[pct-l] Water borne diseases--more info about Giardia

[Ken Murray]

Maxine,

When you said:

"You responded that “Dr.
Rockwell” was a friend of yours and that you’d discussed his article several
times over the years, as if that was all the proof we needed.  That’s circular reasoning, (and posturing,
some might say.)  By identifying yourself
as a physician"

I suppose that some might come to that conclusion, and that you did.  Others might correctly surmise that I have 
thought about the subject deeply for years, have discussed it with experts, have read widely in the field, and have specific training in the diagnosis
and treatment of the illness, something which virtually no other poster has.  I have actually diagnosed and treated
a wide variety of gastrointestinal disorders, which I am licensed to do.

You may choose to disagree with me, or with Rockwell.  That is fine, and even welcomed.  However, when you do
so on the basis of credentials, then you have opened yourself up to an examination of the credentials of 
those references you cite, and your own credentials....which you have thus far not revealed.

"So I looked at his profile and learned that his PhD was in physics or engineering, I forget which.
 I felt the PCT-L readership deserved to know that, since the both of you were advocating something 
that may not be safe for many."  

Hard to understand that you think that people thought he was a medical doctor, when the title of the 
thread was "Giardia Lamblia - Excellent informative article by Robert L. Rockwell, Phd"
In the actual article itself, it states:

"About the author

Bob Rockwell has a BS in physics from the University of California, Berkeley, and PhD in biomedical engineering from Stanford University. He made his first trip into the Sierra Nevada in 1952 to climb Mount Whitney, and he repeats this climb several times annually. In the course of making over a thousand Sierra Nevada ascents of hundreds of individual mountains, he has never filtered or otherwise treated the water and has never contracted symptoms of giardiasis. Retired since 1990, he is now able to fully indulge in his favorite pastime and spends more time there, enjoying the water, than ever before."

So it is hard to understand how someone could be "confused" by this clear declaration.

But more important, you use the phrase "since the both of you were advocating something 
that may not be safe for many"

AGAIN, I challenge you to demonstrate that something unsafe is being advocated.
You post OPINIONS that challenges that filters do any good, but do not provide
any information that shows that is actually true!

"But we should never assume that
the types and numbers of organisms in bodies of water will be the same from one
decade to the next"

Who is assuming that?  I happen to know that the Forest Service and Park Service are
required to do routine monitoring of backcountry waters.  I happen to have asked what
this has revealed (this is the type of thing that people do, who are interested in a topic
for decades).  It happens to refute your assertions.
But why bother with accumulating facts, when you can just opine?

"By the way, I mentioned the article could
be accessed through the Aqua Mira website not because I was advertising their
product as you inferred, but because the Spring 2005 edition of
BackpackingLight, where it first appeared, requires a paid subscription to
access it."

Did you not also think that in the interests of DISCLOSURE, that the author of the paper you cited
is also the OWNER of Backpackinglight? You put down Rockwell on the basis of his PhD in Biomedical Engineering and not Microbiology or Medicine, but you don't disclose that Ryan Jordan holds a PhD in Biofilm Engineering and NOT Microbiology or Medicine. (I hold advanced degrees in both, and I'm not paid off by anybody)

Maxine, you gotta figure out what you consider an expert to be, and you have to get this conflict-of-interest issue straightened out!

What was wrong with Derlet's article?