Read on Twitter
Woke up this morning to see @RandPaul trending, and like I do everytime this happens I went through the tweets because I want to know what kind of calls I’d be getting if I was still a staff assistant.
So of course I see tweets like this https://twitter.com/bubbaprog/status/1277985781580271616
And these things get amplified so that’s my initial impression of the exchange. But then I watch the full 7+ minute interaction https://twitter.com/blazetv/status/1278055087299059715
After watching, I have a hard time squaring the online reaction with reality. @RandPaul is an MD and a 2 term US Senator. Plenty of people online were comfortable clowning him for not being qualified enough to ask something of Dr. Fauci.
If he isn’t qualified to address this issue at the intersection of medicine and policy, I’m curious how many of his critics—who have no problem weighing in with their covid opinions—would pass the experience test they openly apply to him.
Not only during this pandemic but through his entire career Dr. Fauci has been an American hero. In his current role, Dr. Fauci exclusively advises on the virus, and he continues to do a fantastic job in that capacity.
As a US Senator representing 4 million+ people in Kentucky, @RandPaul has to consider more than just the public health component of the virus. And we should feel fortunate we have someone with that breadth of experience in both medicine and public policy.
These same critics go on about the data and the science and the facts. Nothing @RandPaul said in that hearing was junk science. 22 European countries reopened schools w little spread. Multiple peer countries have yet to find child to adult transmission through contact tracing.
25K kids in daycare and less than 0.2% infected, while only 1% of 9K staffers were infected. The @AmerAcadPeds recommends in person learning in the fall. These are just a few of the things Sen. Paul highlights https://twitter.com/cnn/status/1277920598681948167
There is a growing scientific consensus that children should be in school in the fall. There is sufficient data to support that recommendation. Yet, no such recommendations are being discussed by lawmakers or those in the media.
These same people have no problems insinuating pessimistic outcomes prematurely. @RandPaul used pro sports as an example of this. People have no problem amplifying a message sports might be canceled. But when data bears out something positive like a return to school, crickets
There’s an argument to be made that this undermines public trust in experts, media, politicians, etc. When you highlight the bad based on shakier data than the positives that you neglect to highlight, your credibility is undermined.
Now, you can disagree with that. That’s a debate about the impact of public discourse. What it’s not is a reason to wish assault upon somebody. Everytime I see @RandPaul trending there’s a chorus of people rejoicing in the event where he was assaulted.
He was shot at by a Bernie Sanders supporter. He was victim in an attack which many on the left STILL oddly praise. I remember when promoting violence against political opponents would get you suspended on twitter.
Sen. Paul cites concrete facts about reopening schools. Many are trying to undermine those facts with sentiments not based in data. I remember when spreading misinformation about covid would get you suspended on twitter.
And I’m no fan of policing speech. I rarely speak out but the reason I’m tweeting now is bc I think the solution to speech I disagree with is more speech.
But when you police one side with arbitrary rules while not applying them to the other, you veer into thoughtcrime territory. When you aren’t evenly applying your own rules, you send a message that you aren’t policing facts but rather ideology.
And when you allow this to happen, you allow people to think it’s okay to wish a violent attack on somebody. Every single time @RandPaul trends some blue check is racking up mad RTs talking about how they admire his neighbor.
Watch the whole 7 minute exchange and ask me if anything he says warrants wishing violence on someone. There is a lot about covid that should keep us worried. There is a lot we know now that at the very least could make us cautiously optimistic.
If someone publicly tries to highlight reasons for optimism with concrete facts and dispel the notion that there’s only doom and gloom and your response is to wish harm on them, you’re an unserious person. Enjoy your RTs tho.
And don’t tell me you can’t do it, bc the Venn diagram of people gleefully dunking on @RandPaul for finding optimism in 125K+ deaths and those who think @NYGovCuomo did an impeccable job handling covid is one big circle.
So if you can find positivity in the NY outbreak, maybe don’t wish death upon those searching for ways to move forward elsewhere. Bc by your own “science and facts and data” standards you sound like a fool.
