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BZZZZT!!! WRONG!!!!

The "symptoms" that Michael J. Fox was exhibiting (the twitching, etc.) are not symptoms of Parkinson's Disease, they are side effects of the treatment for Parkinson's disease. It's called dyskinesias, and it's a side effect of the Dopamine used to treat Parkinson's. He stops taking the medications before public events so those side effects aren't even worse than what we saw. The symptoms of Parkinson's Disease aren't twitching and swaying, they are rigor, slight tremor (that's slight tremor, not the uncontrolled limb swaying due to the dopamine), and bradykinesia (short, stopping movements).

But don't take my word for it. Look It Up.

So no, Rush was not right. He was wrong, and to the best of my knowledge he has still not apologized. As for further analysis of his motives and morals, I defer to my more enthusiastic Slashdot brethren.

How about drink more coffee, less likely to suffer from Parkinson's or sleep less, live longer? This is just a few cursory findings on the surface, I'm sure you could find more.

That's not true. It was thought to be the case until recently. Here's one of the first links I found: check it out.

The definition of alternative medicine. = "A variety of therapeutic or preventive health care practices, such as homeopathy, naturopathy, chiropractic, and herbal medicine, that do not follow generally accepted medical methods and may not have a scientific explanation for their effectiveness."

Let's not forget the other definition: "the practice of medicine without the use of drugs; may involve self-awareness [syn: complementary medicine]"

Notice the part about "variety of therapeutic or preventive health care practices" kind of lump-sums all spiritual and well-being folks in with that. Everyone who believes in miracles and prayer-healing falls under that umbrella. Nearly everyone who believes that we have a soul also believes that the soul can be sick just like the body can. In addition to all of that, don't forget that non-physical sicknesses such as depression and stress can be linked to physical ailments.

For example migranes, Parkinsion's Disease and even Immune System problems can occur.

I sincerely hope whoever moderated this comment up as "funny" never has to experience a close relative (or worse, him/herself) having Parkinson's disease. Michael J. Fox as "that guy who shakes a lot" .. yeah, that's a real knee-slapper. I suppose Magic Johnson is "that guy with the busted immune system", huh? I know at least one Slashdot reader who is afflicted by this disease.

For people who are really interested in Parkinson's disease and would rather help those that suffer from it than make childish jokes about their condition, here are some links:

NIH's Parkinson's Disease Research Agenda

The Morris K. Udall Parkinson's Disease Research Center

National Parkinson Foundation

Computers for People With Parkinson's Disease Project