For those who are unaware, Dr. Oz, a TV celebrity and surgeon, is running for the Republican nomination for Senator from Pennsylvania, and it appears he’s well and truly in the grasp of the Sirens of Greek myth. Here’s HuffPo’s take on the matter:
Mehmet Oz, the celebrity TV surgeon better known as Dr. Oz, used to write and tweet about the health benefits of coconut oil, lavender oil, CBD oil, MCT oil, avocado and olive oil.
He also appeared to be a strong opponent of fracking, warning his readers in multiple articles about the potential health risks associated with one of the more controversial fossil fuel extracting technologies.
And now?
But now that Oz is a GOP Senate candidate in Pennsylvania, he is apparently less concerned about fracking’s possible health effects on his potential constituents and more interested in preserving an industry active in the state.
“Back off Biden! Give us freedom to frack!” Oz said Wednesday in a rambling TikTok video while pumping gas somewhere in the Keystone State.
Oz’s campaign is even denying that he ever voiced any concern about fracking in the first place, claiming that he had no part in any of those earlier columns — even though he is listed as their primary author.
That denial calls into question which of Oz’s medical advice columns he actually stands behind and raises questions about his brand as a trusted health professional.
If he’d said, Well, on further investigation, my team found that fracking does not introduce dangerous chemicals into aquifers, then at least he’s be showing some smoothness and planning. People do accept that viewpoints evolve as more information is discovered. Although we’d be depending on his truthfulness.
But, no, like his brethren, he’s a fourth-rater. Maybe he’s a great surgeon, like Dr. Carson, but as a politician goes, he’s in thrall to the sweet flavor of political power.
And I think his opponents will use that to beat him at the polls.
