From where I abide, that's the chronic question I come to when I take in what MAGA Republicans seem to want. Their fury against my life and that of my friends and neighbors seems inexplicable. What matters to them?
Okay, I know some people react to human differences by wanting to erase the unfamiliar. Perhaps that was adaptive for small wandering bands of early humanoids -- though I doubt it. I bet the ones who learned new ways to get along with differences survived better.
... why do our new rulers want to destroy science in America? Sadly, the answer is obvious: Science has a tendency to tell you things you may not want to hear. Medical research may tell you that vaccines work and don’t cause autism. Energy research may tell wind power works and doesn’t massacre birds.
And one thing we know about MAGA types is that they are determined to hold on to their prejudices. If science conflicts with those prejudices, they don’t want to know, and they don’t want anyone else to know either. So they really want to destroy science.
Again, this isn’t hyperbole, and it’s not about the long run. American science is being gutted as you read this
There's a human impulse to kill the thing you don't understand. But that impulse has never contributed well to surviving and thriving.
2 comments:
Jan I think what Krugman says is part of it. Yes, many don't want to know anything that conflicts with their beliefs. But it's more than that. I think the general public does not know how science works. Doesn't have a concept of how science works in proving or disproving a hypothesis. Doesn't understand that research finds the best current answer, but that subsequent research may find a different answer. People are very upset when scientific answers change. Our dominant religions have a pretty long history defining things as right or wrong. So people want to know what’s right and if the answer changes, someone was wrong. People also want magic. They want a magic pill that makes them well. Magic medicines that cure Covid (Ivermectin) without having to deal with doctors.
And, modern medicine is often not a healing experience so people have no reason to trust doctors.
No answers here but trying to. understand how we got here.
Do you read “Your Local Epidemiologist”? https://yourlocalepidemiologist.substack.com My go to for thinking about this problem. -Kate C
That's wise, Kate. Not surprisingly coming from you. We fail at learning that knowledge may grow and change through experience and time. We get sort of stuck. I'm reminded that I grew up in a time when CP Snow's' Two Cultures was standard intellectual fodder.
And I do still think we have never figured out as a society what COVID meant. For so many, the acute phase was so much more than an a temporary interruption, more a rift in reality.
And yes, yes, yes -- the experience of contemporary health care is NOT healing. Very confusing.
I have recently taken up reading “Your Local Epidemiologist” - :-)
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