This is my last comment on this video as it is getting old, but I just can't resist.

You want my definition of a rant? Ok, "to speak or declaim extravagantly or vehemently." As the point of your comment was to declaim James Randi, and you did it in a rather bombastic way, I stand by my statement.

Maybe I should also define something else you don't seem to understand:
monotone - a vocal utterance or series of speech sounds in one unvaried tone. Maybe you are tone-deaf, but Randi wasn't even close to monotone in this video. Monotone is how Ben Stein speaks - it tends to be pretty obvious.

Is Randi condescending? At times, but only to those who deserve our condescension. The purveyors of this shit deserve our complete derision.

Now, I would like to know how, from this one video, you decided that Randi believes that the only people at fault are the corporations. He has made a living teaching people to be skeptical and to question the paranormal and pseudo-scientific. He has made it clear that, while most of the fault lies in the dishonesty of the people who push the scams like homeopathy, applied kinesiology, psychic phenomena, etc., people need to be more skeptical and should resist these scammers.

This video was specifically produced to announce his new million dollar challenge to homeopathy manufacturers and his challenge to the sellers of homeopathic remedies so of course he talks more about corporations in this video.

Yes, boycotts would force these companies to stop selling this garbage but to bring that about you need publicity and a million dollar challenge is a good way to get that publicity. Though it would be even better, IMO, if our health and drug organizations (FDA etc.) didn't allow manufacturers to trick people into thinking water was medicine.

>> ^Lawdeedaw:

I could type a big response to your response...but it's so messed up I'm not even sure you read my response.
Btw, what is your definition of a rant? Mine is to ramble on over the same point without adding significant clarification (i.e. the clarification that I added.)
Here is the abridged version, since reading is not fun for you. Randi blames corporations because he is either ignorant or a suck-up, I blame the people using the medications and the corporations.
^Skeeve:
I could type a big response to your rant... but it's so messed up I'm not even sure you watched the same video.
>> ^Lawdeedaw:
>> ^Skeeve:
beg
Come on, every other homeopathy video and every other James Randi video is sifted. I figured this was a shoe in.

I voted for the video just now, but the Randi is monotone, condesending, and wrong in many areas--that may have something to do with the poor votes.
I don't disagree that the psedo medicine is fake--in fact I agree. However... "Its not just manafacturer's faults, but Walgreens, etc." Yeah, fuck face, its also the people who buy this shit at fault! Or the parents who trust this shit. But he won't blame the real problems, because that is unpopular, he blames the corporations because every one hates those! "Innocent people suffer." Well, what is the subjective meaning of "innocent?" If he means people who self inflict pain on themselves, he's right...if users boycotted this water shit, then the companies would go bankrupt! Boycotts are the consumer vote...
This feel-good idiot blame-monster is just like a politician... "Scapegoat time!" 'You have to protect yourself." Oh, he get's to that by the end Great science guy--bad philosophy. Maybe I am too anal, but then, I am tired of this "homopathetic displaced blame" water...

How this trick is done is all explained in this video. It's pretty simple, and pretty obviously a scam - it has little to nothing to do with a placebo effect.

Arvana-- thanks for an intelligent and well-spoken post.

Gorillaman-- if you would indeed burn people at the stake for being Christians, then I admire your boldness for being a true atheist. Most atheists hold values like "do unto others," "be kind to your neighbor," etc, which all borrow from religion. Way to stay true to atheism.

lmayliffe-- "A fundamental tenant of Christianity is evangelism: There is a scripted dogmatic call for Christians to go out and spread the Gospel." You're playing word games here. Fundamental, tenet (not tenant), scripted, and dogmatic all carry negative connotations. I could say the same thing and paint Christians in a different light: "Christians have the opportunity to share the good news with their friends and neighbors." Jesus never called Christians to cram a message down anyone's throat, but they are instructed to share their belief with those close to them.

"When was the last time you heard of an indigenous species being enslaved and murdered by atheist missionaries?"
When was the last time you heard of an indigenous species (or did you mean people) being enslaved and murdered by representatives of any religion (or non-religion)?

"Because we don't have missionaries. There is no set of dogma governing atheists."
Again, word games. Call it debunking or truth sharing or whatever you want, Richard Dawkins is spreading a message of what matters to him. And I don't hate him for doing it. We all share what is important to us. Just don't pretend that atheists are somehow exempt from sharing their worldview.

Finally, I really appreciate science a lot. I began college as a physics major (graduated with a kinesiology degree), and I have benefitted several times from medical science (I was born with some health problems, and my wife went through serious health complications 2 years ago). However, as much as I appreciate science, it cannot be our only source for truth and understanding.
"Science searches for truth via experiments that can be repeated and verified." That's great and I'm all for it. But I can't repeat historical fact. There will never be another George Washington or Abraham Lincoln. If I cannot repeat what happened, does that make it untrue. No. I go by another type of evidence: eyewitness testimony. I think that science should be used whenever possible to explore the natural world around us. But we can't turn away from all other types of learning in the name of science.