I saw a fascinating TV show last night about a new exhibit at the British Museum on J. K. Rowling, the author of the Harry Potter series of books. The exhibit connects her work with the history of magic around the world.
What I found particularly educational was the part about Nicholas Culpeper, was an English botanist, herbalist,
physician, and astrologer. His published books include the Complete Herbal (1653), which contains a
rich store of pharmaceutical and herbal knowledge. It seems the "doctors" who graduated from the Royal Academy of Medicine weren't too happy about his book since they had been the sole source of medical knowledge. Prior to the book's publication they tried to label him a witch, without much success. Since their charges for service almost amounted to extortion they didn't want knowledge out in the marketplace where people could find their own medicines. But once it was published, the cat was out of the bag.
Seems like doctors really haven't changed in hundreds of years, have they? They want to control all medical knowledge and charge exorbitant amounts of money. Fortunately CAM practitioners work hard to keep knowledge available to all.
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