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> Just remember: the FDA is also the organization that keeps homeopathy from marketing itself as legitimate cure to every disease out there. Who cares? Homeopa

> Just remember: the FDA is also the organization that keeps homeopathy from marketing itself as legitimate cure to every disease out there. Who cares? Homeopathy is largely harmless, the vast majority of people who practice it are not actually treating anything. Unless something goes seriously wrong, an extreme dilution is not going to have the same devastating effect as an untreated serious condition, unless the patient sticks it out like a fool, in which case can anyone except the charlatan who convinced them really be blamed?

MaulingMonkey 9y ago
> Who cares? Homeopathy is largely harmless, Not if someone is relying on it (or other 'harmless' cures like faith healing) to treat their cancer, or their children's cancer, instead of something that will actually work it's not. Nor is it harmless if they have a contagious condition that they spread around (and you catch!) under the assumption that they've already been 'cured'. Nor is it harmless even if it's just emptying their wallet. > Unless something goes seriously wrong, an extreme dilution is not going to have the same devastating effect as an untreated serious condition Which I'd wager you'd agree happens more often than homeopathy goes seriously right, even ignoring the fool patients, parents, and caregivers who might leave serious conditions effectively untreated on account of believing in snake oil. Not ignoring them, this was reported two days ago: https://arstechnica.com/science/2017/09/cdc-homeopathic-healing-bracelet-poisons-baby-with-high-levels-of-lead/ https://arstechnica.com/science/2017/09/cdc-homeopathic-heal... > in which case can anyone except the charlatan who convinced them really be blamed? Some would argue that the society which stood idly by and refused to oppose such charlatans, if not to blame, is at least some kind of low trust, everyone for themselves, shitty kind of society. Especially if it can identify who is to blame, and still does nothing. Government regulation is not the only tool of opposition. James Randi has given some good talks to help fight the ignorance they exploit with knowledge. (EDIT: His TED talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0Z7KeNCi7g https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0Z7KeNCi7g .) And there's some arguments that can be made that true freedom requires freedom to do stupid, counterproductive, self harming shit (although that's not the argument you're making.) TL;DR: I disagree with you on your stance of how harmless homeopathy supposedly is.
Pica_soO 9y ago
Fools have no right to live then? Now imagine a creature, very intelligent, but due to the intelligence - emotionally and socially handicapped- and thus unable to procreate. Such a creature would be foolish, thinking in evolutionary terms. But such a creature, could be useful for a society, who would want them to stick around. So if a not-fool would pro-create with such a fuel, even if it is rare, that would be a nice little selection machine. So if a procreation-fool, has foolish children, who in turn spawn procreation-fools, what a nice little dessert flower symbiosis that would be. And that is why intelligent people could have dumb children. The moral to this story: That fool clinging with cancer to charlatans, like Steve Jobs did- could be your future daughter or son. With great intelligence, comes great responsibility for those who might not wield it. And the uncomfortable knowledge that seemingly foolish behavior might be intelligent for other applications.
dizzystar 9y ago
>> Homeopathy is largely harmless Steve Jobs had a curable form of cancer. He chose homeopathy instead. Let's not pretend this is an isolated case.
- HillaryBriss 9y ago
  Jobs used homeopathy for cancer? i was able to find this Scientific American article about Jobs, which mentions dietary changes and acupuncture, but it doesn't mention that he used homeopathy. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/alternative-medicine-extend-abbreviate-steve-jobs-life/ https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/alternative-medic... is that documented somewhere else?

MaulingMonkey 9y ago

> Who cares? Homeopathy is largely harmless, Not if someone is relying on it (or other 'harmless' cures like faith healing) to treat their cancer, or their children's cancer, instead of something that will actually work it's not. Nor is it harmless if they have a contagious condition that they spread around (and you catch!) under the assumption that they've already been 'cured'. Nor is it harmless even if it's just emptying their wallet. > Unless something goes seriously wrong, an extreme dilution is not going to have the same devastating effect as an untreated serious condition Which I'd wager you'd agree happens more often than homeopathy goes seriously right, even ignoring the fool patients, parents, and caregivers who might leave serious conditions effectively untreated on account of believing in snake oil. Not ignoring them, this was reported two days ago: https://arstechnica.com/science/2017/09/cdc-homeopathic-healing-bracelet-poisons-baby-with-high-levels-of-lead/ https://arstechnica.com/science/2017/09/cdc-homeopathic-heal... > in which case can anyone except the charlatan who convinced them really be blamed? Some would argue that the society which stood idly by and refused to oppose such charlatans, if not to blame, is at least some kind of low trust, everyone for themselves, shitty kind of society. Especially if it can identify who is to blame, and still does nothing. Government regulation is not the only tool of opposition. James Randi has given some good talks to help fight the ignorance they exploit with knowledge. (EDIT: His TED talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0Z7KeNCi7g https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0Z7KeNCi7g .) And there's some arguments that can be made that true freedom requires freedom to do stupid, counterproductive, self harming shit (although that's not the argument you're making.) TL;DR: I disagree with you on your stance of how harmless homeopathy supposedly is.

Pica_soO 9y ago

Fools have no right to live then? Now imagine a creature, very intelligent, but due to the intelligence - emotionally and socially handicapped- and thus unable to procreate. Such a creature would be foolish, thinking in evolutionary terms. But such a creature, could be useful for a society, who would want them to stick around. So if a not-fool would pro-create with such a fuel, even if it is rare, that would be a nice little selection machine. So if a procreation-fool, has foolish children, who in turn spawn procreation-fools, what a nice little dessert flower symbiosis that would be. And that is why intelligent people could have dumb children. The moral to this story: That fool clinging with cancer to charlatans, like Steve Jobs did- could be your future daughter or son. With great intelligence, comes great responsibility for those who might not wield it. And the uncomfortable knowledge that seemingly foolish behavior might be intelligent for other applications.

dizzystar 9y ago

>> Homeopathy is largely harmless Steve Jobs had a curable form of cancer. He chose homeopathy instead. Let's not pretend this is an isolated case.

HillaryBriss 9y ago
Jobs used homeopathy for cancer? i was able to find this Scientific American article about Jobs, which mentions dietary changes and acupuncture, but it doesn't mention that he used homeopathy. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/alternative-medicine-extend-abbreviate-steve-jobs-life/ https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/alternative-medic... is that documented somewhere else?