4 ms·

It's not just the green parties. There's a sizeable part of the population in the German speaking world (and I'm sure elsewhere too) that just views nuclear pow

by jcfrei 5y ago

It's not just the green parties. There's a sizeable part of the population in the German speaking world (and I'm sure elsewhere too) that just views nuclear power as something unnatural and perverted. Something that's always going to be more dangerous than beneficial. I think this notion started even before the Chernobyl accident but that plus Fukushima really reaffirmed the fears lots of people had. It's a very shortsighted view of things but it's unlikely to change.

elesiuta 5y ago
There's a name for this type of thinking https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appeal_to_nature https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appeal_to_nature which I find a little ironic since a natural nuclear fission reactor has actually been discovered.
ohthehugemanate 5y ago
my personal experience living in several places in Germany: the whole appeal to nature argument is unreasonably effective here. Most germans will try an array of homeopathic remedies before taking ibuprofen. Most GP doctors advertise a secondary expertise in some woo or other, be it homeopathy, crystals, or osteopathy. It is downright tricky to find a doctor who will give you evidence based pharmaceuticals for your complaint; I can't tell you how many times I've come home from a doctor to look up the "medicine" they gave me, to find that it's some variant of hyper-diluted rosewater.
- formerly_proven 5y ago
  > I can't tell you how many times I've come home from a doctor to look up the "medicine" they gave me, to find that it's some variant of hyper-diluted rosewater. Non-Germans might be shocked to find that most public/mandatory health insurers actually cover this. Even the language reflect this, since they're called "homeopathic pharmaceuticals".
  - ohthehugemanate 5y ago
    oh yeah, plus there's a whole FDA equivalent for homeopathic pharmaceuticals. On the other hand, at least here, when you buy a supplement, you are guaranteed that it contains the active ingredient as it says on the bottle.
- dunefox 5y ago
  this is plainly wrong or exaggerated. I have never had a single doctor tell me to use homeopathy or something similarly silly, and I've been to quite a few doctors. Also, it's not 'most germans' who even consider homeopathy as valid, it's a portion.
  - gallexme 5y ago
    As (south west) German, I think the world's of medicine here are pretty far apart depending on where you are, as a city person it may be a none issue, but living in the countryside I had no other gp than two homeopathic selling doctors in 23 years(in 1h travel range with public transport) , luckily these days we also have a great gp. But Boi it's pretty ingrained into a lot of older people in my environment to take snake oil over physical therapy/fitting pharmaceuticals.

by jcfrei 5y ago

elesiuta 5y ago

There's a name for this type of thinking https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appeal_to_nature https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appeal_to_nature which I find a little ironic since a natural nuclear fission reactor has actually been discovered.

ohthehugemanate 5y ago

my personal experience living in several places in Germany: the whole appeal to nature argument is unreasonably effective here. Most germans will try an array of homeopathic remedies before taking ibuprofen. Most GP doctors advertise a secondary expertise in some woo or other, be it homeopathy, crystals, or osteopathy. It is downright tricky to find a doctor who will give you evidence based pharmaceuticals for your complaint; I can't tell you how many times I've come home from a doctor to look up the "medicine" they gave me, to find that it's some variant of hyper-diluted rosewater.

formerly_proven 5y ago
> I can't tell you how many times I've come home from a doctor to look up the "medicine" they gave me, to find that it's some variant of hyper-diluted rosewater. Non-Germans might be shocked to find that most public/mandatory health insurers actually cover this. Even the language reflect this, since they're called "homeopathic pharmaceuticals".
- ohthehugemanate 5y ago
  oh yeah, plus there's a whole FDA equivalent for homeopathic pharmaceuticals. On the other hand, at least here, when you buy a supplement, you are guaranteed that it contains the active ingredient as it says on the bottle.
dunefox 5y ago
this is plainly wrong or exaggerated. I have never had a single doctor tell me to use homeopathy or something similarly silly, and I've been to quite a few doctors. Also, it's not 'most germans' who even consider homeopathy as valid, it's a portion.
- gallexme 5y ago
  As (south west) German, I think the world's of medicine here are pretty far apart depending on where you are, as a city person it may be a none issue, but living in the countryside I had no other gp than two homeopathic selling doctors in 23 years(in 1h travel range with public transport) , luckily these days we also have a great gp. But Boi it's pretty ingrained into a lot of older people in my environment to take snake oil over physical therapy/fitting pharmaceuticals.