vaccine system."
Me ⬇️
Me ⬇️
But that means antivaxxers are pushing states hard to "get ahead of a future, vaccine-friendly administration." And blue states "are grappling with established laws that tie their school entry requirements to the newly controversial federal recommendations."
February 11, 2026 at 8:27 PM
But that means antivaxxers are pushing states hard to "get ahead of a future, vaccine-friendly administration." And blue states "are grappling with established laws that tie their school entry requirements to the newly controversial federal recommendations."
may also "be under renewed pressure to expand their opt-out policies, especially if they require vaccines that federal health officials have stripped from the schedule."
🔹️Many states are seeking to decouple vaccine requirements from federal recs., "with about half of states going their own way."...
🔹️Many states are seeking to decouple vaccine requirements from federal recs., "with about half of states going their own way."...
February 11, 2026 at 8:27 PM
may also "be under renewed pressure to expand their opt-out policies, especially if they require vaccines that federal health officials have stripped from the schedule."
🔹️Many states are seeking to decouple vaccine requirements from federal recs., "with about half of states going their own way."...
🔹️Many states are seeking to decouple vaccine requirements from federal recs., "with about half of states going their own way."...
This week, Florida lawmakers advanced a Senate bill doing just that."
🔹️New York faces a federal lawsuit from Children’s Health Defense, challenging NY's repeal of a religious exemptions law.
🔹️The other three states currently w/o religious or personal exemptions - California, Connecticut, & Maine -
🔹️New York faces a federal lawsuit from Children’s Health Defense, challenging NY's repeal of a religious exemptions law.
🔹️The other three states currently w/o religious or personal exemptions - California, Connecticut, & Maine -
February 11, 2026 at 8:27 PM
This week, Florida lawmakers advanced a Senate bill doing just that."
🔹️New York faces a federal lawsuit from Children’s Health Defense, challenging NY's repeal of a religious exemptions law.
🔹️The other three states currently w/o religious or personal exemptions - California, Connecticut, & Maine -
🔹️New York faces a federal lawsuit from Children’s Health Defense, challenging NY's repeal of a religious exemptions law.
🔹️The other three states currently w/o religious or personal exemptions - California, Connecticut, & Maine -
legislature: varicella (chickenpox), hepatitis B, pneumococcal disease, & Haemophilus influenzae type B (Hib).
🔹️Florida is also "proposing to let parents opt out of the state vaccine registry, which tracks immunizations.
🔹️"Ladapo also wants to create a new pathway for vaccine exemptions....
🔹️Florida is also "proposing to let parents opt out of the state vaccine registry, which tracks immunizations.
🔹️"Ladapo also wants to create a new pathway for vaccine exemptions....
February 11, 2026 at 8:27 PM
legislature: varicella (chickenpox), hepatitis B, pneumococcal disease, & Haemophilus influenzae type B (Hib).
🔹️Florida is also "proposing to let parents opt out of the state vaccine registry, which tracks immunizations.
🔹️"Ladapo also wants to create a new pathway for vaccine exemptions....
🔹️Florida is also "proposing to let parents opt out of the state vaccine registry, which tracks immunizations.
🔹️"Ladapo also wants to create a new pathway for vaccine exemptions....
"Such an approach would exclude vaccines such as the meningococcal ACWY vaccine that is required for many adolescents."
🔹️Florida's Surgeon General (Joseph Ladapo - yikes) is going after four school-mandated vaccines that he has authority to revoke mandates for without any vote from the state...
🔹️Florida's Surgeon General (Joseph Ladapo - yikes) is going after four school-mandated vaccines that he has authority to revoke mandates for without any vote from the state...
February 11, 2026 at 8:27 PM
"Such an approach would exclude vaccines such as the meningococcal ACWY vaccine that is required for many adolescents."
🔹️Florida's Surgeon General (Joseph Ladapo - yikes) is going after four school-mandated vaccines that he has authority to revoke mandates for without any vote from the state...
🔹️Florida's Surgeon General (Joseph Ladapo - yikes) is going after four school-mandated vaccines that he has authority to revoke mandates for without any vote from the state...
🔹️Also in Texas, the antivax movement is arguing that, b/c health departments have the authority to mandate additional vaccines in the absence of a state law (e.g., covid shots), they can also "cut vaccines from the list Texas day cares, public schools, and colleges abide by," w/o any legislation.
February 11, 2026 at 8:27 PM
🔹️Also in Texas, the antivax movement is arguing that, b/c health departments have the authority to mandate additional vaccines in the absence of a state law (e.g., covid shots), they can also "cut vaccines from the list Texas day cares, public schools, and colleges abide by," w/o any legislation.
🔹️Little changes make big trouble: In Texas, parents can now print vax exemption forms from home rather than having to request one via mail, "a subtle shift that opponents of vaccine requirements hope will make it much simpler for families to opt their children out." That law took effect in Sept.
February 11, 2026 at 8:27 PM
🔹️Little changes make big trouble: In Texas, parents can now print vax exemption forms from home rather than having to request one via mail, "a subtle shift that opponents of vaccine requirements hope will make it much simpler for families to opt their children out." That law took effect in Sept.
introduced in all 50 states."
🔹️Bills are already advancing in state legislatures, & the alliance is working on ad campaigns.
🔺️They're also focused on endorsements of candidates sympathetic to their cause. Elections matter! You've got to support blue candidates in 2026 - canvass! Donate! Vote!
🔹️Bills are already advancing in state legislatures, & the alliance is working on ad campaigns.
🔺️They're also focused on endorsements of candidates sympathetic to their cause. Elections matter! You've got to support blue candidates in 2026 - canvass! Donate! Vote!
February 11, 2026 at 8:27 PM
introduced in all 50 states."
🔹️Bills are already advancing in state legislatures, & the alliance is working on ad campaigns.
🔺️They're also focused on endorsements of candidates sympathetic to their cause. Elections matter! You've got to support blue candidates in 2026 - canvass! Donate! Vote!
🔹️Bills are already advancing in state legislatures, & the alliance is working on ad campaigns.
🔺️They're also focused on endorsements of candidates sympathetic to their cause. Elections matter! You've got to support blue candidates in 2026 - canvass! Donate! Vote!
vaccine requirements in every statehouse in the country."
🔹️They aren't just targeting red states: "Challenges to school mandates are cropping up in Florida, West Virginia, South Carolina, California, Connecticut, Maine, and New York. Eventually, the Medical Freedom Act Coalition hopes to get bills
🔹️They aren't just targeting red states: "Challenges to school mandates are cropping up in Florida, West Virginia, South Carolina, California, Connecticut, Maine, and New York. Eventually, the Medical Freedom Act Coalition hopes to get bills
February 11, 2026 at 8:27 PM
vaccine requirements in every statehouse in the country."
🔹️They aren't just targeting red states: "Challenges to school mandates are cropping up in Florida, West Virginia, South Carolina, California, Connecticut, Maine, and New York. Eventually, the Medical Freedom Act Coalition hopes to get bills
🔹️They aren't just targeting red states: "Challenges to school mandates are cropping up in Florida, West Virginia, South Carolina, California, Connecticut, Maine, and New York. Eventually, the Medical Freedom Act Coalition hopes to get bills
(founded by Bobby) & the Brownstone Institute, where Martin Kulldorff & Jay Bhattacharya like to hang out & which "is aligned with the [MAHA] movement."
🔹️The coalition "is currently working with representatives in nearly a dozen states...and aims to get bills that would roll back or eliminate...
🔹️The coalition "is currently working with representatives in nearly a dozen states...and aims to get bills that would roll back or eliminate...
February 11, 2026 at 8:27 PM
(founded by Bobby) & the Brownstone Institute, where Martin Kulldorff & Jay Bhattacharya like to hang out & which "is aligned with the [MAHA] movement."
🔹️The coalition "is currently working with representatives in nearly a dozen states...and aims to get bills that would roll back or eliminate...
🔹️The coalition "is currently working with representatives in nearly a dozen states...and aims to get bills that would roll back or eliminate...
🔹️"Stand for Health Freedom is leading a group called the Medical Freedom Act Coalition — launched nine days after [RFK, Jr] announced the new vaccine schedule, which recommends immunizations against [just] 11 diseases instead of the former 17."
🔹️The coalition includes Children’s Health Defense,...
🔹️The coalition includes Children’s Health Defense,...
February 11, 2026 at 8:27 PM
🔹️"Stand for Health Freedom is leading a group called the Medical Freedom Act Coalition — launched nine days after [RFK, Jr] announced the new vaccine schedule, which recommends immunizations against [just] 11 diseases instead of the former 17."
🔹️The coalition includes Children’s Health Defense,...
🔹️The coalition includes Children’s Health Defense,...
🚨 Mandates are critical to vaccine uptake. Having recently undermined both so successfully through the CDC ACIP, antivaxxers are now taking their fight to state legislatures.
This is an important piece, w/ links to those state fights. What to know & what to do:
🧵
www.statnews.com/2026/01/29/v...
This is an important piece, w/ links to those state fights. What to know & what to do:
🧵
www.statnews.com/2026/01/29/v...
With new vaccine schedule secured, RFK Jr. allies head to statehouses
The overhaul of the federal vaccine schedule sent shockwaves through American health care. Now battles over vaccine laws are moving to statehouses across the country.
www.statnews.com
February 11, 2026 at 8:27 PM
🚨 Mandates are critical to vaccine uptake. Having recently undermined both so successfully through the CDC ACIP, antivaxxers are now taking their fight to state legislatures.
This is an important piece, w/ links to those state fights. What to know & what to do:
🧵
www.statnews.com/2026/01/29/v...
This is an important piece, w/ links to those state fights. What to know & what to do:
🧵
www.statnews.com/2026/01/29/v...
ICYMI: Measles is again endemic in the UK. Congratulations, British friends.
www.bbc.com/news/article...
www.bbc.com/news/article...
UK loses measles elimination status
Decision made after outbreaks in 2024, when there were nearly 3,000 cases in England and Wales.
www.bbc.com
February 11, 2026 at 7:21 PM
ICYMI: Measles is again endemic in the UK. Congratulations, British friends.
www.bbc.com/news/article...
www.bbc.com/news/article...
It sure is.
Thank you to our blue governors who are rising to this moment.
Thank you to our blue governors who are rising to this moment.
February 11, 2026 at 7:00 PM
It sure is.
Thank you to our blue governors who are rising to this moment.
Thank you to our blue governors who are rising to this moment.
Maybe; I dunno. My impression is that this is more about irrational hostility towards mRNA biotech, but I could be missing an ulterior motive.
February 11, 2026 at 6:58 PM
Maybe; I dunno. My impression is that this is more about irrational hostility towards mRNA biotech, but I could be missing an ulterior motive.
Give her a call and tell her staff you want Massachusetts to participate! She's at 617-725-4005.
February 11, 2026 at 5:38 AM
Give her a call and tell her staff you want Massachusetts to participate! She's at 617-725-4005.