Many conservative chiropractors have been duped into believing the huggy wuggy, mushy mush of the doctrine referred to as "live and let live." They have bought the byline of the liberal, tired, and worn statement, "We will let you do your thing as long as you let us do ours." Let's live together in brotherhood, said the spider to the fly, but in the final outcome you know what happens to the fly. It is like the sparrow in the German nursery rhyme who questions the hawk as to why he slays him. The hawk replies, "ich bin gross und du bist klein."
The chiropractoids will simply say, we are very, very sorry. You see, the majority of us practice this way, we never tried to force anything upon you. The government took a look at the Mercy ("Murky") Conference and decided you just don't fit in. However, we have created postgraduate courses in chiropractic medicine so that you can come up to our standards.
The majority of chiropractors today are still subluxation-based, but they will not be tomorrow. Fifty percent of our colleges essentially teach no x-ray subluxation analysis; they teach no semblance of innate chiropractic philosophy. Their teaching profile embraces the therapeutic approach to disease treatment. So what is their strategy to cope with the subluxation-based chiropractors and colleges? Slow but sure inculcation of medical, diagnostic, and therapeutic regimen upon our chiropractically-orientated practice.
The Mercy ("Murky") Conference document is the perfect example of how they can use a contrived consensus conference to force our profession into the mold of a medical paradigm. If such a document becomes standard of care, your practice must conform or your out. Sorry my friends, "live and let live" is a panacea for dreamers or a shield for cowards. Remember, as I said before, 50 percent of our colleges do not teach x-ray subluxation analysis and innate concepts of philosophy, moreover they denigrate both very strongly. I'm sure we all agree that a student is a product of teaching, and it takes no genius to figure out the probable outcome of such professional genocide; we are not growing closer together but wider apart! Allow me to give you an example:
In the 1930s and 1940s, the National College's catalog listed and illustrated such eclectic therapeutic practices such as hydrotherapy, light bath therapy, coagulation of tonsils by diathermy, colonic therapy, dehydration of hemorrhoids by galvanism, and more; however, they also listed subluxations, analyzed subluxations, and illustrated various methods of subluxation correction. Today, going by Dr. Winterstein's writings, they disavowed the subluxation concepts of traditional chiropractic and according to recent graduates I have spoken to, no x-ray analysis of subluxation is taught, whatsoever. Thus, you see we are growing further apart, not closer together. At one time our colleges all had a subluxation base; today the traditional ACA colleges have lost this base and teach purely therapeutical concepts, even referring to our chiropractic term "adjustment" as SMT -- spinal manipulative therapy. In his own words, the president of National College, Dr. Winterstein, states:1 "Having studied the concept of radiographic measurement of vertebral displacement in great depth, I have come to the position that the 'bone out of place' concept is simply not viable."
With such a viewpoint on subluxation, one that is contrary to the opinions of all traditional chiropractic teachings (and contrary to the medical opinions of authors such as R. Cailliet, R. Jackson, S. Sunderland, Schmorl, Junghanns, J. Cyriax, and others), how can a student help but be confused upon graduation? All they have left is an eclectic haberdashery of common domain therapeutics to "treat" with, and their chiropractic philosophical base is actually nil.
As a practicing DC, I have never had a traveling patient of mine complain about therapy used by another chiropractor if they also received an adjustment. However, when they were not adjusted, they were incensed as to why a chiropractor would not adjust them. This is a common occurrence today. As RHT and yours truly have often stated, we are two professions living under one roof. Even Dr. Winterstein eluded to this fact and stated, after the secretary of education announced the accreditation of SCASA:2
"Indeed, this is a regressive state of affairs. On the other hand, maybe opportunity knocks. Perhaps the time has come for the majority of rational thinking chiropractic physicians all over the world to clearly separate ourselves from those individuals who wish to be responsible only for locating and correcting spinal subluxations."
In 1986, ACA's Chief Legislative Counsel Harry N. Rosenfield stated in the ACA Journal:3
"Serious consideration should be given to changing the profession's name, just as 'chiropody" changed to podiatry to its great advantage."
It is, indeed, not too far-fetched for us to consider an alternative approach to unity, that alternative is separation. Perhaps it is time for the broad scope practitioners to call their profession holiopathy, and quit trying to bury the subluxation-based chiropractors with "Murky" documents.
"Live and let live" is the ostrich posture for subluxation-based chiropractors; with their head in the sand they will not see the knife coming that lops it off.
That's their kind of Mercy doctors -- the bag over the head of the executioner's victim.
"Some have the eyes of an eagle and the vision of a clam."
-- B.J.P.
Can't you see what's coming? Clean the "Murky" haze from your vision.
"Enuf said."
References
- NCC Outreach, August 1990.
- NCC Outreach, October 1988.
- ACA Journal of Chiropractic, October 1986.
Next Month: Philosophical Constructs.
Fred H. Barge, D.C., Ph.C.
La Crosse, Wisconsin
