Homeopaths launch hate campaign against Evan Harris
Posted by gimpy on February 11, 2010
Homeopathy has found it itself in difficulties of late, the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee held an evidence check on homeopathy that has provoked strong reactions. Also, on Saturday 30th January hundreds of skpetics took part in the 10:23 homeopathic overdose event designed to show that there is, quite literally, nothing in homeopathy. The London event was filmed by several homeopaths including Lousie Mclean, who is an agent for a quack cancer centre run by disgraced doctors, sex pests and a gun toting, ex-rock star, porn producer and Helen Kimball-Brooke, who may be in breach of the cancer act. These fine ambassadors for homeopathy have posted their account of the event on the homeopathyheals campaign site which they run.
Evan Harris had managed to alert a number of the Press to attend to make sure there would be good coverage of the Event and was seen to be energetically giving his point of view. At the last minute a couple of other homeopaths turned up and Lyndsey Booth was filmed speaking to the press, whilst Helen and I spoke to Hadley Freeman from the Guardian (normally a fashion journalist!) and we did our best to put our side.
We were so overwhelmed by the opposition that in the end we did not unfurl our banner, there being only Helen and I to hold it up but Helen brought her camcorder and managed to film a lot of it, including Evan Harris’s address to the crowd.
This was a depressing scene to witness, attended by people involved with Sense about Science, an organisation which is funded by vested interests. One wonders why there is such a media frenzy to try to destroy something that apparently doesn’t work and is apparently harmless and it seems to be driven by those working for Pharma behind the scenes, most likely coming from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, which is in charge of Science in the UK run by Peter Mandelson and Lord Drayson.
The big pharma conspiracy theory is not atypical of homeopaths. Another feature of homeopaths and their supporters is their tendency to launch hate campaigns with the aim of getting people sacked or silenced. There are many examples including:
- Lionel Milgrom, the homeopathic expert on quantum mechanics, launched a letter writing campaign against David Colquhoun, telling his employers that he was dishonest and in thrall to big pharma.
- The Society of Homeopaths using legal threats to silence The Quackometer.
- The notorious supporter of homeopathy, His Royal Highness The Prince Charles Philip Arthur George, Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester, Duke of Cornwall, Duke of Rothesay, Earl of Carrick, Baron of Renfrew, Lord of the Isles, Prince and Great Steward of Scotland, Knight Companion of the Most Noble Order of the Garter, Knight of the Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle, Great Master and First and Principal Knight Grand Cross of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath, Member of the Order of Merit, Knight of the Order of Australia, Companion of the Queen’s Service Order, Honorary Member of the Saskatchewan Order of Merit, Chief Grand Commander of the Order of Logohu, Member of Her Majesty’s Most Honourable Privy Council, Canadian Forces Decoration, Aide-de-Camp to Her Majesty, trying to get Edzard Ernst sacked for criticising a report commissioned by him.
Now the homeopaths have a new target, Dr Evan Harris MP, who sits on the Science and Technology Committee. A video, filmed by Kelen Kimball-Brooke, of the 10:23 event has been placed on youtube. This video claims that Dr Harris is in breach of GMC regulations and urges viewers to write to their MPs demanding that Dr Harris be removed from the Science and Technology Committee because he is biased against homeopathy. Pro homeopathy blogs are already linking to this video and repeating its demands.
It is a shame that homeopaths are unwilling to address the concerns of their critics, such as the lack of an evidence base and failures of ethics, preferring instead to seek refuge in conspiracy theories and smear campaigns. These are not nice, sympathetic, if misguided, individuals as people often perceive complementary therapists. These are vicious and hate filled conspiracy theorists. This is the true face of homeopathy.
Marsh said
Dear Homeopaths,
Actually, you really do honestly, completely, genuinely and definitely have a point – that WAS blatant bias from Evan. And it’s not the first time, either – he was seen showing his total bias against homeopathy during the evidence check for the Science and Technology Committee. The showing of bias on that occasion was so even more blatant! In fact at the evidence check, the Chairman too was critical of homeopathy – let’s remove him for that blatant show of bias too.
Of the panel of ‘experts’ interviewed, Ben Goldacre, Tracy Brown, Edzard Ernst – all were critical of homeopathy, and thus their anti-homeopathy bias makes their testimony ineligible.
Taking that into account, removing the biased parties, it turns out all of the evidence presented by legitimate experts at the evidence check (even the evidence since shown to be a misrepresentation of the data) was pro-homeopathy.
Because that’s how scientific debate works, you silence those who disagree with you via accusations of bias, and then the only people left are on your side…!
Skepticat said
Hear, hear – a more hateful bunch of people would be hard to imagine.
Zeno said
I think Evan showed he was utterly and completely biased against homeopathy…and towards the scientific evidence (or rather the sheer lack of it). Well done.
Louise Mclean said
I would just like to clear my name regarding the Sante Caribe Ozone Clinic which I am now taking down from the Zeus website. I have never met Rick Sante who runs it and I have never made a cent out of recommending it. When I put it on the Zeus website, I was totally unaware of the scandal surrounding Rick which I do not know is true or false. I believe that all practitioners giving ozone treatment in the USA are currently being hounded by the FDA. Ozone treatment has been used for a variety of conditions for 60 years in Germany and is used in mainstream hospitals in both Russia and Cuba.
gimpy said
but you didn’t take down the link because it claimed ozone can cure cancer in breach of the Cancer Act 1939?
anyway, while you’re here, perhaps you would like to explain the big pharma conspiracy and why homeopaths try and get their critics fired?
Andy Lewis said
Loiuse – why did it take you nearly six months to decide that you needed to take down your promotion of this disgraceful bunch of charlatans? Is this clearing your name?
Is the reason you have not made a cent of this outfit because you failed to get any poor cancer sufferer to go or because you took no commission from those who did go?
What due diligence did you make on these characters and these treatments before you decided to recommend them to people? We are talking about people who are dangerously ill and who may be giving away the life savings. Surely, you went to great lengths to ensure you were not putting people into the hands of shameless quacks? Lives are at risk.
If you would like to ‘clear your name’. perhaps you would like to answer these questions. It is not good enough to imply that these people are just being ‘hounded’.
BSM said
40 minutes since Andy posted that. It is probably unfair to point this out. It’s only 40 minutes. But, what’s the betting the clock will keep running and the silence will become deafening?
“What due diligence did you make on these characters and these treatments before you decided to recommend them to people?”
40 minutes and counting.
Andy Lewis said
It is not the first time I have asked those questions.
BSM said
2d 2h 16mins
and counting…
Andy Lewis said
Dear Louise
Its been a few days and your web site is still extolling the virtues of Sante’s ozone centre. Is this an oversight?
Andy
JohnK said
Pretty shallow attempt at manipulating meaning on their part; you’d only fairly make that claim if homeopathy had been shown to be an effective treatment, and Evan was not accounting for that evidence in an even-handed way. By claiming he’s biased they try to imply that such evidence exists.
Tessa K said
Big pharma? Like Boots?
wakeupplease said
Interesting to see that some people are happy to discuss the lack of objectivity in science. It isn’t a conspiracy it is just the way it is. People are people are people.
Mr Allen sums it up nicely
Barriers to sceptical inquiry are augmented by a “peer review” system in which the worth of a research proposal, and its chance of receiving support, are assessed by those who have succeeded previously. Expert opinion rarely looks sympathetically on those who challenge the orthodox view. University autonomy is diminishing as institutions vie with each other to demonstrate “impact”, and science departments are rebadged with shallow names in order to advertise their relevance to assumed needs of society. Vital freedom, safeguarded by tenure, is replaced by a ruthless system of targets, the most important being “Bring in grant income or you’re out”.
wakeupplease said
Ah yes Mr Harris,
He’s got form.
http://www.theoneclickgroup.co.uk/news.php?start=1840&end=1860&view=yes&id=2182
Can’t trust those sense about science lot, just have to look at who pays them.
Mike from Ottawa said
Can I take it the ‘Zeus Homeopathic News Service’ sends out blank pages?
Phil H said
“http://www.theoneclickgroup.co.uk/news.php?start=1840&end=1860&view=yes&id=2182″
MY EYES!
MY BEAUTIFUL EYES!!!
warhelmet said
Ms Mclean is well aware of the Cancer Act 1939. Ms Mclean shows support for those in the UK who violate the Cancer Act – http://www.zeusinfoservice.com/Articles/RoyMacKinnon.html and by publishing this http://www.zeusinfoservice.com/Articles/AlternativeRemedies.html.
Rob said
The video implies Harris is in breach of GMC guidelines:
They must mean these (paragraphs 46, 47) from the Good Medical Practice guidance:
1. 46. You must treat your colleagues fairly and with respect. You must not bully or harass them, or unfairly discriminate against them by allowing your personal views* to affect adversely your professional relationship with them. You should challenge colleagues if their behaviour does not comply with this guidance.
2. 47. You must not make malicious and unfounded criticisms of colleagues that may undermine patients’ trust in the care or treatment they receive, or in the judgement of those treating them.
* This includes your views about a colleague’s age, colour, culture, disability, ethnic or national origin, gender, lifestyle, marital or parental status, race, religion or beliefs, sex, sexual orientation, or social or economic status.
I don’t see any requirement there that a doctor not ask about the reasons a colleague has for believing a certain medicine or intervention is effective. There is no requirement to not ask them about the mechanism of action of a treatment they endorse. The video’s maker seems to have misread “must not bully or harass” as “must not question a treatment they provide”, and misread “treat your colleagues fairly and with respect” as meaning “allow your colleagues’ claims and decisions to go unchallenged”.
jaycueaitch said
Your last sentence sums up the standard attitude of homeopaths. When I clcomplained to the SoH about Sue Young’s claims that homeopathy could be used to treat AIDS amongst other things, her response included a lot of blather about “the Ben Goldacre crowd” coming onto her site and “abusing” her because we dared to disagree with her. The Ben Goldacre bit seemed to relate to her belief that Dr Goldacre was co-ordinating some sort of criticism against her.
Phil H said
wrt to breaking the Cancer Act, I once caught one of Paul McKenna’s NLP organisations doing similar in an email from yonks back, in my more woosome days.
Homeopathy: all things to all men | Sim-O said
[...] Gimpy’s blog (this post about homeopaths launching a hate campaign again Dr Evan Harris MP), I ended up at the Homeopathy Heals site. I will admit that I don’t read homeopathic stuff [...]
Neuroskeptic said
Now he knows what it’s like to be savaged by a herd of dead sheep…
sikiş said
Your last sentence sums up the standard attitude of homeopaths.
witchunter said
You lot are really so full of hate. ‘why is this?
Zeno said
Yes, Witchunter, I do wonder how these homeopaths ever manage to sleep at night.
witchunter said
Hi Zeno – quite right. As far as I know – homoeopaths never sleep. They are out drinking people’s blood. Or putting stakes through the hearts of the non-believers.
Skepticat said
They’re worse than that. They actually think their worthless cult therapy should be funded by the taxpayer!
hahnemaniac said
Two simple processes for validating the effectiveness of homeopathy.
1.a. Get really sick, and run out of treatment options from conventional medicine.
1.b. Go to a really *good* homeopath (they come in all grades) and get cured
2.a Exercise until you really hurt
2.b Go to any slightly alternative food store and buy some Arnica
2.c Rub it on where it hurt
2.d Decide for yourself whether it works
The history of science shows an unrelenting trend of discovery of structure that is meaningful to human well beings at smaller and smaller scales matter, space, time and energy. So, have we reached the limit, and everything below the level of high school chemistry (“let’s count the molecules, kids!”) is noise? The level of resolution of physical detail in contemporary physics is mind-blowing; pick up a copy of Science, any week. New discoveries about structure in water emerge every quarter. The mystery could be resolved any time, surely in the next five years. The real question is, which stocks to buy or sell?