Wesley J. Smith

I have a minority view (as usual), that off label prescribing can be dangerous, and should be deemed unethical.  Off label prescribing is when a drug approved for prescribing for Malady A, is then prescribed for Malady B—even though it may not have been properly tested as a proper . . . . Continue Reading »

Wonder of wonder, miracle of miracles—a pro human exceptionalism opinion piece in the New York Times blog—the newspaper in which we have previously been told that plants are ethical and peas are persons—and by a philosophy professor, no less!  From “Anything But . . . . Continue Reading »

This is what happens in centralized systems. You end up with rationing, which pits patients against each other for pieces of the finite pie. Latest example comes Scotland where a government adviser suggests robbing from palliative care for the dying to pay for surgeries to treat obesity. From the . . . . Continue Reading »

I post stories such as this from time to time to counter the lies told by many within the animal rights movement that animal research offers no value. Scientists looking for a malaria vaccine have discovered an important problem by testing potential vaccines on mice and then infecting them. . . . . Continue Reading »

Ironies upon ironies: The current governor of Oregon, John Kitzhaber is a big fan of his state’s assisted suicide law. But he opposes the death penalty, even though the people of that state have twice voted to retain it.  And when a death row inmate named Gary Haugen rejected K’s . . . . Continue Reading »

Human trials are ongoing for chronic spinal cord injury using adult stem cells. Now, the FDA is approving a human safety trial using patients’ own spinal cells for acute spinal cord injury—the kind of injury sought to be improved by the now defunct Geron embryonic stem cell human trial. . . . . Continue Reading »

Many First Thoughts readers have heard that a business in Colorado obtained a preliminary injunction against Obamacare’s “Free Birth Control Rule,” based on the provisions of a federal law known as the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.  But what most . . . . Continue Reading »

I posted the other day about a federal judge granting a preliminary injunction against the “Free Birth Control Rule” to Hercules Industries and its owners, the Newman siblings, because it impinges on their freedom of religion as protected by Religious Freedom Restoration Act.  . . . . Continue Reading »

Sigh. So many big brains seem to spend so much time pondering the likelihood and consequences of a pending human immortality. Not. Gonna. Happen.But I want to focus on one aspect of this issue and demonstrate how it points to human exceptionalism.  Over at Huffington Post Science, George M . . . . Continue Reading »

How about some good news for a change?  In the UK, a woman named Lyndsey Crowder was diagnosed with cancer while pregnant. She decided to risk risk her own life to bring her baby into the world. Four years later, both are doing fine.  From the Daily Mail story:A women with cancer who . . . . Continue Reading »