Teddy Talk: Creating, Collecting, Connecting

Did anybody take their Bears to work today?

Our human, Randy, took one of us to work with him today.
There are too many of us in this den for all of us to go!  We elect one of us to go and report back to the rest of the hug when she returns home.

Yes, we know today is Saturday and most humans don't go to work on Saturday.  But our human, Randy works in the theater so his busiest day is on Saturday.

This year it was "Bunny Friday" who went to the theater with Randy.
(She's named "Friday" because she was born on Good Friday.)

Randy and Bunny took lots of pictures while they were at work in the theater.  As soon as they got home we set about processing the pictures and we built a mini website to tell everybody about Bunny's adventures.

Here's the result:
http://homepage.mac.com/randystankey/Be … index.html

PS:  If you didn't take a Bear to work today, you can do it on Monday.  This year the event fell on a Saturday.  You get a reprieve. 

Tricksters will often use vague words like "mineral" or "toxin" to describe their product or what their product does in order to mislead the public.

The actual definition of "mineral" is "a solid organic material with crystalline structure".
Iron does not have a crystalline structure.  It is not a mineral.  Iron is a metal.  However, iron (and other metals) can combine with other elements to form minerals.  Iron sulfide is a mineral.  It is a combination of iron and sulfur, more commonly known as "pyrite" or "fools gold."

Yes, there are some minerals that are good for your health in small quantities.
Calcium carbonate is a mineral that can be good for you.  It can help you build stronger bones.  But calcium carbonate is also the main component of limestone and chalk.  It is probably better to get calcium into your diet by drinking milk than it is to eat a piece of chalk.

By twisting up definitions of words, they are able to create the appearance that a connection between their product your health exists when there is no connection at all.  Then, by adding the words "organic" or "natural" to their claims they further cloud the issue.

We all know that all things "natural" are not necessarily good for you.
Castor oil is a natural substance that is generally believed to be good for your health.  The castor bean contains ricin, one of the most deadly poisons in the world.  (More than 100 times more potent than cyanide per unit of mass.)

The idea that "All things natural are good" is called the "Naturalistic Fallacy."  Many, many shysters try to use the Naturalistic Fallacy to sell products to the unsuspecting public.  The word "mineral," in the way it is often used to describe spurious health cures, is just another way of using the Naturalistic Fallacy to sell products that don't really do anything.

There are many good natural products.  Many people would do well to seek out more natural foods and medicines.  Many people would probably do well to take stock of the minerals their body needs (like calcium) and to be sure they are getting enough of them in their diet.

All we are asking is for people to read or study carefully and to use the test of intellect when they see a claim that some "natural" product or some "mineral" will benefit their health.  The truth is that the great majority of these products will only make your wallet lighter.

We're not mad or anything.  We're just saying it like it is.

We weren't slamming Bill Gates or Warren Buffett.  They are two of the richest guys in the world that we could think of.  We only used their names as a reference.

Magnets are not made of minerals.  They are mad of iron.  Iron is a metal, not a mineral.

Neither are we knocking natural remedies.  Our human has developed lactose intolerance over the years.
He has gone from taking lactase enzyme tablets to eating foods rich in lactobacillus (yogurt, wine, cider/vinegar, etc.) and the problem has almost completely cleared up.

We are only saying that you need to be really careful when people make such claims and use a healthy amount of skepticism.

Extraordinary claims require extraordinary proof. 

If these things really work, why isn't there somebody who is richer than Bill Gates and Warren Buffett combined?
Surely, if magnets could cure arthritis pain, everybody would buy them...  "Build a better mousetrap and the world will beat a path to your door."

But, the ONLY people who consistently claim that these things work are the people who sell them.  The ONLY medical studies that seem to show they work are bought and paid for by the people who sell them.  The researchers are always second and third rate.  There are NO major institutions studying them.  There are NO mainstream publications printing the results.  NO reputable institution has ever been able to repeat these tests with positive results.  There has NEVER been a successful double-blind medical trial that proves they work.

ALL of the evidence that says they work is purely anecdotal and is supplied by the people who profit from their sales.

If magnetic bracelets really cured arthritis, shouldn't there be throngs of people who have bought them praising them to the heavens?  Wouldn't there be hoards of people clamoring to buy them?  But, instead, some fly-by-night operators show up on TV or the internet and hawk expensive jewelery for a few months/years then disappear only to reappear in some other location, under a different name.

Government conspiracy my paw!  You're talking about a government that can't even get out of its own way!  Take a look at the news.  Do you think a government that can't even agree on how to repair the economy could ever muster a "conspiracy" to keep a few pseudoscience medical products off the market?

If the FDA is only trying to make money then why aren't THEY promoting these products?  If there was money to be made, surely they'd want their fingers in the pie.  And if they are manipulating the markets then why can't them manipulate the markets to make money from these products?

When a product becomes popular, more and more producers will spring up to sell their own versions.
When Susan Somers advertised the "Thigh Master", it was a short time before other companies were selling their own versions of the product...  "Butt Master"...  "Stomach Master"...  and even a "FACE Master."
My gosh!  When a popular song hits it big on the radio, there are 10 knock-off versions being circulated in a matter of weeks!

If these things really, really worked they would be sold on every street corner and in every store front and EVERYBODY would be using them.

But, again, the only people who consistently claim they work are the people who sell them... And people who have paid lots of money for them and don't want to admit that they got cheated out of their hard earned cash.

Go ahead.  Buy a magnetic bracelet if you want one.  Some of them are nice looking jewelery and they would make a good conversation piece.  That pull-apart bracelet that we showed you in our post above looks like it's a lot of fun!   

We haven't got a problem with people buying things that they like.  We are only worried that people will buy expensive pseudo-treatments that don't really work and their conditions will get worse because they didn't seek reputable medical treatment when they had the chance.  Then, months or years down the road, they will find that they are sicker than they thought and there will be nothing that anybody can do because they didn't seek real, proven treatment when they had the chance.

Snake Oil!   

If they really worked like the advertisers say they do, there would be some very, very rich humans out there!
The FDA has enacted rules that make it illegal to claim any health benefits from wearing one of these bracelets.

Ask you self one question.
Why is it that the only people who claim these magnets are good for your health are the ones who sell them?
If all those medical studies that they claim to prove these things work were really true then the why aren't they published in any mainstream publications?

However, if you really want to see some really neat magnetic jewelery, you should look at this!  :D
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pf3z935R37E

Hey Rina & friends;

Can you get us pictures of the fur in question.  Our human might be able to identify it for you.
There are several types of rabbit which grow short, dense fur.  They are called "Rex Rabbit".

BTW:  We totally understand how you feel about animals.
Remember that lots of people use rabbits for food.  So, when you use rabbit fur to make Bears and other friends with, you are using the part of the rabbit that might be thrown away if not for your saving them.
As much as you feel bad about it, you can take some credit for making something good come out of it. 

The 11th is "Take your Teddy Bear to Work Day".    We knew that one.  :)

We had to look up "Hug a Bear Day".

Nov. 16, 1902 is the day the cartoon "Drawing the Line in Mississippi" by Clifford Berryman (Bear-y-Man! ) was published in the Washington Post.  (That one, we knew was in November but had to look up the exact day.)

Your point is well taken, Doodlebears.  :)
Don't mind if we quibble?  Do you?
Humans celebrate Jesus' birthday.  It wasn't until after the Resurrection that his birthday was celebrated as Christmas.
We figure we should celebrate Teddy Roosevelt's B-day for similar reasons.

It is the 150th anniversary of TR's birthday this year!   :cake:
Us Bears don't need much of an excuse to party but we're planning on throwing a grand party this year.   :bday:

Being Bears, October 27th is practically a national holiday for us.  This year, October 27th will be a whopping big holiday for us!  But it seems most humans hardly remember the day, let alone know why us Bears consider it important.

We thought you guys would know this because you're Bear people.  We've been lurking and searching the website for any mention of it but we haven't seen anybody talk about it.

So we thought it would be fun to ask you guys if anybody knows why October 27th is a red letter day for Teddy Bears.  And, why is THIS year is especially remarkable?

Us Bears hardly need an excuse to party but, trust us!  This year, the root beer will be flowing freely!  :D

Who can tell us what's the significance of October 27th?

And, be honest!  Did you already know or did you have to look it up?