We’ve come full-circle…
When the self-named “Quackbusters” stumbled around, years ago, to find a derisive name to call their victims, they picked the word “Quack,” without ever bothering to discover it’s origins. Its original meaning, from Europe, comes from the term “quacksalver” which was used to describe Dentists who were dumb enough to use mercury (a poison) as fillings for teeth. Look at propagandist, and “Quackbuster” king-pin, Stephen Barrett’s website (www.quackwatch.com), and you’ll find that HE IS IN FAVOR of mercury (amalgam) tooth fillings. Barrett, his cronies, and minions, are not known to do intelligent research.
But it gets stranger, and stranger.
In California, where wine is the State flower (not actually), we’ve got the health freedom movement attacking the “quacks,” the “real “quacks,” the ones originally described by the European health community, as those dumb enough to use mercury (a poison) as fillings for teeth. And, the self styled “quackbusters” are calling those against mercury “quacks.”
Huh?
What’s happening is that the Dental Division of the North American Health Freedom Movement is relentlessly pursuing the California Dental Association’s support of mercury as a tooth filling through the courts, now, all the way to the California Supreme Court. Read the article below by Washington DC Attorney Charlie Brown.
“CALIFORNIA SUPREME COURT TO HEAR OUR CASE AGAINST C.D.A.
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MOMENTUM SHIFTS TO MERCURY-FREE MOVEMENT
September 23rd, 2003
Article by Charlie Brown
On Sept. 17, in what may be our most significant victory to date, the California Supreme Court voted 5-2 to hear our case against the California Dental Association and its notorious gag rule restricting the rights of mercury-free dentists.
The CDA will now be forced to defend its so-called rules of conduct before the nation’s most closely watched State Supreme Court. The case was summarized this way by the Los Angeles Daily Journal: to assure the public that dental amalgam is safe. But (plaintiffs) charged that the (CDA) orchestrated a campaign to prevent patients from learning about mercury toxicity in amalgam and had retaliated against dentists who issued warnings to patients.
How good is our legal team, headed by Shawn Khorrami? Brilliant. On Sept. 17, the Supreme Court turned down 158 petitions and granted only two. One of them was ours.
And how important were the friends-of-the-court letters? Extremely. Spearheaded by our Director of International Outreach, Anita Vazquez Tibau, our effort received a tremendous outpouring of letters to the Court from a variety of sources — including faith-based (e.g. Council of Churches, Baptist Clergy of L.A.), minority (e.g. NAACP, Washoe Tribe), health care (e.g., Physicians for Social Responsibility-L.A., Council of Black Nurses), environmental (e.g., WaterKeepers, Ban Mercury Working Group), and consumer (e.g., Calif. Citizens for Health, Consumer Attorneys of Calif.). They were joined by letters from Congressman Dan Burton (R-Ind.), Congresswoman Diane Watson (D-Calif.), Professor Jim Adams, and many dentists: Ron Dressler for IAOMT, Jerry Smith for Holistic Dental Assoc., Terry Lee for Arizona H.D.A., Grant Layton for Environmental Dental Assoc., Dave Kennedy for Preventive Dental Health Assoc., and others.
But note: The court has agreed to hear our case, so now we have a major battle coming — to win it. We will continue to need strong support from all of you who have helped us in the past.
We now have the opportunity to present our cause before the high court and force organized dentistry (1) to justify its gag rule in public; and (2) to explain its deceptive practice of calling mercury fillings silver. This has to be the ADA’s worst nightmare.
Forward!”
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And, that’s just ducky…
Tim Bolen – Consumer Advocate