No! No! No! What can we do about this??

[chillzero]

This is north Scotland article (http://www.thisisnorthscotland.co.uk/displayNode.jsp?nodeId=149664&command=displayContent&sourceNode=149490&contentPK=15722669&folderPk=85696&pNodeId=149221)

A Historic house on the outskirts of Aberdeen could soon be converted into a spiritualist centre.

City planning officials are recommending councillors approve an application to turn the 17th-century building that gave Kingswells its name into a so-called centre for the investigation, promotion and enhancement of spiritual healing.


Does anyone have experience of how to raise concerns about this kind of thing to the correct people?






Edit: to shorten link.

[Jocky]

Oh Horror! I attended Kingswells Primary School for a year when I was ten - I know the village and the house well :'(

Trouble is, who are "the correct people"? This kind of thing is (tragically) not illegal.

[kath23]

They might have some luck getting the local churches involved. Scotland can be quite conservative at times, (I lived in Aberdeen for a year) a few churches or respected elderly residents saying it's wrong and writing to the councillors might be respected.

And a petition. Sounds beige but no harm in trying :)

Love
Kath

[chillzero]

Thanks, yes - if it is going before the council for approval, I intend to make my feelings known to them in a letter, but wondered if anyone has experience of the best way to go about this, or if there are other avenues to take?

Also - anyone got a good article they can link me to for showing the dangers of spiritual 'healing'?

[tkingdoll]

I would certainly write to them with a history of Spiritualism - the Fox sisters etc.

[bungdown]

Also - anyone got a good article they can link me to for showing the dangers of spiritual 'healing'?

On a recent ( well this year I think ) TV programme the presenter showed a trial where an actor pretended to be a faith healer and healed more people than the faith healer.
I'm pretty sure it took place in Aberdeen.
Anyone see it?

[chillzero]

On a recent ( well this year I think ) TV programme the presenter showed a trial where an actor pretended to be a faith healer and healed more people than the faith healer.
I'm pretty sure it took place in Aberdeen.
Anyone see it?


Never even heard about it it, which is a shame. That would have been a great thing to see and report on.

[Mongrel]

On a recent ( well this year I think ) TV programme the presenter showed a trial where an actor pretended to be a faith healer and healed more people than the faith healer.
I'm pretty sure it took place in Aberdeen.
Anyone see it?


Never even heard about it it, which is a shame. That would have been a great thing to see and report on.

Wasn't it that one of the "Alternative Medicine: The Evidence" shows that aired earlier this year?

[Mojo]

The second one.

[Blue Wode]

Also - anyone got a good article they can link me to for showing the dangers of spiritual 'healing'?


Potential dangers:


Spiritual healing should not be used as the sole treatment for potentially dangerous medical or psychiatric conditions, and it should not delay the time it takes to consider more proven therapies. Schizophrenic relapse and worsening of other disease states due to delay of timely medical intervention have been associated with spiritual healing. Further research is needed to draw any conclusions. Spiritual healing appears to be safe when added to other treatment approaches.

http://www.intelihealth.com/IH/ihtIH/WSIHW000/8513/34968/358874.html?d=dmtContent#potentialdangers

[Blue Wode]

On a recent ( well this year I think ) TV programme the presenter showed a trial where an actor pretended to be a faith healer and healed more people than the faith healer.
I'm pretty sure it took place in Aberdeen.
Anyone see it?


Yes, it was the second episode of BBC2’s ‘Alternative Medicine: The Evidence’ that showed the healer/actor trial:


She then goes to Aberdeen (Scotland) where Dr. Jennifer Cleland has
researched spiritual healing. She used a real spiritual healer and an
actor, Bob Gillanders, who observed the healer at work and copied his
every move, manner and even style of clothing. As test subjects she
enlisted several patients with chronic asthma for a period of 5 weeks.
The result: both groups showed some improvement, without any significant
difference between them. So both the ‘real’ and the fake healer had the
same results! Based on the conclusion that ‘real’ spiritual healing
works just as well as sham healing, Sykes correctly concludes the
placebo effect must be at work.

http://www.gatago.com/uk/rec/psychic/6293862.html

Some of the most thought provoking information came from a University of Aberdeen study done by Dr. Jennifer Cleland. They set out to discover how much of the healing effect came from the interaction with the healer, rather than any 'subtle energy' the healer might be sending the patient.

This left them with a problem. In a medical test, they usually give some patients a drug or a treatment, and others a placebo, pills made of sugar or starch that would have no effect. How could they develop a 'placebo' of spiritual healing?

They had an actor of a similar age and appearance imitate the healer. For the purpose of the study, they wore similar clothes, were both called 'Fred,' used the same music, said and did the same things. Both men worked with chronic asthma sufferers who hadn't had much improvement with conventional treatments.

All the patients improved, and there was no statistical difference between the groups, though there was a slight tendency for the actor's patients' to improve more.

http://www.celticshamanism.com/may06printable.html



So it seems that spiritual healing is no more than an elaborate ritual that has the ability to harness a placebo response.

Perhaps the new centre should be renamed the ‘The Kingswell Drama Group’.

[chillzero]

Thanks for the info guys.

I think I have missed the council meeting deadline - I will have to take a better look into this.