Obbzervations on Truth in Advertising
While I was researching the pseudo-toxin "vonsinium," I ended up surfing to a post that complained about a particular radio network's acceptance of questionable advertising. The name of the particular radio network isn't important, so I'll refer to it as [Bob] in the excerpt from the post, below.
You've probably heard the advertisements.
Get rich quick by speculating on gold or buying foreclosed real estate. Lose weight. Get ridiculously inexpensive life insurance. Improve your resume by receving your college degree online.
Radio stations nationwide often turn to these lesser advertisers to bring in much-needed capital. It's especially true for stations with low ratings, or in weaker advertising markets. Such stations can't charge as much, and this particular class of advertisers can't afford to spend as much.
It's also true for fledgling networks....
Generally speaking, there's nothing wrong with accepting this kind of advertising. Free enterprise is good for the country. Assuming the given station or network has verified the advertiser as legitimate, and as long as buyers understand that something that sounds too good to be true often is, the system works.
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I listen to [Bob] most weekdays driving to or from work. And one advertiser that pops up occasionally is hypnotist Wendi Friesen, who has more than 100 products for sale on various web sites.
Now, I have nothing against hypnosis CDs. But if you are familiar with Penn & Teller's Showtime series, you might remember an episode a few months back in which they look closely at some of Friesen's products. Turns out Friesen not only hawks cds for confidence building or smoking cessation, but also ones in which she claims she can help increase breast or penis size.
And, amazingly, she offers a tape that she claims will help you fight cancer.
Her promotional paragraph for the "Heal Your Body" CD:
"One of our best selling CDs. Designed for those with cancer, chronic or other serious illness, this program inspires you to choose LIFE, stimulates your immune system to fight, and some say ... creates miracles. Three sessions, one will access your ability to heal, the second will strengthen your immune system, another will cleanse your body of bacteria, viruses and toxins. This process can help to speed the healing of surgery, illness, or even a cold or sore throat."
I find this repugnant, and dangerous for anyone who decides Friesen's $29 cd is a worthy alternative to a trip to the doctor, a biopsy, chemotherapy, etc.
This hits close to home because I am a cancer survivor. On Dec. 12th, I celebrated my third anniversary of a successful adult stem cell transplant, which cured me of acute myeloid leukemia. Unfortunately, my father, who developed a similar leukemia in 2002, did not have a donor match, and succumbed to the disease after a 10-month fight.
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I explained all of this to the [Bob] advertising representative...saying simply that [Bob] shouldn't be this desperate. Friesen doesn't advertise the cancer-healing hypnosis CD on [Bob] -- a get-out-of-jail-free card, apparently, for [Bob]'s decision-makers -- but she offers the product on the web site she mentions in the [Bob] spot....
[T]he ad rep who landed the Friesen account...said she understood my complaint. In fact, she said, several of the on-air personalities had lodged a similar complaint.
Two weeks have passed since my 20-minute telephone call, yet [Bob] continues to broadcast Friesen's ads....
Bottom line: If I hear an on-air radio or television personality spew lies, I respond by either calling to complain, or posting an item on JABBS. If I see rampant spin appear in a newspaper article, whether it's in the New York Times or New York Post, I complain.
This isn't much different. Friesen is spewing the lie that hypnosis can help you fight cancer (or grow your breasts or penis). There is no medical evidence to support that theory, and there never will be. And while it's a shame that people will waste money hoping that listening to a CD will help them grow their breasts or penis, it's a potentially fatal decision to listen to a hypnosis CD hoping it will help your immunity system fight cancer.
And still people are coming up with all sorts of ways to rid themselves of toxins, even though they never identify exactly what toxins are being removed. But boy, there certainly are some groovy, far out ways to get rid of those toxins.
And I have to retract one of my statements. This ad identifies some specific toxins (other than vonsinium) that this method allegedly removes. Emphasis mine.
Bentonite clay has the magnificent 'drawing' effect of pulling out toxic chemicals, and even metals through the pores of your skin, via the ancient art of clay bathing.
Toxins are a major cause of immune system breakdown. How do these substances end up in your body? Dioxin and other chemicals are sprayed on crops. Mercury comes from your teeth fillings, and it is also found in fish, cosmetics, soil, and many other sources. Aluminum is present in soft drink cans, cheeses, white four, baking powder, deodorants. Coffee, some types of rice, salt, smog, and even water are sources of arsenic. Cadmium is found in cigarette smoke, coffee, gasoline, steel cooking pans, metals pipes and water....
Wendell Hoffman, in his book: Using Energy to Heal, talks about the use of Bentonite clay, and its wonderful drawing effects that is has in pulling out toxic chemicals and metals through the pores of the skin....
Put on an old swim suite [sic]. If you are female, use a two piece bathing suite [really sic]. Get an old mixing bowl, a large old terry bath towel, and 1/2 of your 5 pound bag of clay. Take it outside, and do this only when the weather is over 90+ degrees in the summer, or hotter. Be sure to drink some filtered water before you take your clay bath, and also a glass of filtered water right after (not ice water).
Stand in the sun, while you mix 1/2 of your clay and water in the mixing bowl. Standing in the sun will warm your body, and get your pores to open up. Keep adding water to the clay until it is a nice mud consistency. You may have to add some more water to the mixture later on, as some of the water will evaporate. Now, start at your feet and smear the clay/mud mixture over all of the surfaces of your skin. You may want to skip the more personal parts of your body, as the skin is very sensitive there. Don't be afraid to rub clay under your swim suit on buttox and breasts, however, as the more area of skin you get, the better results you will get.
If your hair is short, you can also do the scalp. For long hair it is more difficult to wash out, but if you color or dye your hair, it is very important to clay bath your scalp as well. This will pull the chemical dyes out of your scalp.
Underarms due to commercial deodorants are also very important, as they are exposed to toxic chemicals each day. Remember to do your face and arms. If you have a clay bath buddy, ask them to do your back, and you do theirs. It is very important to get the area along the spine as there are many nerves there that need cleansing.
When you stop, you will notice that the skin is drying, tightening, and the clay will eventually dry up. Keep adding more clay to your already covered areas, to keep in wet. Keep the clay on, all over, for at least 30 minutes....
Get your large old bath towel, and wet it down with the hose, moisten the rest of you with the hose as well. Start with the back, and use the towel to rub the moistened clay off. It is important to take time with this, as you do not want to irritate your skin. Then, go to the legs, buttox, arms, chest, face, and scalp. It may be difficult to get the clay out of your hair, and a couple of washings might be necessary to get it all out. When you are free enough of the clay, you can go inside the house and shower off with soap and water, you might also want to shampoo your hair and scalp. Dry off. Take your sesame oil, and smear it all over your skin. This will help to prevent the drying out of your skin from the clay. It also helps to bring the body back into balance.
Sounds like a service that "Jeff Gannon" would advertise. However, I doubt that Candice Michelle Beckman or Krystal Fernandez would offer to rub sesame oil all over your skin. And don't even think about asking Millard Fillmore....
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