Fallon, Nevada
December 18, 2022
Mister Jenkins' column yesterday was about Musk, Fauci and the next pandemic. (Why do people call Musk "Elon" and not Fauci "Tony?")
My initial comment was that Mister Jenkins had failed to blame the president for the government's response given it is he who represents the entire Federal government. That was met with "Trump did everything right" comments to which I responded "disinfectant." (Me being of the insane belief that to prove an "all" statement false you just need to cite one example of the negative).
Folks jumped on me with the comments around "masks, 6 feet and vaccines" and that Operation Warpspeed had resulted in the vaccines. (I note that those two responses are internally inconsistent.)
I then commented on a comment that stated as a definitive that "Fauci" had funded research in Wuhan that had resulted in both the virus and the release from that lab. We don't KNOW whether the virus originated in the lab or in the wet market. Saying we do know is just plain wrong. My comment was a bit sarcastic as I wrote "I did not know that scientists had definitely concluded that the virus originated in the lab" with a link to an October 2022 Science article about how a certain group of scientists research had indicated a high probability that it originate in the wet market.
His glib response was "Now you know."
Ok, so I spent a few minutes fuming that the entire world did not find my every word to be truthful and convincing.
Once I got over that immature response, I realized that in fact I had just learned a valuable lesson -- as they used to say about Kellogg's Sugar Frosted Corn Flakes - "... again for the first time." Our biases affect the "facts" we KNOW to be true. I chose the word "KNOW" instead of "believe" because I really do think it is more than belief.
I hate the term "alternative facts." But indeed that is the world we are in and I believe is the word that will contribute -- is contributing - to our decline. Along with social media (re: Frank Luntz).
My truck thermometer reads 27 degrees. I am to believe someone who says the temperature outside is 50 degrees?
My real takeaway is twofold. I'm proud of how I found the words to express myself succinctly and accurately. And instead of responding with frustration, I will respond with curiosity in the future. Even when I know I'm right!! 🤪🤪🤪🤪🤪🤪🤪
lots to digest with this topic. there are a number of reputable scientists who believe the virus, because of how it has mutated over time, most likely originated in a lab. one of the follow on hypothesis was it could have been brought to a wet market from someone who worked at the lab. sometimes finding a possibility that can explain both hypotheses is a better avenue to approach.
if a president is responsible for the federal government, then those governmental bureaucrats leading individual agencies are also responsible for those actions undertaken by the agency - ie Fauci. Fauci's inability to provide a consistent message during the entire course of the pandemic will be his legacy - either he wa…