" 
 ==""Crackpot"" is a term of abuse == 
 Let us be clear that in the scientific world ""crackpot"" is a term of abuse. It has the same force as when in the political world Senator Joe McCarthy called people ""Communist"", ""Fellow Traveller"", ""Red"" etc. Or when the Nazis and the Islamofascists use ""Zionist"" etc., or when the Ku Klux Klan use ""nigger"", ""kike"" etc. So let's be clear about that. There are pseudo-scientists of course, but if one professional accuses another of being so and then hides behind anonymity and refuses to justify vague smears with details presented in a professional way, then that person is guilty of a severe breach of ethics at the very least."