Courtesy of CNN
Since the times of the Old West, snake oil salesmen have plagued America with promises of cure-alls and magic potions with exaggerated prices.
They traveled the land feeding off of desperation and hope, fooling anyone they could into buying their remedies. Many times this led to their vicious murder at the hands of an angry crowd, but when it didn’t it led to a fortune earned with the tears of the ill.
Unfortunately, time has not done away with all of this illustrious group, despite what many would believe. They don’t go by the same title, but snake oil salesmen they remain. In the current environment they go by a much more effective and public title: TV doctor.
The king of the modern grifters is the overly-popular Dr. Mehmet Oz. Known mainly for his television show that feeds mountains of acai blueberries to chubby middle aged housewives, Oz has built an empire around his ability to sell lies to just about anyone.
For five years Oz has brought in more than $14 million through his advocating of pseudoscience. He has spent the better part of these years focusing on the idea that eating a mountain of raspberry ketones will somehow lead to immediate and permanent weight loss.
Throughout his stint as a doctor, Oz has also influenced more than a handful of people to abandon formal medicine in favor of following a quack, who has been publicly shamed by the medical community for his malicious businessman ways.
After being invited to speak to the Senate Commerce committee on weight-loss scams, the evidence of his deliberate and knowledgeable press for these so “magic pills” became palpable to those in the room.
Chairwoman Senator Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) proceeded to tear Oz a new one when he claimed that “hype always trumps evidence,” when it comes to the items he pushes for on his show.
Despite holding a degree in medicine and formerly practicing in medicine, Dr. Oz has become nothing more than a dubious show pony, for the companies paying to pour his mystic remedies down the throats of malleable Americans.
The fact that his name ties so close to the Wizard of Oz, who was shown to be a lying snake oil salesman, just rings true to his character.
This can be found especially true when he fails to mention the side effects of his latest craze products. For instance raspberry ketones have not yet been proven safe for humans to ingest, and according to Web MD can cause heart palpitations.
Yet, he doesn’t only peddle unfounded bottles of trash, no he takes advantage of his title to earn people’s trust and then tells them that apples and apple juices are full of dangerous and lethal arsenic. While this terrified new mothers everywhere, it can only be assumed that Oz laughed heartily at the blatant lie he had just told.
While apples and their byproducts do contain arsenic, what Oz failed to mention is that organic arsenic, which is found in apples, isn’t toxic to humans at all.
The United States Food and Drug Administration even became involved in the good doctor’s web of lies when they sent him a letter detailing why the information he claimed to be providing for people’s best interest, was a blatant lie that would only lead to mass hysteria.
“We have explained to you that arsenic occurs naturally in many foods in both inorganic and organic forms and that only the inorganic forms of arsenic are toxic, depending on the amount. We have advised you that the test for total arsenic DOES NOT distinguish inorganic arsenic from organic arsenic.”
The FDA also went on to advise against the airing of such information in the same letter.
“The FDA believes that it would be irresponsible and misleading for The Dr. Oz Show to suggest that apple juice contains unsafe amounts of arsenic based solely on tests for total arsenic.”
The episode aired the very next day effectively making the claim that apples were going to kill people’s babies.
Dr. Oz’s blatant disregard for the truth and his constant and malicious delivery of falsified information proves that he is not only a bad person, but more than willing to create mass hysteria just to make a dime.
In many cases voluntarily causing mass panic would be more than enough to earn an individual a one way ticket to prison, yet more than 3 million people are still tuning into watch this quack run his mouth about complete crap.
In all it is absurd that Oz still holds a license to practice medicine while filling people’s heads with lies about garbage diet supplements.
The only way to stop this man from polluting more people and tricking them into believing that eating scientifically unfounded miracle drugs with effectively change their body composition, is to revoke his license to practice medicine. If he would like to continue to act as the snake oil salesman that he is then deny him the title of doctor.
Once stripped of his title make an example of Mehmet, show the rest of the world’s pseudo-doctors that taking advantage of the desperate and the feeble-minded is detestable to say the least.
Don’t stop there, teach the doc that scamming individuals may make you money but it also makes enemies.
In my professional opinion, I recommend a large dose of public shaming and a spoonful of canola oil to wash it all down.
The Adventures of an Insomniac 