Stay classy, Dr. Joe. Stay classy.

In my hort class, time and again the text mentions scientists researching herbal medicines and other plants to develop pharmaceuticals. You know, isolate the active ingredient, measure the dosage, put it in a sugar pill. So when people talk about 'squashing drug pushers' then a paragraph or two down yammers on about 'natural healing', that, to me as a plant person, just screams ignorance. If I had a Twitter account, I'd vote for Dr. Cola there in 'Irony.'

And of course the weightist thing is uncalled for too. No one ever calls him baldy or Cueball Joe.

It is class stuff the way folk like Adams, and now Dr Joe, crow smugly when leading any sort of poll, bleating on about it being a tribute to their leading role in bringing THE TRUTH to the people blah blah blah...

But then denounce it all with maximum hissiness: "I could care LESS" - when they get overtaken...

And then finally show us how much they really don't care (!) by launching these frothingly insane tirades about "Dark Forces".

It's a bit like the trade-off with tolerating the Alt.Reality trolls-posters on blogs. They are a nuisance, but they also have those priceless moments of managing to show themselves up in all their undisguised craziness and pathological egotism.

So - way to go, Dr Joe.

Now I could care LESS about this stupid Twitter award

So, Dr. Joe admits that he could care less about the award. His current level of caring is, by no means, the least he could care about it. So, his whining and showing that he does care, a great deal apparently, fits perfectly.

@ Party Cactus:(about the weight issue)Some woo-meisters, for all of their alleged "spirituality",focus on weight/body fat %,especially in *women*(who comprise a very large share of their audience)in a very *unattractive* way (e.g. Null on radio: women should be 12% body fat!!!!-men,6%/ Adams' personal data @ HealthRanger-"Stats") As a psychologist,my ears prick up when I hear these percentages tossed about.....

This reminds me of that little kid in grade school who would say, "I didn't want it anyway" when he failed to win a prize for reading the most books... And then would whine to his parents to buy him the same exact toy.
Of course, he probably got over it at around age 10. Dr. Joe on the other hand...

The nastiness (and they aim this more at women) was enough to get me to dust off my twitter account, which I use about twice a year (but have had for a long time) and vote for Dr. Rachie.

Sounds like he's asking his followers to create twitter accounts to vote for him. That's against the rules, from what I recall.. you have to have had a twitter account when the Shorty's started, and you have to have posted tweets to that account.

BTW the Shorty's announced a vote audit is happening today. We'll see how many of his votes were actually legit pretty soon. :)

This is like the only time I've ever really wished I already had a Twitter account.

dr joe is the tempest in a twitter teapot.

Let's apply homeopathic lgoic to the situation. Since the poll is meaningless, presumably the poll's meaning is incredibly diluted, so the effectiveness of the poll is much more powerful because of that, and thus winning the poll would be even more significant than winning the Nobel Prize.

No wonder he's got his panties in a knot.

I find Doctor Mercola interesting, entertaining, and thought-provoking.

However, like Mehmet Oz and Andrew Weil, his message seems tainted by excessive commercialism.

I prefer sites that don't have such a big financial conflict of interest in their recommendations.

The 50 Best Health Blogs

@ToddW (3)
Mercola is using "I could care less" in the peculiar and entirely confusing American way, in which someone saying "I could care less about X" means that they are wholly unconcerned about X - a sentiment that the rest of the world would express as "I could not care less about X".

Strange but true.

Hey, at least he gave her website a plug. All this sturm und drang means she must be hitting the bigtime now - Go Dr. Rachie!

@Rob

I know. It's something that gives me pause when I'm saying it, myself. I was merely being pedantic and pointing out that his unintentional meaning had a bit more truth than, well, intended.

An arrogant group of science bloggers that have vilified me for the past few years have started a campaign to have an Australian shill to win a health award on Twitter. This overweight non-physician has arrogantly bashed nearly every alternative therapy and encourages reliance on drugs.

Insulting someone's weight; how very holistic of you, Dr Mercola. Also, a cursory search of available photographic evidence suggests she can hardly be classified as a flabby bloater so the insult lacks power.

Mercola is using "I could care less" in the peculiar and entirely confusing American way, in which someone saying "I could care less about X" means that they are wholly unconcerned about X - a sentiment that the rest of the world would express as "I could not care less about X".

Strange but true.

Drives me crazy every time I hear it.

Especially when I do it myself.

I find Doctor Mercola interesting, entertaining, and thought-provoking.

If that thought is "How can one man promote so much pseudoscience?" you might have a point.

Interesting: How does a fool like that survive?
Entertaining; Laughing at fools is fun.
Thought-provoking: Is this a case of Darwin Award self selection?

shake an award in the air and the quacks come out of the woodwork. What next Mercola, you gonna sign up for free Boxing lessons so you can claim you won the heavyweight title?

MERCOLA.. rhymes with RICOLA.. you know, the soothing yet totally non medicinal cough drops... Honey, lemon, a cute pouch, and some Alpine marketing...

So..I click ORAC's posted link and wander over to check his FACEBOOK page... OH MY GOD. No wonder this guy is "all about himself!"

You are only able to post and respond to his postings and ramblings... and illogical rants and attacks upon his critics... IF YOU SIGN UP TO BE " A FAN " of "Dr" Mercola. And I cannot, in good conscience, add myself as a FAN, post NON FLATTERY, and then skulk off into the dark, or worse, remain listed (AND COUNTED) as a fan. So what he gets is the cyber equivalent of a handpicked studio audience for a infomercial... nothing but APPLAUSE, shouts of YEAH and AMEN from the crowd.

Amazing how he resorted not to reasoned argument, but right to the "she's FAT" sort of intelligent discourse. As my children would have said when younger... " yes, she may be overweight, but she could lose a few pounds, and you SIR, would still be bald and shilling for herbal miracle potions and books"

e.g. Null on radio: women should be 12% body fat!!!!-men,6%/ Adams' personal data @ HealthRanger-"Stats"

So, according to these folks, not merely I (BMI 19.5), but my sylph-like brother (BMI 18) are overweight?

Meh, I've come to accept "could care less" even if the speaker doesn't understand the grammar of it. Think of it like this:

"I was indifferent before, but now that you're bugging me about it, I really don't give a shit."

Sour Grapes are all-natural! So's iron, the key ingredient in irony!

#20 BlueMaxx - that restriction is a function of how Facebook fan pages work, and not specific to that particular fan page. You have to "become a fan" before you can post on that page. FYI.

BUT the award can be viewed as a metaphor, and is a fight with those that would literally destroy everything we know and love about natural healing. So consider this a trial run of what we eventually need to do to defeat those that would remove your health freedoms.

Vitalism: Teach the Contoversy!

What? Wrong frame?

Someone should point out to Mercola and Adams that a man was recently rescued in Haiti who survived for 11 days on beer and cookies. Sounds like the power of processed foods to me.

The statement about cancer being a fungus may not actually be as far fetched as some may think. While cancer IS NOT a fungus, it may related to fungus. I often wonder if other doctors have researched how many patients who have cancer had previous fungal infections.

As for Mercola, I am not much of a fan. Mike Adams, I support. I love Natural News and the fact that there is someone out there who hates the FDA and big Pharma as much as I do.

At any rate, Mike Adams was the only choice in these awards. It wasn't right that the crooks and liars and cheaters messed it up. Of course crooks always triumph over normal people these days.

@ Andreas Johansson: Yes. Gary Null's ideal (himself) is 1% to 3% body fat; Adams lists himself as 10.5%( photos at their websites).I had the dubious pleasure of seeing the former live- he is ridiculously thin. I suspect that their obsessions with "pure,live foods",veganism,nutrition, and exercise possibly reflect an underlying eating disorder and/or other psychological problems- these unrealistic ideas about weight are part of the "education" they provide to customers.

As for Mercola, I am not much of a fan. Mike Adams, I support. I love Natural News and the fact that there is someone out there who hates the FDA and big Pharma as much as I do.

Are you as wrong as he is on as many things as he is too?

Yes, Rev, he is. He also posts as "Medicine Man" (half the time spelling it Medicien Man). He has claimed that herbal remedies are effective and challenged me to give him a condition and he would tell me a more effective treatment. I posted a few, including Diabetes Type 1. He would only post a sales link to some herbal supplement company, and absolutely no evidence that their concoction would free a person with Diabetes Type 1 from having to use insulin.

Total fail. He is the Sock Puppet Troll.

Hey Chris and Big Dumb Ape,

How are you people liking the beatdown of your comments on Pharyngula. Looks like you poll fornicators finally got silenced. Notice my comments go posted while the filthy tongued heathens at pharyngula got refused post. That's hilarious.

http://faultline.org/index.php/site/item/incendiary/

Now, back to the topic...

No, i am as right as he is on as many things as he is, but thanks for asking. Gotta go take my Magnesium now.

Proof positive that supplements work. Three months ago my blood pressure was 140/90. Without taking prescription medication I reduced it to 123/78. Taking Potassium with magnesium helped. Already started my Vitamin D treatments.

Also I and a friend of mine are contemplating experimenting on chickens with colloidal silver - 50 ppm. We can make this ourselves and feed it to the chickens regularly while also giving them all natural organic corn grown ourselves with no herbicides or pesticides. We will sell the eggs.

Do you want to purchase some colloidal eggs? It is not illegal to do this . Selling eggs where i live is common. It's better than the grocery store and customers find it cheaper.

It will be an interesting experiment. Also I would like to do this experiment on catfish in aquariums. I could put 15% colloidal silver in the water and raise the fish. Collidal Palladium would be a good one to. Any human volnteers? What about that big dumb chimp? Aren't monkeys for experimenting on?

The statement about cancer being a fungus may not actually be as far fetched as some may think. While cancer IS NOT a fungus, it may related to fungus. I often wonder if other doctors have researched how many patients who have cancer had previous fungal infections.

There is a distant relationship between fungal infections and cancer. Fungal infections are often opportunistic (occur in immunosuppressed subjects). Some cancers adversely affect immune function, particularly leukemias and lymphomas, as well as metastatic solid tumors. A fungal infection can therefore be a sign of an underlying malignant neoplasm. However, to state that cancer IS a fungus, or that fungal infections cause cancer has got it exactly backwards. The relationship has been thoroughly investigated.

"A fungal infection can therefore be a sign of an underlying malignant neoplasm."

That is scary considering my mother had a fungal infection a number of times that I recall. She died of breast cancer in 2001. My great uncle had a fungal infection not so long ago. He died of cancer the first day of this year. I have had two fungal infections in the last three years.

Of course, I have taken Grifulvin and used Fluocininide which cleared it up, but I think Cortisone and Tinactin could have done the same thing but would have took longer. Also using probiotics and Garlic help alot.

I do not recommend Grifulvin - it is a dangerous medication and gave me enormous headaches before I finally stopped taking it.

I often wonder if some prescription medications cause more harm than they do good. I know that cancer is NOT a fungus, but it is clearly in indication that the immune system has been suppressed by other factors. Perhaps environmental toxins or toxins from meds or foods, or whatever. I suspect cancer will eventually be ruled as severe immune disorder. Treat for the immune sytem and cure the cancer.

The problem is this: We treat the result of the problem rather than the cause. Cancer is, I suspect the cause of a lengthy ongoing underlying immune problem set off by a number of factors:

1) environmental toxins
2)mental/physical stress
3) lack of exercise/improper diet
4) heavy metal toxicity buildup causing the immune system to be severely suppressed
5) other factors

Just ignore the off-topic sock puppet troll.

Just ignore Chris.

Wow - I just went and read the comments on Dr Mercola's facebook page. I find the level of vitriol astounding since a) many commentators admit to being unfamiliar with Dr Rachel and b) to the best of my knowledge Dr Rachel has never posted any blog post on SkepticsBook at all about Dr Mercola making it totally unprovoked.

Sour grapes indeed.

Hey, IM Smrt (lol Homer joke), I can do you one better: nine hours ago, my blood pressure was 210/105 and now it's 128/78.

(I went for a run.)

Two fungal infections? That's not normal. You should get that checked out by a real doctor, and not a freaking homeopath/ naturopath/ reiki healer/ shaman/ other assorted quack. And take off that stupid copper bracelet already!

Deniece Walter @ 28: Really? 1 to 3 percent body fat?!? He must look like a piece of rawhide -- all chewed up and dried out. (By the way: Women who drop below 22% body fat risk all sorts of health problems, including stopped periods -- there's a reason that Hollywood, the anorexia capital of America, is chock-full of fertility doctors helping starved actresses conceive.

Wow! I just went to Mike Adams' website and on the right side, in the suggested readings, I found The Genie in Your Genes: Epigenetic Medicine and the New Biology of Intention by Dawson Church. What bullshit !

"Author Dawson Church applies the insights of the new field of Epigenetics (epi=above, i.e. control above the level of the gene) to healing. Citing hundreds of scientific studies, he shows how beliefs and emotions can trigger the expression of DNA strands. He focuses on a class of genes called Immediate Early Genes or IEGs. These genes turn on within a few seconds of a stimulus. They can be triggered by thoughts or emotions ("I loved that unexpected gift of roses Bill gave me" or "I'm so mad about what Uncle John said at the Christmas party"). Many IEGs are regulatory genes turn on other genes that affect specific aspects of our immune system, such as the production of white blood cells that destroy attacking bacteria and viruses. Epigenetics thus influences our health every day. "

If either of these Speculative Complementary or Alternative Medicine sellers (scam sellers for short.)ever bothered to actually learn and apply the scientific method, at least then we could expect them to know there's nothing to homeopathy.

After all, Mercola thinks aluminum is a heavy metal, so perhaps by that warped a definition of heavy, Dr Rachie is "overweight" (defined as non-anorexic).

The only thoughts Mercola provokes are "How can anyone be that ignorant and/or dishonest?" and "How can anyone be dumb enough to listen to him?"

Yeah, something is wrong with you if you are getting fungal infections like that. You need to see a doctor. No, wait. I'll energy heal you from right here. There. All better. And if you believe that, you deserve whatever happens to you.

As for Mercola, I am not much of a fan. Mike Adams, I support. I love Natural News and the fact that there is someone out there who hates the FDA and big Pharma as much as I do.

And yet your personal loathing has nothing to do with the quality of the science or importance of regulation. You can't just opt in to your own reality and think that suddenly the laws of physics, chemistry and biology don't apply to you. That's what we are talking about here.

HJ

"I often wonder if some prescription medications cause more harm than they do good. I know that cancer is NOT a fungus, but it is clearly in indication that the immune system has been suppressed by other factors."

"Cancer is, I suspect the cause of a lengthy ongoing underlying immune problem set off by a number of factors"

Of course, since you are wholly ignorant, your Homer Simpson style 'wonders' and 'suspect' aren't worth anything.

'Any human volnteers? What about that big dumb chimp? Aren't monkeys for experimenting on?'

Ok, chimps are not monkeys. Clearly you ARE as stupid as you appear. Plus, threatening to vivisect a commentator sort of undermines your position of being fighting the moral fight against those mean old evil scientists.
Oh, silly me. 'Undermines'. That would suggest your views had foundations which could be weakened.

Dr I M Smart:

Of course, I have taken Grifulvin and used Fluocininide which cleared it up, but I think Cortisone and Tinactin could have done the same thing but would have took longer. Also using probiotics and Garlic help alot.

Tinactin is an antifungal, and I've used it successfully. But cortisone might not help with a fungal infection -- in fact, it can make it worse. My grandmother is a severe asthmatic, and has had her life saved by high doses of oral Prednisone (a cortisone drug). She would not have seen her grandchildren leave grade school without it; with it, she has lived to see her great-grandchildren enter primary school. Pretty awesome! But it has a price. Part of it is recurrent fungal infections, due to prednisone's immune suppressing effects. She's actually lost some toenails because of it. Since the development of better inhaled steroids, she hasn't needed to do prednisone quite so often. She's on Advair all the time, though, and consequently is always fighting oral thrush. (Fungal mouth infection.)

Topical cortisone can help with the itch, but use it cautiously. It will interfere with your immune system's efforts to fight the infection. On the other hand, if it's really driving you crazy, your immune system probably isn't being very successful right now anyway, and it may be interfering with your skin's ability to heal. Other anti-itch options include basic moisturizers, diphenhydramine (Benadryl) ointment or pills, and, if you're really desperate, benzocaine ointments. (It's an anesthetic. It works, but it can burn a bit when it starts to work, especially if the skin is really inflamed.)

I'm skeptical of the probiotics. For one thing, they're really only going to help with the gut flora. For another, they're not very diverse. (I've heard it compared to responding to deforestation by planting corn. I'm not sure if it's really as useless as that, but putting it in terms I can understand makes me a little less enthusiastic about it.) Garlic, of course, is a blood thinner and thus has health benefits of its own. But to me, what's really important is that it's delicious. ;-) I'd eat it anyway!

@ Phoenix Woman: Exactly. These "health experts'" teachings exacerbate the problem of body image in women. On Null: Seriously, I have Italian purses that look healthier.I went to a booksigning/"lecture" at a local bookstore to question him about his so-called "doctorate" and his ed/training(I suspect non-existent)in psychology, since he often masquarades as a therapist.Horrible! Over 100 people showed up, fawning and hanging on his every word. Even worse,although I sat in the back, he shambled right over to me,asking,"Does the 'young lady' have a health question?" AAArghh! I managed a cold,"Not about *health." The entire event was a despicable melange of off-color self-aggrandising "humor",ranting mania,and bad medical advice.

Calli Arcale @44

Garlic, of course, is a blood thinner and thus has health benefits of its own. But to me, what's really important is that it's delicious. ;-) I'd eat it anyway!

Plus heavy consumption helps achieve social distancing during a pandemic :)

LOL... I get such a kick out of the silliness of the posts from IM SMART and/or MEDICINE MAN. Funny guy.

so, just so I am clear on this... COLLOIDAL SILVER= Miracle Drug, THIMERSAL compound= horribly toxic metal compound,
GARLIC- GOOD, and I guess some MUSHROOMS (fungus!) cause cancer. BIGPHARMA- all evil people in black helicopters, BIG BIONATUROPATHICHOMEOPATH manufacturing and vending internet company, all staffed by non profit benevolent true believers.

How am I doing.... should I drink more of the herbal infused KOOL-Aid, as available on line at mercola.com?

This site has 63,000 fans. Surely we can beat them. All we need is a measly 600 votes to defeat them.

Yeah, but the sciblogs site has the IT geeks. I'm sure one of us can automate the voting process....

*whistles innocently*

Hey Chris and Big Dumb Ape,

How are you people liking the beatdown of your comments on Pharyngula. Looks like you poll fornicators finally got silenced. Notice my comments go posted while the filthy tongued heathens at pharyngula got refused post. That's hilarious.

What the fuck are you blabbering about?

No, i am as right as he is on as many things as he is, but thanks for asking.

Thanks for answering, I think you've cleared up a lot with that comment.

How are you people liking the beatdown of your comments on Pharyngula. Looks like you poll fornicators finally got silenced. Notice my comments go posted while the filthy tongued heathens at pharyngula got refused post. That's hilarious.

What are you blabbering about?

Dr. Joe perhaps makes a revealing slip by his misuse of the phrase, "couldn't care less." He says he could care less, which, when you care a lot, you can care a lot less.

Mercola's vote appeal (in which he calls the award "stupid" and "meaningless" at the same time as he declares its importance in the battle of "darkness against light") includes this odd statement:

"When the Chicago Bulls finished their sixth world basketball championships in the mid 90s I stopped watching most TV. About that time, the drug companies manipulated the legal system to allow them to advertise prescription drugs on TV."

What does this mean? Mercola was so appalled at the Bulls' dominance that he refused to watch "most" TV*? Was there a connection between the Bulls' success and Big Pharma? Is Michael Jordan responsible for our being "brainwashed" by the drug companies like poor Joe was? Is there some cosmic connection between Mercola and Michael Jordan, other than that they are both bald?

*What TV does Mercola watch? Sponge Bob? The Lifetime Movie Network? Conspiracy Theory with Jesse Ventura (this seems like the best bet)?
C'mon Joe, you can't toss out a tantalizing tidbit like that and leave us hanging.

Sounds to me like he simply means that the Bulls championship was the last thing he felt was really worth watching.

Hey, Bacon, don't put down Sponge Bob! There's a hell of a lot more science in one Sponge Bob episode than in the lifetime output of Mercocacola and The Health Deranger combined.

I suspect Mercola watches Oprah while chanting to himself: "How do I get on there? I want to get on there. Please God, get me on there."

Callie,

I know the cortisone just helps the itch. The fungal infections finally cleared up after using the cream, but I could not take the Grifulvin. It caused very bad headaches and I was unable to finish the medication. I did receive a Decadron injection prior to taking the Grifulvin which may or may not have helped. Usually those shots work wonders for allergies and sinus problems but only for a couple of days and the effects are horrible. They caused nightmares as well as pain in my back and legs. Of course someone who is suffering from extreme allergies like I do every spring does't care so much about one night of leg/back pain as I do getting my allergies/sinuses under control again. Benedryl works okay, but I hate to be sleepy. I tried Hydroxyzine 25 mg once and that stuff will make you sleep forever, ut it does help with allergies. The trouble with some antihitamines is that they tend to raise the pressure in your eyes if you take too much.

The pro-biotics are so-so. I haven't been a huge believer in their claimed miracles myself. I am sure that they may have some benefits as far as digestion goes, but i suspect not much else.

Garlic is a natural blood thinner but is also a very powerful agent against fungal infections and parasites. It is good for the heart and cholsterol, but Red Yeast Rice is far superior to Garlic for cholesterol problems. Then again, Lipitor is used extensively these days with little complaints.

Some here think i am against all prescription medication which is not true. I am just skeptical of the FDA's efforts to properly study the safety of drugs like they are supposed to be doing. The big pharma companies has too much financial and political influence in the FDA for me to feel completely safe - especially on new drugs. Older drugs that have been around for a long time and have been through the mills with little complaint has never bothered me. Penicillan is a prime example. I'd prescribe it for major infections becuase it is safe, effective, and relatively inexpensive compared to other drugs. Of course some people are allergic that family of antibiotics and cannot take them. That opens up a whole new discussion.

I am not against modern medicine, but I am cautious. There are diseases that require modern prescription medication in order for the patient to live. Herbals will not help much. Thye might help alleviate some symptoms, but that's all. Then again things like the common cold or sinusitis or some mild ailment, herbals work great and are cheaper than prescription medications and are widely available, though I would be cautious with some brands. GNC usually carries decent brands if you must buy locally. I try to stay away from Wal-Mart hebals unless they sell the Spring Valley brand or a similar brand. Do not go with Equate. It's mostly filler, sodium, sugar, and very little real herbals.

Actually, Calli, the reason cortisone creams are prescription only has less to do with the immunosuppression (but don't put it on anything that could be herpes) and more to do with long-term irreversible thinning of the dermis.

So, if you must use a cortisone, pick the lowest potency (it doesn't penetrate as deep) and use it for as short a time as possible. If you need to do step down from more to less potent cortisones, that can be a plan. Old folks who have abused cortisone creams have really scary thin skin that tears. It's quite awful.

IM Smrt- That was a remarkable response. Caution is important in medicine. That said, many herbals are a waste of good money, and those that are biologically active often have many more side effects than people bargain for. Echinacea is often used for the common cold, though the evidence is limited. There is decent evidence, however, that a person with eczema who takes echinacea is likely to get a nasty flare.

Honesty in marketing cuts both ways, and "natural" does not mean, as is commonly claimed, "no side effects." Willow bark is natural but gives worse gut-rot than aspirin, which is why aspirin exists.

I am a "late adopter," less because I think the federal regulatory agencies have a stake in approving new drugs (in Canada, it's the opposite, actually, but we won't get into that), and more because the post-marketing trials are such a useful source of information on drug interaction, rare side effect, and long-term effects. But sometimes newer drugs are simply better, safer, and easier for the patient.

Hello Diamicron MR. Hello SSRIs. Hello bisphosphonates and SERMs.

Garlic's safe. And delicious. But not convincingly beneficial above and beyond its value in pasta. So my patients can make their own choices about food, but, thanks, I'll stick with recommending the stuff I have evidence for as medicine.

http://shortyawards.com/category/health

Mercola has the lead now by more than 1,000 votes.

Dr I M Smart -- if you don't like the sleepiness of Benadryl, there are topical versions available. I've used them myself. Not sure how much they help; I usually don't need to use them when I get a fungal infection, and instead stick to just the antifungal cream. My doctor prescribes this one that is just awesome, where the actual base (the "inactive ingredients") has a noticeable soothing effect. Wish I could remember the name right now.

red rabbit -- coritsone creams are actually available over the counter. They're just less potent than the prescription ones. I was just alarmed because my first thought was oral cortisone pills, because I've seen what they've done to my grandma. (It's a fair price; she'd have died decades ago otherwise, and has enjoyed a good quality of life until recently.)

Hey Chris and Big Dumb Ape, How are you people liking the beatdown of your comments on Pharyngula. Looks like you poll fornicators finally got silenced. Notice my comments go posted while the filthy tongued heathens at pharyngula got refused post. That's hilarious.

And yet another woo-boy resorts to grade-school bluster and name-calling as soon as his nonsensical assertions are questioned. Out of his depth AND past his bedtime. Thanks for proving Orac's original point, "Doctor."

Has anyone else noticed that Mercola has recently had 1700 votes stripped off him - now back to 2nd place.

Good to see they are continuing to run an honest campaign!!

And yet another woo-boy resorts to grade-school bluster and name-calling as soon as his nonsensical assertions are questioned. Out of his depth AND past his bedtime. Thanks for proving Orac's original point, "Doctor.

And I'm not even sure what the hell he is talking about.

Mercola still has a big lead in the vote-rigging category.

He also has a lovely piece on his site today on having a "fearless conversation" about vaccines, using (naturally) fear tactics, including the scary revelation that with vaccination:

There are foreign DNA particles that get into your body

Wow. Well thank goodness, we can still get sick the normal old-fashioned way and don't have to worry about that there foreign DNA.

There are foreign DNA particles that get into your body

Holy shit, I better stop eating.

little off topic, but looks like Wakefield has been found guilty:

http://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/news/BREAKING-MMR-expert-failed-i…

@ Dangerous Bacon: A "fearless conversation"? With whom? Himself? While many woo-proselytizers have no real life science education(Adams,Jenny,Suzanne,Imus) or one that's spurious at best((Null),Mercola has a DO!How do such ideological conversions occur? Head injury while "body boarding in Maui" or "hiking in the Rockies"(source:his facebook page)? Dr.Laidler(AutismWatch/Quackwatch)recounts his own journey to the "Dark Side"(and back) while searching for treatment for his *two children diagnosed with ASD*! What is Joe's excuse? Forgetting what he studied?Entirely? Seriously! And... about the "fear tactics".... aren't doctors(at least in the past 30 years or so) trained to counsel patients about conditions/treatments so as to dispell unrealistic fears and emotional reactions?

Dangerous Bacon (#63)

There are foreign DNA particles that get into your body

WTF does the man eat? Pure minerals? I really wouldn't be surprised if he did, actually.

Foreign DNA makes you fat. Fact!

You people cannot even tell the diff between an anti-vaxxer and a pro-vaxxer. Sheesh...

Um, Jelly, what are you talking about? What part of Mercola writing stupid things about Dr. Raichie has to do with vaccines?