Crowdfunding: Trial By Error: Reporting on ME, CFS, ME/CFS, "medically unexplained symptoms," and related stuff, Fall 2021

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As usual, UC Berkeley has designated October as a month for campus projects to seek tax-deductible gifts through the university's crowdfunding platform. To support my Trial By Error project from January through June of 2022, I am seeking funding for my position (at 65%) as Senior Fellow in Public Health and Journalism at the Center for Global Public Health, which is part of the School of Public Health.

Of that amount, approximately $44,000 is for salary, $16,000 for health insurance/employment benefits, and the rest for Berkeley's 7.5 % gift fee.

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A Short Recap

I launched the "Trial By Error" series on Virology Blog in October, 2015, with a 15,000-word investigation of the disastrous PACE trial, which tested cognitive behavior therapy and graded exercise therapy as treatments for the illness or cluster of illnesses variously known as ME, CFS, and ME/CFS. Since then, I have posted hundreds of blogs about that crap piece of research and related issues. I have written articles for major news organizations, authored or co-authored multiple peer-reviewed papers, and given talks in half a dozen countries.

Because the symptoms reported by many Long Covid patients overlap with those that characterize ME/CFS, PACE and its bogus findings have finally come under greater public scrutiny. In a widely read September article in The Atlantic about Long Covid, science journalist Ed Yong referred to PACE as "a now-discredited study." It is hard to express the thrill I felt when reading that phrase rendered as a normative statement in such a high-profile venue--even more so when I realized the phrase was linked to my Virology Blog investigation. It actually brought me close to tears.

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One Final Note

Berkeley takes a 5% share as the university's standard fee for gifts, plus 2.5% as a crowdfunding/credit card fee. Therefore, adding 7.5% to your donation will ensure that the full amount you intend is going toward the project itself. The donation is tax-deductible (for US taxpayers at least).

Thanks so much for your support. I really appreciate it, especially at this time of global trauma.

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A link to my original Trial By Error series: https://www.virology.ws/2015/10/21/trial-by-error-i/

A link to all the posts I have written on Virology Blog: http://www.virology.ws/mecfs/


To donate, visit https://crowdfund.berkeley.edu/project/27513

 

Pay day soon.

 

Thank you so very much, Dave!

 

$4,835, 7% of target, 30 days to go.

https://crowdfund.berkeley.edu/project/27513

 

Thanks. Among my least favorite activities.

 

Ditto.

Cheers.

 

I just wanted to make a minor complaint, sorry!

The link I've quoted to your articles has never been up-to-date when I've gone to it. Currently, it is five articles behind.

 

Done. Thank you very much Dave.

 

Ditto.

 

I know. I fall behind. I updated it a couple weeks ago. I should do it each time I post, and don't. Thanks for the reminder.

 

I'm sure last time I donated it asked if you wanted to pay the extra (the money the University gets for handling the money side of things) and it added it on automatically. Sorry if I've not explained very well!

Anyway, this time that didn't happen. I was too brain fogged to work the percentage out, so just added a few dollars more.

Just thought for others who wish to donate forewarned is forearmed!

 

$5,889, 9% of target. https://crowdfund.berkeley.edu/project/27513

 

No, I don't think it has ever done that automatically.

If you want to be sure that (almost) all the amount you wish to donate goes to the fund, then add 8% to your donation (or multiply it by 1.08), which almost covers the 7.5% charge.

e.g. To donate $50, that would mean 50 x 1.08 = $54 to pay.

Of your $54 you paid, 7.5% of that is $4.05 for the fee, so you will have paid $49.95 into the fund. Obviously you can juggle that slightly if you wish.

If you want to be slightly more pedantic and be sure the full amount gets donated, then add 8.2% (or multiply by 1.082).

ETA: I've done a table for donation values $10 up to $100 in $10 dollar increments of what would need to be paid to fully cover the fee as well, rounded up to the nearest dollar.

 

I keep bugging them to add this. Apparently, the ScaleFunder program that Berkeley uses doesn't include that or seem to allow them to add that. It is really mind-boggling. Every Berkeley campaign would get 7.5% more if they added that, since almost everyone who sees that button clicks it because they want the projects to get the full amount being donated.

 

$6,890 received - 10% of target.

 

Once again, thank you for your important work, @dave30th .

As one of the by-products of your crowdfunding, I particularly like the recap of your work and summaries of recent highlights.

For 'reach out' it would be extremely helpful if you inserted links to your most relevant criticism of MUS research papers and the corrections prompted by your work.

(The only link within your text now goes to .codaStory, but not to your article there.)

Also, it would be great to have those summaries posted on virology blog, too.

(Edit -- wording.)

 

$7,635 received, 11% of target.

https://crowdfund.berkeley.edu/project/27513

 

Thank you @dave30th for all the work you continue to do on behalf of people with ME/CFS. You’ve done so much for us. It’s always a pleasure to contribute to your crowdfunding campaigns.

(I’m just one of your many fans ❤️)