As Dr. Joseph Marine, Johns Hopkins Professor of Medicine, said : “Today I saw in my hospital lobby a woman struggling to put a useless cloth mask on a blind (resisting) 3 year old to comply with a Johns Hopkins mask policy. This policy has no rationale, no good evidence and no endpoint. A moment to be embarrassed for my profession.”
This is the kind of thing that makes me see red. Doctor, what did you do in that situation? You watched. You knew this was bullshit and you watched. Go ahead and be embarrassed, but also grow a spine and stand up against this. Otherwise, kiss public trust good bye permanently.
I am so disgusted with people who know the truth and put their tenuous hold on a job ahead of it. What is your job worth if you will be "required" to enforce useless masks on your patients indefinitely? I'd rather die in a ditch than go to a doctor at this point. How can I trust anything you say? It could all be you toeing the line instead of telling the truth as you see it. What good is your profession if all of you are lying to keep your jobs? I know you're debt slaves. I know you've had your licenses threatened. How do you think this ends? With compliance? With you keeping your mouth shut and your head down? Where is your line? Where does it end?
I agree with everything she writes, except how she described non Scandinavian Western Medicine as "patriarchal". This is inaccurate. There are plenty of women in influential positions in medicine. A more accurate description would be "domineering" or even "dictatorial", due to comercial pressures coming from the powerful and rich pharmaceutical industry.
Also I disagree that it is obvious that in adults the gene therapy shots made Covid illness less severe. This is not evidence based. No double blind placebo using trials have been done, comparing cohorts of untreated (unvaccinated) with treated (vaccinated). Medical authorities, rather disingenuously, have declared it would be unethical to let trial participants be unvaccinated!! All we have is hospitalisation rates, and that is suggestive that the shots make no difference.
A more mixed picture than the author suggests. Sweden has had double the COVID mortality of its Nordic neighbors, a more 'apples to apples' comparison, than using all of Europe. https://charts.medriva.com/region/1 Swedes as a whole also remained quite good on social distancing throughout, and did remote learning as well during major surges.
While more reasonable in retrospect on masking and school interruptions (especially for younger kids), and as the immunity wall of infection and vaccination has been built, this was less clear early on in the pandemic. In late 2020 the King of Sweden stated: "I think we have failed. We have a large number who have died and that is terrible. "The people of Sweden have suffered tremendously in difficult conditions"
BBC: Sweden, which has never imposed a full lockdown, has seen nearly 350,000 cases and more than 7,800 deaths - a lot more than its Scandinavian neighbours. Prime Minister Stefan Lofven said he agreed with the king's remarks. "Of course the fact that so many have died can't be considered as anything other than a failure," Mr Lofven told reporters. Instead of relying on legal sanctions, Sweden appeals to citizens' sense of responsibility and civic duty, and issues only recommendations. There are no sanctions if they are ignored. Sweden has never imposed a nationwide lockdown or the wearing of masks, and bars and restaurants have remained open. However, earlier this week, schools across the Stockholm region were asked to switch to distance learning for 13 to 15-year-olds for the first time as soon as possible. The measure was announced in response to rising Covid-19 cases. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-55347021
FINALLY! Another physician with some common sense! God bless you! The number of needlessly harmed children in the US is just heartbreaking. There is corruption at the highest levels of our CDC, FDA and NIH and these people MUST be held accountable!
The unprecedented cruelty to children (& the elderly) was something I never imagined happening in the US. Worst of all, they doubled down despite evidence of the harm they were doing. Now these monsters are pretending it is "water under the bridge." We owe it to our children, our grandparents, and future generations to never forget the evil that they did and banish them from all occupations involving trust or responsibility.
Corrupt systems have the power to legitimize behaviour that we would have previously deemed immoral or unethical by instituting policies, procedures, or roles which necessitate it. Our willingness to sacrifice children's health in the name of protecting vulnerable adults is perhaps the most egregious example of this. I hope that articles like this one can prevent us from walking down this dark path in the future.
For those unaware, the role of government is to protect our birthrights, natural rights, and God-given rights. All of what happened in the USA was blatantly unconstitutional and morally reprehensible. And that is putting it mildly. Any other discussion of this topic must have this truth at its foundation.
You mention vaccination reducing the risk of severe disease in older adults (and i agree it appears to do sg ) but the best trial data available from the RCTs does NOT show a reduction in overall mortality which as you know should be a consideration in these matters
No doubt some of the choices/approaches taken to SARS-CoV-2 and COVID will be determined to be missteps - no one had ever navigated this virus or this illness before. It's the nature of 'new.'
What I didn't see in the post was consideration for the adults that must be present to educate the kids - the kids don't teach themselves. I searched the post for "teacher," "adult," and "educator" just to be sure I hadn't missed something and got 1 hit total - for "adult" and that was in reference to vaccine benefits.
Where do the educators & support staff - the people who make education possible - fit in this calculus of what was reasonable risk in a pandemic scenario, especially prior to vaccines and even basic understanding of how the virus spread & mutated?
I've never been in the Nordic countries, but my ethnic heritage is Nordic, and I believe there is something in the culture that specifically objects to masking. It is certainly striking, the difference between how the Nordic countries responded to covid and how their neighbors, Germany and Great Britain, did.
Well done. A voice of reason.
As Dr. Joseph Marine, Johns Hopkins Professor of Medicine, said : “Today I saw in my hospital lobby a woman struggling to put a useless cloth mask on a blind (resisting) 3 year old to comply with a Johns Hopkins mask policy. This policy has no rationale, no good evidence and no endpoint. A moment to be embarrassed for my profession.”
This is the kind of thing that makes me see red. Doctor, what did you do in that situation? You watched. You knew this was bullshit and you watched. Go ahead and be embarrassed, but also grow a spine and stand up against this. Otherwise, kiss public trust good bye permanently.
I am so disgusted with people who know the truth and put their tenuous hold on a job ahead of it. What is your job worth if you will be "required" to enforce useless masks on your patients indefinitely? I'd rather die in a ditch than go to a doctor at this point. How can I trust anything you say? It could all be you toeing the line instead of telling the truth as you see it. What good is your profession if all of you are lying to keep your jobs? I know you're debt slaves. I know you've had your licenses threatened. How do you think this ends? With compliance? With you keeping your mouth shut and your head down? Where is your line? Where does it end?
This is what happens when profit margins drive govt policy.
What are these reams of data? Please provide evidence, such as double blind studies etc.
Thanks for putting this together into one well-crafted article
I agree with everything she writes, except how she described non Scandinavian Western Medicine as "patriarchal". This is inaccurate. There are plenty of women in influential positions in medicine. A more accurate description would be "domineering" or even "dictatorial", due to comercial pressures coming from the powerful and rich pharmaceutical industry.
Also I disagree that it is obvious that in adults the gene therapy shots made Covid illness less severe. This is not evidence based. No double blind placebo using trials have been done, comparing cohorts of untreated (unvaccinated) with treated (vaccinated). Medical authorities, rather disingenuously, have declared it would be unethical to let trial participants be unvaccinated!! All we have is hospitalisation rates, and that is suggestive that the shots make no difference.
A more mixed picture than the author suggests. Sweden has had double the COVID mortality of its Nordic neighbors, a more 'apples to apples' comparison, than using all of Europe. https://charts.medriva.com/region/1 Swedes as a whole also remained quite good on social distancing throughout, and did remote learning as well during major surges.
While more reasonable in retrospect on masking and school interruptions (especially for younger kids), and as the immunity wall of infection and vaccination has been built, this was less clear early on in the pandemic. In late 2020 the King of Sweden stated: "I think we have failed. We have a large number who have died and that is terrible. "The people of Sweden have suffered tremendously in difficult conditions"
BBC: Sweden, which has never imposed a full lockdown, has seen nearly 350,000 cases and more than 7,800 deaths - a lot more than its Scandinavian neighbours. Prime Minister Stefan Lofven said he agreed with the king's remarks. "Of course the fact that so many have died can't be considered as anything other than a failure," Mr Lofven told reporters. Instead of relying on legal sanctions, Sweden appeals to citizens' sense of responsibility and civic duty, and issues only recommendations. There are no sanctions if they are ignored. Sweden has never imposed a nationwide lockdown or the wearing of masks, and bars and restaurants have remained open. However, earlier this week, schools across the Stockholm region were asked to switch to distance learning for 13 to 15-year-olds for the first time as soon as possible. The measure was announced in response to rising Covid-19 cases. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-55347021
FINALLY! Another physician with some common sense! God bless you! The number of needlessly harmed children in the US is just heartbreaking. There is corruption at the highest levels of our CDC, FDA and NIH and these people MUST be held accountable!
This Substack has a limited audience. Please consider posting to MedPage perhaps somewhat reduced.
The unprecedented cruelty to children (& the elderly) was something I never imagined happening in the US. Worst of all, they doubled down despite evidence of the harm they were doing. Now these monsters are pretending it is "water under the bridge." We owe it to our children, our grandparents, and future generations to never forget the evil that they did and banish them from all occupations involving trust or responsibility.
What a great article. Thanks! The entire world blindly following the US only is a problem we have to solve.
Corrupt systems have the power to legitimize behaviour that we would have previously deemed immoral or unethical by instituting policies, procedures, or roles which necessitate it. Our willingness to sacrifice children's health in the name of protecting vulnerable adults is perhaps the most egregious example of this. I hope that articles like this one can prevent us from walking down this dark path in the future.
For those unaware, the role of government is to protect our birthrights, natural rights, and God-given rights. All of what happened in the USA was blatantly unconstitutional and morally reprehensible. And that is putting it mildly. Any other discussion of this topic must have this truth at its foundation.
You mention vaccination reducing the risk of severe disease in older adults (and i agree it appears to do sg ) but the best trial data available from the RCTs does NOT show a reduction in overall mortality which as you know should be a consideration in these matters
No doubt some of the choices/approaches taken to SARS-CoV-2 and COVID will be determined to be missteps - no one had ever navigated this virus or this illness before. It's the nature of 'new.'
What I didn't see in the post was consideration for the adults that must be present to educate the kids - the kids don't teach themselves. I searched the post for "teacher," "adult," and "educator" just to be sure I hadn't missed something and got 1 hit total - for "adult" and that was in reference to vaccine benefits.
Where do the educators & support staff - the people who make education possible - fit in this calculus of what was reasonable risk in a pandemic scenario, especially prior to vaccines and even basic understanding of how the virus spread & mutated?
I've never been in the Nordic countries, but my ethnic heritage is Nordic, and I believe there is something in the culture that specifically objects to masking. It is certainly striking, the difference between how the Nordic countries responded to covid and how their neighbors, Germany and Great Britain, did.