A Letter To The Guardian (From The Guardian)

Hi, kids.

I just wrote a letter** to The Guardian, U.K.'s Martin Robbins, because he wrote a column about homeopathy that, I think, continues to lead people away from the true nature of the matter, which (as you know) is NewAge.

I thought I'd reprint it here (without links) because, frankly, after re-living some of this, I'm tired of writing for the moment, but still wanted to put something up for those who expect it of me. Here it is:

"Dear Martin,

You say the elephant in the room is placebos, but the truth is, it's homeopathy's 'vital force' that's not being discussed.

I would bet you any amount of money that, if you polled the users of homeopathy, who seem strangely drawn to this magic water - beyond all reason - you would find the majority of it's fans are also members of the NewAge Movement.

The 'spiritual' connection is what's being overlooked here. And, because it's overlooked, we get the 'surreal spectacle on a par with watching a geologists' union arguing what their position on the likelihood of a flat Earth should be.'

Think about it: what's the difference between this and doctors pondering the Holy Water at Lourdes? And isn't the response of believers (and that's what they are) the same? Neither group of users needs evidence, even of healing, to tell them what's what - they're telling you.

Even worse, to the hilarity of homeopathy's fans and practitioners everywhere, the doctors are falling for it. They're actually discussing the merits of water. Can you get anymore Alice In Wonderland-y than that? They've even got you - you - pondering turning doctors into liars to appease them. They demand that everyone appease them, or else,...what? They're not going to die: they're not sick - except in the head. At worst, they're merely the 'worried well'. People with more money than sense - and a burning desire to make the rest of us accept their beliefs.

So what is the answer? Draw a line in the sand for science - as skeptics have done with Global Warming - and shut it down. Call homeopathy by it's true name - fraud - and arrest the charlatans peddling it. (Including Prince Charles, if necessary.) Outlaw homeopathy being sold in pharmacies. Give the followers of NewAge no where to indulge their belief without ridicule from those they attempted to fool - the rest of us. Stop all research (their ultimate Get Out Of Jail Free card) and put that money back into doing science.

Because NewAgers will not respond to evidence or reason - even after they've killed someone - they should be allowed no escape from reality. If they get depressed, because there's no outlet for their fantasies, tough. Get them to a shrink. Just don't allow them to drive the rest of us to the funny farm - or, for instance, to discussing the merits of water - which is, ultimately, the same thing.

Finally, I want to tell you how I came to understand this phenomena:

I was once married to a NewAger - a woman who, on various occasions, called herself a healer, a god, and claimed she could walk through walls. (If you read about NewAge beliefs, you'll find they all make outrageous claims of one kind or another.)

She left me for a homeopath. Later, this 'doctor', with my ex acting as his assistant, took the lives of three people - the first being my former mother-in-law. As with the current discussion, at the time of my mother-in-law's death no one thought NewAge had anything to do with it, so - as I begged every manner of authority for help (police, doctors, spiritualists - you name it) I was characterized as a man suffering from mental problems, brought on by sour grapes because my wife had left me.

It wasn't until two years after my divorce, while I was living in utter isolation and despair (I had been a popular San Francisco recording artist) that the authorities sought me out over the two deaths that followed.

Luckily enough, these later victim's families weren't taking their loved one's deaths lying down either, and demanded an investigation - which finally led the authorities to re-open the quack's file and find all the evidence I had given them years earlier.

Here, I'd like to address another facet of this phenomena that's overlooked:

Because of the effects on my life from what, to many, is merely water - not a full-blown belief system - I've lost my marriage, all of my friends, all of my money (my ex gave it to the quack for their 'business') my career, and much of my faith and trust in the workings of society, and my fellow man. (The result of 'friends' who didn't listen to me, before, and could not look me in the eye, later, because they had abandoned me in my time of need.) My life, and the lives of many others that have encountered this - some who I have spoken with - was destroyed.

No homeopath, or NewAger, is going to openly tell you of the destruction they leave in their wake - and very few ask or investigate.

Most people think of NewAge, and homeopathy, as just silly - which is a great cover for allowing them to continue wrecking things - like modern medicine itself.

I have a blog: http://themachoresponse.blogspot.com

It's too intense for many people's tastes, but, at this point, I make no apologies for how I feel and view the world. I not only despise NewAge but also the dance I see going on around it, such as the one you describe in your article with medical professionals acting like delusional idiots themselves:

This has to stop.

CMC"

**This letter had to be sent under my old pen name of SHAMScamSam, unfortunately, because I had registered with The Guardian, years ago, with it.