Categories
Evolution Intelligent design/creationism Pseudoscience Science Skepticism/critical thinking

Saturday morning mailbagl: How could natural selection “do it” without some intelligence?

Orac gets e-mail. Most of it’s just brief notes with a link that someone thinks I should check out (and possibly blog about). Even though I occasionally make sarcastic remarks about being deluged with one story or other from time to time, I actually do appreciate those. Many have been the times when I didn’t […]

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Complementary and alternative medicine Friday Woo Medicine Quackery Skepticism/critical thinking

Your Friday Dose of Woo: Fifty woo-ful facts

It’s time. Well, it’s sort of time, anyway. As you know, it’s been over three months since I last indulged in my little Friday exercise known as Your Friday Dose of Woo. At the time it was because I couldn’t get myself into the appropriately light-hearted but nonetheless just vicious enough frame of mind to […]

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Complementary and alternative medicine Medicine Politics

Senator Obama’s health plan more likely to recover alternative medicine?

Here’s a new one on me: Senator Obama’s support for preventative medical care is another little noted but important key point of difference with Senator McCain that emerged from the debate. Under Obama it is far more likely that insurance plans will cover alternative medicine, including acupuncture, therapy, and government approved herbs and vitamins. This […]

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Antivaccine nonsense Autism Complementary and alternative medicine Medicine

Autism in the Presidential debate?

Was it just me, or did anyone else find it jarring when suddenly John McCain interjected special needs children and autism into the debate last night? As you may recall, a few months ago he was tripped up by the antivaccine fearmongers who think, despite an absence of scientifically compelling evidence supporting their view, that […]

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Autism Complementary and alternative medicine Medicine Quackery

Vaccines cause “microvascular strokes” that cause autism?

I thought I had seen it all. Ever since I first discovered the antivaccination movement that is utterly convinced, despite all evidence to the contrary, that mercury from the thimerosal preservative that was in many vaccines until the end of 2001 or, more recently, vaccines themselves cause autism, I’ve been amazed at the panoply of […]