# If it's August, it's time to thin the herd, again. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [August 21, 2005, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-its-august-its-time-to-thin-the-herd-again/318024 "2005-08-21T22:19:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Oy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bc8723/32.png) [@Oy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oy)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2005, 11:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-its-august-its-time-to-thin-the-herd-again/318024/21 "2005-08-23T11:42:30Z")
> [@dropzone](#): > > So nobody else sees the value in the herd culling that comes from people reading Trudeau’s book? I am especially pleased when they use the “natural” products Medicare and insurance companies won’t pay for because it saves money for the rest of us. Unfortunately, if I understand it correctly, those Insurance companies want nothing more than for you to go to these quack healers - it costs them less than legitimate treatment would. You guys haven’t read _March of the Morons_, by C.M. Kornbluth, have you? It shows the future that, as a childless 49 year old with considerably above average IQ, I have helped to create. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2005, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-its-august-its-time-to-thin-the-herd-again/318024/22 "2005-08-23T12:43:20Z")
> [@Oy!](#): > > You guys haven’t read _March of the Morons_, by C.M. Kornbluth, have you? It shows the future that, as a childless 49 year old with considerably above average IQ, I have helped to create. _The Marching Morons_ [/nitpick] ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2005, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-its-august-its-time-to-thin-the-herd-again/318024/23 "2005-08-23T13:51:12Z")
I just heard that asshole hawking his “Natural Cures” book on the radio. I like Air America, but why are half their commercials some kind of scam? (Trudea, a medical fraud named Wendi Friesen, get-rich-quick schemes, etc.) > [@](#): > > Just looking at the John Edwards Catalog. And my god. Fashion SWAT needs to go to work right now on this t-shirt. John _Edward_. John _Edwards_ is the former Senator and VP candidate. I remember this by thinking of the _S_ at the beginning of “Senator”. I’m not worried about _The Marching Morons_, but that’s a subject for a whole other thread (and probably has been). ---
**Author:** ![Cemetery\_Savior](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/439d5e/32.png) [@Cemetery\_Savior](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cemetery_Savior)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2005, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-its-august-its-time-to-thin-the-herd-again/318024/24 "2005-08-23T15:50:54Z")
> [@Oy!](#): > > Unfortunately, if I understand it correctly, those Insurance companies want nothing more than for you to go to these quack healers - it costs them less than legitimate treatment would. Actually, insurance companies don’t want you to go to quack healers, that’s why they pay percentages of claism provided by real medical practitioners. Although, to my dismay, my large insurance company did recently set up a network of “alternate practitioners” wherein you could get a discount. Acupuncture, Naprapathy, Massage, etc. Bring on the Faith Healers! -Cem ---
**Author:** ![MsRobyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90ced4/32.png) [@MsRobyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsRobyn)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2005, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-its-august-its-time-to-thin-the-herd-again/318024/25 "2005-08-23T16:07:36Z")
> [@Cemetery Savior](#): > > Although, to my dismay, my large insurance company did recently set up a network of “alternate practitioners” wherein you could get a discount. Acupuncture, Naprapathy, Massage, etc. > > Bring on the Faith Healers! > > -Cem I’m gonna take issue with some of your post. It’s true that some alternative practitioners are frauds, plain and simple, but there are a few that are not. There are, for example, ethical chiropractors who will do spinal adjustments to relieve pain and who will refer you to “legitimate” practitioners if they can’t help; that is, if they do x manipulations and you’re still in pain, they’ll refer you to PT or to a physical medicine/rehabilitation specialist for further evaluation and treatment. Massage therapists can help induce relaxation, which is useful for some people with chronic neuromuscular problems. IOW, if you’re prone to spasm, as I am, it’s cheaper to send you to a massage therapist every week or two at less than $100 per session than it is to send you to physical therapy for the same services at well over $200 a visit. (Believe you me, I’d love my insurance to cover a good MT.) I agree with you on the naturopathy, acupuncture (at least until more studies are in), homeopathy and the other quackery. I just wanted to point out that not all chiropractors and MTs are full of shit. Robin ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Tiger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6de8d8/32.png) [@Mama\_Tiger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Tiger)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2005, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-its-august-its-time-to-thin-the-herd-again/318024/26 "2005-08-23T16:26:16Z")
I actually had great success with clearing my sinuses with acupuncture when I lived in L.A. and was chronically congested. And if my insurance hadn’t paid for it, I would never have tried it. As it was, it saved them a bundle of money – an acupuncture visit every couple of weeks versus doctor visits and prescriptions was far cheaper in the long run. Same with massage therapy. I slipped and got some nasty back spasms, and after a month of severe pain when nothing else would work, a great massage therapist had me feeling better in two visits. So I wish my insurance would cover those now! ---
**Author:** ![koeeoaddi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/koeeoaddi/32/408_2.png) [@koeeoaddi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/koeeoaddi)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2005, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-its-august-its-time-to-thin-the-herd-again/318024/27 "2005-08-23T17:31:07Z")
I work in a bookstore and I’ve had this guy smirking at me from the best seller table for a couple of weeks now. This is so down right creepy that when I got home last night I missed this thread entirely and [hijacked another one just to bloviate.](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=6500501&postcount=15) Customers _still_ walk up to the counter amazed that we stock the book that they assure us “ **They™** ” are working tirelessly to suppress. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![yoyodyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a9a28c/32.png) [@yoyodyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yoyodyne)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2005, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-its-august-its-time-to-thin-the-herd-again/318024/28 "2005-08-23T18:43:19Z")
> [@Baldwin](#): > > John _Edward_. John _Edwards_ is the former Senator and VP candidate. I remember this by thinking of the _S_ at the beginning of “Senator”. Ah, but scammer also starts with _S_. Which one are you going to remember now smart guy? ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2005, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-its-august-its-time-to-thin-the-herd-again/318024/29 "2005-08-23T19:01:13Z")
> [@featherlou](#): > > My husband and I (who have decided _not_ to have children) have discussed this - we have come to the conclusion that the world that we are all creating is more suited to dull, unimaginative, self-involved people who don’t even see anything wrong with it. It’s okay. The world needs ditch-diggers, too. ---
**Author:** ![kingpengvin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9dc877/32.png) [@kingpengvin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kingpengvin)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2005, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-its-august-its-time-to-thin-the-herd-again/318024/30 "2005-08-23T19:48:43Z")
> [@featherlou](#): > > My husband and I (who have decided _not_ to have children) have discussed this - we have come to the conclusion that the world that we are all creating is more suited to dull, unimaginative, self-involved people who don’t even see anything wrong with it. Of course you see the world as dull unimaginative and full of self-involved people… you live in Fricken Calgary!! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![uglybeech](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/82dd89/32.png) [@uglybeech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/uglybeech)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2005, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-its-august-its-time-to-thin-the-herd-again/318024/31 "2005-08-23T21:08:06Z")
> [@Baldwin](#): > > John _Edward_. John _Edwards_ is the former Senator and VP candidate. I remember this by thinking of the _S_ at the beginning of “Senator”. Oopsy. Well I suppose I can remember that John \*Edwards \* has an s, but I can’t bring myself to pay enough attention to John \*Edward \* to give a half a rat buttock about how his name is spelled. > [@yoyodyne](#): > > Ah, but scammer also starts with S. Which one are you going to remember now smart guy? And swindler, scumbag, snake-oil salesman, shifty sham-meister, and snow-job slinging shitface. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2005, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-its-august-its-time-to-thin-the-herd-again/318024/32 "2005-08-23T21:19:38Z")
> [@This Year's Model](#): > > _The Marching Morons_ For what it’s worth, the new film from Mike “_Office Space_” Judge, called _Idiocracy_ and due later this year, is about a guy who travels to a future in which (as I understand it) everybody has become stupid because society at large has removed the incentives not to be. It’s apparently sort of like _Futurama_ among the Pakleds, or _A Connecticut Yankee in King Bozo’s Court._ ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2005, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-its-august-its-time-to-thin-the-herd-again/318024/33 "2005-08-23T22:00:31Z")
> [@uglybeech](#): > > And swindler, scumbag, snake-oil salesman, shifty sham-meister, and snow-job slinging shitface. Not to mention sharper, scoundrel, shyster, shark, scallywag, shucker, sneak, shell-game artist, shady dealer, sinister storyteller, and slimy son-of-a-bitch. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2005, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-its-august-its-time-to-thin-the-herd-again/318024/34 "2005-08-26T01:02:16Z")
> [@kingpengvin](#): > > Of course you see the world as dull unimaginative and full of self-involved people… you live in Fricken Calgary!! 😃 Ah, you got me there. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2005, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-its-august-its-time-to-thin-the-herd-again/318024/35 "2005-08-26T01:26:40Z")
When I saw the thread title regarding “thinning the herd” I figured it was going to be about this story (courtesy of today’s Columbus Dispatch): \*"Tommy Byers, 19, was struck and killed by a train in Lexington, Ky., early Tuesday after running away when University of Kentucky police attempted to cite him for underage drinking. According to Lexington police, Byers — a 2003 Coffman grad who received a track and cross country scholarship at Kentucky — was among 200 to 300 people attending an off-campus party a day before classes were to begin…According to the Lexington Herald-Leader, UK police tried to cite Byers and an unidentified friend for alcohol-related charges, but both fled by foot. The friend surrendered and was arrested for intoxication. A few minutes and a few blocks away, Byers was hit by a 32-car train traveling 30 mph on a Norfolk Southern track. **Police said he may not have heard the train because he was using his cell phone.** \*" “Hey dude, I’m fleeing from the cops right now. Say, where’s that bright light coming from?” ☹ Good to see Kevin Trudeau getting slammed. Can’t let him get away with spreading the word about those cures we’re going to keep secret. Bwa-ha-ha-ha! ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2005, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-its-august-its-time-to-thin-the-herd-again/318024/36 "2005-08-26T02:25:35Z")
Natural was #2 on the USAToday Bestseller list today, right below the new Harry Potter. Wow, 2 fantasy novels in the top 2. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2005, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-its-august-its-time-to-thin-the-herd-again/318024/37 "2005-08-26T15:42:36Z")
I don’t know - the power of placebo is strong. There probably are a whole lot of people feeling better when using his “cures”, not even realizing they’re doing it for themselves. Which doesn’t make him any less of a con man, of course. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-its-august-its-time-to-thin-the-herd-again/318024.md?page=1)