Anyone notice how fundies are prone to conspiracy BS?

[Sean Howard]

To elaborate further: the scientists are either:

- not open minded enough
- in some kind of conspiracy
- are unknowingly mind-controlled slaves from the illuminati (oh yes, I'm not joking)

That's pretty much the party line amongst fundamentalist christians. I went to a hardcore fundy high school that literally taught that all scientists everywhere were participating a global conspiracy. In their schema, there is a heirarchy of scientists, with "evolutionists" at the top controlling everything.

So like every time some physicist publishes a paper, it is first filtered through the Evil Evolutionary Council (or whatever) to make sure it doesn't contradict theories of evolution. They claim that if the evolutionists were not suppressing the truth, that "real" science would support creationism.

At the time I was a "meet them halfway" christian type that thought science and the bible could be reconciled. I remember asking how this conspiracy could possibly be maintained. I mean, all it would take is one maverick scientist looking to make a name for himself by disproving everyone. Of course, the answer was such people are quietly disposed of.

I mean these guys literally thought I was "demons inside me" leading me astray because I even tried to approach it logically.

The funny thing is they think *everyone else* is closed minded.

[Surlethe]

For all of the synthesized (or artificial) medication out on the market, there is a something similiar in nature without side effects. The reason the big drug companies won't go to "nature" is because you cannot patent a natural process. So they would lose money.

Demand evidence. That's a very strong claim: that given any man-made medicine, there exists a purely natural alternative which has the same effects, but no side-effects; as such, the claim requires very strong evidence. What would be the alternative to, say, chemotherapy? To a protease inhibitor? The person propounding this proposition needs to put up, or shut the fuck up.

[General Trelane (Retired)]

Strangly this came up on a differant forum. One of the webcomics I read has the occasional 'author rant' strip. (found Here ) This set off a massive discussion in the comicgenesis forum and led to this post

[snipped]

Yay for vast conspiracies of unconnected people to 'oppress' the majority in this country.

Ironically, this Steltek person detailed the strategy of the Christian Reconstructionists for their own end-run around democracy. Coincidence?

[Admiral Valdemar]

By and large, most so-called "alternative"-medicine is complete quackery. Sure, a naturopath or homeopath might give you a treatment which might make you feel better, and carries no side-effects, but that's because his or her treatment isn't actually doing anything. The perception of wellness is due to the well-documented placebo effect, and the underlying cause of your problems isn't actually being treated.

And the statement about drug-companies not going to nature is patently wrong and intentionally misleading. Pharmeceutical companies employ hordes of biochemists who extensively research chemical or biological processes from nature which may have salutory effects on people. And one can generate many patents from nature, be they from patenting the process by which one extracts the medicinal substances from natural sources, or by figuring out how to synthesize it in a lab, and patenting that method.

When one uses the term "alternative" medicine, it's generally accepted that it's all crap. Anything that works is adopted by some qualified medical practitioner or supported by studies and reclassified "medicine". This is why certain non-standard therapies are now available on the NHS, for instance. They've been shown to have an actual effect outside the placebo one and are worth investing it.

And I never get tired of people using vitalism as an argument. As if Big Pharma are just pulling drugs out of their arses rather than finding real natural compounds in plants and synthesizing them on an industrial scale.

[darthbob88]

A neat little quote I found on the evolution of medicine.
Situation: "Doc, I'm sick."
2000BC: "Here, chew this root."
1000BC: "That root is heathen, say this prayer."
1850AD: "That prayer is superstition, drink this potion."
1940AD: "That potion is snake oil, swallow this pill."
1985AD: "That pill is ineffective, take this antibiotic."
2000AD: "That antibiotic is artificial, eat this root!"

[Junghalli]

By and large, most so-called "alternative"-medicine is complete quackery. Sure, a naturopath or homeopath might give you a treatment which might make you feel better, and carries no side-effects, but that's because his or her treatment isn't actually doing anything. The perception of wellness is due to the well-documented placebo effect, and the underlying cause of your problems isn't actually being treated.

Ah, homeopathy. You gotta love a multi-million dollar industry based on giving sick people a cup of water and telling them it'll make them better because it's got some medicine that's diluted to such a degree there's about five molecules of the stuff in the entire cup.