Post by Amaris on Apr 10, 2009 1:10:39 GMT
This is from Ben Goldacre's Bad Science website, if you click the link it will give you the full information. Basically a story of Vitamins vs AIDS 
Matthias Rath
April 9th, 2009 by Ben Goldacre
This is the “missing chapter” about vitamin pill salesman Matthias Rath. Sadly I was unable to write about him at the time that book was initially published, as he was suing my ass in the High Court. The chapter is now available in the new paperback edition, and I’ve posted it here for free so that nobody loses out.
Although the publishers make a slightly melodramatic fuss about this in the promo material, it is a very serious story about the dangers of pseudoscience, as I hope you’ll see, and it was also a pretty unpleasant episode, not just for me, but also for the many other people he’s tried to sue, including Medecins Sans Frontieres and more. If you’re ever looking for a warning sign that you’re on the wrong side of an argument, suing Medecins Sans Frontieres is probably a pretty good clue.
Anyway, here it is, please steal it, print it, repost it, whatever, it’s free under a Creative Commons license, details at the end. If you prefer it is available as a PDF here, or as a word document here. Happy Easter!
This is an extract from
BAD SCIENCE by Ben Goldacre
Published by Harper Perennial 2009.
You are free to copy it, paste it, bake it, reprint it, read it aloud,
as long as you don’t change it – including this bit –
so that people know that they can find more ideas for free at www.badscience.net
Please click this link. I think this shows the power involved in allowing pseudoscience to be thrust onto the naive who still trust everything they are told without the tools to find out for themselves.
www.badscience.net/2009/04/matthias-rath-steal-this-chapter/#more-1088
Matthias Rath
April 9th, 2009 by Ben Goldacre
This is the “missing chapter” about vitamin pill salesman Matthias Rath. Sadly I was unable to write about him at the time that book was initially published, as he was suing my ass in the High Court. The chapter is now available in the new paperback edition, and I’ve posted it here for free so that nobody loses out.
Although the publishers make a slightly melodramatic fuss about this in the promo material, it is a very serious story about the dangers of pseudoscience, as I hope you’ll see, and it was also a pretty unpleasant episode, not just for me, but also for the many other people he’s tried to sue, including Medecins Sans Frontieres and more. If you’re ever looking for a warning sign that you’re on the wrong side of an argument, suing Medecins Sans Frontieres is probably a pretty good clue.
Anyway, here it is, please steal it, print it, repost it, whatever, it’s free under a Creative Commons license, details at the end. If you prefer it is available as a PDF here, or as a word document here. Happy Easter!
This is an extract from
BAD SCIENCE by Ben Goldacre
Published by Harper Perennial 2009.
You are free to copy it, paste it, bake it, reprint it, read it aloud,
as long as you don’t change it – including this bit –
so that people know that they can find more ideas for free at www.badscience.net
Please click this link. I think this shows the power involved in allowing pseudoscience to be thrust onto the naive who still trust everything they are told without the tools to find out for themselves.
www.badscience.net/2009/04/matthias-rath-steal-this-chapter/#more-1088
