# Is it just me or is this site kind of soft? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [June 2, 2005, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-is-this-site-kind-of-soft/306509 "2005-06-02T06:06:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2005, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-is-this-site-kind-of-soft/306509/61 "2005-06-03T22:00:24Z")
> [@neofishboy](#): > > Okay, anybody else out there who _really_ wants to party with **user v1.05**? Nah, what’s a party without Surface Enhanced Raman? ---
**Author:** ![bizzwire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/958977/32.png) [@bizzwire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bizzwire)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2005, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-is-this-site-kind-of-soft/306509/62 "2005-06-04T00:41:38Z")
> [@neofishboy](#): > > Okay, anybody else out there who _really_ wants to party with **user v1.05**? Only if his MALDI is a reflectron…and DNA ligature on gold is so…2002. ---
**Author:** ![Una\_Persson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/una_persson/32/346_2.png) [@Una\_Persson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Una_Persson)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2005, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-is-this-site-kind-of-soft/306509/63 "2005-06-04T00:44:40Z")
> [@Lemur866](#): > > :smack: > > Hey, _I_ was personally promised a rose garden. Heck, I was promised a whole STATE. Sorry Lemur, I was making a pun on “floridation”, as in “floral”… :o ---
**Author:** ![hauss](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/5fc32e/32.png) [@hauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hauss)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2005, 5:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-is-this-site-kind-of-soft/306509/64 "2005-06-04T05:31:42Z")
> [@Lemur866](#): > > Oh, so just because some scientists tell you that beating a dead horse is pointless, you’ll just believe them? If they lied to you about floridation, if they lied to you about Lee Harvey Oswald, if they lied to you about homeopathy, why would you believe them about beating dead horses? Did you ever once try beating a dead horse for yourself and seeing what happens, or are you just trusting the “experts”? That is a damn good joke my fellow! (My roommate just told me to “keep it down in there”!) It is a bit true about me, but hey, if I end up living my life and not once getting my leg pulled, and you get yours pulled by the FDA (or whatever other agency) a hundred times, even though I missed out on some supported speculation that was true, who wins in the end, the guy who dies of cancer because dioxin (or whatever) seeped into his food from plastic containers, or the guy who gets a little cavity here and there because he doesn’t want to use toothpaste???!!! Who will be laughing in the end when you realize you could have just sipped some vinegar to treat your acid reflux but instead you spent all that money and all the side effects on pills your whole life? I use technology only in cases where I know for a fact it will help me. Additionally, I use science to make decisions only when I know they are fact and when I can interpret the data correctly. Otherwise, I can live my biological life just fine without technology or science. (Yeah, you may know more than me about my examples, so they may sound stupid. Maybe we can make them a thread? Maybe not!) I don’t know about you guys but I ain’t no victim; of society or other people’s agendas or botched scientific studies, ect. So, if I ain’t a doc and can’t trust other people who are docs to evaluate things thoroughly enough, then I am just going to have to stay away from some things such as milk and some meat and plasticware and taking pills instead of food for nutrients, ect. I get one life, one body, and I live that way, simple. (Does radioactive water as a health product ring a bell? Oh, but our society and current understanding is above making mistakes like that now… :rolleyes: ) This is a matter of preference and not sanity. This is a matter of value judgment not obsessive/compulsive behavior. It’s about risk aversion and not paranoia. It’s about choosing default behavior as a temporary solution (natural living) in the presence of a lack of available truth. ---
**Author:** ![inkleberry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/f17d59/32.png) [@inkleberry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/inkleberry)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2005, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-is-this-site-kind-of-soft/306509/65 "2005-06-04T05:36:54Z")
> [@Squink](#): > > [Can carrots and celery be used as an alternative to brushing teeth?](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=316679) Between that and the “I Clean My Clothes With Febreeze” thread, I can safely say I now fear Dopefests held in poorly ventilated venues. ---
**Author:** ![Turek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/turek/32/18782_2.png) [@Turek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turek)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2005, 11:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-is-this-site-kind-of-soft/306509/66 "2005-06-04T11:17:28Z")
> [@hauss](#): > > This is creating problems for me on this board… I hope I’m not too late to add: Don’t let the door hit [you](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=312879) on [your ass](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=291701) on the way out. ---
**Author:** ![bizzwire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/958977/32.png) [@bizzwire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bizzwire)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2005, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-is-this-site-kind-of-soft/306509/67 "2005-06-04T14:14:14Z")
> [@hauss](#): > > Who will be laughing in the end when you realize you could have just sipped some vinegar to treat your acid reflux but instead you spent all that money and all the side effects on **pills your whole life?** > [@hauss](#): > > So, if I ain’t a doc and can’t trust other people who are docs to evaluate things thoroughly enough, then I am just going to have to stay away from some things such as milk and some meat and plasticware and\*\* taking pills \*\*instead of food for nutrients, ect. hmmm…so you _won’t_ take a pill proven to be effective from rigorous scientific testing, but you _will_ take one (or two, or three), provided it’s from a source you “like?” Whatever floats your boat, dude. Do as you wish, but please don’t argue science on emotion; rather argue it on the basis of…well, science. It makes you look…“woo-woo.” ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2005, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-is-this-site-kind-of-soft/306509/68 "2005-06-04T14:18:33Z")
> [@Turek](#): > > door… ass That seems a tad harsh. So what if **hauss** is a little out there. He’s not advocating anti-asteroid emplacements on the moons of Mars, Phi based constitutional law, or Orgone boxes for semen energization. He just seems a little confused, which is the natural state of mankind. It’s not easy evaluarting the threat posed by [leaking plasticizers](http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/health/womenfamily.html?in_article_id=350180&in_page_id=1799), and the misdirection field surrounding energy-based healing products is powerful enough to stop a 1920’s style death ray. So what if **hauss** gets his definitions for ‘Hard’ and ‘Soft’ mixed up? At least he’s still open to questioning things. If you beat him with a stick for it, that’ll change quickly. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2005, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-is-this-site-kind-of-soft/306509/69 "2005-06-04T15:08:14Z")
> [@hauss](#): > > Who cares, freshly squeezed carrot or orange juice is no healthier than sugar water! **hauss** , **Don’t you DARE misrepresent me like this!!!**. In the thread in question, [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=316678](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=316678), I kept my comments restricted to Orange Juice. When I mentioned non-fruit juices at all in that thread, I gave V-8 an endorsement because it lacked all the fruit sugar and had lots of fiber. I suggest you retract your implication that I _ever_ implied that carrot juice is no healthier than sugar water. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2005, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-is-this-site-kind-of-soft/306509/70 "2005-06-04T15:09:54Z")
> [@user v1.05](#): > > In the spirit of the OP, I have unlimited access to a MALDI-MS, SPR, UV-Vis spec, gel electrophoresis, and a shit-ton of chemicals plus a $1500 grant. Dude, you could make a KILLER bong with that. > [@noclueboy](#): > > The Commie is after our precious bodily fluids. Our essence. > Which is why we should always use condoms. And as a happy side benefit, you have a squeeze-a-snack for the next SDMB pan-fry event. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2005, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-is-this-site-kind-of-soft/306509/71 "2005-06-04T15:37:42Z")
> [@bizzwire](#): > > > [@](#): > > > > Originally Posted by hauss > > > > Who will be laughing in the end when you realize you could have just sipped some vinegar to treat your acid reflux but instead you spent all that money and all the side effects on pills your whole life? > > > [@](#): > > > > Quote: > > Originally Posted by hauss, in the same post: > > So, if I ain’t a doc and can’t trust other people who are docs to evaluate things thoroughly enough, then I am just going to have to stay away from some things such as milk and some meat and plasticware and taking pills instead of food for nutrients, ect. > > hmmm…so you _won’t_ take a pill proven to be effective from rigorous scientific testing, but you _will_ take one (or two, or three), provided it’s from a source you “like?” > > Whatever floats your boat, dude. Do as you wish, but please don’t argue science on emotion; rather argue it on the basis of…well, science. It makes you look…“woo-woo.” **bizzwire** , I think you misread here. \*\*hauss \*\*said both times that s/he would prefer not to take the pills. I’m somewhere in the middle of this horseflogging, as you probably all well know. True, drugs are submitted to rigorous testing that herbs are not. On the other hand, far more tested and approved drugs kill people every year than herbs do. There are always mistakes made, further research being done, and problems that show up in the general population that didn’t show up in the reasearch trials. Dozens of rigorously tested and approved drugs are recalled and pulled off the market entirely every year. It took over 10 years for the scientists to figure out that mixed hormone therapy for post-menopausal women was dangerous. Furthermore, there is not a single drug out there without “side effects” (or, as I like to call them, “effects”.) Does this mean we should never use tested and approved pharmaceuticals? No. But it does mean that we should question the studies, encourage honesty by the pharmaceutical companies and work with our physicians to ensure that the potential side effects of the drug are outweighed by the need for it. In my not-so-humble opinion, this means that I personally prefer to try a simple and cheap home remedy such as vinegar for reflux when the condition is not life-threatening. I won’t insist that you try the same, and I will fight tooth and nail to keep Zantac and Reglan available and affordable. All I ask is that you not try to shut down my options as well. Blind trust in “scientists” is just as delusional as blind trust in “nature” (which also has lots of things that can kill us). I don’t fault \*\*hauss \*\*for questioning, but I do fault him (her?) for not listening with an open mind. Listening only for those facts and ideas which fit your preconcieved notions is not wise critical thinking, it’s narrowminded asshatery, whether you’re on the “science” or “natural” side of the fence. ---
**Author:** ![bizzwire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/958977/32.png) [@bizzwire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bizzwire)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2005, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-is-this-site-kind-of-soft/306509/72 "2005-06-04T16:17:35Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > **bizzwire** , I think you misread here. \*\*hauss \*\*said both times that s/he would prefer not to take the pills. Wow. I sure did! I swear, I read and re-read several times. I retract and swear never to post before at least 3 cups of coffee in the future. Apologies, **hauss** (about the quotes, that is). ---
**Author:** ![bizzwire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/958977/32.png) [@bizzwire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bizzwire)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2005, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-is-this-site-kind-of-soft/306509/73 "2005-06-04T16:33:35Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > On the other hand, **far more tested and approved drugs kill people every year than herbs do**. There are always mistakes made, further research being done, and problems that show up in the general population that didn’t show up in the reasearch trials. It’s gonna take a little more than your say-so to buy this one. Some harder numbers and a cite or two might give this more oomph. While you’re at it, find out how many people have died from complications due to naturopathic/traditional/herbal/alternative treatments. Since these are not subject to the kind of quantitative and scientific rigor, I’d bet dollars to donuts the numbers are vastly under-reported. Also, while you’re at it, Please provide numbers of lives\*\* \* saved \* \*\*by “herbs” and “drugs” (because we all know that drugs are chemicals and dangerouos, while herbs are natural and safe) Better yet, why don’t we let **hauss** do it, since he’s so keen for a research project. > [@](#): > > Dozens of rigorously tested and approved drugs are recalled and pulled off the market entirely every year. It took over 10 years for the scientists to figure out that mixed hormone therapy for post-menopausal women was dangerous. Furthermore, there is not a single drug out there without “side effects” (or, as I like to call them, “effects”.) True. however you neglect or dismiss the fact that the same shortccomings and caveats apply to herbs and other quackery. The only difference is that one system keeps track of such vital statistics, the other doesn’t. I’ll put my trust in the former, thankyouverymuch. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2005, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-is-this-site-kind-of-soft/306509/74 "2005-06-04T16:57:39Z")
> [@bizzwire](#): > > Also, while you’re at it, Please provide numbers of lives\*\* \* saved \* \*\*by “herbs” and “drugs” I very carefully stated non life-threatening conditions. I’m not about to stick my neck out any further on this board. > [@](#): > > (because we all know that drugs are chemicals and dangerouos, while herbs are natural and safe) Really? I don’t. And I suspect the folks at the Hemlock Society will be shocked as well. > [@](#): > > Better yet, why don’t we let **hauss** do it, since he’s so keen for a research project. Agreed. > [@](#): > > True. however you neglect or dismiss the fact that the same shortccomings and caveats apply to herbs and other quackery. No, I didn’t: > [@me](#): > > Blind trust in “scientists” is just as delusional as blind trust **in “nature” (which also has lots of things that can kill us).** > [@](#): > > The only difference is that one system keeps track of such vital statistics, the other doesn’t. Untrue. There is a reporting line for adverse herb reactions, as well as herb/drug interactions. > [@](#): > > I’ll put my trust in the former, thankyouverymuch. You can put your trust anywhere you like. But to suggest that drinking a little vinegar for reflux is going to kill you is a little hysterical. Not all alternative treatments are dangerous, and to suggest otherwise is just as much narrowminded asshattery as \*\*hauss \*\*displays. ---
**Author:** ![Excalibre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/898d66/32.png) [@Excalibre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Excalibre)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2005, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-is-this-site-kind-of-soft/306509/75 "2005-06-04T17:02:19Z")
> [@Qadgop the Mercotan](#): > > **hauss** , **Don’t you DARE misrepresent me like this!!!**. Do not meddle in the affairs of doctors, for they are subtle and quick to anger. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2005, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-is-this-site-kind-of-soft/306509/76 "2005-06-04T17:43:20Z")
> [@Excalibre](#): > > Do not meddle in the affairs of doctors, for they are subtle and quick to anger. “Quick to anger”? I consider myself rather patient. First he tells me his first thought is that I’m insane, I’m wearing the “blinders of science”, and I’m “narrow sighted”. I respond factually and non-confrontatively. In my practice I’m used to dealing with individuals with microdeckia. And I endeavour never to take personally things said to me by disturbed individuals, as so many of my patients are. This helps me deal with all kinds of people. But now I see **hauss** implying I said things that I clearly did not. That makes me angry. And as a wizard, um I mean a doctor, I’m not going to let that pass. ---
**Author:** ![Excalibre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/898d66/32.png) [@Excalibre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Excalibre)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2005, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-is-this-site-kind-of-soft/306509/77 "2005-06-04T17:56:49Z")
> [@Qadgop the Mercotan](#): > > But now I see **hauss** implying I said things that I clearly did not. That makes me angry. And as a wizard, um I mean a doctor, I’m not going to let that pass. I know, but I had to respond to the large text _somehow_ . . . I figured it was a safe bet you’d recognize the quote. Personally, I think the fact that you’re still giving this idiot your time is going above and beyond . . . ---
**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:** [June 4, 2005, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-is-this-site-kind-of-soft/306509/78 "2005-06-04T17:59:48Z")
Wow, that big font post actually scared me a little bit. ---
**Author:** ![bizzwire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/958977/32.png) [@bizzwire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bizzwire)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2005, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-is-this-site-kind-of-soft/306509/79 "2005-06-04T18:01:15Z")
I really don’t want to get into a pissing contest, **WN** , as I am pretty much in agreement with your stand which I’ll summarize as “uncritical acceptance is just as bad as uncritical rejection.” I was taking to task your comments concerning the dangers of drugs which as I read them (and I don’t exactly have the best track record when it comes to reading/commprehension) seemed, well, skewed in that they tended to emphasize the dangers of one approach while ignoring same for the other. While written as a response to your post, my points were really aimed towards those who uncritically reject drugs as dangerous and uncritically accept herbs as safe. > [@](#): > > You can put your trust anywhere you like. But to suggest that drinking a little vinegar for reflux is going to kill you is a little hysterical. Not all alternative treatments are dangerous, and to suggest otherwise is just as much narrowminded asshattery as \*\*hauss \*\*displays. Ok, now the shoe is on the other foot. I made no such claims. I did not say that **all** alternative treatments are dangerous. I said they are not necessarily benign, and have resulted in death. How many? How many in relation to drugs? I don’t know. Do you? ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2005, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-is-this-site-kind-of-soft/306509/80 "2005-06-04T18:07:04Z")
> [@Excalibre](#): > > I know, but I had to respond to the large text _somehow_ . . . I figured it was a safe bet you’d recognize the quote. Personally, I think the fact that you’re still giving this idiot your time is going above and beyond . . . I knew you knew, and I knew you knew I knew, and you knew I knew you knew I knew, but for the others, who didn’t know, I felt I had to be more concrete. You know? 😉 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-is-this-site-kind-of-soft/306509.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-just-me-or-is-this-site-kind-of-soft/306509.md?page=5)