The problem that everyone seems to be missing in the fury around Dr. Ben Carson's Mannatech scandal is pretty simple.
Dr. Carson is either a liar, a fool, or a mercenary. The only problem is, which is worse?
For a moment let's put aside the notion that Dr. Carson might be simply crazy. The descriptor doesn't add much to the conversation because it reduces the potential threat that Dr. Carson represents: he's the front-runner of the GOP clown-car. We might actually end up with a Dr. Carson as the nominee for the Republican Party.
Let's consider what that means for a moment in light of what we know of his dealings with Mannatech. Mannatech deliberately sold their concoction as a dietary supplement that would cure cancer, autism and a host of other maladies. Not a treatment, but a cure. Mannatech did settle a civil suit for fraud in the amount of $750,000. The suit in question regarded a child with Tay-Sachs who had died shortly after taking the product 1997. Mannatech continued to aggressively market their product as a cure for Tay-Sachs until the settlement of the suit in 2004.
It's important to note that Ben Carson spoke at length to promote Mannatech products in 2004, after Mannatech was widely known as a multi-level marketing scam, and a fake cure for at the very least Tay-Sachs.
Mannatech also, in fact, agree to pay a 6 million dollar settlement in a suit brought by the Texas Attorney General. The founder, and CEO, paid an additional 1 million in a civil suit. Abbot, the Texas Attorney General, specifically referred to the CEO, Caster, as recidivist.
It is fair to say that during the hour and 20 minute talk Dr. Carson does say that he does not promote abandoning traditional medicine. He also alludes that Mannatech's products CURED his prostate cancer.
Let's consider this for a moment. Mannatech hired Dr. Carson through a speaker service for 4 separate speeches, the last of which he was paid $42,000 for. Are we to believe that Mannatech, at no time, desired a Neurosugeon who had prostate cancer and claimed their product cured him because he was a Neurosurgeon and not just some random dickhead? Am I to believe that Mannatech would have paid him to speak without his M.D. credentials, leaving aside, for the moment, that he claimed he was cured by their product? Their intro to the enclosed video says otherwise as they proclaim loudly Dr. Carson's credentials.
At this point we have to concede that either Dr. Carson is a liar, who never took the Mannatech product, or does not believe he was cured by the Mannatech product, or is simply either stupid or so mercenary that he should have faced an ethics charge immediately upon return to Johns Hopkins.
So, liar, idiot or mercenary, which is it? Is any of these less troublesome considering that this man is running for the highest office? Mercenary? Liar? Fool? The choices, considering the stakes, all disqualify.
Edited: to reflect the changes from glioblastoma to prostate cancer. I had unfortunately misunderstood Dr. Carson in his talk as I was only half-listening to him drone on during the video he did for Mannatech. My fault.