From: russ@wpg.com (Russell Lawrence)
Subject: Re: animals in research
Organization: WP Group
Date: Tue, 15 Dec 1992 00:46:52 GMT

From article <mhulsey-141292090123@fatrat.fcs.uga.edu>, by mhulsey@hestia.fcs.uga.edu (Martin Hulsey):
mh> Have you accomplished ANYTHING in your life outside of UseNet?  
mh> Is UseNet your occupation?  What does the "WP" in "WP Group" 
mh> stand for?  Word Processing?  Wombat protection?  Wanton 
mh> paranoia?  Waffling prevarication?  

Interesting.  Were you hoping to establish the truthfulness 
of your position by ridiculing the name of my company?  Is this 
the sort of behavior that one should expect from "doctors" like 
yourself in the University of Georgia's Department of Nutrition 
Science?  

mh> The only person whose credentials I questioned was Dr. Neal Barnard.  I do
mh> not consider him an opponent, although I do wish that he had the
mh> inclination to become an opponent by appearing here and defending his
mh> pseudo-physician's group.  

rl> So you say.  Yet you haven't explained how/why you consider yourself
rl> qualified to question Dr. Barnard's credentials.  Do you have a degree
rl> in medicine, BTW?

mh> I have stated numerous times that Barnard is probably a fine 
mh> psychiatrist.  

How would you know?   If you don't know, then what were you hoping
to accomplish by making such statements on "numerous occasions" without
having the facts to prove your point?   

mh> I am not questioning his medical credentials.  As a person with 
mh> credentials as a scientist (8 peer-reviewed publications) and as 
mh> a nutritionist (Ph.D., 1991), I am questioning his credentials in 
mh> these areas, for they are lacking.  

Correct me if I'm wrong, but a degree is only as substantial as 
the organization that's conferred it.  Is there some reason why 
we should have more respect for your "PhD" degree than Dr.  
Barnard's "MD" degree?   Are "nutrition science" doctorates
accredited by the same folks who accredit "MD" doctorates?  Do 
"nutrition science" programs typically impose intellectual standards 
that are more rigid and demanding than the standards imposed on
successful candidates for MD degrees?

Prior to conferring your degree, did the school that you attended 
require you to demonstrate an ability to distinquish truthful 
arguments from fallacies?  In particular, did they teach you to 
identify "ad hominem" fallacies?  

mh> I repeat, HE HAS ABSOLUTELY NO CREDENTIALS IN NUTRITION, AND AN 
mh> ABYSMAL PUBLICATION RECORD.  

How do you know?  Please tell us how many articles Dr. Barnard has
published, and how you determined the figure.  

If it could be established that Dr. Barnard has a degree in 
"nutrition science" from the world famous Podunk University in 
Podunk, Georgia, would you be more inclined to concentrate on his 
arguments...  in lieu of addressing the flaws that you perceive in 
his credentials?    

Make no mistake, Martin: I'm not saying that a degree from Podunk 
is or isn't a bad thing.  I'm just asking if it's the sort of 
attribute that would render a man impervious to "ad hominem" 
attacks such as the attacks that you've made against Dr. Barnard.  

mh> If Barnard will simply stick to his area of
mh> expertise when making press conferences, he will have no more complaints
mh> from me.  If Barnard decides to appear on UseNet, I will welcome his
mh> opinion on any matter.  In fact, I and others might have a few questions
mh> for him.

Perhaps you should call up the media and hold a press conference 
in order to make your views better known.  I'm sure that you'll get 
all the media attention that you deserve.   

-- 
Russell Lawrence, WP Group, New Orleans (504) 443-5000
russ@wpg.com   uunet!wpg!russ
Newsgroups: talk.politics.animals