Interview with Dr. Russell Schierling

On Tissue Remodeling Therapy, Childhood Vaccination, and plenty more.

I connected recently with Dr. Schierling from Mountain View, Missouri.

I love coming cross medical practitioners who figured out Cartel Medicine early, especially when they have been able to navigate a career through that minefield and also be public about their opposition. There aren’t many that tick all these boxes, but they are out there, and Dr. Schierling is among them.

Considering that he still practices I’m very appreciative of the time he has put into a great interview response. We cover a lot of territory and I’m sure there will be something for everyone here.

With thanks to Dr. Russell Schierling.

Doctor Schierling (Dr. Russell Schierling) | Schierling Chiropractic | Mountain View, MO

Schierling Chiropractic, LLC | Facebook

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Educational Journey

“Dr. Schierling, can you share how your studies in Nutrition & Exercise Physiology at Kansas State University influenced your approach to chiropractic care and holistic health?"

Looking back on my days as a nutrition/exercise physiology major at Kansas State University in the 1980’s, I’m forced to admit just how little of what I learned was accurate or helpful. There were so many bad nutritional ideologies that blossomed in that era, but in my mind the worst of the lot was the government’s Food Pyramid, with their ongoing “eggs will kill you” campaign running a close second.

I’ll never forget one of the young Ph.D.’s in the A&P Department holding court on the lawn, surrounded by a handful of impressionable pre-med students, telling them that poor nutrition in America is a thing of the past. His reasoning? He said that because so much of our food supply, including white flour, is “fortified” with vitamins and minerals, people could thrive on a diet of Cheetos and Twinkies.

By the mid-90’s I’d gotten excited about whole food nutrition & supplements thanks to seminars put on by Standard Process. It was also around this time I started attending functional medicine seminars taught by Dr Janet Lang, and later, a host of conferences put on by Dr Datis Kharazzian’s stable of Carrick-trained functional neurologists.

The other thing that happened in the mid-90’s was the birth of the world wide web. The younger generation has absolutely no idea the effort it used to take to do honest-to-goodness research – particularly if you lived in a rural area, without access to a large university library. Today, even though it’s -25° windchill outside, I can sit in my office combing through abstracts of more studies than I could possibly read in a month.

About a decade ago I was introduced to one of the most brilliant physicians on the planet, Dr Eric Serrano of Columbus, Ohio. Although Eric is an OB/GYN by training and former multi-time professor-of-the-year at Ohio State University, he’s also one of the world’s foremost experts on nutrition and training methods for elite strength athletes. I recently asked him if he had a photographic memory because he seems to know everything about everything. He said no but I still think he’s lying.

Chiropractic Choice

"What was the pivotal moment during your powerlifting injury that led you to seek chiropractic care, and how did this experience shape your decision to pursue a career in chiropractic?"

Although I could haul hay and cut /split firewood with the best of them, when I graduated from high school, I was 6’2” and a scrawny (I prefer “ripped” or “shredded”) 155 lbs. Thanks to reading bodybuilding mags at the grocery store while my mom shopped (no idea if grocery stores still have huge magazine racks), I developed a fascination for big muscles from my childhood.

I eventually built a weight bench / squat rack / pull-down combo machine in metal shop and started lifting weights, getting serious about powerlifting (particularly squats and deadlifts) my freshman year in college (to clarify, I did not compete, and “certain individuals” would die laughing at my use of ‘serious’).

I eventually hurt my back.

Despite growing up in a family that only went to the doctor for broken bones, stitches or conditions approaching rigor mortis, after a couple months of pain I gave in and got an appointment at the campus clinic. I walked in to the treatment room and low-and-behold the doctor was this guy we would occasionally see at the gym doing a series of bizarre exercises; the most entertaining of which involved jumping jacks with heavy dumbbells, which he always looked like he was on the verge of pile-driving his head with.

I refused to take medicine and ended up at the office of Dr Mark Hateshol.

Not only did Dr Mark fix my back, but my allergies to certain foods disappeared in the process. I was sold and immediately started working towards fulfilling the academic requirements for chiropractic school, eventually settling on Logan in suburban St Louis.

Chronic Pain Experience and Scar Tissue Therapy Discovery

"Could you describe your personal journey with chronic pain, particularly your struggle with elbow tendinosis, and how it has impacted your understanding of patient care?” and "What was the turning point that led you to discover scar tissue remodeling therapy, and how did your skepticism shift after experiencing its effects firsthand?"

Back in the late 90’s I started having elbow tendinitis.

Although it did not really bother me while seeing patients, anything that required a strong grip became difficult, to the point of impossible. Many weightlifting movements. Running a chainsaw or splitting firewood. Even pushing a mower or gripping a steering wheel. I saw numerous chiros in the region, but none of their approaches helped. Eventually I was introduced to the tissue remodeling therapy that I’ve been using extensively with patients since about Y2K, which essentially solved my problem with a three-minute treatment.

Intrigued, I started digging into the world of tendon research, quickly realizing that since the 1980’s there has been a raging debate within the academic medical community whether or not tendinitis even exists (“itis” = inflammation), with many studies and experts saying the problem is actually an “osis” or derangement/fraying of the tendon in the absence of inflammation, mostly due to overuse (tendinosis). This, in turn, led me into the world of fascia research, which is what my website quickly became most known for.

Therapy Implementation

"Since incorporating scar tissue remodeling therapy into your practice, how have you seen it change the outcomes for patients, particularly those with similar conditions to your own?"

I literally could not imagine going back to practicing the way I used to.

For instance, on Friday I saw a professional MMA fighter (retired) who had a hip issue as well as numerous problems related to a neck that had about half its normal range-of-motion (extension - his ability to tip his head backwards - was significantly less than 50%). By the time this individual left my clinic he had normal C-spine ROM and a dramatically improved hip. And although I did adjust him at the end of our visit, those improvements mostly occurred prior.

On Monday I saw a young, healthy individual that had recently been air-evacuated for stroke-like symptoms (it happens more commonly than you might think). After about $100,000 of medical care and being released because there was no visible reason for their symptoms, this individual came to see me. This person had only about 30% of their normal C-spine ROM but admitted that they felt like their neck was “out” a week prior to their helicopter ride. By the time they left the office their ROM was essentially normal.

What sets my practice apart from most is that with problems not related to herniated discs, I am typically able to tell patients that they will know after a single treatment whether or not my approach will help (check out some of our testimonials as well as a rambling blog post moved over from an older web site titled Treatment Diary).

Not that one treatment will really ever be enough to completely solve these problems, but if there are not dramatic changes after the first treatment, more of the same is also unlikely to help. Because I’ve never been big on long, drawn out treatment schedules for run-of-the-mill problems related to pain and dysfunction, this approach is right up my alley.

Below is a letter from a renowned pediatric anesthesiologist (now retired), who CC’d me in a communication to a colleague (a fellow anesthesiologist who is a chronic pain specialist at the large hospital they both worked at)...

Five days before my Hotter n’ Hell 100 mile bike ride in August in Wichita Falls, TX, I went to see Dr, Schierling as a patient for the first time because my upper back and neck were painful and tight. I expected to receive some massage/manipulation and feel better for a few days. Instead he worked on old injuries in my neck, upper back, shoulders and rib cage. My body appeared to have been mauled; the bruising slowly receded over a period of 10 days. My skin looked far worse than the enclosed pictures demonstrate. The bike ride was uneventful. Only in this last week did I reflect upon the fact that my freedom of motion and pain relief has extended to the present time. Since you seek to provide pain relief to patients by all practical methods, it seems reasonable to share this story with you.

Future of Your Practice

"Looking towards the future, how do you see your practice evolving, and are there any new areas of therapy or research you are particularly excited about exploring?"

As far as new areas of therapy are concerned, I’m always looking for new things for my patients. In many cases, simply to provide to them with another weapon in their arsenal of potential self-help options. For instance, I’ve been using low level lasers since about 2010 and will eventually purchase some sort of ultra high frequency device. What I have found over the years, however, is that correctly performed manual therapies are generally more effective than technology.

I’m also part of a mastermind group of like-minded professionals of all sorts. What makes this group so great is their diversity -- physicians, athletes, chiros, therapists, researchers, etc., who are elite in their field and always looking for the best available options for whatever they are trying to accomplish (I’m the group’s ‘village idiot’). Having a network to bounce ideas off and ask questions of is invaluable.

I hope to get back into blogging but that largely depends on what happens on the censorship front. Maybe I’ll do what others have done and start a Substack. Either way, the thought of retirement sounds rather boring at this point in my life. Right now I’m spending much of my spare time working on the small farm my kids purchased a few years ago and enjoying our new granddaughter.

As far as blogging is concerned, there’s so much to cover across the healthcare front that it’s impossible to keep up. The deeper you dig into EBM (Evidence-Based Medicine), the wider the chasm between medical practice and medical research seems to be. And running a large website by yourself can turn into a second full time job if one is not careful.

Experiences with Censorship:

"Because you brought it up, what do you think led to your censorship prior to your post on Original Antigenic Sin/Antibody-Dependent Enhancement (your first foray into a covid-related topic) and how has this impacted your approach to sharing information on public platforms?"

The first part is a bit tricky. By the time I had written the fore-mentioned post, my site was already being heavily censored - the traffic cratered literally overnight. Initially I did not understand why (I’m a content creator, not a tech guy), believing it to be the result of another of Google’s many “Penguin” SEO updates. As to what actually caused it, I’m still not sure. Best guess is that the algorithms saw me as a misinformation spreader - one of those dreaded “antivaxxers”.

It makes me curious as to whether or not I’m the only one who feels it’s become much more difficult and time consuming to write anything counter-narrative. Thanks to the way that these AI algorithms are set up, numerous sites’ articles have, for all practical purposes, been removed from the internet. To be sure, they are still there (or maybe not), but finding them via search is often all but totally impossible.

For example...

Although my post, Legislatively Protecting Religious Vaccination Exemptions..., was originally published on November 18th of 2023, as of mid-January 2024 it's not to be found in the web's first 300 search results on either Duck Duck Go or Google - even when searching by the article's exact title, and even when adding my name to the search. I've been blogging for twenty years and have never seen anything remotely like this...

It’s not like I’m the only person this happened to (Censorship of Natural Health Sites). And as I think about it, I am not sure I see articles from Substack’s individual “Stacks” come up on search either – unless a left-of-center outlet is writing something derogatory about the platform itself as a purveyor of thought crimes, hate and misinformation.

What’s telling, however, is that as increasing numbers people have woke up to the truth about the covid vaccine, many are actually being red-pilled about the potential dangers of vaccines in general. More on this in a moment.

In hindsight, my 9-year old post, Vaccine Wars are On the Horizon, looks eerily prophetic. Although I got a lot of things right, I must admit that I got the part on mRNA vaccines really wrong. The following quote was me writing about the massive number of vaccines that were already in R&D a decade ago for “diseases of lifestyle”...

Many of these vaccines actually involve purposefully-induced/genetically-induced (mRNA) autoimmune reactions against specific enzymes or other proteins, with no real idea how to tame the volcano. Current research indicates that this vax pathway is likely a dead end due to the inability to control them.

The reality is that none of what we are seeing today is new - browsing the vaccinations portion of my blog proves that.

Does anyone honestly still think that pandemic-related shilling and lying started with the pandemic? Of course not. The single biggest proof is a sickening phrase I’ve heard from patients too many times to count – “My (insert one here _____________ child, grandchild, niece, nephew, neighbor’s kid, co-worker’s child, other) was totally normal until they had their shots”.

Religious Exemptions and Legislative Efforts

"Can you elaborate on your efforts to address issues regarding religious exemptions in Missouri's state legislature? How do you believe these exemptions should be handled in healthcare and employment contexts?"

Excepting its urban centers, Missouri is one of the most conservative states in the US. Unfortunately, and for reasons that I am not 100% clear on, our state tried and failed to pass legislation protecting religious vaccine exemptions early in the pandemic. It looks like SB-1085 will be passed into law soon. However...

Not to sound like a pessimist, but three years later it feels like too little, too late.

Firstly, as I understand it the current legislation pertains only to covid vaccines (industry is striving to make all vaccines mRNA, sa-mRNA, DNA, etc.). And secondly, it provides for “emergency exemptions,” meaning that all that’s needed to once again force healthcare workers into whatever vaccinations those in charge deem necessary – potentially related to what kind and how much stock they own – is simply to declare another ‘emergency’.

You can read more about this in the context of the bigger pandemic picture in my latest post, Vaccine Mandates & Religious Exemptions: An Open Letter to Missouri Legislators. I sent a short email synopsis to my state representative, along with a link to the article itself, but have yet to hear back. And yes, I completely realize that this is a hot-potato issue for anyone whose chief goal is getting re-elected. But as I will show you momentarily, public opinion is shifting has shifted dramatically on this front. Legislators would do well to get on the right side of this issue sooner rather than later.

Personal Connection to Vaccine Exemptions

"You mentioned a patient ('Sally') who lost her job due to vaccine rejection. How has this incident influenced your perspective and advocacy on vaccine mandates and exemptions?"

Thankfully, Sally, a long-time patient (almost 26 years), got her job as a travel nurse back. I honestly have no idea whether or not it had anything to do with my blog post or not.

Her story in a nutshell…

Sally’s facility offered their workers religious exemptions to the annual flu vaccine. She applied for and received an exemption (verified by both text and email on two different dates) but was fired anyway because her facility said their exemptions did not cover travelers (which they did, as stated clearly in their official - i.e. legal - policy document, which she was smart enough to make copies of, both digitally and paper). This occurred shortly after she was hired by this facility - one week after being sent an offer to double the length of her contact because her employers were so pleased with her job performance.

I would be curious to know just how many healthcare workers are getting vaccinated not because they feel it has anything beneficial to do with their health, but because of employee mandates. And as for mandates; how sad is it that those who understand ‘the science’ far better than the average person (not to mention the fact that they swim in an ocean of anecdotal evidence), have to be mandated (forced / coerced) to take these vaccines against their religion and against their conscience?

And isn’t it likewise interesting that those hollering for mandates the loudest are often those who are profiting the most?

Government Watchdog Agencies

"You've expressed concerns about the corruption in agencies like the FDA and CDC. Can you provide specific examples or experiences that led you to this conclusion?"

I have a friend who used to be part of several FDA committees that approved or denied pharmaceutical drugs. He quit in disgust – oh the stories he can tell. I remember the short email I got from him a number of years ago… “Bleep that. Never again!” I have written frequently about these agencies but the following two links on the CDC’s ‘Revolving Door’ policies (New BMJ Study/Old BMJ Study), published seven years apart, reveal the disgusting and unchanging truth. The fact is these agencies seem far more interested in protecting industry than they are in protecting vulnerable citizens from industry.

And let’s not forget another government watchdog agency I’ve written extensively about; VAERS (Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System). The science has consistently shown that adverse vaccination events are under-reported to VAERS by an almost unimaginable two orders of magnitude (1 in 100). I have yet to meet a doctor who has ever reported to VAERS in their career – and I’m the guy that’s been asking for thirty years. In fact; prior to covid most had no idea what VAERS is, let alone it even exists.

Childhood Vaccination Views

"Can you recount the moment or experience that first led you to question the safety and efficacy of childhood vaccinations, and how this realization has impacted your professional and personal life?"

When I graduated from Logan, I went to Superior, Nebraska for one month to work with Dr James Teachworth in order to learn his unique method of electric acupuncture done with a MENS-O-MATIC microcurrent machine before setting up shop in Mountain View, Missouri.

As fate would have it, some of my very first patients were a family that had moved to the area from Nebraska, where they had actually been patients of Dr Teachworth, whom they adored.

They had a teen son who had been severely damaged by the DPT shot (see A Shot in the Dark or the brand new article on Barbara Loe Fischer by Dr Mercola). He wore diapers, constantly rolled both his head and unfocused eyes in circles, was non-verbal but would constantly groan and scream, all while violently chewing his forearms into masses of scar tissue. When you see it up close and personal - and start grasping the hardships that this family will endure for the rest of their lives (financial, emotional, physical, etc.) - it affects you deeply.

Especially considering he was normal prior to his 18-month shots.

“Has your stance on vaccines led to conflicts with medical or governmental establishments? How have you navigated these challenges?”

Honestly, I’ve had very little conflict. I used to write letters-to-the-editor of our local newspaper whenever they ran their vaccine propaganda. And for a number of years (pre-internet) I even had a regular column where, on occasion, I discussed the topic (I cannot remember any push-back). Here is a letter to the editor that I sent to a newspaper about 25 miles from here in response to their series on autism.

As far as conflict is concerned, I quickly learned that having a good grasp of the subject matter (including peer-review) squelched conflict because most of those on the other side – even many of the so-called experts – are actually just parroting talking points from a failed 100 year narrative. In many cases these ‘debates’ turned into opportunities to educate people about something they may be unfamiliar with – or believe to be a ‘conspiracy theory’.

Although many of your readers will be surprised, during covid I never shut my clinic down and only had a mask on my face one time for about 10 seconds – to get from the front door of my beautician’s business to her chair, where I then took it off to get what little remaining hair I have left, cut.

I was not unique in my town – it’s the nature of the Ozarks and the rugged people who live here. Because of this, and not surprisingly, our geographic region had pandemic outcomes that were better than most.

As for my clinic, we were so busy during that time I rarely had time to catch my breath, let alone eat lunch. How many patients left due to our covid stance? No idea. But I can tell you that many (many) drove several hours to get here from areas that had totally locked down (“Are you guys mask-Nazis? Great, when can I make an appointment”?) And as for the idea of certain jobs/trades/careers being deemed “safe” or “essential” (like Mal Wart), while other smaller businesses selling the exact same goods and/or providing the exact same services were not... Total bullshit.

Because he had correctly surmised that hospitals were soon going to require masking; early in the pandemic, my brother, a long-time ER doctor, showed me the evidence for prophylactically masking against respiratory infections. The research showed then what it continues to show today - a lack of efficacy that can be traced back to the earliest studies on this subject. He suggested that if masks actually worked, hospitals would have mandated them decades ago.

I could continue ranting but time to move on...

Early Influences on Vaccination Perspective

"Who were your early influences or key sources of information that shaped your views on the risks associated with vaccinations?"

Four things led me to my position on vaccines - the opinion of others far smarter than me, peer-review, mountains of anecdotal evidence and good ole-fashioned cancel culture. Off the top of my head, the biggest influences would include Dr Mendelsohn (more in a moment), Barbara Loe Fischer of the NVIC, Ted Koren, Neil Miller, and Jim Sigafoose, along with too many others to mention.

While at Logan I was assigned a book by renowned pediatrician, Robert Mendelsohn, titled How to Raise A Healthy Child in Spite of Your Doctor. Because it was not a book we were being tested on I blew it off. However, after our son was born I’ve read and re-read that brilliant little book several times. Over the years it has been our go-to baby shower gift (there are chapters on vaccines, fever, coughs, ear infections and numerous others).

I was also deeply affected by a four hour presentation from a St Louis area MD (Amy Davis Wright) speaking to a large group of chiros about her journey to bring her vaccine-injured children back to health. When parents with vaccine-injured children ask me what I would do if I were in their shoes, I typically point them to her West County functional medicine clinic.

As far as peer-review is concerned, take most of it with a grain of salt because a large amount – doubly true in this field - is either paid for or done by industry itself (or frequently both) – go back to my EBM link to see the receipts. And even though anecdotal evidence (“testimonials”) is not held in high regard by the mainstream medical research community (double-blinded placebo controlled studies are considered the gold standard), it should be.

The first-hand accounts I hear from patients, whether healthcare professionals or not, are frankly shocking. I could bend your ear for hours with stories from people I know personally. Like little kids (emphasis on little) having strokes shortly after their covid shot. Or the embalmer telling the family that ‘Joe’ was so full of clots his skin was mottled – and then showing them. Nothing to see here. Move along, it’s all completely normal.

I’ll add a fourth influence here. Elite/renowned physicians and researchers who have been censured due to their stance on the covid vaccines should disturb everyone regardless of their stance on the vaccine. Realize these docs have nothing to gain and everything to lose by coming forward with facts that don’t fit the promoted narrative. America! The land of the censored and the home of the canceled.

When doctors or researchers, whether famous or not, publicly speak out against the narrative, the backlash can be immediate and brutal. Literally (see Dr Charles Hoffe). There have been many names we’ve all become familiar with during the pandemic, but this phenomena is not at all new.

I would argue that the best example is the late Dr Fudenberg (MD/Ph.D.), the renowned immuno-geneticist who linked flu shots to Alzheimer’s while at Berkeley back in the 1970’s and had his career destroyed because of it. Compare search results from the government’s PubMed database to results from ResearchGate (which is actually only a small fraction of the nearly 900 published studies on his CV, which can only be found on the Wayback Machine/Internet Archive site).

Autism and Vaccines Discussion

"You've been discussing the link between vaccines and autism for over three decades. How has the public and scientific reception to this viewpoint evolved over the years?"

As seen in the latest Rasmussen Polls (here, here & here), it’s clear that the public no longer believes the promoted narrative. They’ve also wised up to the government/industry “Fact Checking” scheme, which has been going on for decades under various names and auspices.

Simply do a web search for “Can vaccines cause autism?” and look at the whitewashing. What’s the truth. For starters there are currently studies showing that the covid vaccine itself might be causing autism (here and here). It’s a relationship I’ve been writing about for decades, even though, as you can clearly see, I have never argued that vaccines are autism’s only cause.

Not sure if my emails had an effect or remained unread, but as a long-time follower of Steve Kirsch, I repeatedly hit him with decades of evidence linking vaccines to autism.

My point to him was one I made earlier to you – none of what we are seeing with the covid pandemic is novel or new to the covid pandemic. Either way, because he’s a smart guy who is willing to look at data, he was red-pilled to this fact, eventually writing several excellent pieces on the topic, including If Vaccines Don’t Cause Autism, Then How Do You Explain All This Evidence?

Missouri v. Biden Lawsuit

"Given its significance, could you explain the Missouri v. Biden lawsuit and its implications, particularly in the context of your state and your work?"

Before becoming Missouri’s national senator per the 2022 election, Eric Schmitt was our state’s Attorney General. In tandem with Louisiana’s AG and Jim Hoft of Saint Louis’ Gateway Pundit, Missouri sued the federal government over its multi-pronged effort to both pay for and assist social media companies like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and others to censor anything and everything that did not align with its official covid narrative. In true “Operation Mockingbird” fashion, the government was likewise doing the very same thing with MSM television stations – even at the most local of levels.

What fascinates me the most about this lawsuit is that it has arguably provided a better ‘textbook’ definition of fascism than any textbook I’ve seen - government, industry and media colluding and intertwining themselves into a single, incestuous, and soulless entity. Can anyone say “Big Brother”?

Almost as interesting (and equally as disheartening) is the fact that even in my extremely rural and conservative region of the Ozarks, I rarely find patients who are familiar with MO v. Biden (now called Murthy v. Missouri after the federal government appealed at the SCOTUS) – probably because the local news outlets never discuss it (see previous link).

Unfortunately, the average person has no real idea of the extent of this censorship on every conceivable level of society. For example, the globalist goons congregating congealing at this week’s annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos concluded that the number one problem immediately facing the planet is… (drumroll please) misinformation/disinformation.

Speaking of misinformation, I would like to thank you as well as congratulate you, Unbekoming, for your efforts on Substack. You have become a fantastic source of “misinformation,” although I admittedly do not get to read everything you put out because I am subscribed to so darn many Stacks (not to mention that wow, are you ever prolific!).

Thanks for being here.

Please consider a paid subscription.

You will get nothing more for your support, as everything is made freely available. The money simply goes towards recovering some of the costs of this work.

I am always looking for good, personal GMC, covid and childhood vaccination stories.

You can write to me privately: unbekoming@outlook.com

If you are Covid vaccine injured, consider the FLCCC Post-Vaccine Treatment

If you want to understand and “see” what baseline human health looks like, watch (and share) this 21 minutes

If you want to help someone, give them a book. Official Stories by Liam Scheff. Point them to a “safe” chapter (here and here), and they will find their way to vaccination.

Here are all the Book Summaries produced so far:

FREE Book Summary: The HPV Vaccine on Trial by Holland et al.

FREE Book Summary: Bitten by Kris Newby (Lyme Disease)

FREE Book Summary: The Great Cholesterol Con by Dr Malcolm Kendrick

FREE Book Summary: Propaganda by Edward Bernays

FREE Book Summary: Toxic Legacy by Stephanie Seneff (Glyphosate)

FREE Book Summary: The Measles Book by CHD

FREE Book Summary: The Deep Hot Biosphere by Thomas Gold (Abiogenic Oil)

FREE Book Summary: The Peanut Allergy Epidemic by Heather Fraser

FREE eBook: What is a woman? - “We don’t know yet.”

FREE eBook: The Climate™

FREE eBook: A letter to my two adult kids - Vaccines and the free spike protein