“Because enquiring minds want to know.”

The above title was the advertising tag for one of those insipid tabloids from years past that grace the check-out counter at the grocery store.  They tend to be right there with the candy bars to make it more convenient to rot your body and soul at the same time.  In my mind, tabloids rank up there with Harlequin romances and other forms of mental/emotional snake oil.

Spiritual placebos

wikipedia photo

Did you know that one of the original Snake Oil compounds was found to exclude anything related to a snake?  Thus the term “snake oil” claiming to be a cure-all has become synonymous with quackery of any kind.  Just another placebo in the world of false advertising, I suppose.

By contrast, a double blind drug trial is one in which neither the scientists nor the human “guinea pigs” know who is actually getting the medicine under investigation.  One group gets the real stuff, and the other gets the counterfeit.  It’s an important way to test legitimate new drugs, since even thinking I’m the one getting medicated can produce symptoms, even if all you’re getting is