[WikiEN-l] Re: Pseudoscience category - GSPOV

Tue Jun 28 14:35:48 UTC 2005

Your definition, I'd say, is unusual. As far as I can see, quackery
really have two meanings. One is stated in the beginning of
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quackery 
It is a disputed article needing improvement, but it starts

"Quackery is the practice of producing fraudulent medicine"

and thus, if someone believes in what they are doing they are not
quacks. The second definition is a legal one. I do not know to what
extent the laws differ here in different countries but in Sweden it is
forbidden to treat children, cancer patients and a few other types of
patients with alternative methods. If you do that, you are doing
quackery. I think - but i am not sure - that treating people and
pretending to have a medical exam that you do not have, also is
quackery according to Swedish law.

If you can show good reasons to believe that homeopathy is a
deliberate fraud, that it is illegal in at least a few countries, _or_
a definition of the word "quackery" from a good source where the main
meaning of the word supports you then please go ahead. English is not
my native language, and sometimes the meanings of words is not exactly
the same in different languages. Be prepared for debate though, as you
probably are trying to change what the category is used for.
Currently, this is all the articles in the category Quackery:
Quackery, Chalybeate, Chelation therapy, Electrical quackery, HGH
quackery, Jomanda, Magnet therapy, Oberon (device), Pinhole glasses,
Quackwatch, Radioactive quackery, Snake oil, Violet wand.

/Habj

On 6/28/05, Haukur Þorgeirsson <haukurth at hi.is> wrote:
> Habj wrote:
> 
> "Quackery and alternative medicine is not the same. In Great Britain,
> healers etc. are often welcomed to work in the hospitals. That is
> alternative medicine/complementary medicin, choose what term you like
> best. The German ex-med-doctor (forgot his name) who claim that cancer
> is pure psychological and cancer patients should leave the normal
> health care and go to him for some kind of therapy, is a definity
> quack."
> 
> By my definition quack medicine is a remedy falsely presented as
> having curative powers. In this sense the overwhelming majority
> of "alternative medicine" is quackery. Homeopaths, for example,
> sell people water and tell them that it will cure their illness.
> 
> If you want to make a distinction between alternative medicine
> and quackery would you object if I moved [[homeopathy]] to the
> quackery category?
> 
> Regards,
> Haukur Þorgeirsson
> 
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