Denialism

Month: June 2007

  • Speak of the devil

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    MarkH
    in

    David Kirby seems to be planning his escape from the autism debate. At Huffington post, he demands that science perform epidemiological studies that compare the healthiness or autism rates of unvaccinated versus vaccinated children. Most people (save for a handful of fringe parents who believe that autism is some altered state of being, worthy of…

  • Who are the denialists? (Part IV)

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    MarkH
    in ,

    It’s time to talk about the anti-vaccine (or anti-vax) denialists. Considering the Autism Omnibus trial is underway to decide whether or not parents of autistic children can benefit from the vaccine-compensation program, a fund designed to compensate those who have had reactions to vaccines and shield vaccine makers from the civil suits which drove them…

  • A confluence of idiocy

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    MarkH
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    You know how dumb Egnor sounds with his mind outside the brain cell-phone silliness? He sounds as dumb as Deepak Chopra writing more brain-dead new agey nonsense for the Huffington Post. To gain credibility, the mind outside the brain must also be mirrored inside the brain. If your brain didn’t register what the mind is…

  • More prediction of the past – from the future!

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    MarkH
    in

    Casey Luskin is also celebrating the death of the “junk” DNA hypothesis over at Evolution News and Views. You see, a Wired magazine article has breathlessly reported what we’ve known for decades. And guess what? Just like Sal Cordova, Luskin has a really interesting view of the history of biology and the “junk” DNA timeline.…

  • Silverstein: How the “Serial Abrogators of ‘Human Dignity’” Can “Keep Their Wealthy American Friends”

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    Chris
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    I just received my July issue of Harper’s Magazine, complete with an article about lobbying and public relations in Washington. Unfortunately, the article is behind a paywall, but it’s too good for me not to share some highlights. It seems to me that this article screams for a legislative intervention and for an ethical rule…

  • The Egnor Analogy

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    MarkH
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    Michael Egnor is to “argument from analogy” as a fish is to __________. A. Fire B. Victorian Literature C. Mathematics D. Water Imagine scientists living on an isolated island who have developed sophisticated science and culture, with one exception: they deny that telecommunication is possible. For assorted reasons, they deny that the human voice can…

  • Can Advertising Kill?

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    Chris
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    The courts, prodded on by libertarians, civil libertarians, and corporate-funded think tanks, have afforded more and more protection for “commercial speech,” expression in the business interest of the speaker. Commercial speech has a lower level of protection than religious and political expression, but still, in order for the government to regulate it, it has to…

  • The Crank HOWTO en espanol

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    MarkH
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    La Corte de los Milagros translates the Crank HOWTO! I’m flattered. Thanks Martin.

  • Sal Cordova Quote Mines Nature (I’m shocked!)

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    MarkH
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    I just knew it. The second I read this abstract I just knew that the Uncommon Descent cranks would dust off their old “Junk DNA” harangue and suggest that if it wasn’t for them, no one would believe that all that non-coding DNA had a purpose. Sal Cordova obliged, and it’s the usual embarrassing misread…

  • Harper’s Magazine on Washington Lobbying

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    Chris
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    Watch your newsstand for the July issue of Harper’s Magazine. Today’s Wall Street Journal reports today that Harper’s Ken Silverstein has written an article describing his experience posing as a businessman with interests in improving the image of Turkmenistan. He approaches lobbying firms, and hints that he represents a front company that can direct oil…