Quickies

Skepchick Quickies 1.8

Amanda

Amanda works in healthcare, is a loudmouthed feminist, and proud supporter of the Oxford comma.

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12 Comments

  1. • The cancer quack item made my jaw drop.
    • Aisha is clearly not a sailor – she is an AWESOME sailor.

  2. Loved the post from Aisha, and not just because I’m a navy vet.

    The opening was great:
    “I’m a fucking Sailor and a fucking lady.”

    Fuckin’ A! Tell those assholes off!

  3. I’m sad to say that the Enlivened infographic is statistical bunk.

    http://theenlivenproject.com/the-challenge-of-data/

    They didn’t just get their data from the FBI database unlike the skepchick quickies says, they got prevalence from 3 different US sources, the percentage of unreported rapes partially from a UK source (a different population and they didn’t use the mean), entirely different time periods (using data from 1999 and 2006-2010), and in some cases using lower-bounds of ranges to make things as dramatic as possible (their own false reporting source estimates 2% – 8%, so of course they use 2%).

    There are other deeper, methodological assumptions such as the idea implicit to the graph that all of those accused and convicted were guilty (which we know isn’t true thanks to stuff like the innocence project).

    This isn’t to say that their point ultimately isn’t accurate. It is. The problem of unreported rapes/character assassination of rape victims/etc. results in many more rapists getting away with it than people who are falsely accused and convicted.

    The truth stands for itself, which is why we should rely on it instead of concocting lazy, bad-faith estimates for shock value. We shouldn’t make it easy for MRA-types to paint us as dishonest by being inadvertently dishonest.

    1. It should also be said that the 2-8% figure comes from studies conducted in different countries, during different time periods, etc.

      No attempt is made to control for time and place, which has a vast effect on culture. Culture is what is causing these rapes to go unreported — thanks to victim-blaming, slut shaming, etc. — so of course it’s important to try and establish a rate that’s actually relevant to the country you’re pulling your base stats from.

    2. I’m afraid I have to agree that this seems flawed.
      The graphic shows 2/1000 = 0.2% falsely accused.
      Surely they mean 2%?

      1. The figure generally used in discussions on Skepchick and elsewhere is 5%, I think that is a fair rule of thumb if the range is 2-8%, which would be the whole bottom row of the graphic.

      2. @Jack

        The .2% falsely accused is because you have to be accused to be falsely accused. The black ‘falsely accused’ figures should really be among the 100 ‘reported’ figures, not outside on their own. Technically, there should be an additional 18 “would be falsely accused if the reporting rate was 100%” figures outside the ‘reported’ section.

        Ugh, the more I look at this infographic the more annoyed with it I get. We should really make one that takes more care with statistics and methodology. As Jason said, the truth here stands strongly enough on it’s own.

  4. St Jude’s hospital Children’s hospital does an excellent job, helping sick kids, unlike “Dr. Burzynski,” who might actually end up killing them instead. I hope Blaskiewicz succeeds in raising a lot of money for his worthy cause.

  5. Thanks for the mentions! I’d like to mention that we’re not just raising money for St. Jude. On Burzynski’s birthday, we are going to issue a challenge to the Clinic to MATCH ALL THE MONEY THAT WE RAISE! So, either he gives generously or he continues quackishly. Either way, we raise a buttload of money for a great charity and we will finally have evidence that legit cancer research is being done in Burzynski’s name!!! Thanks, all!

  6. OK, am I crazy, or do the two figures at the top of the “King David era temple” article look like Lenny and Carl form “The Simpsons”? I’m crazy, aren’t I?

    1. MarlowePI,

      You’re not crazy. Come to think of it, I did kind of see a resemblance between the two statues and those Simpsons characters. However, its only a slight resemblance and its probably just a coincidence.

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