Mastodawn

Snake Oil

Hearing of persons who desperately seek healthcare treatments that are unsupported by strong evidence, and which likely offer only a placebo effect, makes me fear that unethical providers are increasingly taking advantage of gullible Americans. Highly educated persons who I know personally are among those using dubious healthcare services. That surprises and disappoints me. But it has become quite difficult to find objective information online about the evidence-base or lack thereof for healthcare treatments in the USA, and it seems largely because that information is buried or diluted by much more prevalent advertising. Businesses that sell services of questionable value now dominate web-based content to such a large extent that one must put in the effort to dig deep and find information that is science-based rather than merely marketing designed to sell products.

#Healthcare #Medicine #Capitalism #SnakeOil

Sim Barr Apr 13

But what I really don't understand is WHY is he healing Jeffrey Epstein!?!?

#epstein #snakeoil

Manannán mac Lir 🇺🇦 🇵🇸Apr 11

Angela Rasmussen, an avian flu virologist at the University of Saskatchewan, reviewed journalists' findings and dismissed claims the farm was engaged in any groundbreaking research. "I think calling it scientific work is quite generous. I call it a scam."

#BCPoli #CDNPoli #CFIA #UniversalOstrichFarm #Ostriches #SnakeOil #Homeopathy #Naturopathy #Edgewood #Pseudoscience

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ostrich-farm-arguments-cull-9.7157710

The ostrich con: Arguments to save birds from cull in B.C. were based on falsehoods, evidence shows | CBC News

The 10-month standoff on a B.C. ostrich farm last year was the most expensive poultry cull in Canada’s history. A fifth estate investigation reveals the campaign to save the ostriches was based on falsehoods.

CBC

Matthew Malthouse Apr 5

« My patient is refusing a drug studied in 170,000 people because of side effects that a 124,000-person analysis just confirmed do not exist — while injecting a compound studied in 14 humans, from unregulated sources, based on the recommendation of someone who profits from selling it. »

https://www.statnews.com/2026/04/03/peptides-statins-research-trust-bpc-157/

#medicine #scepticism #SnakeOil

My patient would rather take a peptide than a statin. That reveals an uncomfortable truth in medicine

“The volume of evidence behind a therapy has become inversely correlated with public trust in it,” writes Vikas Patel.

STAT

Jesus Castagnetto 🇵🇪Mar 31

#WTF ?! - From #MIT #Techonology Review: "Inside the stealthy startup that pitched brainless human clones"
https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/03/30/1134780/r3-bio-brainless-human-clones-full-body-replacement-john-schloendorn-aging-longevity/

#Ethics #Bioethics
#SnakeOil ?

Inside the stealthy startup that pitched brainless human clones

The ultimate plan to live forever is a brand new body.

MIT Technology Review

Andrea C (he/him)Mar 18

Interview with a 'sweating' AI CEO (2026)

#ai #aisucks #snakeoil

https://youtu.be/tnYaExb5JvM

Interview with a 'sweating' AI CEO (2026)

YouTube

Shouting into the void Mar 18

Because human gullibility is forever...

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1DotHPxNib/

#marketing #snakeoil #fake #influence #diamonds #oranges #birthstones

121K views · 6.4K reactions | It's not tradition, it's marketing #learnsomethingnew #capitalism | Alex Falcone

It's not tradition, it's marketing #learnsomethingnew #capitalism

Jon Hancock Mar 11

Gone & Forgotten: "TRULY GONE AND FORGOTTEN: CAPTAIN HADACOL!"

http://gone-and-forgotten.blogspot.com/2026/03/truly-gone-and-forgotten-captain-hadacol.html

#Comics #SnakeOil

N-gated Hacker News Mar 3

😱 OMG, 224k #OpenClaw servers have decided to show off their #vulnerabilities like a reality TV show! 🎉 Instead of fixing the leaks, they've opted for a passive-aggressive list to *gently* remind admins that maybe, just maybe, #security is important. 🚨 In other news, Vivgrid is here to sell you some snake oil for your #AI woes. 🐍🔧
https://openclaw.allegro.earth/ #SnakeOil #Awareness #HackerNews #ngated

OpenClaw Exposure Watchboard

OpenClaw Exposure Watchboard lists publicly reachable active OpenClaw instances for defensive security awareness. Vivgrid.com gives you authentication, model gateway, tool control, cost tracking, and enterprise observability — everything you need to ship AI agents safely at scale and 10× Faster.

OpenClaw Exposure Watchboard