Apr 4, 2020 07:44 PM
(This post was last modified: Apr 4, 2020 09:41 PM by C C.)
https://theness.com/neurologicablog/inde...-pandemic/
EXCERPT -heavily edited for brevity, experimentally without the usual ellipsis indicators- (Steven Novella): . . . Today, through science we understand exactly what is going on. It is still a challenge, because the pandemic is moving quickly, but all we really have to do collectively is not panic and listen to our own experts. But of course, it’s never that simple. Some people will find a way to screw it up, because humanity is a complex mixture of motivations, biases, and emotions.
Most of the nonsense gets filed under people using the crisis to promote their own ideology. We all see the world through our own ideological lens (just as I am viewing this pandemic through a scientific and skeptical lens). Examples of ideological mischief are replicating as fast as the virus.
Ethiopia just announced that their traditional healers have found a traditional medicine that is effective against the virus. Unfortunately, they did not share any scientific details. It seems like grandstanding, to promote their own traditional culture, rather than the best science. I suspect this will go as well as those African countries that decided to rely on traditional treatments for HIV, resulting in the worst AIDS epidemic in the world.
It also seems that every alternative medicine guru is pushing their own brand of snake oil for COVID-19. They are exploiting fear to sell miracle cures. Many chiropractors falsely claim that chiropractic can help protect against COVID-19. Demand for acupuncture for the same reason is also surging. [There is false] homeopathic treatment of patients with COVID-19. Homeopathy is magic water with demonstrated zero efficacy.
We even need to be cautious about more plausible treatment. Trump famously tweeted, ““HYDROXYCHLOROQUINE & AZITHROMYCIN, taken together, have a real chance to be one of the biggest game changers in the history of medicine.” Even taking into consideration Trump’s propensity for hyperbole, this was a bit much. Hydroxychloroquine, for example, is used to treat serious autoimmune diseases, and now some patients who are dependent on it are finding it hard to get their medicine because it is being diverted unnecessarily in the hope of preventing COVID-19.
Meanwhile, cooler heads (i.e., the experts) have advised caution. At the extreme end of the spectrum are the conspiracy theorists and political extremists. Rush Limbaugh, for example, is telling his listeners not to listen to the experts because they are part of the “deep state.” It is just the latest manifestation of the entire war against expertise. This is part of the price we pay – demonizing the elite, experts, the “deep state” in order to score short-term political points is a risky strategy. The COVID-19 pandemic is revealing just how pernicious this is. It turns out, we need a deep state of career professionals for emergencies just like this... (MORE - details)
This seems to be the video that's exhibited in the image.
https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/-PjGPhliaOQ
EXCERPT -heavily edited for brevity, experimentally without the usual ellipsis indicators- (Steven Novella): . . . Today, through science we understand exactly what is going on. It is still a challenge, because the pandemic is moving quickly, but all we really have to do collectively is not panic and listen to our own experts. But of course, it’s never that simple. Some people will find a way to screw it up, because humanity is a complex mixture of motivations, biases, and emotions.
Most of the nonsense gets filed under people using the crisis to promote their own ideology. We all see the world through our own ideological lens (just as I am viewing this pandemic through a scientific and skeptical lens). Examples of ideological mischief are replicating as fast as the virus.
Ethiopia just announced that their traditional healers have found a traditional medicine that is effective against the virus. Unfortunately, they did not share any scientific details. It seems like grandstanding, to promote their own traditional culture, rather than the best science. I suspect this will go as well as those African countries that decided to rely on traditional treatments for HIV, resulting in the worst AIDS epidemic in the world.
It also seems that every alternative medicine guru is pushing their own brand of snake oil for COVID-19. They are exploiting fear to sell miracle cures. Many chiropractors falsely claim that chiropractic can help protect against COVID-19. Demand for acupuncture for the same reason is also surging. [There is false] homeopathic treatment of patients with COVID-19. Homeopathy is magic water with demonstrated zero efficacy.
We even need to be cautious about more plausible treatment. Trump famously tweeted, ““HYDROXYCHLOROQUINE & AZITHROMYCIN, taken together, have a real chance to be one of the biggest game changers in the history of medicine.” Even taking into consideration Trump’s propensity for hyperbole, this was a bit much. Hydroxychloroquine, for example, is used to treat serious autoimmune diseases, and now some patients who are dependent on it are finding it hard to get their medicine because it is being diverted unnecessarily in the hope of preventing COVID-19.
Meanwhile, cooler heads (i.e., the experts) have advised caution. At the extreme end of the spectrum are the conspiracy theorists and political extremists. Rush Limbaugh, for example, is telling his listeners not to listen to the experts because they are part of the “deep state.” It is just the latest manifestation of the entire war against expertise. This is part of the price we pay – demonizing the elite, experts, the “deep state” in order to score short-term political points is a risky strategy. The COVID-19 pandemic is revealing just how pernicious this is. It turns out, we need a deep state of career professionals for emergencies just like this... (MORE - details)
This seems to be the video that's exhibited in the image.
