German communist philosopher Karl Marx (1818-1883) would have turned 200 earlier this month. More than a decade ago, Marx was posthumously ‘diagnosed’ with hidradenitis suppurativa (HS), a skin disease consisting of “’furuncles, boils and carbuncles’”. Historical research by British dermatologist Sam Shuster revealed that Marx complained about them developing on his “posterior and near the penis”. Well, let’s not dig too deep into the hypothesis that this illness may have influenced Marx’s scholarly works and political thinking. Like it or not, Marx continues to be an inspiration for economists, sociologists, philosophers, political scientists and historians. Nowadays, with junk science being … Continue reading →