New NPR/IPSOS Poll Regarding Misinformation

Originally, I shared corrections for email that I received that had misinformation, especially as it related to COVID. Then I thought, why bother. First, the sender obviously preferred to believe the BS or s/he would not have shared it with every one of their contacts. Second, they are only harming themselves. Don’t waste both of our time.

Also, misinformation is nothing new. What is new is -- it is now being sourced by people whom others assume to “be in the know.” That makes it much more dangerous.

The following article 

https://www.npr.org/2020/12/30/951095644/even-if-its-bonkers-poll-finds-many-believe-qanon-and-other-conspiracy-theories

states

It's also clear from the poll results that Americans are worried about misinformation, even if there's no clear prescription for what to do about it.

Really! That has not been my experience.

Ignorance and Fealty

“The man is a damn neurosurgeon and can’t be described as ‘anti-science,’” Craig Spencer, director of global health in emergency medicine for New York-Presbyterian Hospital, said in an email. “I think it just shows how the ignorance and fealty has extended to even the least expected.”

Congressional members were more than twice as likely to test positive for the coronavirus than the general public, according to a USA TODAY data analysis that looked at cases since Sept. 1. 

Among the nation’s 382.2 million people, about 2.4% have tested positive for the coronavirus since Sept. 1. 

Over that same period, 23 U.S. senators and representatives have tested positive, about 4.3% of the 535 members of Congress, according to Ballotpedia. Of those, 74% are Republican.

https://www.usatoday.com/in-depth/news/2020/12/03/coronavirus-hits-republican-elected-officials-hardest/6413673002/ 

Dangerous Medical News from Trump Administration

More fake and dangerous medical advice from the the Trump Administration. We cleaned up a less than professional report from Center for Inquiry that is otherwise accurate.

https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1331309315882446849.html

Here's a story about fake medicine, why people might use it, and why it’s so dangerous, especially during a global pandemic.