Read on Twitter
Saturday evening is probably the worst possible time to tweet something you hope people will see/RT, but...
...I'm sick and tired of seeing people in my timeline announcing that they have figured out the Right Way (TM) to distribute the vaccine. (1/n) https://twitter.com/NateSilver538/status/1340361755403366400
...I'm sick and tired of seeing people in my timeline announcing that they have figured out the Right Way (TM) to distribute the vaccine. (1/n) https://twitter.com/NateSilver538/status/1340361755403366400
As it turns out, each of these folks' Right Way To Distribute The Vaccine (TM) is different from the next. Shocker, I know.
This is a value-based question. A moral one. An ethical one. It doesn't have an "objectively right" answer. (2/n)
This is a value-based question. A moral one. An ethical one. It doesn't have an "objectively right" answer. (2/n)
Should we prioritize those at the highest risk of negative outcomes themselves? Or those who are at the highest risk of passing it on to lots of others?
Prioritize highest risk of mortality? Or highest risk of complications/lasting impacts? (3/n)
Prioritize highest risk of mortality? Or highest risk of complications/lasting impacts? (3/n)
Do we owe early access to frontline/healthcare workers with highest risk of exposure? Those who were in the vaccine trial themselves?
Do we want to save the most lives possible? Or save the most remaining lifespan?
Are there ethical rules that override these calculations? (4/n)
Do we want to save the most lives possible? Or save the most remaining lifespan?
Are there ethical rules that override these calculations? (4/n)
Yes, there are better and worse orders. As a low-risk person working from home, I'll gladly wait my turn.
But: there's no perfect answer. Lots of people deserve to be first. Lots of groups have good, rational, reasonable arguments for why they should be first. (5/n)
But: there's no perfect answer. Lots of people deserve to be first. Lots of groups have good, rational, reasonable arguments for why they should be first. (5/n)
So, no, @NateSilver538: I don't teach a course in Disaster Ethics because we forgot to look at your chart.
We teach it because that chart reveals all sorts of tricky, tragic, fraught, and ethically-complicated tradeoffs and debates. (6/6) https://twitter.com/NateSilver538/status/1340363906590650370
We teach it because that chart reveals all sorts of tricky, tragic, fraught, and ethically-complicated tradeoffs and debates. (6/6) https://twitter.com/NateSilver538/status/1340363906590650370
