The following article appeared in the Kitsilano Times of Vancouver, B.C. It was written b Mr. E. R. Moxey on the occasion of the defect of the fluoridation forces in their attempts to fluoridate the water supply of Vancouver.
Yes, friends, in spite of full page advertising by the proponents of fluoridation in the two local newspapers, in spite of the name calling and outright lieing which was also employed, complete victory was achieved by the combined effort of the National Health Federation under the leadership of that noted crusader, Mrs. Lydia Arsens, and the Pure Food Guild of British Columbia Inc., for Nutritional Research.
The vote (which by the way, the Vancouver Sun artfully refrained from mentioning) was 4,031 for fluoridation to 6,833 against.
The proponents really made an ALL OUT attempt to convince the people that it was ENDORSED by every doctor and dentist in Victoria. This statement was entirely untrue, but of course it would have been too late for the opponents if the vote had been successful.
One medical doctor (Richard Spicer, M.D.), whose name appeared in the full page ads (which must have cost around $1,000) wrote fo the press as follows: "In the interest of integrity and truth I wish to protest strongly against my name being included in the list of doctors who favor fluoridation of water. Personally, I am not in favor of this measure, and have never raised my hand nor affixed my signature in support of it." Richard Spicer, M.D. 620 View Street.
Friends, I can honestly say that I know many doctors who are against this evil attempt by fair means or foul to take away our democratic rights. But they haven't got the courage of men such as Richard Spicer, M.D..
Only last week, I discussed fluoridation with my local doctor, only because he said to me:
"You do not like the medical profession, do you, Mr. Moxey? In my reply I said: "On the contrary, I have always had the highest respect for the medical doctor as an individual, simply because you can go to any medical doctor in the same individual manner if you should disapprove. Just as you would with your butcher, baker or candlestick maker." I pointed out that the profession had embarked upon a policy which, in this instance, was the mass fluoridation with SODIUM FLUORIDES — one tablespoon of which would be sufficient to kill a person, whereas the same amount of CALCIUM FLUORIDES would not harm you at all. Yet Dr. Gordon Bates, the leader of the fluoridation movement (who is not an expert, by the way) tries to tell the people that there is no difference between these two substances. I pointed out that, "Surely he would not say that his organization had never made any bloomers in their long history". (And he admitted that it had). In fact, it was only a few years ago that iodine was dumped into the water supplies of an American city in order to overcome goitre. It had to be discontinued, simply because it affected those who do not have this disease, which is another nutritional deficiency. So now they put it in table salt which gives you the right to choose or refuse.
It's hard for the writer to understand that men like Dr. Bates will go on hurting an honorable profession just to save his own face. It's against all the teachings of Hippocrates, whose oath all medical doctors swear to abide by.
"Leave your drugs in the chemist's pot if you cannot heal the patient with food." — Hippocrates, the father of medicine.
It is against all diagnosing, for that matter. If your medical doctor is treating you for heart trouble, he most certainly would not prescrible pills for diabetes. Dr. Bates, in his magazine, "The Health League of Canada", which, by the way, this writer subscribes to, tries to make out that John Public has no right to argue with the EXPERTS. But so far, I have been unable to find any EXPERTS on this subject who have any more knowledge than John Public. In fact John Public has no AXE TO GRIND, and he is more to be believed than the promoters on that basis.
Summing up the defeat of fluoridation (wherever truth has been allowed to prevail), I would say that the greatest ally that we proponents have in this victorious fight for our democratic rights is no less than Dr. Gordon Bates himself. His attitude against those who stood up against his name calling has been his own undoing. A Royal Commission investigation into the statistics of tooth decay at Brantford, Ont., plus an investigation regarding symptoms which have occurred in other cities which have used this deadly poison (such as increase in deaths from heart disease) should be carefully looked into. The proponents should be bypassed in this respect up to a certain point. The Dental Digest (their own journal) says the statistics are incorrect. The Australian Medical Journal quotes two eminent medical doctors who also agree. The Pure Food Guild sent an investigator to Brantford for six week's who also agreed.
Famous last words: "There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and STATISTICS." Benjamin Disraeli.
E. R. MOXEY