Prior to 2025 I could assume the CDC was staffed with well meaning technocrats. They could get something wrong, but they would almost always be correct, far more often than me.
Now I have to figure out if they are pushing a crackpot political agenda or giving legitimate guidelines.
Usually it will be the latter, but it’s a cognitive load and that corrodes trust.
They made the decision that would save the most lives, which is their job. As for the people doing what’s best for society, that’s antithetical to American individualism, and your faith was proven wrong with both masks and toilet paper being bought for resale at predatory prices, or just to maintain personal supplies at the expense of everyone else.
your faith was proven wrong with both masks and toilet paper being bought for resale at predatory prices, or just to maintain personal supplies at the expense of everyone else.
That’s a fallacy/faulty generalization — I’m not saying everyone behaves well, but from my experience, the vast majority do. The pandemic for me was a time where I really felt like we looked out for our fellow people, at least locally.
Prior to 2025 I could assume the CDC was staffed with well meaning technocrats. They could get something wrong, but they would almost always be correct, far more often than me.
Now I have to figure out if they are pushing a crackpot political agenda or giving legitimate guidelines.
Usually it will be the latter, but it’s a cognitive load and that corrodes trust.
In 2020 they recommended against face masks for non-healthcare workers. My understanding is that they did this to conserve masks for healthcare workers, as did the WHO. IMHO that was a really shitty thing for them to have done. Presenting all the facts and pleading with the public would, I think, have resulted in higher trust in them as an institution, ultimately saving lives, but that’s just my opinion I guess.
But yeah, completely agree that even then it was more or less well meaning, as opposed to now.
They made the decision that would save the most lives, which is their job. As for the people doing what’s best for society, that’s antithetical to American individualism, and your faith was proven wrong with both masks and toilet paper being bought for resale at predatory prices, or just to maintain personal supplies at the expense of everyone else.
But they lied to the public, which undermines trust; IMHO this was a myopic decision.
Can’t speak for everyone, but Flex Alerts in California do indeed work (it’s when we’re asked to reduce energy consumption).
That’s a fallacy/faulty generalization — I’m not saying everyone behaves well, but from my experience, the vast majority do. The pandemic for me was a time where I really felt like we looked out for our fellow people, at least locally.