Flat Earthers and what to do with them

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Doctor_Cake in reply to @NurseHolliday

My wife is Assistant Director at a charity called Sense About Science

Fantastic organisation. They do really great work.

The Lancet Oncology used to do a series called Quackery. The one on crystals was quite a fun read (this is probably paywalled, but in case you have access via academic institute).

http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanonc/article/PIIS1470-2045(14)70098-1/fulltext

Interestingly, the review was quite benign on the topic, given that crystals don't actually do active harm, like some other alternative therapies (although if it stops a person receiving proper treatment, that's not great).

However, despite the absence of evidence and the frequently grandiose claims of efficacy, the use of crystals is unlikely to cause the harm seen with other alternative therapies, such as mistletoe and aristolochia. Indeed, similar to many alternative therapies, the benefit is often derived not from the therapy itself, but from the holistic environment in which it is delivered.

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NurseHolliday in reply to @Doctor_Cake

I'll pass on the love, thanks!

Interestingly, the review was quite benign on the topic, given that crystals don't actually do active harm, like some other alternative therapies (although if it stops a person receiving proper treatment, that's not great).

I think your latter point is the most important, with other fake remedies, people will beg, steal, and borrow to afford them, even though they are a waste of time, but with crystals the relative low cost of trying them almost makes them have no harm. However, I think the risk with that is the longer they are in a sphere of influence, the more likely people are to believe in their (non-existent) power, and the risk of someone trying crystals instead of seeking help from a real doctor grows. That is unacceptable, and there are plenty of flat earth style believers in this quackery who are trying to stop people taking real medicine and trust their lives in fucking crystals.

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branwen in reply to @NurseHolliday

I would imagine they (crystals) could also act as a gateway drug of sorts - people get desperate because of a disease, and think "oh, they're cheap, what's the worse that could happen ...", but that false hope+belief could easily transfer over to harder drugs in terms of quackery

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