News Front
Jessica Macfarlane (May 1, 2019)
‘Spiritual healer' told dying cancer patient to stop medical treatment, authorities say
Where: stuff.co.nz
Who: Aisha Dow
When: 25/01/2019
Skeptic summary: Despicable. When people are in a vulnerable situation, it is harder for them to be sceptical. We need to support our family and friends to avoid these tragedy vampires.
Inside the Secret Sting Operations to Expose Celebrity Psychics
Where: nytimes.com
Who: Jack Hitt
When: 26/02/2019
Skeptic summary: An exciting sting operation to lure psychics in, making use of the idea of ‘hot reading' where a psychic stalks someone online and memorises some useful key points and then the spirits magically feed that information to them on stage. Brilliant opportunity to bask in some schadenfreude.
Polio: lingering effects and the last mile
Where: newsroom.co.nz
Who: Farah Hancock
When: 25/02/2019
Skeptic summary: A Nelson man talks about his experiences after catching Polio and his very strong feelings about the people who decide not to vaccinate their children. A reminder that despite all the work that has been done, and vaccination heros who have died trying to help others, Polio is still only a flight away. I would not wish living in an iron lung on anyone, even an anti-vaxxer.
At long last, New Zealand has repealed its archaic blasphemy laws
Where: friendlyatheist.patheos.com
Who: Hemant Mehta
When: 5/3/2019
Skeptic summary: An outdated law which came across to New Zealand from England along with fleas, rats and influenza, has finally been banished to the void. Great news. As the writer of this piece explains “Bad ideas should only be defeated with better ideas, and the threat of imprisonment is a barbaric tool to wield against so-called blasphemers, even if there's virtually no chance of that happening. “ Who is the victim of this crime? A silly question—it is a victimless crime.
No link between vaccinations and autism major study finds
Where: stuff.co.nz
Who: Georgia Forrester
When: 5/3/2019
Skeptic Summary: Andrew Wakefield, you have blood on your hands. The science again shows there were no clusters of autisim after the MMR vaccine was administered.
Italy bans unvaccinated children from school
Where: bbc.com
Who: Unknown
When: 12/03/2019
Skeptic Summary: New Zealanders enjoy a lot of freedoms around vaccination, and some say we are now paying the consequences. What are your thoughts skeptics? Is this measure going to help protect everyone from diseases, or is the price of denying education to some too high? In Italy it seems to have pushed people towards vaccination, bringing the population towards that magic herd immunity percentage.
New Zealand doctors move clinics outside to stop measles' spread
Where: guardian.com
Who: Eleanor Ainge Roy
When: 12/3/2019
Skeptic summary: Ah New Zealand. In the news for all the wrong reasons. I heard it first on RNZ news, yes patients who suspect they have measles have been asked by some GPs to wait in their cars rather than in the waiting room, such is the exquisite ability for measles to transmit in water droplets in the air, hours after an infected person has been in the room.
Black Salve: The corrosive cancer cure that isn't
Where: newsroom.co.nz
Who: Farah Hancock
When: 15/03/2019
Skeptic summary: Excellent coverage of a dangerous fake cancer cure. It's worse than we thought. Not only are websites using weasel words to get round the advertising standards authority rules, they are bragging that they are. Facebook has pages for people to get information and network, and it's actually legal to import seeds and grow the plant that is used to create the corrosive substance that not only kills cancer cells, but like any corrosive substance, kills any cells at all resulting in horrible disfigurement or worse.
Did a Chinese lunar rover find no evidence of American moon landings?
Where: snopes.com
Who: David Mikkelson
When: 4/1/2019
Skeptic summary: Snopes is a wonderful resource. Putting paid to rumours that China's mission found no evidence of the previous moon mission, it begs the question—how can conspiracy theorists just accept the fact that China didn't just fabricate their moon landing with a sound stage or something. Deep fake technology is way more advanced these days, so it would be doable. Just wondering.
BioGro fully supports a national regulation
Where: scoop.co.nz
Who: Press Release: BioGro
When: 15/05/2019
Skeptic Summary: BioGro has been called out by us on Twitter for supporting homeopathy for use on livestock. We believe delaying effective treatment causes real harm, so will be making a submission to the organics bill. Regulation will be meaningless if it doesn't mandate evidence based care. Studies show belief in alternative medicine results in it being used instead of rather than alongside evidence based medicine.
Opinion: Claimed efficacy of homeopathy is in stark contrast with evidence-based practice
Where: nzherald.co.nz
Who: Mark Hanna
When: 9/3/2019
Skeptic Summary: Mark responds to an opinion piece published in the Bay of Plenty Times by a supporter of complementary veterinary medicine. As an animal advocate Mark reminds us all of our duty of care. We need to make those good evidence based choices for our pets because if we don't they will suffer the consequences.
John Tamihere: Moments that defined our Nationhood
Where: nzherald.co.nz
Who: John Tamihere
When: 28/03/2019
Skeptic Summary: There are so many contentious points in this article, but this quote in particular elicited some thoughtful comments on twitter:
“Some will argue they are atheists and agnostics, but when the chips are down and death visits, everyone seizes upon faith – everyone. “
@slyall approached @NZSkeptics on Twitter to ask it if it was worth making a formal complaint.
We replied, yes they should if they feel strongly about it. It's a tired idea, that has been debunked countless times. Faith is not necessary in order to feel loss trauma or pain and find support to come through that.
Exclusive: Facebook to clamp down on hate in response to Christchurch mosque attack
Where: nzherald.co.nz
Who: Phil Taylor
When: 30/03/2019
Skeptic Summary: Finally the fakenews platform is taking some steps to reduce the torrent by banning extremist groups, and restricting the ability to share violent content.
Editorial References
Jim Salinger and Michael Mann: Media should not give climate deniers a platform
Where: nzherald.co.nz
Who: Jim Salinger and Michael Mann
When: 6/03/2019
Skeptic Summary: Saying you find me a scientist that believes in XYZ and I'll find you one that doesn't is nonsensical, and a waste of time. It's false balance. Climate change is due to become irreversible if people, corporations and governments are not willing to accept it is real, and then do something concrete about it.
The gold standard of evidence has been met.
Academics, teachers back students' climate strike
Where: radionz.co.nz
Who: Unknown
When: 9/03/2019
Skeptic Summary: In the end over 1000 signatories pen an open letter to Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and others to show their support for the climate strike in New Zealand.
Greta Thunberg was the first climate strike student from Sweden who inspired strikes here and around the world.
No guarantees on safety for striking students—principals
Where: radionz.co.nz
Who: Brooke Jenner
When: 14/03/2019
Skeptic Summary: It was apparently too difficult to organise at such short notice, so the consensus was to disallow it rather than try to make it work. Many principals agreed students were to be marked absent if they did attend the strike, and suggested the weekend would have been a better choice.
If climate change mitigation is treated the same way, and people down tools as it's too hard, we are in for an increasing number of ‘death days' where temperatures are so hot people die from heat just by being outdoors (among other climate disasters).
‘Egg Boy' to donate money raised for him towards victims of Christchurch attack
Where: herald.co.nz
Who:
When: 18/03/2019
Skeptic Summary: Senator Fraser Anning is now famous for being egged by a boy who along with most of his nation, and ours, thought his victim blaming racist comments were unacceptable.
‘Egg Boy' was an overnight star, and someone set up a gofundme page for his legal fees (and more eggs), to which donors pledged over $42,000.
Will Connolly said he would donate “the majority of the money” to the survivors and victims families in Christchurch.