Pre-pandemic, I think the average person would agree that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was the gold standard in the science of disease and infection. This seemingly basic and universal belief appears not to be the case any longer. The CDC (and science in general) seems to have taken a credibility hit. It’s common now to see influencers making “air quote” gestures while saying the word science.
Tragically, this could come back to haunt the U.S. if ever there’s a serious health threat (e.g., a dirty bomb), where the public would truly need to trust the institution’s guidance.
This credibility demise seems to have resulted from government and CDC bureaucrats, not the scientists, spewing pandemic politics while wearing white lab coats. I don’t doubt their sincerity to do good, but here we are.
Instead of keeping “the science” separate, and being honest with the people about what scientists actually knew (which was evolving), politicians interpreted the poorly understood information as they saw fit. Shielded by the armor of scientific integrity, they used the CDC’s good reputation as a battering ram to push overly forceful, unpopular policy objectives designed to coerce unwilling people into becoming vaccinated or to shame them into becoming hermits in their homes. It worked. But it also backfired, as many today no longer trust the CDC or FDA, the names behind the policy enforcements, many of which would later go on to be shown questionable at best.
I hope American politicians of every persuasion remember that Americans are not subjects, and don’t take lightly to being ordered around like sheep. For better or worse, American citizens are accustomed to exercising their judgment and freedoms. We like it that way.
ERROL WINN
Avondale
This post was originally published on here
