Blaming the Victim

I never thought of it like this

"The worst part of this whole bit of nonsense is that Dr. Kornfeld appears to be pulling the old "blame the victim" gambit. I've written many, many times the dark side of the "empowerment" that promoters of "alternative medicine" like to tout when they ascribe near magical powers (actually, there's no "near" about it) to lifestyle, diet, and the like is that, if you are responsible for being in perfect health, you are likewise responsible if you aren't in perfect health. It's something I've referred to as the "illusion of control," and it's very pernicious. Kornfeld is not as blatant about it as Robert O. Young has been in expressing this idea, but it's the same basic undercurrent to the same basic idea, namely that if you are sick it is your fault. You are to blame. Not nature. Not a "germ." Not genetics. You."