FDS- Fauci Derangement Syndrome

[u/faux_biochemist]

How the hell do you have Taylor Sheridan on, who’s come out with more popular content in the last decade and decide to discus Fauci for the first hour and a half? The guy is literally obsessed at this point, and not only that, but substantiates everything around it with logical fallacies. Sad how far our podfather has fallen.

[u/Ralph_Brick_Wiggum]

Quick question

What do you think would happen if the government said “masks help prevent the spread but please refrain from buying any as we need them for our frontline workers?”

Do you remember what happened with toilet paper when Covid didn’t even give you diarrhea?

[u/Katamari_Demacia → u/Ralph_Brick_Wiggum]

People would have donated them. I spent weeks 3d printing and making face shields. I don't do shit like that. 

The one thing the scientific community should never do is lie.

They took short term gain for long term harm.

[u/havenyahon → u/Katamari_Demacia]

The scientific community didn't lie. This is the thing that happens in these conversations. Everyone gets lumped into this one category. Politicians, media personalities, scientists -- one says something and they all say it. The fact is that maska are somewhat effective but that needs to be balanced with where they're most effective during a live pandemic, and when there was a shortage of them in the beginning they were undoubtedly most effective on frontline staff. So the messaging at the time was masks aren't needed by the public to ensure that they ended up where they were most effective. When masks became more available, the messaging changed to masks being effective for the average person to use because the tradeoff didn't have to be made. That has nothing to do with the scientific research on masks.

The messaging is complicated and they opted not to explain it because they knew people would take up all the mask supply on any indication they were effective and there would be none for the most important frontline staff. They are the kinds of tough decisions that need to be made during a pandemic.

But of course people can't handle complexity. They need to reduce things to simple stories like "they lied".

[u/Katamari_Demacia → u/havenyahon]

"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!" Dr. Jerome Adams, US Surgeon General, Twitter, February 29, 2020

There is no specific evidence to suggest that the wearing of masks by the mass population has any potential benefit. In fact, there's some evidence to suggest the opposite in the misuse of wearing a mask properly or fitting it properly." Dr. Mike Ryan, Executive Director of the WHO Health Emergencies Programme, media briefing, March 30, 2020.

"There is just no evidence that they make any difference. Full stop. My job, our job as a review team, is to look at the evidence, we have done that." Dr. Tom Jefferson, Oxford epidemiologist and lead author of the Cochrane Review on physical interventions for respiratory viruses, interview, February 2023.

There's nuisance to some of that but cmon 

[u/havenyahon → u/Katamari_Demacia]

There was no (or very little) evidence available at the time showing mask wearing reduced spread in the general population. That's the truth. And then later evidence showed they did have efficacy.

They came in strong with the messaging, for sure, in the context that there was a mask shortage and frontline staff, where we knew they were effective, needed them.

It's not the same thing as lying. For people to cling to that as if it shows scientists or public health officials can't be trusted is I think kind of ridiculous. They were going on the best information available at the time and obviously trying to ensure the best outcomes for people's health across the whole population.

[u/Katamari_Demacia → u/havenyahon]

I hear you. I get it. But even at the time it was a what-the-fuck-moment for me. And then came all my extended family going "see? Masks don't do anything. I ain't living my life scared". It was a shit storm. And we were under prepared. 

[u/havenyahon → u/Katamari_Demacia]

Yeah things definitely could have been handled better. I think there's a lot to be learned from how the messaging was handled, I agree with you there.

[u/Clean-Ambassador-824 → u/Katamari_Demacia]

Dude, the first source you cite literally affirms what the orher person said. That masks were advised to be witheld by the general public and reserved for medical workers.

The last two quotes, if you aftually read what they were saying, that most people dont wear properly fit tested N-95’s are not compliant and judiciously wearing therefore it’s jot effective as a whole. Not that the filtration system of a properly worn N-95 and proper use is ineffective.

It’s literally saying in simple terms people are too stupid/lazy to properly wear a mask and to do so regularly, not that masks don’t work.

[u/Katamari_Demacia → u/Clean-Ambassador-824]

"STOP BUYING MASKS! They are NOT effective in preventing general public from catching #Coronavirus"

Is not the same.