Tag: Great Barrington Declaration

The Great Barrington Trio

Brownstone Institute admits that the Great Barrington Declaration was wrong (without actually admitting it was wrong)

The Brownstone Institute's Gabrielle Bauer claims vindication for the Great Barrington Declaration, the October 2020 document that advocated a "natural herd immunity" pandemic strategy, with an ill-defined "focused protection" strategy to protect those most at risk of death. In the fine print, however, Bauer tacitly admits that its core assumption was badly mistaken, minimizing it as not getting all the "details" right.

/ February 20, 2023

Does the Mass Infection of Unvaccinated Young People Follow the “Basic Principles of Public Health”?

A pictorial refutation to a central claim of the Great Barrington Declaration.

/ October 7, 2022

Lockdowns “Postponed the Inevitable”. Is That a Bad Thing?

Lockdowns postponed COVID for millions of people until after they were vaccinated. Some doctors feel that's a bad thing.

/ August 28, 2022
Figure 1

Science denial, overconfidence, and persuasion

The pandemic has brought scientists who have rejected science with respect to COVID-19 public health measures a disturbing level of influence. Recent research suggests reasons why and who among the public susceptible to such misinformation remains persuadable.

/ August 22, 2022
Better Way

“New school” COVID-19 antivaxxers are becoming less and less distinguishable from “old school” antivaxxers

Since the COVID-19 pandemic hit, a new generation of antivaxxers has arisen. Most view themselves as pro-vaccine, just not pro-COVID-19 vaccines. Recent developments, however, have demonstrated that "new school" antivaxxers are increasingly indistinguishable from "old school" antivaxxers and that this fusion is increasingly endangering all public health, not just COVID-19 public health interventions.

/ June 6, 2022

Is Anything About the Great Barrington Declaration Even Remotely Relevant?

The authors of the Great Barrington Declaration still claim that herd immunity is possible in 3-6 months.

/ June 2, 2022
Recycling old antivax arguments as "bioethics"

Recycling old antivax tropes as “bioethics”-based arguments against COVID-19 vaccination for children

A recently published article in Bioethics makes ethical arguments against vaccinating children against COVID-19. If you change the word "COVID-19" to measles, chickenpox, or rotavirus (or others), this article could have been published on one of the higher-brow antivax websites in 2010. Antivax arguments never change; they're just continually recycled.

/ March 28, 2022
Florida "COVID theater"

Old antivax tropes never die: “COVID theater,” “Urgency of Normal,” and the Great Barrington Declaration

Last week, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis held a roundtable calling to "end COVID-19 theater" that brought together the Great Barrington Declaration and "Urgency of Normal," a movement to end mask mandates and other COVID-19 mitigations in schools. The arguments used long predate the pandemic and echo a dark side of the history of American medicine.

/ March 14, 2022
COVID-19 "natural immunity"

Which is best, vaccine-induced immunity, “natural immunity,” or “super immunity” to COVID-19?

Those opposed to public health interventions to slow the spread of COVID-19, including masks, "lockdowns," and vaccine mandates, are hyping "natural" immunity again as somehow "superior" to vaccine-acquired immunity. It's a deceptive simplification of a complex issue.

/ February 21, 2022