Acupuncture - woo or not

Satra, lots of people here at JREF like to "fling poo at tourists." I wouldn't let that deter you. If you're honestly looking for good conversation and debate here, you will be sure to find it.

You seem to have a spiritual view of things that will most definitley come under scrutiny in this forum. You also seem to come from a culture where it is polite to address all those that have addressed you. Don't. ;) My advice is to ignore anything you consider a direct insult or ridicule.

That being said... I'm curious as to why you would be agnostic about something like the moon landing, but certain of a universal consciousness?

Thank you Mike.
Because I experienced the latter.

I saw that people are highly critic towards my way of perceiving things, and if that wasn't ok I wouldn't have began or continued to post in this forum:D.

I claim that a perception can be enough as a proof. The only complication is the need to believe (or not to believe:)) the person who says to perceive something.
It's not because I seldom do perceive spirits around me that they don't exist when I just do not perceive them.

Nobody can prove that something is not. I cannot prove blue strawberries don't exist. There may be a point in that planet where somebody has managed cultivating them, I just don't know, as probable or improbable it may sound.
I can even less prove that something is impossible=can't ever work. Even if nobody was capable of telepathy (what - I say:D - is not true at all) that would not mean nobody could develop this ability someday.

People here may have a very specific approach, concepts, vocabulary etc. Other people, other highly developped cultures also have (cultures who have use of both brain-sides, not only the left, rational, as our culture tends strongly to.).

A problem may be that they are convinced that their approach is the best, and that other people and cultures who have another are simplywrong.
It is or should be clear that people perceive things a different way. And by the use of the term "perceive" I don't mean "evaluate", but refer to sensual (ap)perception.

Someone here in the thread said "our 5 senses" I'm sorry in case you don't like it, but: we have more than those. And there's nothing paranormal about it, even if our culture has systematically educated people to forget everything that other persons may not be able to perceive by the same time. Subjective perception was "immolated" (much to dramatic term for what I search to express) to objective perception.
Our ancestors used that sense. Example: we ask ourselves how prehistoric human could discern which plants were comestible for him and which not? I can tell you my theory: they had a sense for which aliments were good to eat for them and which not. I got and developped this sense during a time. And so there are many more or less subjective senses.

You may search for different answers than those I could give. That's nice: everbody may have his personal concept. That does not mean that the concept of the other is wrong.
You only use your ratio, the half of your brain, to understand and evalutate the worth of things. We have 2 brains-halfs and the person that uses both -the left, rational=analyzing, and the right, intuitive=holistic, is not less intelligent! He even has a more efficient use of his potential of intelligence.
Our culture has a real problem to deal with subjectivity, I say, and just is learning to cope with the matter.
 
Our ancestors used that sense. Example: we ask ourselves how prehistoric human could discern which plants were comestible for him and which not? I can tell you my theory: they had a sense for which aliments were good to eat for them and which not. I got and developped this sense during a time.

Ah, yes. The sense of not being dead. :)

I have that as well.

Linda
 
As far as acupuncture, I think the jury is NOT still out. Numerous studies have shown that acupuncture is effective no matter how it's performed -- whether it's performed incorrectly or even just perceived to be performed by the patient. Even when it's not really happening, it works.

If by "works", you mean something other than placebo, you'd think researchers/practitioners would be far less blase about something which is poised to over-turn the entire field of medicine.

Oh well.

Linda
 
Satra, the scientific method has no problem with subjective perceptions. If your subjective perceptions cannot lead you to distinguish a 'active' intervention from a well-designed control then your subjective perception has misled you, the 'active' intervention is no different from the control. In other words, your inference from the uncontrolled situation that the 'active' principle of the intervention has an effect on you is just wrong.

Also, don't forget that for all this talk of the power of the placebo effect, whether or not your acupuncture or magic sugar pill leads you to report that you feel better it is not going to make your cancer, cholera, flu or broken leg get better any quicker.

Even more importantly there is no evidence that this bias towards positive reports persists beyond the confines of the trial. To show that you'd need to compare outcomes of an untreated control group that knows it is taking part in a trial and one that does not. So, really to explore the placebo effect properly you need Verum, Placebo, Untreated and Uninformed groups! I've not seen that suggested before and it would be difficult to organise under modern ethical rules.
 
I saw that people are highly critic towards my way of perceiving things, and if that wasn't ok I wouldn't have began or continued to post in this forum:D.

I think it shows great courage to come here like that. Respect. :)

I claim that a perception can be enough as a proof.

Do you mean any perception of anything? Or do you mean a certain kind of perceiving of a certain kind of thing?

The only complication is the need to believe (or not to believe:)) the person who says to perceive something.
It's not because I seldom do perceive spirits around me that they don't exist when I just do not perceive them.

Is your perception of spirits just a random experience or do you feel you can make it happen any given time?

Nobody can prove that something is not. I cannot prove blue strawberries don't exist. There may be a point in that planet where somebody has managed cultivating them, I just don't know, as probable or improbable it may sound.
I can even less prove that something is impossible=can't ever work. Even if nobody was capable of telepathy (what - I say:D - is not true at all) that would not mean nobody could develop this ability someday.

Exactly. You can not prove a negative. That is why, if someone tells you of blue strawberries or whatever, it's up to them to prove their claim. However, if they can not prove their claim within mutually agreed boundaries, you should have no reason to believe their claim is true. Do you agree?

People here may have a very specific approach, concepts, vocabulary etc. Other people, other highly developped cultures also have (cultures who have use of both brain-sides, not only the left, rational, as our culture tends strongly to.).

As far as I understand, the whole idea of 'rational vs. emotional sides of brains' is largely a myth. amybe there's someone here who can pop up a layman-suitable article on it?

A problem may be that they are convinced that their approach is the best, and that other people and cultures who have another are simplywrong.
It is or should be clear that people perceive things a different way. And by the use of the term "perceive" I don't mean "evaluate", but refer to sensual (ap)perception.

I don't think most people with 'scientific world views' would argue with that. The point is, what we know about the world using the scientific method tells us we can not rely on our sensory perception to tell us how things really are. This applies to each and every one of us. You, me, rishis, drunkards, gurus, businessmen, massmurderers, avatars, whomever, wherever, whenever.

Someone here in the thread said "our 5 senses" I'm sorry in case you don't like it, but: we have more than those.

So you say. All I'm asking from you or anybody else claiming that is to prove it. That is, if you wish for me to take this part of your belief-system seriously.

And there's nothing paranormal about it, even if our culture has systematically educated people to forget everything that other persons may not be able to perceive by the same time. Subjective perception was "immolated" (much to dramatic term for what I search to express) to objective perception.

Could you explain what you mean by that? Please give some examples of this 'systematic education'.

Our ancestors used that sense. Example: we ask ourselves how prehistoric human could discern which plants were comestible for him and which not? I can tell you my theory: they had a sense for which aliments were good to eat for them and which not. I got and developped this sense during a time. And so there are many more or less subjective senses.

So you have your theory, fine. Would you like to share with us just what evidence you have to back it up? Because I'm sure you do have evidence which has led you to form this theory. Thank you.

You may search for different answers than those I could give. That's nice: everbody may have his personal concept. That does not mean that the concept of the other is wrong.

Right, the concept may be whatever. But if it's practical use in the world where we all live can not be shown to work, what is the use of such a concept?

You only use your ratio, the half of your brain, to understand and evalutate the worth of things. We have 2 brains-halfs and the person that uses both -the left, rational=analyzing, and the right, intuitive=holistic, is not less intelligent! He even has a more efficient use of his potential of intelligence.
Our culture has a real problem to deal with subjectivity, I say, and just is learning to cope with the matter.

Tell me, how have you found out absolutely anything regarding the human brain, if not through the exact same scientific method you are now trying to dismiss?

I know there are people on this forum way better at explaining all this to you. But maybe the fact that English isn't my mothertongue either can be a benefit in this case.
 
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Sorry, tapio, I had internet-connection problems. I'm going to answer you today.
I just saw that:
Anyway, I'll attempt to answer your last question. For adults, I'd say live and let live. If you want quackupuncture or you want to take sugar pills, that's fine. If your child is sick, diseased, or hurt, and you take them to an acupuncturist or a homeopathic doctor, that is neglect, IMO. Placebos only work on those who know what to expect. I think giving placebos to children (or anyone unaware) is unethical.

My brother got homeopathy very early and it worked fine. He is 11 now and it "still":D works. It works on animals (I remember having said that before).
Just a fact.
I wonder what should be so stupendious about that?
We are frequency. Little atom mass with much much place inbetween. Much of place without anything material and where the atoms rotate. That rotation is a frequency. We are (and almost everything we have on this "our" earth is) much much more a frequency than something solid. That's proved by scientists that deal with the "common western science" you are used to. As far as I know. Or what?
 
... My brother got homeopathy very early and it worked fine. He is 11 now and it "still":D works. ...
What is your definition of "works"? If you mean he recovered from what ailed him, that is a common result for most ailments, even untreated. If your brother gets type-1 diabetes and receives homeopathic remedies (or acupuncture) instead of insulin, that would be a crime.
 
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It works on animals (I remember having said that before).
Please refer to the studies that prove this. There are many vets on this forum, and they have not noticed any studies that show that homoeopathy works on animals.

We are frequency.
Are we?

Little atom mass with much much place inbetween. Much of place without anything material and where the atoms rotate. That rotation is a frequency.
Seems like nonsense to me. Well, not the part that there is a lot of empty space inside atoms, but that the rotation "is" frequency.

We are (and almost everything we have on this "our" earth is) much much more a frequency than something solid. That's proved by scientists that deal with the "common western science" you are used to. As far as I know. Or what?
I suppose that you bring all of this fine-sounding nonsense in order to "explain" something that has been shown not to exist in numerous studies?
 
It works on animals (I remember having said that before).
Just a fact.
I wonder what should be so stupendious about that?


:hb:

I don't really think I can take this again.

No it really doesn't. You are misled.

Rolfe.
 
If Satra wants to discuss homoeopathy in this thread on acupuncture, perhaps a friendly moderator could split the thread?
 
So here I am!

I think it shows great courage to come here like that. Respect. :)
Thank you!

Do you mean any perception of anything? Or do you mean a certain kind of perceiving of a certain kind of thing?
anything. proof, that it can be (not that it is always like this). of course there can be possibility that what it was was mixed up with something different. I have had perceiptions where I was not sure at all and thought "ok, just don't know. maybe, maybe not." but others where it was evident.

Is your perception of spirits just a random experience or do you feel you can make it happen any given time?
ok: I did not try to make it happen, so I don't know if I can. As a child I saw spirits while laying in my bed, in the dark. I asked me if that was real or not and scrutinized them with distrust. I really asked myself if that was something on my retina. but I could move my eyes and still see the one or other at the same place. And it couldn't be an effect of light as it got really dark. I observed them for hours in my bed, sometimes. Once I saw something like a dwarf who was working I did not know what under my desktop. That was quite choking, as my desktop was next to my bed, and all that was in MY private room. What was he doing, with what was he working?? Couldn't understand that from what I saw. Which task could this dwarf have to do in my room?! This desktop was MY working place, not his. He didn't ask me for permission! Nor my mother, as she didn't see any spirits, so how could he have asked her! Who was he?? - I was really awake ( I had become a specialist in discerning sleep from being awake, as I also experienced states inbetween and so learned to discern because I asked myself what those curious experiences were.). So I asked the universe to take this stress from my shoulders and take from me the power to see such things. And so I entirely lost it for long time.

Many years later (some years ago) I had another explicite and as choking perception. I had eaten half a glass of flower-pollen. Don't ask me why, I just felt like it:p. others may smoke different herbs.:D I get my psycho-activating materials without being conscient that they are or may be. Besides, I'm pretty sensitive and don't weigh much, other persons perhaps may need 1 or 2 glasses for such a strong effect. But I would not counsel anybody to try to eat so much pollen without having asked a doctor, I'm not informed about all effects large-dosed pollen can have on a person. The thing about pollen is - as far as I got to know later - that it simply raises the energy. With much more energy it seems that people may get in more intensive touch with their environment and perceive more of it.
So: When I got to bed on this day, I tried to sleep, but suddenly noticed that a strange feeling that had stressed me before got very concise: I had felt just as if there was a various and mixed density of the air around me. and as if the feeling I got from the higher density I felt was as if it had some intelligence and was touching me, but I didn't accept that thought as it seemed completely stupid! But in my bed I just felt somebody laying next to me. I felt a foreign body next to me at the left, and some different beings moving on my right next to my bed. THAT choked me. But not only the perception I was not alone. I rapidly recovered from that, even if I didn't feel ease with this thought and perceiption - who was that around me? what were they doing? and I really didn't want any material or immaterial foreigner next to me in my bed, sorry! Even if he or she or whatever was gentle or did not move at all and didn't take place.
But the really shoking perception I did not recover from until some days was: I felt the presence of beings around my bed. It was just as if my body touched theirs. In places where my physical body evidently was not.

As far as I know there is no explication for such phenomena in "usual western" science (or do you know any? I'm interested!).
In others (f.ex.Indian vedas) there is: they conceptualize we'd have different immatierial bodies of various size. That would be a simple explanation of what I felt (I didn't think of that in that moment, and I'm not sure it would have helped me. I suppose a sensation that goes beyond you have ever experienced and transgresses your conscience of what you are always is shoking, may your intellect understand it or not. I had heard of the Indian approach, my intellect had accepted that it could be possible. But that had not changed anything in how I felt with my body, how I felt my body interacted with the world. And that -I can tell you - is hugely impressive.

So I don't know if I could provoke such a situation, but possibly I know techniques that may work (like large-dosed pollen).


Exactly. You can not prove a negative. That is why, if someone tells you of blue strawberries or whatever, it's up to them to prove their claim. However, if they can not prove their claim within mutually agreed boundaries, you should have no reason to believe their claim is true. Do you agree?
Yes! But:D: many persons esteem that (or behave just as if) when somebody did not prove something, that means it is not possible: And THAT is -in my eyes- as false as to believe him. They just don't know.

I don't understand why such things not have been proved. I looked one show of James Randi, with a man who worked with a -rut(?) to detect a stone under a box (several boxes, one with a stone). So, I had a problem with 2 things in the show:
a) James Randi who was next to that man really seamed absolutely convinced that it couldn't work and not wishing that it may work. In my eyes, that's not only not scientific but even not scientific at all:p - because, in my eyes, it has an impact on what happens. But ok, I'm pretty sure you won't agree with this, so don't need to discuss it, I don't have any tangible proof (I'll come back to this later - fields of thought / "homeopathy works with people who believe in it").
b) as far as I understood (I did not understand much of what they said, just what they showed), the gemstone should have been under a box. but it was behind. So, if I take a pendulum and ask "is there a gemstone under the box?" and there is none, the pendulum indicates "no". doesn't matter if there is one behind the box.

But I can't believe that there where not made any representative essays by scientists. So I suppose there have been, but they have not proved anything. In fact, I just don't know.
I just can say: I made it and it worked, just as I discribed it. And MANY other people did also. Ok, there is a good amount of people who don't work properly with it, yes. But many people who do work properly with it. And that man, to me, -seemed- to work properly (unlike Randi in that moment).

When many people believe something, that can make it happen. So as I see there are many many people on some parts of our earth on which the proof that working with a pendulum or rut can help to obtain precise data, would have the effect to make collapse their view of the world.
That would be not only frightening by itself, because to imagine this may very probably create the same feeling as to imagine to find yourself naked in a relatively foreign world.
It would also be like a strong impact on their self-confidence: a person that imagines to be adult, to have much experience, to have learned much, to know about things - and suddenly: there's a fundamental parameter proven to be different. "what I thought to know was illusion... what am I able to know? what is real? is there reality? the solid soil under my feet fades... where will I stand upon - and for how long time?!"

Such an effect is enough for most if not all people to fear and not wish it, more or less (in)consciously. That creates a energy field of belief and wish, which is proportional to the belief and / or fear of all these numerous people.
And that field of belief works on reality.
Many people (MikeSun, you also) pretend: homeopathy works because people believe in it (same principle in fact, yes).
In what do you believe? Which realities are you, are other people as open to accept as the one they use to conceptualize, and which not?

I discern between things I have to believe in so that they start to work (talismans are an example), and things that work without any programmation. People know that plants have certain abilities ("healing power"). But some can not accept the idea that minerals have. I don't understand why, but so it is. Most people don't experience plants as having a conscience. So why should they heal? Because there are glukosides and bitter agents or anything in it? In that mineral there is silicium / bor ot whatever, so shouldn't it possess an even more important effect, after your concept?


As far as I understand, the whole idea of 'rational vs. emotional sides of brains' is largely a myth. amybe there's someone here who can pop up a layman-suitable article on it?
Yes, that would be nice! I did not make any tests as I don't have the required material :rolleyes: :).

(ok, that's the first part, I will go on)
 
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What is your definition of "works"? If you mean he recovered from what ailed him, that is a common result for most ailments, even untreated. If your brother gets type-1 diabetes and receives homeopathic remedies (or acupuncture) instead of insulin, that would be a crime.
even if it worked? prejudiced person!:D
I'm not sorry at all that he has no diabetes nor any heavy disease.

you all think you know better than others, and what was told you as a child was right. the period during which you may have looked on the world and tried to discover it by nothing but your senses may have been short. Mine was not long, and I train to integrate that approach.

To much people have consumed so much intellectuality and only do approach the world by this. The intellectuality and packing into nice little boxes starts as a little child: "this is green. this is blue." (yes but it was a flower, and it had many many other proprieties which will tend now to fall through the filter of the attention of the child.)

Who in my family ever tried to discover the world, to discover a plant, an animal, a stone? To get in real contact with all of it, not only what it looks like?! Who of your family did?
None in mine. Not my parents, not my grandparents. As far as I know, not their parents. Not my teachers. Not their teachers. Nor the teachers of our teachers. But all pretend to know. We just have a concept and give it to our children. there's few fundamental truth in it. we lost contact with the essence of things. The eyes is our most-used sense. We develop less our audition, much less our olfaction and sense to touch. but we believe to have a representative impression of the world! that's just naive.


That causes the plank before our heads, and there is no injure in what I say. Everyone thinks in more or less little boxes. Question is how many boxes people may leave behind during their life.
 
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I don't really think I can take this again.
No it really doesn't. You are misled.
Rolfe.
Dear Rolfe
you said you are an a-homeopathist as you are an a-theist.

that implicates for me: you do not believe in homeopathy as you do not believe in god.

that implicates for me:

the existence of god was not proved: that causes you to deny it (in fact as well you as me just don't know). and the working of homeopathy having not be proved you deny it as well (which is as sensible as to deny the existence of a god).

In my concept it would be precise for you to say: "I do not know. there is no proof for me and for many other persons. I'm very sceptic."
not more not less.

friendly regards!
 
Dear Rolfe
you said you are an a-homeopathist as you are an a-theist.

that implicates for me: you do not believe in homeopathy as you do not believe in god.

that implicates for me:

the existence of god was not proved: that causes you to deny it (in fact as well you as me just don't know). and the working of homeopathy having not be proved you deny it as well (which is as sensible as to deny the existence of a god).

In my concept it would be precise for you to say: "I do not know. there is no proof for me and for many other persons. I'm very sceptic."
not more not less.

friendly regards!


That is just so wrong in so many different ways. :nope:

Maybe it would be a good idea to enquire as to someone's personal religious beliefs before running off with the assumptions.

Rolfe.
 
Please refer to the studies that prove this. There are many vets on this forum, and they have not noticed any studies that show that homoeopathy works on animals.
I don't have studies to prove it, I didnt search for any and have other interests. People told me about their animals, that's all. You don't need to -believe- it. It's a testimony, not more and not less.

Are we?
Seems like nonsense to me. Well, not the part that there is a lot of empty space inside atoms, but that the rotation "is" frequency.
wikipedia says: "Frequency is the number of occurrences of a repeating event per unit time."
rotation of atoms is an repeating event that occurs in a certain time.


suppose that you bring all of this fine-sounding nonsense in order to "explain" something that has been shown not to exist in numerous studies?
so you should complain at wikipedia if you think them they share fine-sounding nonsense.

and to lack of politeness when you are not well informed is very ugly. d:
 
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I don't have studies to prove it, I didnt search for any and have other interests. People told me about their animals, that's all. You don't need to -believe- it. It's a testimony, not more and not less.


So if I told you that sacrificing a rat to the Sun-god Ra cured my dog of distemper, then you would solemnly tell everyone that that "works". "Just a fact"?

OK, fine, whatever floats your boat. Not worth discussing though.

Rolfe.
 
I don't think most people with 'scientific world views' would argue with that. The point is, what we know about the world using the scientific method tells us we can not rely on our sensory perception to tell us how things really are. This applies to each and every one of us. You, me, rishis, drunkards, gurus, businessmen, massmurderers, avatars, whomever, wherever, whenever.
In my "eyes", the sensory perception is the most precise and powerful we have. But many of us have very few use of it. It is subjective, yes. And that's ok - for me.

Could you explain what you mean by that? Please give some examples of this 'systematic education'.
"Spirits do not exist." era of enlightenment, in which our science was - born.

So you have your theory, fine. Would you like to share with us just what evidence you have to back it up? Because I'm sure you do have evidence which has led you to form this theory. Thank you.
I experienced it. I felt it, like I feel with my hands. No proof. Testimony.


Right, the concept may be whatever. But if it's practical use in the world where we all live can not be shown to work, what is the use of such a concept?
I use it and am satisfied with it. With your concepts I was not, because they did not explain many things I perceived.


Tell me, how have you found out absolutely anything regarding the human brain, if not through the exact same scientific method you are now trying to dismiss?
Had that earlier: I read about it, not more and that's few, I entirely admit.

I know there are people on this forum way better at explaining all this to you. But maybe the fact that English isn't my mothertongue either can be a benefit in this case.
I do understand your way of using English quite well, while I have difficulties to understand several mothertonguers, yes. Thank you:).
 
I don't have studies to prove it, I didnt search for any and have other interests. People told me about their animals, that's all. You don't need to -believe- it. It's a testimony, not more and not less.
And that makes it worthless, because people bring testimonies of lots of things, of which many can be shown to be wrong. If you have not got a precise diagnosis that shows that this animal did in fact suffer from what you thought it suffered from, if you cannot prove that after the treatment the animal really no longer suffers from the ailment, and when you cannot show that it could not have got better by itself with no treatment at all, you are not accomplishing very much with your testimony.


wikipedia says: "Frequency is the number of occurrences of a repeating event per unit time."
rotation of atoms is an repeating event that occurs in a certain time.
The atoms can be shown to have spin, ie a direction of rotation, but I am not aware that you can actually measure the frequency of rotation.

so you should complain at wikipedia if you think them they share fine-sounding nonsense.
It is fine-sounding nonsense because it does not help your favourite quack nonsense becoming any more real. Everything consists of atoms, so what makes homoeopathic remedies any different, apart from the fact that they consist of pure water, or alcohol, or lactose molecules? If everything is frequency, why not heal people with music instead of extremely diluted substances that not even homoeopaths can tell from each other?
 

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