The Magic Tonsillectomy or Armstrong's Voodoo Science?

[Greg R Parker]

I just went through this whole thread.

Both sides in the argument made a number of really good points.

I found myself switching sides several times.

Unfortunately, the name-calling made it a pretty unpleasant experience to read.

I can only imagine what it was like for you guys.

Without trying to be holier-than-thou (because I'm not), could everyone try to disagree in an amicable fashion?

The personal insults poison the well.

It's particularly tragic because you all have some powerful insights.

I think part of the problem - whether we're talking about acoustics, blood-spatter, medicine or firearms - is that
it's very frustrating to deal with specialized and technical information.

When the lawyers get involved, it's not any better - the experts are referred to as "plaintiff's whore" and
"defense whore".

I think the best way to approach this type of discussion is with a high degree of humility.

Thanks Bill,

not sure that there is really any room to be bouncing around on this.

Armstrong claims that it is so rare for tonsils to grow back that records showing tonsillitis in the marines actually indicates it was someone else.

It is rare now. It wasn't back then and I have shown why.

But even if you run with it being rare, growing back is still an eminently more probable explanation that a doppelganger. On top of that, there are no hospital or medical records confirming such an operation, and it is yet to be demonstrated that Philben - even if licensed - was not more of a "traditionalist" osteopath. Indeed, I have been advised by a lurker whose done some digging that ads for Osteopaths in Dallas at the time listed against their names such things as Surgeon or DO or in Philben's case, Pediatrician. That may indicate he did not do surgery.