Tag: SARS-CoV-2

The rise and fall of the lab leak hypothesis for the origin of SARS-CoV-2

Two new studies were published last week that strongly support a natural zoonotic origin for COVID-19 centered at the wet market in Wuhan, China. Naturally, lab leak proponents soberly considered this new evidence and thought about changing their minds. Just kidding! They doubled down on the conspiracy mongering, because of course they did.

/ August 1, 2022

New Studies on the Origin of COVID-19

New evidence strongly supports the conclusion that SARS-CoV-2 emerged from the wet markets of Wuhan, killing the lab-leak hypothesis.

/ July 27, 2022

Apples, Oranges, and How Not to Analyze a Vaccine RCT

The evidence is overwhelming that COVID vaccines keep people alive and out of the hospital. Only someone who starts with the conclusion that vaccines don't work and then works backwards to find the evidence could claim otherwise.

/ July 4, 2022

What’s the Opposite of a Vaccine Selfie?

Healthcare workers know they are trusted professionals, and most take that responsibility seriously when sharing their vaccination choices with the public. What term should be used for doctors who use their social media clout to influence others to skip an important vaccine dose?

/ July 1, 2022

A Salesman’s Trick, Ignoring R0, Shaming, Conspiracy, Premature Declaration, Strategic Omission, and Fanciful Fiction

I can't stop thinking of a recent analysis that estimated over 300,000 Americans might be alive today had all adults been vaccinated. How did we get here?

/ June 3, 2022

Ayn Rand, Objectivists, and COVID

Healthcare workers are leaving medicine after coming under attack due to the type of disinformation spread by Objectivists. That's ironic.

/ May 22, 2022

The CDC Goofs and Doctors React

After a CDC goof, several doctors - including me - shared incorrect information. What happened next was revealing.

/ March 20, 2022

“This Would Translate to About 10,000 Deaths” Reflections From the Start of the Pandemic

“This would translate to about 10,000 deaths” Two years ago, Dr. John Ioannidis wrote an essay in STAT titled “A Fiasco in The Making? As The Coronavirus Pandemic Takes Hold, We Are Making Decisions Without Reliable Data.” It contained the following paragraph: If we assume that case fatality rate among individuals infected by SARS-CoV-2 is 0.3% in the general population — a...

/ March 17, 2022

They Have Names

Reality is not "fear-based messaging", and fewer children will die moving forward if their parents know a bit more about what the virus can do and how the vaccine can keep children safe.

/ March 5, 2022
The Cow-Pock

The return of the revenge of “COVID-19 mRNA vaccines permanently alter your DNA” and “lab leak”

Claims that COVID-19 vaccines "permanently alter your DNA" or that SARS-CoV-2 was engineered in a lab were resurrected last week based on two dubious studies. No matter how many times you think these myths have been debunked, they always come back for another installment of the same misinformation franchise.

/ February 28, 2022