Orac is the nom de blog of a humble surgeon/scientist who has an ego just big enough to delude himself that someone, somewhere might actually give a rodent's posterior about his copious verbal meanderings, but just barely small enough to admit to himself that few probably will. That surgeon is otherwise known as David Gorski.
That this particular surgeon has chosen his nom de blog based on a rather cranky and arrogant computer shaped like a clear box of blinking lights that he originally encountered when he became a fan of a 35 year old British SF television show whose special effects were renowned for their BBC/Doctor Who-style low budget look, but whose stories nonetheless resulted in some of the best, most innovative science fiction ever televised, should tell you nearly all that you need to know about Orac. (That, and the length of the preceding sentence.)
DISCLAIMER:: The various written meanderings here are the opinions of Orac and Orac alone, written on his own time. They should never be construed as representing the opinions of any other person or entity, especially Orac's cancer center, department of surgery, medical school, or university. Also note that Orac is nonpartisan; he is more than willing to criticize the statements of anyone, regardless of of political leanings, if that anyone advocates pseudoscience or quackery. Finally, medical commentary is not to be construed in any way as medical advice.
To contact Orac: [email protected]
View Archive →
5 replies on “Time’s running out…”
Oh, I’ve got a cracking bit of pet-woo for SkeptVet, which I’ll post over there but will briefly cover here.
Check out the shoo!TAG:
If your woo-ometer isn’t pegged, get a new one.
shoo!TAG is a plastic card with a magnetic stripe. If it will repel pests, so will any credit card.
Check out some of the veterinarian advice from Dr. Fox in the Washington Post. I quit reading it a while ago but occasionally a long Metro ride will bore me and I’ll look at it. It can be mind boggling.
These commercials have started running on television. I guess this concept isn’t new but it’s getting pitched to a wider audience now. The commercial is pretty professional and persuasive.
Blue Buffalo Pet Food
“All of our natural dog and cat foods contain our exclusive LifeSource® Bits, a precise blend of nutrients and antioxidants selected by holistic veterinarians and animal nutritionists. These include ingredients that have been shown to help strengthen your dogâs and catâs immune systems, support their specific life stage requirements and protect them from the negative impact of environmental toxins.”
jen — that reminds me of the gal at PetSmart who was hawking an organic kibble. She told me, quite earnestly, how bad it was to feed my dog Iams. It’s made of *processed food* and stuff from *rendering plants*. You wouldn’t want your dog to eat *that*, would you?
I smiled and nodded and then walked away. If I’d had more nerve, I would’ve asked where the organic kibble came from if it wasn’t processed food and didn’t involve rendering at any stage. Did it grow on kibble trees, perhaps?
“Did it grow on kibble trees, perhaps?” Win.
What’s a rendering plant?
The more these people try to market this high-fallutin stuff, the more my intellectual shorthand tells me that the cheapest, gnarliest food is the way to go.
As an aside, why did I see a show on PBS that featured a woman giving regular acupuncture treatments to her horse? Is there anybody out there who has the power to fix PBS, which was once our voice of reason? Hello? Is this thing on?