I am posting my column from the BMJ (below) rather sooner than I normally would today, because I have already started to receive a string of rather abusive emails from people from the electrosensitivity lobby, accusing me of saying all manner of dreadful things which I simply have not said (this is the bullying I mentioned in the article, of course).

I have told everyone who has written to make sure that if they write about what I have said, they link to the actual full text, which is now available for free below, or even reproduce the full text for themselves (I can’t imagine the BMJ would mind). This will allow their readers to decide for themselves about whether my article is reasonable.

For myself, I am very much hoping that it might be possible to recruit the passion and energy of those in the electrosensitivity lobby to help improve the design of provocation studies that seem to cause so much anger. If there are methodological concerns with the 37 studies which have already been done, then rather than simply ignoring them, I would be very keen to see a critical discussion of those methodological flaws, here or anywhere.

In particular, I’d be very keen to see specific suggestions of how to improve the design of these studies, so that better experiments can be done to examine the question of whether electromagnetic signals elicit electrosensitivity symptoms.

This even applies if you were sent it by mistake — those ridiculous demands at the bottom of corportate emails telling you to delete them immediately if you are not the intended recipient can be treated as the nonsense they are.

“The law of causality has not
the significance of a statement
as to the world of experience,
except when observable facts
ultimately appear as causes
and effects.”

(The Foundation of the General Theory of Relativity, A. Einstein, Annalen der Physik,49, 1916, trans.W. Perrett & G. B. Jeffery, The Principle of Relativity, p113, Dover, 1923.)

For anyone actually interested in the health effects of electromagnetic fields, see www.electrosensitivity.org/.

Troy

” Do you believe you have been harmed by radio waves from your cell phone or other sources of radio frequency radiation?
If so, please confidentially share your information with us so that we can continue our studies aimed at identifying the means to protect you and your family.”

The safe wireless initiative has a couple of Carlo’s books for sale. What’s more:
“The Safe Wireless Initiative proudly supports the International Journal of Clinical Bioenergetics. This peer-reviewed journal publishes original research addressing interventions for EMR related-health effects.”

And even better::
“Now you can donate to SWI without spending a dime! Just book your business or personal travel through our new travel site”

No competing interests declared, but plenty exist.

www.sppionline.org
www.safewireless.org

Competing Interests: none declared.”

Does he have commercial interests in the area, or does he ‘just’ work for a research institute?

Competing Interests: none declared.

This is exactly what motivates climate change deniers and any number of other controversialists, surely?

“People with somatisation-type syndromes get very hostile (and develop a remarkable burst of energy for arguing the toss, despite being so ill) when some fashionable diagnosis gets questioned.”

Harsh… but very, very, very funny

as for being insensitive when you mention the data, that amlost smacks of McCarthyist anti-scientific knee-jerk fear of the truth – just what you’d expect from woo-mongers!!

i’d have to have a think about whether i would feel comfortable releasing the hatemail. i think for the most part when mail is abusive, unsolicited, and about something i have written then there is no obligation on me to observe privacy to the sender, but legalisms aside i’d have to have a good think about whether i personally thought it was appropriate. (having said that – for the benefit of those sending them especially – i have every intention of publishing edited highlights, and if anyone claims i have misrepresented them i will very happily publish full letters).