“Ignorance killed the cat; curiosity was framed.”
“A little knowledge may be a dangerous thing, but ignorance is fatal.”
What’s up, SA? I could stop commenting on the science of SARS-CoV-2, but doing so wouldn’t stop Duck, nothinuptop or Paul Barbara etc. The corporate media’s treatment of scientific matter is appalling; by treating science as almost entirely a matter of authority, “my expert versus your expert”, “journalistic balance”, it has confused and disempowered the public, alienating us from science, discouraged us from assessment of evidence, until a large minority has ended up thinking it’s all incomprehensible, and could be a vast conspiracy. I hope and try to reverse that a little bit.
If you disagree with any of my interpretations of papers cited here, post your disagreement, we can discuss it and readers can decide for themselves. I readily admit to taking the side of caution with this very new and apparently very unusual virus.
I live in south east England where the new variant is spreading; near Chelmsford actually, where infection numbers are going through the roof. I imposed lockdown behaviour to my own life as soon as I found out yesterday, before Hancock or Whitty had said anything – I consider that to be my social responsibility. I have been warning my friends. In this, as in the climate and ecological crisis, the government has broken and continues to break the social contract. The government lacks legitimacy to govern, for it serves money over and above the people, and so we the public owe it no allegiance.
I do not intend to “leave the virology to the scientists”, no more than I’ll let Duck post conspiracy theory unopposed. I have already stated my position that we all do science every day, when we shake the sugar tin, or when we flip a light switch to find out whether it’s a power cut that’s preventing the computer from starting. Equally I oppose insulating the public from the dangers we face. Authority can never be trusted, and never should be trusted; therefore it must be scrutinised, and that requires learning enough to do so.
So what’s up, eh?
