Date: Sun, 17 Dec 2006 19:21:53 -0600 (CST) From: "Randall J. Scalise" To: David Crowe cc: christine@aliveandwell.org, Peter Duesberg , "Randall J. Scalise" , Fred Olness , John Cotton , "Anthony S. Fauci M.D." , "Stephen Barrett M.D." , James The Amazing Randi , "Professor Robert L. Park" Subject: Re: AIDS Dissent... On Fri, 15 Dec 2006, David Crowe wrote: > Have you ever considered having an AIDS dissident in one of your > classes for a debate? There are thousands to choose from, see > http://rethinkingaids.com/quotes/rethinkers.htm Oh, can I pick a speaker from the list? How about : - David Bartell. Science Fiction writer, BA, Astrophysics; or - Angelo Battiston. D.C., Cape Town, South Africa (D.C. is 'doctor' of chiropractic, right? That's reputable.) Here's another good one: - Maja Boxhorn. Instructor in Veterinary Homeopathy, Asthanga Research Institute for Homoeopathy, Hagen bei Murnau, Germany Three great choices and I only made it to the B's in the alphabetical list! Got anyone who has published this remarkable theory in the peer-reviewed medical literature in the last five years? I'm not picky; it can be in JAMA, NEJM, or the Lancet -- your choice. Shall we also alert the Nobel Prize Committee about this breakthrough? Let me save you the price of airfare to Dallas. My students will say what I say now: Show me an article in a peer-reviewed medical journal or SHUT UP! On Fri, 15 Dec 2006, David Crowe wrote: > After all, if they're so obviously wrong, there should be no point > in sheltering your students from encountering the ideas of the AIDS > rethinkers/denialists/dissidents/reappraisers/pseudo-scientists. If they are so obviously right, why can't they publish an article with enough evidence to convince editors and reviewers of their position? Are you so pathetically desperate that you need to plead your case to students who have no background in biology? We won't lend legitimacy to a crackpot idea by providing an academic forum for you to engage in debate when all the evidence is on one side. We don't invite proponents of Intelligent Design (Phillip Johnson could cover both ID and AIDS!), ESP, Bigfoot, or the Flat Earth to the class, either. This is the Irigonegaray strategy that worked so well in Kansas. As to the importance of peer review, I quote from Goodstein, David 2000. How Science Works. In U.S. Federal Judiciary Reference Manual on Evidence, pp. 6672. In the competition among ideas, the institution of peer review plays a central role... Peer review works superbly to separate valid science from nonsense... ...peer review is one of the sacred pillars of the scientific edifice. My condolences to Ms. Maggiore on the tragic passing of her young daughter. Maybe she would like to tell the class how her daughter did not die of Pneumocystis jiroveci pneumonia as a result of untreated AIDS. You people are not just wrong, you're dangerous. You're costing innocent folks their lives. Duesberg alone has caused the deaths of millions in Africa by years ago influencing Thabo Mbeki's policies. Have an enlightened day, --Randall J. Scalise, Ph.D. ,____________________________________________________________________. | Office: +1(214)768-2504 | Department of Physics | | Dept: +1(214)768-2495 | 102 Fondren Science Building | | FAX: +1(214)768-4095 | 3215 Daniel Avenue | | Email: scalise@smu.edu | Southern Methodist University | | http://www.phys.psu.edu/~scalise | Dallas, TX 75275-0175 | `--------------------------------------------------------------------' Disclaimer: The opinions expressed are those of Dr. Randall J. Scalise (and other rational people) and do not necessarily reflect those of Southern Methodist University or its Physics Department... but they ought to.