[WikiEN-l] Re: Pseudoscience category - GSPOV

Tue Jun 28 16:09:59 UTC 2005

On Jun 28, 2005, at 7:22 AM, Habj wrote:
> I encourage everyone who take part in this debate, to study the
> category tree in and around the category "Pseudoscience". Actually,
> there is one Category "Quackery" and another one called "Alternative
> medicine". Quackery is a sub-category to Alternative medicine, but
> while Quackery is also a sub-category to Pseudoscience Alternative
> medicine is a sub-category to Medicine.

I guess I'm not sure how I would define "Quackery."  Both pseudoscience 
and alternative medicine are clear, but some of the members of 
[[Category:Quackery]], like [[Chelation therapy]] I'd put in 
[[Category:Alternative medicine]] as it's currently a therapy under 
study rather than one proven to not work.  I think that Quackery 
shouldn't be a subcategory of Alternative medicine.  The articles that 
do use Alternative medicine to promote their Quackery should belong to 
both categories, but in my opinion not all members of the Quackery cat 
are also Alternative medicine.

>
> 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.
>
> As I said before, I see the Pseudoscience category as a "scrap bin"
> for those who don't want to take the time to distinguish one thing
> from the other.

I don't think that pseudoscience is a scrap-bin any more than 
alternative medicine is a scrap-bin for valid alternative treatments.  
It's simply a way of grouping ideas outside of the mainstream.  I also 
agree with the previous poster who said that they shouldn't be used as 
warning labels at the bottom of the article.  They often are, but a 
well written article in either pseudoscience or alternative medicine or 
quackery will make it clear why it has been placed in that category 
because it will present both points of view on the theory.

Laurascudder