Episode 0010: The naturalistic fallacy

In this episode we look a the naturalistic fallacy, both the “is-ought” problem and the appeal to nature. Direct link: https://archive.org/download/HH101/HH101e0010.mp3

Section 1: Reading from the book

Section 2: Appeal to nature

The “Food Babe”

Wikipedia entry:

Vani Hari, also known on her blog as the Food Babe, is an American blogger, known for her criticism of the food industry. She has gathered over 350,000 signatures via petitions pressuring food companies to remove ingredients from their products or change their production processes.[2][3] Companies including Kraft, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Chick-fil-A, Starbucks, and Subway, have changed or reconsidered ingredients in their products as a result of her campaigns.[4][5] Her work has in turn been criticized as pseudoscience.[2][6][7]

Source of audio clips from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHjm8lbgc3I

and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7MrIZYLYtk

The ingredients of an “all natural banana”: http://jameskennedymonash.wordpress.com/2013/12/12/ingredients-of-an-all-natural-banana/

Some excellent blog posts responding to the Food Babe’s scientific illiteracy:

• http://theness.com/neurologicablog/index.php/eating-yoga-mats/
• http://theness.com/neurologicablog/index.php/omg-the-chemicalz/
• http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/vani-hari-a-k-a-the-food-babe-the-jenny-mccarthy-of-food/

The Food Babe defends her lack of scientific training: http://www.thestar.com/life/food_wine/2014/06/14/why_big_food_fears_the_food_babe.html

Hari says she doesn’t need scientific degrees to be intellectually honest and know how to research. As a teenager, she was a nationally-ranked debater, who spent summers in the Dartmouth College library researching topics, she says.

Section 3: The “Is-Ought” problem

From “Creation Today” If evolution is true:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wv0UmnWXqQY

Ken Buck: being gay "a choice," birth an "influence" like "alcoholism"

From “Meet the press” 10/17/2010.

Kenneth R. "Ken" Buck is the District Attorney for Weld County, Colorado, and is a candidate for the 4th District U.S. Congressional seat in Colorado.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tyyCkBaCfis

Feedback, ideas, suggestions or comments: theo.clark@skepticsfieldguide.net or @theojclark on twitter.

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