A lot of these devices might need to be adjusted to make a patient "not fucking die" - it isn't about system patches, it's about making medical adjustments to things like the dosage/voltage/rate/etc that the device is pumping out.
OK, so use a physical connection; as I said, if you have a pacemaker then you're already scarred all to hell, what difference will an 1/8" serial plug make?
Someone below mentioned magnetic communications, which sounds just plain awesome.
Most of us are "gullible idiots" when it comes to medicine, and I'm including doctors in that. We all rely on a huge bank of knowledge built up over decades/centuries - if you go to a doctor with some odd symptoms there's every chance s/he will have no idea what it is, but with the aid of some tests and textbooks they can work out what it is and how to treat it.
I suffered from gallbladder disease for 10 years; every doctor I went to, save one, failed to run even a single test on me. Instead of doing their jobs and attempting to diagnose the cause of my suffering, they instead threw drugs at the symptoms; when one drug failed to have the desired effect, they just put me on something else. It was hell going through all the side effects of all these drugs, especially now knowing that I didn't need a damn one of them.
Therefore, I find the concept that modern doctors are anything more than glorified drug dealers to be quite specious.
The point is there's a knowledge base out there that is truly remarkable at healing people, so when somebody recommends that you avoid using it they better have a damn good backup for their claims.
Or at least, make it abundantly clear that they are not medical professionals... such as by putting the disclaimer, "in fact I have no medical training whatsoever" in their materials. Which this person did.
"Nutritionists" fall into two categories in the UK. The first is perfectly sensible, people who advocate a balanced diet to promote all-round health, this is a good and proper thing. The second is those who claim that real medical solutions to real disorders are unnecessary and can be substituted with a change in diet, for example eating algae as it "produces oxygen in the bloodstream".
Again, unless the second group are touting themselves as trained medical professionals, then by US standards they are doing nothing wrong. See Christian "Science" for reference.
This is clearly nonsense, and is akin to a mechanic telling people they can disconnect their brakes as long as they're using a particular fuel additive.
There's your difference; you have good reason to believe a trained, certified mechanic when he tells you something about your auto. If Cooksey were representing himself as a medical professional, he would clearly be in the wrong.
But he's not. It's more akin to if your cousin, who isn't a mechanic and clearly states that he has no mechanical training, told you you can disconnect your brake line and be just fine. Knowing that your cousin is untrained and thus unqualified to give such advice, but taking his advice anyway, is totally on you. Your cousin still has the right to be wrong.
Yes, there needs to be some personal responsibility, but as a society we've generally tried to protect the gullible from those who prey on them
Hence the need for medical professionals to be certified. That doesn't mean non-medical professionals aren't allowed to discuss medicine and their personal experiences with it, does it?
On another note, who protected the people who got snookered into home loans they ultimately couldn't afford? Who protects consumers from hospitals that charge outrageous rates for simple procedures, up to and including $100 bill for the damn sharpie they use to make the body for surgery? Who protects simpletons from the late night "get rich quick" infomercials that are obvious scams to those of us possessing cognitive faculties? Nobody, that's who.
if you get drunk and then get mugged you could argue that drinking was a factor, but it doesn't make the mugger innocent.
Stop making the goddamn things wireless!!! WTF are you thinking??!!
If you have a pacemaker, then you're already 'zipper-chested,' so the addition of a firmware update port would be a non-issue.
Or hey,here's an even better idea: Make the goddamn things right in the first place, so they don't need software updates! I mean, fuck, we're not talking about a SOHO router here, we're talking about a device people rely on to not fucking die; One would think they would be better engineered.
Step right up, step right up. Let me present to you my famous Python Oil home remedy. This will cure headaches, nausea, the flu, impotence, and all forms of cancer all for just $49. Now, I am not a doctor and I have no medical training of any kind, but this remedy has worked for me and countless others. Cash only if you please.
... and?
Did you have a point? or are you being a jackass for the sake of it?
I don't think anyone is actually blaming him. I think NC is thinking if people take unqualified advice and they get sick, that will cost society more to clean up. Which is still stupid, but for different reasons.
I think it's rather an issue of the ADA using the courts to bully a man who actively and vocally disagrees with them; at least, that's how it appears from where I'm sitting (which, thankfully, is a long way from NC).
Dude, that was what the internet was first used for, before it became a cesspool of pop culture and marketing. I
Aah, with a sense of nostalgia I harken back to the days when the intertubes consisted of almost nothing but university and conspiracy theory websites, and 33.6Kbps was the top tier speed to beat...
If you don't understand by now, either you're not actually reading my entire posts or you have no desire to understand my point. Continuing to discuss with you at this point is futile, and I refuse to engage in futile efforts.
It is obviously not legal advise because it is NOT advising anyone to do anything!
The statement "This is clearly such a case." can easily be construed to imply reference to legal precedent. IANAL, but I do understand how those weasels think.
Unlike the site under discussion which is full of such actionable recommendations.
I see. So if I tell you to take a flying leap at a rolling doughnut, or take a long walk off a short pier, et. al., and you actually do it, it's my fault for telling you to? Do you not have a responsibility for your own actions, regardless of what advice you're given?
If you're under the age of 12 I might accept that; however, assuming you (like Mr. Cooksey's audience) are an adult, I expect you to take responsibility for your own dumb ass.
Besides, the guy covered his ass when he put the disclaimer on his website. He clearly states that he has no medical training whatsoever, so if you're taking his advice you're doing it at your own risk.
Then after another five seconds, he claims, the TV automaticall restarts. Then the process repeats itself forever, even after unplugging the TV. Eventually, Auriemma managed to reset the TV in service mode.
Boot loops even when disconnected from power?
Either Samsung has secretly perfected OTA power transmission, or this is a load of crap. Then again, the writer refers to a punk kid dicking with his brother's TV as an "Italian security researcher," so I guess I shouldn't be all that surprised.
On a related note, I thought about your post and something dawned on me: you're right about the FTC and FCC having a say in the matter... if, that is, Mr. Cooksey has done anything wrong.
I find the silence of those federal agencies regarding this matter rather telling.
Take a look at the web site. He was offering to give nutrition advice for a fee on a page that he has since taken offline.
That would seem a legitimate reason for the complaint, however if you look at what the ADA submitted, it seems they aren't so concerned with what he said on the topic, but rather that he's speaking about the topic period, without their permission. Since the site is no longer available, I think they'll have to drop that part of their complaint.
And as far as my statement, where the hell did I give legal advice?
The statement
The US Supreme Court has long held that many forms of commercial speech are not protected. This is clearly such a case.
could, under the same law Mr. Cooksey is being prosecuted under, be considered giving legal advice without a license... which brings an interesting question to mind: is it illegal in NC to invoke the right of self-representation unless you're a lawyer?
Generally, the United States Supreme Court defines commercial speech as speech that "proposes a commercial transaction."
So, unless his business/calling card was a proposal for a commercial transaction (i.e., a coupon), than it does qualify as protected speech. And since you haven't actually seen the card in question, you can't honestly claim that his business/calling card violates the law. For all any of us know, the card could have simply stated his name, website, and contact info. Innocent until proven guilty, after all.
Interestingly, in the state of North Carolina your post would likely violate the same professional licensing laws they are trying to prosecute Cooksey under... that is, unless you really are a lawyer.
After all, Big Government is in cahoots with Big Pharma so people are bled dry using tested and approved medicines rather than "vitamin" pills to cure cancer.
Children are dead because some unqualified person was lying about vaccine harm,
No, children are dead because their parents are idiots.
People with diabetes are going to be a lot worse off because this guy is pretending to be an expert.
From Diabetes-Warrior.net:
I am not a doctor, dietitian nor nutritionist in fact I have no medical training of any kind.
If you think a guy is an expert, even though he expressly states that he is not an expert, that's on your dumb ass, not him. Maybe, instead of blaming everyone else for your bad decisions, you should stop bitching and take responsibility for your own actions.
In the UK there are umpteen people advising that, for example, cancer can be treated with high doses of vitamin C. Gullible people read these things and pass on visiting a doctor because they've found a "natural" solution. The kicker is that it isn't a solution, and people have died as a result.
But we are talking about adults, right? And no one put a gun to their heads and forced them to take the advice, right? So why should the fault fall on the person who gave the advice, and not the gullible idiot who took it without doing their own research?
It's called personal responsibility. Take it and stop blaming the rest of the world for your* own stupidity.
* not directly referring to parent, but rather as a general term for society.
The right of free speech does NOT override the State's interest and right to protect the general public.
So, which article and/or amendment states that the government has a right to silence speech they don't agree with in order to "protect the general public?" Besides, there is a difference between actual harm and perceived harm, and from what I've read in TFAs the gentleman in question has caused no actual harm. In fact, his mission appears to be quite the opposite.
I know it's a popular theme here on/. to insist that anyone making any statements you disagree with be silenced, but, what part of "Congress shall make NO LAW" are you having trouble comprehending?
Slashdot Mirror
Eventually you'll learn not to RTFA.
Ah.
Mea Culpa.
A lot of these devices might need to be adjusted to make a patient "not fucking die" - it isn't about system patches, it's about making medical adjustments to things like the dosage/voltage/rate/etc that the device is pumping out.
OK, so use a physical connection; as I said, if you have a pacemaker then you're already scarred all to hell, what difference will an 1/8" serial plug make?
Someone below mentioned magnetic communications, which sounds just plain awesome.
Most of us are "gullible idiots" when it comes to medicine, and I'm including doctors in that. We all rely on a huge bank of knowledge built up over decades/centuries - if you go to a doctor with some odd symptoms there's every chance s/he will have no idea what it is, but with the aid of some tests and textbooks they can work out what it is and how to treat it.
I suffered from gallbladder disease for 10 years; every doctor I went to, save one, failed to run even a single test on me. Instead of doing their jobs and attempting to diagnose the cause of my suffering, they instead threw drugs at the symptoms; when one drug failed to have the desired effect, they just put me on something else. It was hell going through all the side effects of all these drugs, especially now knowing that I didn't need a damn one of them.
Therefore, I find the concept that modern doctors are anything more than glorified drug dealers to be quite specious.
The point is there's a knowledge base out there that is truly remarkable at healing people, so when somebody recommends that you avoid using it they better have a damn good backup for their claims.
Or at least, make it abundantly clear that they are not medical professionals... such as by putting the disclaimer, "in fact I have no medical training whatsoever" in their materials. Which this person did.
"Nutritionists" fall into two categories in the UK. The first is perfectly sensible, people who advocate a balanced diet to promote all-round health, this is a good and proper thing. The second is those who claim that real medical solutions to real disorders are unnecessary and can be substituted with a change in diet, for example eating algae as it "produces oxygen in the bloodstream".
Again, unless the second group are touting themselves as trained medical professionals, then by US standards they are doing nothing wrong. See Christian "Science" for reference.
This is clearly nonsense, and is akin to a mechanic telling people they can disconnect their brakes as long as they're using a particular fuel additive.
There's your difference; you have good reason to believe a trained, certified mechanic when he tells you something about your auto. If Cooksey were representing himself as a medical professional, he would clearly be in the wrong.
But he's not. It's more akin to if your cousin, who isn't a mechanic and clearly states that he has no mechanical training, told you you can disconnect your brake line and be just fine. Knowing that your cousin is untrained and thus unqualified to give such advice, but taking his advice anyway, is totally on you. Your cousin still has the right to be wrong.
Yes, there needs to be some personal responsibility, but as a society we've generally tried to protect the gullible from those who prey on them
Hence the need for medical professionals to be certified. That doesn't mean non-medical professionals aren't allowed to discuss medicine and their personal experiences with it, does it?
On another note, who protected the people who got snookered into home loans they ultimately couldn't afford? Who protects consumers from hospitals that charge outrageous rates for simple procedures, up to and including $100 bill for the damn sharpie they use to make the body for surgery? Who protects simpletons from the late night "get rich quick" infomercials that are obvious scams to those of us possessing cognitive faculties? Nobody, that's who.
if you get drunk and then get mugged you could argue that drinking was a factor, but it doesn't make the mugger innocent.
Strawman - ignored and burnt extra-crispy.
Stop making the goddamn things wireless!!! WTF are you thinking??!!
If you have a pacemaker, then you're already 'zipper-chested,' so the addition of a firmware update port would be a non-issue.
Or hey,here's an even better idea: Make the goddamn things right in the first place, so they don't need software updates! I mean, fuck, we're not talking about a SOHO router here, we're talking about a device people rely on to not fucking die; One would think they would be better engineered.
They probably meant after you unplug it and plug it back in.
Probably, but I'm not the idiot "journalist" who wrote it, so I have to infer what I can from what's written.
Seriously, this was one of the most poorly written pieces I've seen in some time.
And I read Yahoo News with a fair amount of regularity, so that's really saying something.
At least he spelled most of the words right...
Step right up, step right up. Let me present to you my famous Python Oil home remedy. This will cure headaches, nausea, the flu, impotence, and all forms of cancer all for just $49. Now, I am not a doctor and I have no medical training of any kind, but this remedy has worked for me and countless others. Cash only if you please.
... and?
Did you have a point? or are you being a jackass for the sake of it?
I don't think anyone is actually blaming him. I think NC is thinking if people take unqualified advice and they get sick, that will cost society more to clean up. Which is still stupid, but for different reasons.
I think it's rather an issue of the ADA using the courts to bully a man who actively and vocally disagrees with them; at least, that's how it appears from where I'm sitting (which, thankfully, is a long way from NC).
Dude, that was what the internet was first used for, before it became a cesspool of pop culture and marketing. I
Aah, with a sense of nostalgia I harken back to the days when the intertubes consisted of almost nothing but university and conspiracy theory websites, and 33.6Kbps was the top tier speed to beat...
Thanks for the flashback.
Too much hummus.
*BRAAAP*
Pardon.
(I hate that term, is there an less biased term that doesn't give them undue credibility like "skeptic" does)
Anyone who thinks the word "skeptic" lends credibility is a dolt who fails at English, and should be treated as such.
If you don't understand by now, either you're not actually reading my entire posts or you have no desire to understand my point. Continuing to discuss with you at this point is futile, and I refuse to engage in futile efforts.
Good day.
It is obviously not legal advise because it is NOT advising anyone to do anything!
The statement "This is clearly such a case." can easily be construed to imply reference to legal precedent. IANAL, but I do understand how those weasels think.
Unlike the site under discussion which is full of such actionable recommendations.
I see. So if I tell you to take a flying leap at a rolling doughnut, or take a long walk off a short pier, et. al., and you actually do it, it's my fault for telling you to? Do you not have a responsibility for your own actions, regardless of what advice you're given?
If you're under the age of 12 I might accept that; however, assuming you (like Mr. Cooksey's audience) are an adult, I expect you to take responsibility for your own dumb ass.
Besides, the guy covered his ass when he put the disclaimer on his website. He clearly states that he has no medical training whatsoever, so if you're taking his advice you're doing it at your own risk.
Then after another five seconds, he claims, the TV automaticall restarts. Then the process repeats itself forever, even after unplugging the TV. Eventually, Auriemma managed to reset the TV in service mode.
Boot loops even when disconnected from power?
Either Samsung has secretly perfected OTA power transmission, or this is a load of crap. Then again, the writer refers to a punk kid dicking with his brother's TV as an "Italian security researcher," so I guess I shouldn't be all that surprised.
Great but nowhere in the post I replied to mentioned a 'state agency'. You mentioned 'the government' and 'Congress'.
Constitutional rights extend to the state level: see Incorporation of the Bill of Rights for more info.
On a related note, I thought about your post and something dawned on me: you're right about the FTC and FCC having a say in the matter... if, that is, Mr. Cooksey has done anything wrong.
I find the silence of those federal agencies regarding this matter rather telling.
Take a look at the web site. He was offering to give nutrition advice for a fee on a page that he has since taken offline.
That would seem a legitimate reason for the complaint, however if you look at what the ADA submitted, it seems they aren't so concerned with what he said on the topic, but rather that he's speaking about the topic period, without their permission. Since the site is no longer available, I think they'll have to drop that part of their complaint.
And as far as my statement, where the hell did I give legal advice?
The statement
could, under the same law Mr. Cooksey is being prosecuted under, be considered giving legal advice without a license... which brings an interesting question to mind: is it illegal in NC to invoke the right of self-representation unless you're a lawyer?
Are you nuts?
Quite possibly, but that's immaterial.
FTC/FCC != state agency.
Strawman noted and promptly torched.
Are you really that uninformed regarding the Constitution?
The US Supreme Court has long held that many forms of commercial speech are not protected. This is clearly such a case.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commercial_speech
So, unless his business/calling card was a proposal for a commercial transaction (i.e., a coupon), than it does qualify as protected speech. And since you haven't actually seen the card in question, you can't honestly claim that his business/calling card violates the law. For all any of us know, the card could have simply stated his name, website, and contact info. Innocent until proven guilty, after all.
Interestingly, in the state of North Carolina your post would likely violate the same professional licensing laws they are trying to prosecute Cooksey under... that is, unless you really are a lawyer.
After all, Big Government is in cahoots with Big Pharma so people are bled dry using tested and approved medicines rather than "vitamin" pills to cure cancer.
Appropriate political cartoon
Without more info, that statistic is just sensational.
It's a bumper sticker, not a statistic.
Learn the difference or be doomed to ignorance.
Children are dead because some unqualified person was lying about vaccine harm,
No, children are dead because their parents are idiots.
People with diabetes are going to be a lot worse off because this guy is pretending to be an expert.
From Diabetes-Warrior.net:
If you think a guy is an expert, even though he expressly states that he is not an expert, that's on your dumb ass, not him. Maybe, instead of blaming everyone else for your bad decisions, you should stop bitching and take responsibility for your own actions.
In the UK there are umpteen people advising that, for example, cancer can be treated with high doses of vitamin C. Gullible people read these things and pass on visiting a doctor because they've found a "natural" solution. The kicker is that it isn't a solution, and people have died as a result.
But we are talking about adults, right? And no one put a gun to their heads and forced them to take the advice, right? So why should the fault fall on the person who gave the advice, and not the gullible idiot who took it without doing their own research?
It's called personal responsibility. Take it and stop blaming the rest of the world for your* own stupidity.
* not directly referring to parent, but rather as a general term for society.
Thanks; once again, the money paid to educate me through public education and college has been for naught...
Funny, I went through the public school system and knew you were wrong, too.
Maybe it's not the schools; maybe it's just you.
The right of free speech does NOT override the State's interest and right to protect the general public.
So, which article and/or amendment states that the government has a right to silence speech they don't agree with in order to "protect the general public?" Besides, there is a difference between actual harm and perceived harm, and from what I've read in TFAs the gentleman in question has caused no actual harm. In fact, his mission appears to be quite the opposite.
/. to insist that anyone making any statements you disagree with be silenced, but, what part of "Congress shall make NO LAW" are you having trouble comprehending?
I know it's a popular theme here on
So false advertising is protected speech now?
How do you know it's false advertising if you haven't actually seen one of his cards?
First in flight, 48th in education...
Am I the only one not surprised by this?