Shot in the Dark

Blinding Science

The worst part of this pandemic may be how “science” has been turned from a system for analyzing what we don’t know, into a weapon to logroll people into line behind a conclusion.

It’s not just Karens karen-ing, or @NPRNews claiming there’s a “Team Science”, a consistant, constant body of knowledge and its high priests standing united against the uninformed peasants attacking the metaphorical observatory with pitchforks and torches. That’s bad – but it’s been a problem for a while, now.

Scientists are now adopting social media tactics, and “influencing” “followers” to “cancel” scientists they disagree with.

People are turning science into Scientism – a pseudo-religious, faith-based mass of dogmas combining the worst aspects of revival religion and social media herd mentality.

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Mitch Berg

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44 responses to “Blinding Science”

  1. Night Writer Avatar
    Night Writer

    That’s how the eugenicists ended up having sway.

  2. bosshoss429 Avatar
    bosshoss429

    Yea, funny that you mentioned that, Night.

    Mr. Population Control through vaccines, Bill Gates, is all in on forced vaccinations. His kids, reportedly, have never been vaccinated. Further, many of the Silicon Valley elites, also shun them.

  3. Joe Doakes Avatar
    Joe Doakes

    Another blogger proposed a similar idea a few years back:

    “It is always necessary – it is absolutely vital – to carefully distinguish between scientody, or the scientific method, and scientistry, which is the scientific profession. The evils described in [a magazine article] are not indicative of any problems with scientody, they are the consequence of the inevitable and intrinsic flaws with scientistry.

    “To simply call everything “science” is to be misleading, often, but not always, in innocence. Science has no authority, and increasingly, it is an intentional and deceitful bait-and-switch, in which the overly credulous are led to believe that because an individual with certain credentials is asserting something, that statement is supported by documentary evidence gathered through the scientific method of hypothesis, experiment, and successful replication.

    “In most – not many, but most – cases, that is simply not the case. Even if you don’t use these neologisms to describe the three aspects of science, you must learn to distinguish between them or you will repeatedly fall for this intentional bait-and-switch. In order of reliability, the three aspects of science are:

    Scientody: the process
    Scientage: the knowledge base
    Scientistry: the profession

    “We might also coin a new term, sciensophy, as practiced by sciensophists, which is most definitely not an aspect of science, to describe the pseudoscience of “the social sciences”, as they do not involve any scientody and their additions to scientage have proven to be generally unreliable. Economics, nutrition, and medicine all tend to fall into this category.”

  4. A Sordid History of Scientific Consensus | Things to Remember, Things to Cherish

    […] Vox Day from whom I stole the title. I actually already blogged this, but I was reminded just today of just how perspicacious it was – well, still is. And this time around, it applies to […]

  5. justplainangry Avatar
    justplainangry

    SImply put, science is being turned into a study.

  6. Maximum Overlord Avatar
    Maximum Overlord

    What makes science different from other kinds of knowledge is its repeatability. That is the goal. That makes scientific knowledge a sum of previous knowledge, it increases over time (unlike revelatory knowledge).
    Identity politics strikes at the heart of science because it is not accumulative, it is makes science revelatory. Your experience determines the “truth” of a scientific statement.
    With science in the hands of politics, scientific statements are not statements about the natural world, they are statements about power.
    This is what you see when you see scientists claiming that there is no biological difference between men and women.

  7. Emery Incognito Avatar
    Emery Incognito

    I suspect Stanford University is not pleased that one of their faculty Dr. Scott W. Altas was gaining national attention for spouting non-science.

    The only way to get ahead of the epidemic is to rely on real science and scientists.

  8. Maximum Overlord Avatar
    Maximum Overlord

    The only way to get ahead of the epidemic is to rely on real science and scientists.
    A platitude, and a nonsensical one at that. The terms are purposely undefined and undefinable.

  9. Emery Incognito Avatar
    Emery Incognito

    So says the resident armchair Neurologist-Epidemiologist…

    So for the herd immunity crowd, let me ask this… What is the upper limit on the fatality rate of a communicable disease where you all would decide this is not the good route to go down?

    I would argue that philosophically proponents of herd immunity need to be able to answer this question before spouting these theories.

  10. Maximum Overlord Avatar
    Maximum Overlord

    A good example of the perversion of both history and science is the popular depiction of the Scopes Monkey Trial (1925).
    You have to dig deeply to unearth the fact that the trial was about who and whom regarding public education policy, not science, and then dig even deeper to discover that the supporters of Darrow and the ACLU in the trial were prominent racial eugenicists.

  11. Mitch Berg Avatar
    Mitch Berg

    EI,

    There’s no rational answer to that until we know the alternative.

    How many people will die from the economic dislocation caused by open-ended quarantine? That includes deaths from:

    • Suicide
    • Diseases untreated, undiagnosed, or diagnosed too late while hospitals and clinics are in arbitrary panic mode
    • Accelerated addiction and overdoses
    • Stress ailments (which also go untreated)
    • Deaths from higher crime
    • Deaths from social dislocation, especially for the elderly, cooped up in nursing homes without any contact with family (technically a stress ailment, but deserving special attention

    Get back to us when you can have that discussion.

  12. golfdoc50 Avatar
    golfdoc50

    Mitch, looks like you have been following the excellent analysis of Kevin Roche ( see the blog Healthy Skeptic). I would add that a lot of the news coverage of Covid has been of the type “it’s so unfair that my relative died/is gravely ill from Covid. He/she did nothing to deserve it.” If all our choices boiled down to absolutely minimizing every risk: there would be no automobiles capable of traveling faster than 10 mph, no airplanes, no electricity, no one allowed on boats, etc, etc. What has been missing from the discussion are grownups willing to say: “Covid is an illness that is very dangerous for a small percent of the population. We will take steps to protect them short of wrecking the economy, schools, health care and mental health care access, because we can predict the unintended consequences of stringent lockdowns are exactly those bad things, difficult as they may be to put on a “dashboard” of “metrics.”

  13. Emery Incognito Avatar
    Emery Incognito

    👆The coronavirus is biological, but its destructive capacity was exacerbated by failed leadership. In all fairness, the United States joins China, Italy, Spain and other nations whose highest authorities did not manage the outbreak when it still would have been containable.

    In the case of Trump, his insistence that all his political challenges can be managed with PR and prioritizing his election campaign instead of public health led us right to this moment.

    The pandemic’s numbers belied his flippant attitude. Covid19 does not respond to his tweets. The virus is no less determined to spread itself than he is to have high economic markers.

    If only our entire country had heard the warnings from day one. If only we had been sequestered at the incipience. If only the availability of good diagnostics had been the priority, rather than talking points about them. If only the struggle against the outbreak had been prioritized over political squabbling. Thousands of lives would have been saved, our healthcare workers would not be stretched to the breaking point, and we would have more promise today of a normal life tomorrow.

  14. Emery Incognito Avatar
    Emery Incognito

    The United States reported 3,309 coronavirus deaths on Friday, the highest number of new deaths in a single day since the pandemic began. ~ WSJ

  15. Emery Incognito Avatar
    Emery Incognito

    As a matter of fact — Trump’s as good at litigating as he is at fighting a pandemic.

  16. kinlaw Avatar
    kinlaw

    Over/under on how many days after the inauguration the lamestream mediots will wait until the story is “the tide has turned!” ?

    I say they will wait 10 days, just so in their tiny brains they will think they look somewhat objective.

  17. Maximum Overlord Avatar
    Maximum Overlord

    The problem with the political response to the pandemics has been at the gubernatorial level.
    Over and over, we’ve seen governors take actions that they and we know would incur massive economic damage and a huge toll in human lives to save an unknown number of people. They defaulted to crashing the economy and killing people because they knew that they would be blamed for the immediate deaths to covid, but not the crashed economy or the known, very high human costs of their orders.
    A profile in courage it is not.
    Normally the governors actions would be tempered by legislators and the press, but not this time, pal. Governors have bypassed their state legislatures and the press is compliant because they support the Democrat party.

  18. Maximum Overlord Avatar
    Maximum Overlord

    How many lives would be saved if the governors closed bars and restaurants permanently? Why close the bars and restaurants to save lives lost to covid, but not close bars and restaurants to save lives lost to alcoholism, drunk drivers, etc.? Most restaurant food is not good for you, it is laden with fat, salt, and carbohydrates.
    It’s a moot point anyhow. If you listen closely to the words of Walz & other lockdown governors, the goal is to avoid stressing the health care system, lives saved has nothing to do with it.

  19. Maximum Overlord Avatar
    Maximum Overlord

    Seriously people- STOP BUYING MASKS!

    They are NOT effective in preventing general public from catching #Coronavirus, but if healthcare providers can’t get them to care for sick patients, it puts them and our communities at risk!
    https://t.co/UxZRwxxKL9
    — U.S. Surgeon General (@Surgeon_General) February 29, 2020

  20. Mitch Berg Avatar
    Mitch Berg

    EI,

    I asked you a question.

  21. Emery Incognito Avatar
    Emery Incognito

    Is there a Doctor in the house.. no just Woolly.
    Apparently science has left you behind…

    COVID-19 How much protection do face masks offer.
    “Can face masks help slow the spread of the coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) that causes COVID-19? Yes, face masks combined with other preventive measures, such as frequent hand-washing and social distancing, help slow the spread of the virus.

    So why weren’t face masks recommended at the start of the pandemic? At that time, experts didn’t know the extent to which people with COVID-19 could spread the virus before symptoms appeared. Nor was it known that some people have COVID-19 but don’t have any symptoms. Both groups can unknowingly spread the virus to others.

    These discoveries led public health groups to do an about-face on face masks. The World Health Organization and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) now include face masks in their recommendations for slowing the spread of the virus. The CDC recommends cloth face masks for the public and not the surgical and N95 masks needed by health care providers.” Mayo Clinic
    https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/coronavirus/in-depth/coronavirus-mask/art-20485449

  22. justplainangry Avatar
    justplainangry

    Mitch, now you know what it is like being ignored. By a trollbot no less!

  23. Maximum Overlord Avatar
    Maximum Overlord

    Emery is mistaking himself for a person who is able to rationally consider evidence, again.
    What a moron.
    Read this sentence and note the qualifiers: “Yes, face masks combined with other preventive measures, such as frequent hand-washing and social distancing, help slow the spread of the virus.”
    Now substitute the words “face masks” with “frequent masturbation.”

  24. Maximum Overlord Avatar
    Maximum Overlord

    From the article Emery links to:
    At this time, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has not approved any type of surgical mask specifically for protection against the coronavirus, but these masks may provide some protection when N95 masks are not available.
    See that word “may”? That is what is called a “qualifier.” It means the same thing as “may not.”
    These people are pitiful.

  25. Emery Incognito Avatar
    Emery Incognito

    @ MBerg: I think it’s the economic consequences of the shutdown that history will remember, not the death toll. But in the immediate term it’s the latter that is the greater human tragedy and political liability.

    For me it’s been the double-whammy of two existential threats: the virus (which threatens our lives), and this administration (which threatens our republic). Trump finally got into a situation that he couldn’t lie himself out of. This is serious business and should have been treated that way from the beginning.

    @ Pseudo Dr Woolly: No, the right things are objective. Wear a mask when out, socially distance, wash your hands often, and limit travel. Nothing subjective about it, unless subjecting others to increased risk is for some reason acceptable rather than perverse.

  26. Maximum Overlord Avatar
    Maximum Overlord

    Nothing subjective about it, unless subjecting others to increased risk is for some reason acceptable rather than perverse.
    This is assinine.
    I subject others to more more risk than various lockdown-breaking governors have done.
    Whine to them, not to me.

  27. Emery Incognito Avatar
    Emery Incognito

    Pseudo Dr Woolly: John Hopkins or Pseudo Dr Woolly… Mayo Clinic or Pseudo Dr Woolly.. NIH or Pseudo Dr Woolly… CDC or Pseudo Dr Woolly… American College of Cardiology or Pseudo Dr Woolly….

    There is NO medical organization that supports you. Period.

    Get back to me when you earn real credentials….

  28. Maximum Overlord Avatar
    Maximum Overlord

    Emery now claims that I am some kind of “pseudo doctor,” lol.

  29. Joe Doakes Avatar
    Joe Doakes

    Demand for medical credentials is an Appeal to Authority, a logical fallacy that neither proves nor disproves the point under discussion. There are plenty of people with medical credentials who dispute the prevailing othodoxy; see, for instance, the signers of the Great Barrington Declaration, as well as Doctors For Truth, America’s Frontline Doctors, and our own Dr. Scott Jensen, a medical doctor and state senator. Cherry-picking one set of credentialed advocates over another set does not guarantee the truth, it only avoids a full and honest discussion of the underlying issues.

    Studies claiming masks may provide protection are one form of research, limited in application to the number of participants, type of masks, specific virus. A far better method of determining mask effectiveness for the Covid virus in the United States is looking at real-world data which shows viral spreading unaffected by hand washing, elbow bumping, social distancing, bar closures or mask mandates. Whether or not studies say masks Should work, the fact is they Don’t work.

    Refusal to weight costs against benefits is fanaticism, never a good basis for public policy. Epidemiologists demand total shutdown, economists demand an end to restrictions, Democrats demand voting by mail, every special interest group pushing its own agenda. Statesmanship lies in navigating the best course for the most people which necessarily includes a less-than-optimum result for some people, the unavoidable result of living in the real world instead of the Ivory
    Tower.

    The word “existential” means “existence.” An existential threat to the nation is one that threatens the continued existence of the nation, such as invasion by a conquering foreign power. Thus far, even using the phony numbers which count all deaths from respiratory illness as Covid deaths, Covid has killed less than one-tenth of one percent of Americans. Rounded to the nearest whole number: ZERO percent. A virus that kills zero percent of the population is not a threat to the continued existence of the nation.

    It’s been nearly a year since the panic began and the worshipers of the Cult of Covid have nothing new to offer, just the same exaggerated prophesies of doom that have been proven false time and again. We should treat them the same as the shaggy man on the street corner holding the sign: “Repent, The End Is Near,” with compassion for their mental problems, not compliance with their demands.

  30. Emery Incognito Avatar
    Emery Incognito

    Both Woolly and JD remain incredibly consistent in their abject stupidity.

    It is beyond troubling that so many people conflate unfettered disease spread with “freedom”. Pandemic experts will tell you what should be patently obvious, namely, that hubris and ignorance are an outbreak’s best friend.

  31. Maximum Overlord Avatar
    Maximum Overlord

    “It is beyond troubling that so many people conflate unfettered disease spread with ‘freedom’.”
    Look in the frikkin’ mirror, pal.
    No one does this, other than the people who insist on mandated face coverings, social distancing, and business closures.
    To them, your freedom to choose is the cause of unfettered disease spread.

  32. Maximum Overlord Avatar
    Maximum Overlord

    From Tablet mag: “Why Did So Many Doctors Become Nazis?: In the answer, and its consequences, a bioethicist finds moral lessons for today’s professional healer”
    https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/history/articles/fernandes-doctors-who-became-nazis
    From the article: “The physicians who actively aided the Holocaust believed that they were practicing ‘good science.’”

    Long answer made short: the Nazi’s, by passing certain laws, corrupted the role of doctors. Rather than look after the health & well being of their individual patients, they were, by law, required to considered the health of the German People when treating each patient or performing state-mandated medical duties, such as euthanizing disabled children.

  33. Joe Doakes Avatar
    Joe Doakes

    Stupidity, hubris, ignorance . . . wow, that sounds bad. I guess I’d better shut up about freedom and get back to work.

    After all, Work Shall Set Me Free, right?

  34. Joe Doakes Avatar
    Joe Doakes

    It does surprise me, though, that in more than 200 years since the Revolutionary War and more than 100 years since the War of Northern Aggression, no governor has thought to exercise the power to save lives from disease by unilaterally imposing state-wide house arrest of every resident except sick people, who are exempt from the executive order so they can seek medical treatment. Epidemic treatment in every other instance in history has been the other way around – quarantine the sick, liberate the healthy.

    Not only that, the arresting governors acted simultaneously, and along party lines, in an election year, over a virus that so far has killed ZERO percent of Americans. It’s enough to make a person wonder if there might have been an ulterior motive.

    Add to that the video evidence of cardboard over the windows of counting rooms and suitcases pulled from under tables, and bookies setting the odds at one-in-a- quardillion, and major censorship of dissent . . . [! THIS CLAIM ABOUT ELECTION FRAUD IS DISPUTED! ] . . . and it’s all enought to make a person wonder.

  35. Pete Strunk Avatar
    Pete Strunk

    The weaponizing of science, and the attending creation of the Sciencism© cult started with The Ozone Hole™ in the late 80’s. It caused quite an uproar until Science™ discovered it was simply the chemicals we were using to cool our homes and vehicles. Once we banned Chlorofluorocarbons, the Hole closed up….but then it came back again, and then disappeared once more. Today, the Scientific Consensus™ is it’s a seasonal deal; comes and goes, nothing to worry about. They’ve milked it for all the value contained in it and have moved on.

    Then we had Global Warming™, except wait… it was Global Cooling™, before morphing into the insidious Global Climate Change© which will kill us all unless everyone not wealthy enough or politically connected to the Degenerate party adopts the living conditions of third world shit holes.

    The cult of Sciencism© has created several other sacraments in the past few decades, but nothing has had the success of the Bat Flu pandemic in shutting society down under the boot heels of a fore mentioned wealthy and Degenerate connected, and killing off the remaining vestiges of credibility within the ranks of genuine science practitioners; including physicians.

    I don’t dislike people who wear a Depends on their face, I find them amusing; especially the dimwits that wear it under their noses or support their favorite sportsball team with custom cloth maskies ($19.95 Get Yours Today!). Some are wearing it out of spite, some are just advertising their stupidity, but the many are simply overwhelmed with the torrent of lies that they’ve been hosed down with the last 9 months. Sorting out fact from lies is exhausting in the current year, and most people just don’t have the time.

    Finally, in closing I’d be remiss not to mention that any ultra deadly viral pandemic you have to convince, cajole and threaten people with IQ’s higher than room temperature to acknowledge is not a pandemic; it’s bullshit.

  36. Pete Strunk Avatar
    Pete Strunk

    Studies claiming masks may provide protection are one form of research…

    There is not one controlled, peer reviewed study that concludes wearing a diaper on your face does anything to control the spread of a virus as small as Covid. Not. One. Every report, including the CDC’s are full of “may”; “might”; “could”.

    Hey, there could be an invading armada from another galaxy headed towards Earth, too. They might show up at any time, and may do that nasty probe deal on us…better stock up on asswipe.

    You may say “Hey, if it’s Science, why hasn’t any scientist studied it scientifically? If it can be proven, and the proof is reproducible by anyone with the education to do it, people will believe it.”

    Well, first of all someone has probably done a study, but the results didn’t support the narrative, so it will never see the light of day (on pain of loss of license). Secondly, as this colossal theft of Democracy the Degenerates are calling an election proved, they don’t have to show you no steenking badges. Just obey or pay with your physical freedom and treasure.

  37. Pete Strunk Avatar
    Pete Strunk

    Cheese Whiz troll asked:

    What is the upper limit on the fatality rate of a communicable disease where you all would decide this is not the good route to go down?

    Well nitwit, speaking for myself as long as the death toll from the deadly bat flu, real and created, continues to effect only those living in leftist controlled cities, sky’s the limit.

  38. bikebubba Avatar
    bikebubba

    It should be noted here that “scientism” is pretty old. Not just the Koch incident with cholera, but you also had a number of eminent biologists pretty much expelled from the profession in the early days of the theory of evolution. Closer to home for me, I’ve seen a fair amount of government incursion into engineering and even physics, which does not bode well for either set of professions.

    Kudos as well to Emery for exemplifying the regrettable trend of “scientism” by rather mindlessly taking one side and throwing personal attacks at those who disagree. We’ll ignore the fact that the CDC first recommended (wrongly IMO) against face masks and then changed their minds, and we’ll ignore the fact that the WHO has come out both for and against lockdowns. Obviously they’re always right, even when they couldn’t have possibly been because of the principle of non-contradiction.

    My take is that with a new disease, you’re going to make a few mistakes, and hence “hardening” around a single narrative is about the most dangerous thing that you can do. And that is, regrettably, what’s been done. Another example is that apparently New York is keeping COVID survivors in hospitals for months because virus fragments apparently don’t clear until long after the patient has healed. Looking for antigens apparently is beyond the ability of our public health officials.

  39. Night Writer Avatar
    Night Writer

    Ah, the Nazis. Always refreshing to go back and review history even though it’s a prosaic hobby with no relevance today. One often hears the question about how a Christian nation such as Germany could have perpetrated the Holocaust. Well, because one of the first things Hitler did was establish himself as the Head of the Church. Any bishop not kowtowing to the Nazi line was removed from office. Clergy members were denied licenses to preach (yes, you needed a license from the government) if they didn’t pledge fealty to the Nazi Party doctrines over Church doctrine. No license? No job. No job? No income.

    Bonhoeffer and the members of the Confessing Church (those who confessed Christ, not Hitler) were harried and suppressed by violence and regulation; ultimately their seminary was a group of tents in the Prussian forest. The day after Hitler became Chancellor, Bonhoeffer went on national radio to oppose the godless doctrines of the National Socialists. His broadcast was cut off in the middle, either by the government, or a radio executive fearful of bringing the wrath of the Nazis down on himself.

    Thank goodness this could never happen again thanks to our vigilant Church and Media (though if you’re a pastor with a mainline denomination who won’t perform a gay wedding, you risk your pension).

    Any appeal to authority must first acknowledge who is claiming that Authority, and proceed accordingly, even though it is not without risk.

    Everybody Knows, but No One Can Say.

  40. Pete Strunk Avatar
    Pete Strunk

    The Daily Covid-19 update banners being posted by every fake “news” paper in the country reminds me of the Daily Lotto Numbers NY Post feature.

    One *exactly and precisely* as reliable as the other.

  41. Emery Incognito Avatar
    Emery Incognito

    👆These people are so disconnected from reality the easiest way out is to start a news network covering news from am alternative world where Trump remains president after Jesus is seen walking around the White House. They get to watch the news they want and the rest of us get a break.

  42. Joe Doakes Avatar
    Joe Doakes

    Thread jack.

  43. Emery Incognito Avatar
    Emery Incognito

    👆Don’t you fret JD! Once Trump’s attempted anti-election coup exhausts itself, the pro-Trump world will shift its attention to all-Hunter-Biden-all-the-time coverage. Good times ahead….

  44. Maximum Overlord Avatar
    Maximum Overlord

    Threadjack.

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