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Antivaccine nonsense Bad science Medicine Skepticism/critical thinking

It’s September. That must mean it’s time for fear mongering about the flu vaccine.

September is the time for antivaccine fear mongering about the flu vaccine, this time with a hint of COVID-19 pseudoscience.

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Antivaccine nonsense Clinical trials Medicine

WTF happened to The BMJ?

The BMJ recently published an “exposé” by Paul Thacker alleging patient unblinding, data falsification, and other wrongdoing by a subcontractor. It was a highly biased story embraced by antivaxxers, with a deceptively framed narrative and claims not placed into proper context, leading me to look into the broader question: WTF happened to The BMJ? (Updated and revised from a week ago.)

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Antivaccine nonsense Bad science Computers and social media Medicine Popular culture Pseudoscience Skepticism/critical thinking

“Censorship!”: The common bogus complaint of science deniers

Once more, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. cries “Censorship!” over efforts to counter COVID-19 and antivaccine disinformation. Hilarity ensues.

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Cancer Medicine Pseudoscience Quackery

The “Cancer Truther” movement

Denial of the benefits of chemotherapy is very prevalent in “natural health” movements. This denial is based on fear mongering, pseudoscience, and conspiracy theories and thus shares many similarities with the antivaccine movement. How can the “chemo truth” spread by “cancer truthers”?

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Antivaccine nonsense Bad science Medicine

Bell’s palsy, syncope, and death: The impending antivax tsunami of fake COVID-19 vaccine “adverse reactions”

Reports of Bell’s palsy and syncopy after vaccination with RNA-based COVID-19 vaccines remind us how antivaxxers will weaponize anything bad happening after vaccination. Sadly, I predict an impending tsunami of confusing correlation with causation.