Feb. 18th, 2021 08:18 pm
The figurative mass psychos
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oakfarmEdit: I think I should have used the words "mass hysteria", not "mass psychos".
The reason I can’t stop writing about covid-19 is well, because it’s a big thing, but it is also because of the mass psychos around it. Both those things are scary, the virus and the debate.
Doctors and science journalists write that they have to stop debating the pandemic, since they get so much hate. Hate and treats that’s in a different league than the hate and treats they previously got from for example anti-vaxxers. That’s not trivial.
Is it really trivial for Andy Slavitt both to lie on Twitter and write that “the Swedish model” for pandemics is “just ignore it” and use the word "nazi" then writing about it? Ok, if you think everything beside weld people into flats and anal swabs on children is “doing nothing”, we are doing nothing. To me, on the other hand that’s the kind of lies and namecalling Trump did*. Wasn’t this administration supposed to be better? There are tons of laws and recommendations here.
The European infection control unit, ECDC, apparently now, again said that while masks have their use in hospitals the proof for public masking are weak and the effect seems to be smal. Yeah, the same thing that lots of experts have said the whole time. Now that doesn’t mean they don’t recommend it. They do recommend masks, in some situations (and absent of evidence is not evidence of absent). What I want to write related to the mass psycho is those Americans I have seen on social media who were obsessed with masks and bullied and shamed people for not wearing one. Masks is likely not the easy answer, it’s likely not the magic bullet you want it to be. (Also shaming others might make you feel better, but really? If you don’t think fat-shaming works, why should mask-shaming work?)
* What's next? Bush adminstration lies? "The british intelligence has learned that Anders Tegnell bought yellow cake uranium ..."
Now I know you can cherry pick the fact Sweden has more death than Norway and Finland. And I can cherry pick the fact that countries that were cheered for their harsh pandemic laws, like the Czech republic and Portugal, now have horrible statistics. Possible, I don’t know but possible, because something for example psychology researchers warned about, namely that humans are better at following voluntary recommendations than harsh laws. The harsh laws don't help if people don’t have the stamina to follow them. In that case it’s the prohibition lessons again, sure first the draconian laws made virus respective alcohol consumption go down, then it skyrocketed when people got tired of the laws.
In the end, no, I don’t know. The virus can still surprise us. I like the researchers that are humble enough to admit that. Instead of following the mass psychos.
The reason I can’t stop writing about covid-19 is well, because it’s a big thing, but it is also because of the mass psychos around it. Both those things are scary, the virus and the debate.
Doctors and science journalists write that they have to stop debating the pandemic, since they get so much hate. Hate and treats that’s in a different league than the hate and treats they previously got from for example anti-vaxxers. That’s not trivial.
Is it really trivial for Andy Slavitt both to lie on Twitter and write that “the Swedish model” for pandemics is “just ignore it” and use the word "nazi" then writing about it? Ok, if you think everything beside weld people into flats and anal swabs on children is “doing nothing”, we are doing nothing. To me, on the other hand that’s the kind of lies and namecalling Trump did*. Wasn’t this administration supposed to be better? There are tons of laws and recommendations here.
The European infection control unit, ECDC, apparently now, again said that while masks have their use in hospitals the proof for public masking are weak and the effect seems to be smal. Yeah, the same thing that lots of experts have said the whole time. Now that doesn’t mean they don’t recommend it. They do recommend masks, in some situations (and absent of evidence is not evidence of absent). What I want to write related to the mass psycho is those Americans I have seen on social media who were obsessed with masks and bullied and shamed people for not wearing one. Masks is likely not the easy answer, it’s likely not the magic bullet you want it to be. (Also shaming others might make you feel better, but really? If you don’t think fat-shaming works, why should mask-shaming work?)
* What's next? Bush adminstration lies? "The british intelligence has learned that Anders Tegnell bought yellow cake uranium ..."
Now I know you can cherry pick the fact Sweden has more death than Norway and Finland. And I can cherry pick the fact that countries that were cheered for their harsh pandemic laws, like the Czech republic and Portugal, now have horrible statistics. Possible, I don’t know but possible, because something for example psychology researchers warned about, namely that humans are better at following voluntary recommendations than harsh laws. The harsh laws don't help if people don’t have the stamina to follow them. In that case it’s the prohibition lessons again, sure first the draconian laws made virus respective alcohol consumption go down, then it skyrocketed when people got tired of the laws.
In the end, no, I don’t know. The virus can still surprise us. I like the researchers that are humble enough to admit that. Instead of following the mass psychos.