Thread by @neva9257

I agree with most of what Gregg says here, but it’s important to note that “popular opinion” is markedly different from the elite capture of Covid policy. If you don’t have an NBC gig, research program, tenure at Brown, a WH gig, etc. You probably support stronger public health.

https://twitter.com/gregggonsalves/status/1558452293296525314

We’ve got data coming out that suggests that, especially among Americans with chronic illnesses (which is around half the pop) Covid fatigue has increased but support for interventions has not decreased. People are tired. But they are also angry. And abandoned.

“Getting back to normal” is in the interest of a small group of people who either benefit from forcing people back into pre pandemic conditions with the virus still circulating, or supporting those who do.

And before folks accuse me of ad hominem or whatever- nah. Folks like @jfeldman_epi have documented the movement of these elite interests for years now. proteanmag.com/2022/03/22/mot…

And here jmfeldman.medium.com/a-year-in-how-…

I don’t think Gregg is pointing fingers at ordinary Americans, but that can be a side effect of “popular opinion”. And we should resist that as another dive into losing personal responsibility arguments in public health. This is systemic, it is institutional.

The CDC isn’t “responding” to reality, and neither are Jha, Wen, Oster, Leonhardt, etc. They’re shaping it. That’s a critical difference. And if popular opinion doesn’t match they’ll change it, hide it, ignore it, or suppress it.