Ignore Dr. Fauci And The CDC - Here's Why
Public health authorities have been misleading and manipulating the public for a year. People have begun to tune out to their mixed messaging.
LISTEN TO THE NEW THINK THINGS THROUGH PODCAST HERE:
LISTEN TO THE NEW THINK THINGS THROUGH PODCAST HERE:
The COVID-19 pandemic has undermined our sense of risk. People are good at weighing risks against rewards, but now, many are confused about how to proceed. Too many people are experiencing learned helplessness. But the good news is that the idea of waiting until there is definitive evidence that humanity is completely safe from COVID-19 before returning to normal is becoming untenable. Such evidence may never come. Science is rarely that definitive. With more guidance being handed down from elected officials that seem to make less and less sense, people choose to ignore the rules.
The various public-health authorities across the country and the media have repeatedly failed the general public. Some still blame all 500,000 or so American deaths from COVID-19 on Donald Trump. Others blame governors or mayors. The truth is much more complicated. Certain countries have fared differently due to luck, population, age, citizens' health status, and geography. I feel the biggest and most glaring example of failure during this pandemic is how our media and public-health authorities chose to communicate risk.
Government leaders and those in mainstream media outlets feel people can't be trusted to make sensible risk assessments. They believe the general public must be guided or even manipulated into making smarter choices. They think people must be saved from themselves.
During the entire pandemic, we had to be "tricked" into good behavior. At first, we were told masks weren't effective. Dr. Fauci even admitted this a year ago. The reason for not wearing face coverings was supposedly to protect the supply of masks for health-care workers. A few weeks later, we were told to wear them but should wear them not to protect yourself but to protect others.
We were also told that coming into contact with others in just about any environment was unsafe. Remember the concept of social distancing? The media sent mixed messages from the government about staying six feet apart, yet public health authorities ignored and revised that message as soon as the George Floyd protests began in May of 2020. The narrative changed from virus containment to the public health threat of systemic racism. Many wondered how public health experts could keep their credibility after such blatant hypocrisy.
Over the holidays last year, public-health officials shamed the public into thinking we should all stay home and not have Thanksgiving or Christmas with our family. We were told that being in your home with other loved ones could spread the virus and cause second and third waves all across the country.
LISTEN TO THE NEW THINK THINGS THROUGH PODCAST HERE.
President Biden and Anthony Fauci have ominously warned we may not be able to resume "normal" life until 2022. He admitted in the New York Times he adjusted his guess on the threshold for obtaining "herd immunity" based not on science but public polling data. He even warned that the Super Bowl would act as a "super spreader" around the country; meanwhile, every single data point has continued to improve in the month since that event, even in Florida, where the game and post-victory celebrations took place.
COVID hysteria has ended outside of California and most Northeastern states. More states are repealing restrictions and mandates. To reimpose them for any reason seems almost unthinkable at this point. Anthony Fauci’s constant prattle about the dangers of opening up is falling on deaf ears.
The current vaccine rollout highlights the worst and most consequential failure in risk communication concerns. The vaccines are supposed to deliver what people so desperately want: an end to the pandemic. The media has constantly instructed us that it's still not safe to socialize without masks. This is supposedly true, even weeks after receiving the second dose of a vaccine. If vaccination doesn't mitigate risk from traveling, attending church services, and going to restaurants, which is an absurd position, based upon what we know about the vaccine reducing the transmission rate, many will justifiably ask what's the point of getting vaccinated at all?
LISTEN TO THE NEW THINK THINGS THROUGH PODCAST HERE.
I saw this clip a few days ago and was shocked about how blatant this guest was regarding the vaccine. Dr. Leana Wen is an emergency physician and visiting professor of health policy and management at the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health. She is also a contributing columnist for The Washington Post, writing on health policy and public health, and an on-air commentator for CNN as a medical analyst.
On Chris Cuomo’s show, she explained the carrot and stick approach to inoculation. The carrot is the vaccine, and the stick is the lockdown. Think about all of the “freedoms” you can have once you get the vaccine!!!
Listen to my thoughts about this clip on my new podcast HERE.
Here’s a clip of Senator Rand Paul taking Dr. Fauci about his hysterical proclamations concerning the “new variants” and why Fauci feels the need to wear a double mask signal, even after he was vaccinated for COVID-19:
Here is a follow up from Jake Tapper and Dr. Sanjay Gupta shortly afterward:
Dr. Gupta actually said the following word salad:
"The virus learns then how to, sort of, adapt and mutate now to a vaccinated person. So, in some ways, by exposing vaccinated people to the virus, you could start to inspire more and more mutations, which is something you don’t want to do"
Again, what’s the point of getting the vaccine if people still have to wear a mask?
Jessica Glenza and Alvin Chang wrote in The Guardian,
Think of mask-wearing and social distancing as a continuum of risk-mitigation strategies, which are in place while scientists conduct research, more and more people get vaccinated, and the prevalence of Covid-19 goes down.
Those same people then need to be conscientious about social distancing and mask-wearing in public, as they could potentially transmit the disease in the wider community.
In other words, scientists don't yet know if vaccinated people can still spread the virus to others. Until there are more studies, the simple practice of wearing a mask around unvaccinated people is a gesture of human kindness.
Does that make ANY sense to you? What is so magically different about the scourges of polio and measles that those diseases didn’t require the same post-vaccination restrictions as COVID?
Even the airline industry argued that the CDC guidelines for vaccinated people recently issued made no sense. The CDC still discourages vaccinated people from traveling, but consider this; unvaccinated people are traveling while wearing masks now. Why would it be considered particularly risky for vaccinated people to do the same?
After weeks of confusing and contradictory guidance, the CDC recently gave the green light for certain vaccinated people to gather together. Recently, President Biden made a statement telling Americans they might be able to gather in small groups by July 4 to celebrate Independence Day. Someone has to tell me, who is the person in his staff protecting him from reality? Most of the country already had July 4th celebrations last year and will do it again—with or without his permission. Is there going to be an Independence Day Police Squad roaming around America’s suburbs breaking up maskless backyard cookouts?
Unfortunately, public-health authorities have downplayed the benefits of getting vaccinated by telling people they shouldn't change their behavior—even after getting vaccinated. We've seen news articles warning the public about everything that could go wrong:
Protection isn't immediate.
Vaccinated people can still transmit the virus.
Vaccinated people might get mild infections that could become chronic.
Vaccines might not work as well against new coronavirus variants.
These articles are REAL:
“Yes, people with coronavirus vaccinations should still distance from each other. Here’s why.”
Why You’ll Need to Wear a Mask After Getting the COVID-19 Vaccine, According to Doctors.
The last article actually said: “Bottom line: You will need to wear a face mask after you’re vaccinated until COVID-19 cases become nearly nonexistent.”
Demand for the COVID vaccines is outpacing the supply. There's a growing concern that, as supply catches up, fewer people will get the vaccines. It may be because of all the mixed messaging. The authorities should know better. There should be more positive messaging when there is growing evidence showing the various vaccines nearly eliminate severe disease, hospitalization, death, and possibly even transmission of COVID-19. If public health authorities aren't upfront about both costs and benefits of the new vaccines, how can we expect people to make sensible risk choices?
The general public is not full of flawed risk-takers who need constant nudging and manipulation by public health authorities who claim to know what's best. After people receive their full vaccination, fewer people will listen to agencies like the CDC and Dr. Fauci. His constant prattle about the dangers of variants and “re-opening too soon” will fall on deaf ears.
There will come a moment when we've reached, or almost reached herd immunity, and the vast majority of people in America will be vaccinated. Soon afterward, mask-wearing as a public act of virtue signaling will be relegated to small groups of people who adhere to rigid norms. There will be a diminishing group of people who will take pride in wearing a mask in perpetuity.
Germaphobes will always exist, and soon, we will look upon them as the outliers they've always been. The obsessive lifestyle choices being made by the forever masked will soon bump up against a sea of humanity who ignore the guidance from officials who have controlled their lives for well over a year.
A shift in mood is taking place. The fog is being lifted because vaccines are being distributed. There will be a tipping point.
I’m in favor of anyone who wants to get any of the current COVID vaccines. Many people I know have gotten one. I think the new vaccines may do a lot of good for those who are at a higher risk of becoming seriously ill from this virus. But look, it makes NO SENSE to keep doing the same thing you did before once you have been vaccinated. It makes zero sense to tell the public they should keep wearing a mask and socially distance after getting the vaccine. You can if you choose to. There is nothing wrong with doing what you want to make yourself feel safe. But the pandemic will never end if we keep listening to this rubbish. They keep moving the goalposts.
Manipulating public opinion even when it conflicts with “the science” is shameful. How can you blame people for noticing the madness? People will resent the fact they’ve been deceived, even if the deception was ‘for their own good.’
Evolving rationales and conflicting messages make it harder for public health officials to be believed by a critical segment of the unvaccinated population. Fauci and the rest of them should consider spending a little less time in the limelight. Or maybe we should stop listening altogether. Why should anyone pay attention to nonsensical advice from public health officials, the media, and government representatives?
Ignore the CDC, the WHO, doctors on media outlets, and yes, Dr. Fauci.
The pandemic ends when the public says so.
LISTEN TO THE NEW THINK THINGS THROUGH PODCAST HERE.
Clayton Craddock is an independent thinker, father of two beautiful children in New York City. He is the drummer of the hit broadway musical Ain't Too Proud. He earned a Bachelor of Business Administration from Howard University's School of Business and is a 29 year veteran of the fast-paced New York City music scene. He has played drums in several hit broadway and off-broadway musicals, including "Tick, tick…BOOM!, Altar Boyz, Memphis The Musical, and Lady Day At Emerson's Bar and Grill. Also, Clayton has worked on: Footloose, Motown, The Color Purple, Rent, Little Shop of Horrors, Spongebob Squarepants, The Musical, Evita, Cats, and Avenue Q.
Cut Fauci some slack...He is the Steve Gadd of virologist bro...trying to save lives..600,000 casualties not enough?
Trump had him muzzled while he was in office...now he is free to do his job even if he has
to talk to dimwits like Rand Paul.
Whats the big deal about wearing masks in tight public spaces till the numbers go down?
Before Covid all over Asia folks are wearing masks on public transportation for years...
Im fully vaccinated now but the virus is morphing so better safe than sorry.
Gonna still wash my hands and put on a mask when I cant social distance till the numbers look better.
If Trump didnt downplay this for months you still might still be in the pit...
Its not Faucis fault...Its a every 100 year Pandemic..
Its obviously no joke..
We have alot of catch up since Trump did squat.
Vaccines are rolling out fast now..quicker they get into arms the sooner we will
go back to some normalcy.
I bet by the summer NYC will be doing alot better...
We are on the tail end of this shit...hang in there.
Fauci is doing OK ..Was he flip flopping more than the Republican Congress?
Not even close...
What does opening mean? I think you are writing about regulatory opening, a lifting of restrictions. However, that step, as it comes, is only a matter of permission. It does not mean that will be the general reality of our world. Even in TX, right now there are communities and businesses still enforcing masks and distancing. For society to be open, we need something else.
The key to a return to an open society lies in emotional security, perceived safety. Leaders can help by voicing confidence in our progress, but 350mm people have to come to 350mm conclusions of their own. When we feel safe enough to dine out, we will. When we feel safe enough to watch a live Broadway performance, we will. Merely opening the doors will not guarantee a return to nightly sell-outs, though we hope so.
So, what to do? This is my appeal to all to get vaccinated as soon as possible, unless you object on some medical/research grounds. At the same time that you make yourself safer, the fact that more people are vaccinated will spread the sense of perceived safety. Yesterday, we went to get new glasses for me. My wife went with me (let's face it, she should choose the new frames) and the only other person in the store was the manager. As it turned out, he has had his first dose and we are both fully vaccinated. I think we all felt a little more comfortable knowing that. Multiply that by many, many times and we can spread the sense of security, perceived safety, by getting vaccinated. Spread the sense of security that we collectively lack. It is as important to a real opening as is the medical safety.
Hey, medical marketing people! Try this: Don't spread the virus, spread the safety!