Rath vs. Goldacre

Good news! Matthias Rath, the deeply irresponsible peddler of quack remedies who conducted illegal medical trials in South Africa, has dropped his libel suit against the wonderful Ben Goldacre and the Guardian newspaper. Hearteningly, he was even required to pay the Guardian's legal fees! Goldacre says he will now write a book about Rath and his activities, certainly a good thing given all the damage Rath has done. An important paragraph from Goldacre's piece:

I trust that this episode will act as a very strong cautionary note to the more vicious UK figures from the very corporate $50bn food supplement industry some of whom have used bullying, smears, and legal threats in their desperate bid to prevent people from examining their ideas: this goes to the very top of the industry, you should know by now that it will not work, and unless you change tack rapidly, some of you will have some very interesting surprises to come. Play nicely now, they’re only ideas.

Also have a look at the Guardian's story on its legal tusstle with Rath - I especially recommend having a look at the video.