Should pitching woo be a bannable offense on DU?

[DirkGently]

24. Yikes. And Listerine cures colds!

And the list of FDA-approved prescription meds that have turned out to be more deadly than helpful grows daily.

I guess that's where I draw the line -- are we talking about something dangerous, or something that might help, or might help more or less than supposed, or something that at worst does nothing?

I think a certain amount of non-mainstream speculation is healthy. When people buckle down and start getting hostile or suggesting drastic action based on the supposed truth of something that's clearly speculative at best, that's certainly obnoxious, and potentially dangerous, but I'm equally suspicious about the view that certain ideas must be ruthlessly smashed into oblivion purely because they are unproven or presently un-proveable. Speaks of a mind fearful of anything it can't immediately grasp.

And suddenly militant skeptics have a new pet word -- "woo" -- with which they seem to think they can bludgeon anything they deem unworthy.

"Woo" is just another form of woo.