Later this week, a board of governors with authority over Florida's colleges will decide the fate of a $9 million proposal to launch the nation's first chiropractic college at a state-supported school (Florida State University).
As you can imagine, there's been a firestorm of controversy. On one side of the fence are the political political pundits who have shepherded the measure through the Florida legislature. They're opposed by doctors who believe there are already more than enough chiropractors practicing in the state and more than 500 professors, including FSU's two Nobel laureates, who have signed a petition to kill the proposal. Moreover, a handful have threatened to resign rather than teach alongside what they consider a "pseudoscience."
Supporters of the school, which would add 100 faculty members, say the affiliation with a major university would quickly make it the nation's premier program and a magnet for federal grants in alternative medicine, a wonderful opportunity for more Americans to be introduced to healthier, more natural treatments that get to the REAL heart of their medical problems.
What I found truly offensive was a quote by one conventional doctor and an outspoken critic of chiropractors: "Chiropractic falls under the same umbrella as any number of therapies including homeopathy, naturopathy, meditation, prayer. There's no more evidence for chiropractic than there is for any of these other therapies."
If FSU's board of governors want to learn more about the true value of alternative medicine, they need look no further than my Web site to find more than ample evidence about the worth of homeopathy, prayer, meditation and naturopathy.
MSNBC January 17, 2005