20 March 2013 by John Underhay
Regulation and licensing of businesses is considered a normal part of government bureaucracy. Some libertarians may disagree with any form of government interference in commercial activities, however, it is generally accepted that regulation is a proper government function, even if the type or level of regulation is controversial. One area that has created some discussion [...]
Posted in Featured, Paranormal, Pseudoscience, Skepticism10 Comments
23 November 2012 by John Underhay
Prostate cancer is the most common form of cancer in men. It has been said that if you are male and you live long enough you will develop the disease. That’s somewhat hyperbolic, but not much. Along with age, risk factors include race/ethnicity, nationality, family history, and socio-economic status. Prostate cancer occurs more often in [...]
Posted in Alternative Medicine, Atlantic, Featured, Skepticism5 Comments
02 October 2012 by John Underhay
Dr. Ken Walker, more well known under his pseudonym, W. Gifford-Jones, has a column published by 70 Canadian newspapers, several papers in the U.S., and the Epoch Times which has editions in a number of European countries. Because of his notoriety, he can be quite influential in shaping public opinion of medical and health issues. [...]
Posted in Diet and Nutrition, Featured, Skepticism7 Comments
28 July 2012 by John Underhay
The Alberta government is moving in a very dangerous direction in health care. Two recent announcements indicate support for both Naturopathy and Chiropractic. Chiropractic On July 7, 2012 the National Post reported that chiropractic treatment will be subsidized for seniors. Health minister Fred Horne said the government had budgeted $7-million to give elderly citizens access [...]
Posted in Alternative Medicine, Featured, Skepticism2 Comments
30 May 2012 by John Underhay
When I was in Prague recently, I passed a esthetician’s shop with an odd sight in the window. Apparently, they were having a sale, as “Akce Prijde ve dvou, platte jednou” roughly translates (according to Google Translate) as “Come in for one, get two”. Although I have heard of Fish Pedicures before, this is the [...]
Posted in Alternative Medicine, SkepticismComments Off
29 March 2012 by John Underhay
My post earlier this week on the removal of Jenna Talackova from competition in the Miss Universe Canada pageant has become the most read article on my own blog since I began blogging a year and a half ago. The story, at first just a whisper here and there, has blossomed into quite a sensation. [...]
Posted in Culture, Social Sciences1 Comment
10 February 2012 by John Underhay
It is difficult to determine the number of people who use Complementary and Alternative treatments. CAM practitioners and supporters do their best to make the numbers as high as possible so they can make the argument that the public demands their services. One of the methods they use to inflate the numbers is to include [...]
Posted in Medicine9 Comments
05 January 2012 by John Underhay
The Mayans have been in the news a lot over the past couple of years, particularly due to their (supposed) prediction that the world will end in December of this year. This has been so thoroughly debunked that I hardly need mention it here. Reminiscent of the response to Harold Camping, there are those who [...]
Posted in History, Social Sciences5 Comments
17 November 2011 by John Underhay
Dr. Ivan P. Fellegi, was the speaker at the 2011 Symons Lecture in Charlottetown, PEI on November 8. Dr. Fellegi is an internationally renowned statistician and was Canada’s Chief Statistician from 1985 until 2008. He spoke on how statistics are intrinsically linked to democracy, and in particular how the decision of the Canadian Government to [...]
Posted in Canada9 Comments
19 October 2011 by John Underhay
Recently, on the CBC television program, The Dragon’s Den (Episode 3, available here), a product that the sales team for Roxon claimed to prevent and treat migraine and tension headaches was demonstrated. The product, Cefaly, is a tiara-like headband worn over the forehead delivers small electrical impulses. Their demonstration satisfied the Dragons, as they received [...]
Posted in Health, Medicinal Advertising7 Comments
John Underhay, also known as Peicurmudgeon, is just your average atheist, left wing libertarian, SCUBA diving, snorkeling, biker. He lives on PEI and spends some of his time attempting to point out the flaws and or dangers in promoting ideas that run contrary to the laws of physics, chemistry, or biology. He has a BSc (Biology) and an MSc (Pharmacology) from the University of Prince Edward Island, and is currently retired. You can read more of his posts at http://peicurmudgeon.wordpress.com/
