I learn from every one of your columns, Katelyn, and appreciate you and your efforts to inform, educate, and listen. Regarding your responses to Kelley's points, we are in desperate need of effective strategies to convey that our behaviors do not exist in a vacuum. In many cases, what we do has an impact on others, and it is our responsibility to care about others and adjust our behaviors even when we perceive low or no personal risk. How do we do this more effectively while not shaming or blaming?
I know it's hard not to be discouraged, Katelyn, after the threats and mistreatment to which you've been subjected; but please keep up your good work. There are more of us "out there" in America who respect science and the kind of hard data on which you base your reports than buy into the half baked, paranoiac theories that have led to vaccine hesitancy and a re-emergence of diseases which were considered vanquished decades ago. Thank you for everything you do to keep science, "the candle in the dark"( as Carl Sagan put it) alive.
Katelyn, you glossed over one very important point which must be called out. You noted that you received death threats and that random Twitter posters are running polls on how public health officials should be executed. Can you share with us how many death threats Kelley Krohnert received? I will venture that the number is zero. There is a fundamental difference between the anti-vax crowd (which undeniably encompasses the broader MAGA demographic) and those of us that believe in science and data. The MAGA crowd view death threats as a legitimate way to attempt to shut down discourse and ideas they don't like. I don't know anyone not in that camp who is making death threats, not one.
Your work in reaching out to the other side is both admirable and needed, and I am sorry you have been and undoubtedly continue to be subjected to abuse for talking about science and data. I just fear that talking to people who are cult members isn't going to get you or us far.
I have been called names like Nazi and Pharma Shill online, but some of the worst vitriol I've seen has been directed at female colleagues: apparently a woman speaking as an expert can trigger a special flavor of hatred from some people.
Fortunately for me, I have also had a lot of supportive comments online.
I am the only Virology expert most of my friends and family know, so throughout the pandemic I have answered a huge number of private messages. One of the most common types of message I get is just a practical "what should I do in this situation?" For instance in May 2020 a friend wanted to get her piano tuned but how to make that safe? I suggested (1) masks for all, (2) turn off HVAC and open windows, (3) put fans in windows of the room with the piano sending air from that room out the windows. That's what she did.
Another very common question I get from friends and relatives is "my [relative/in-law/colleague/whoever sent me this article full of sciency words, is it true?" In about 80% of such cases my answer is, "it's nonsense, here's what's wrong."
I am a nurse practitioner, and a deep believer in vaccines, God made the immune system to be amazing and we should use it to our best ability at all times. I do not do social media, I find a few use it responsibly. I get the YLE information directly to my gmail. By far, the most important and poignant comment I have is how frightening, concerning, and saddening is the tweet you posted. I cannot fathom, nor do I want to live in a country where that question would even be thought to be asked, have we not grown or learned anything in the past 200 years. That anyone would even pose the question is beyond my understanding, that people would actually take the time to respond is even more deplorable. A serial killer, who made a victim of one of your family members, I might be able to allow that kind of hate. Under any other circumstances, it is absolutely not acceptable for a civilized, intelligent, first world country. It saddened me beyond words.
Dr. J. — I commend you for your calm, professional, and open-minded approach to the wildly emotional nature of both public and political response to this pandemic. I LIKE it that you are trying to understand other points of view. What I DON’T LIKE is how too many responses are vicious, vindictive and violent. I don’t understand this attitude toward you and your colleagues in Public Health. You are the people, the pros, who work harder than anyone else to protect all of us!! And this gets you death threats?! You are the canary in the coal mine. We have no one else to alert us to health and safety issues in a timely and reasoned manner. The government delays, hides, or distorts information and direction we desperately need. And the media? Forget it! In their world, they have to have (or create) monsters or they lose their audience. And scientists? They are being judged and sentenced by people who don’t have a scientific bone in their bodies. They thrive on emotion and they don’t let data (if any is available) get in their way. We used to respect science and the professions that helped keep us safe and healthy. I am so sorry you and your colleagues have been treated so terribly. It’s part of the growing evidence that this country is in big, big trouble. I, for one, deeply appreciate what you are doing and I believe you are smart, sincere, and open-minded. We all need to engage in dialogue that brings us together. We don’t always have to agree with each other, but we do need to work together with respect, courtesy, and basic human decency. THANK YOU FOR ALL YOU DO AND ALL YOU ARE TRYING TO DO.
Your doing great, Katelyn. During Covid19 my biggest surprise was learning how the public was so clueless about emerging germ management being a fluid, exhausting dance while simultaneously playing every orchestral instrument as the data conducted changes in rhythm and key. Sadly politics compounds this often discordant performance. And the audience still doesn't see or understand all that's going on back stage with the goal of everyone going home safe and happy when the curtain closes...until the next germ show. And we epi-folks drop everything and strike up the band again. I started in the band during HIV emergence. Good work Katelyn. Needs saying alot!
You are examining the hard roads we travelled: one with a new, vicious virus, and the second with the unprecedented public debate that was conducted before knowledge of the dangers was broad. We are grateful that you are doing this work. There will be new crises in health and the medical/research/public sectors will benefit from hindsight and the wisdom you glean. 1.1 million Americans and their families don't have the luxury of just closing the book on Covid. We must change the temperature of these discussions. We must leave the bunker and honor science and service to community health, even when leaps of faith are sometimes required but disproven. Science is static and evolutionary. It's complicated for laymen, and we crave absolutes. That's not realistic. Demonizing people doing public health work will de-incentivize future scientists. You are a guide and we appreciate your translations for our daily lives. Thank you. I'm sorry that the rancor is louder than the gratitude.
I am a now retired family practitioner who worked "through" the pandemic.(not entirely sure it is over) We generally escaped the anger and death threats, but it was hurtful to have patients I cared for for over 3 decades view my advice with suspicion and denial. Some high risk people were persuaded after some quality time in the ICU, but some died. One woman I was doing a preop for accused me of wanting her to die when I refused to send in a prophylactic prescription for Ivermectin. I appreciate all the wonderful public health people who put in the long hours to keep us informed during these challenging years.
I applaud your cooperative effort with Kelley K. and am sympathetic to some aspects of her POV (e.g., in 2020, I thought the school closures would do more harm than good), but it's disappointing to see her follow-up piece include a statement such as this: " I am sorry that public health spent the past four years terrifying you about a virus that was never going to be stopped and that we are all going to get at some point..." This statement not only mocks the legitimate concerns expressed by public health officials about a disease that led to a huge number of deaths, it is illogical---i.e., the fact that the virus was never going to be stopped doesn't mean that officials shouldn't have regularly spoken out about the dangers of COVID.
Thank you for taking a leap of faith in reaching out and listening to other viewpoints. I really struggle to listen because I feel like there is no reciprocation or respect for science and medicine from the other side. And I hate that there are “sides” to this and that they frequently run along political lines. I’m so very sorry that you, your family, and others in the community have been threatened. I believe that you and your peers are truly the best of us. Thank you.
I love your columns and am sorry about the personal attacks. What I have gotten out of this pandemic is there are a lot of deliberate liars who are willing to say anything true or not to get their own way. An example is the people who refuse vaccines because "I don't trust that new fangled technology", when offered a traditional vaccine they still refuse because the first statement didn't reflect their reasons it was just an excuse.
I started out thinking that most people were telling the truth as they knew it and separating their opinions from the facts. Now I am not so sure. The Barrington dimwits were starting with false premises and going to impossibilities.
I believe that you are sticking to the facts and that the opinions you share are what you truly believe. Of course those beliefs and facts are reinforcing my initial stance so I can't be a good narrator.
I didn't like the last column because I have gotten to the point of ignoring anti vaxxers as being deliberately blind. I have a friend who didn't think covid-19 was as bad because he didn't know anyone who died. His parents are already dead, and he doesn't work in hospitals, or nursing homes. He has a limited social circle and most are the same age. He didn't think any of that was a reason why he personally didn't know anyone at that time who had died of covid-19.
Keep it up Katelyn. Your credibility is first rate. Credible sources need to speak loudly and clearly as you do.
I learn from every one of your columns, Katelyn, and appreciate you and your efforts to inform, educate, and listen. Regarding your responses to Kelley's points, we are in desperate need of effective strategies to convey that our behaviors do not exist in a vacuum. In many cases, what we do has an impact on others, and it is our responsibility to care about others and adjust our behaviors even when we perceive low or no personal risk. How do we do this more effectively while not shaming or blaming?
I know it's hard not to be discouraged, Katelyn, after the threats and mistreatment to which you've been subjected; but please keep up your good work. There are more of us "out there" in America who respect science and the kind of hard data on which you base your reports than buy into the half baked, paranoiac theories that have led to vaccine hesitancy and a re-emergence of diseases which were considered vanquished decades ago. Thank you for everything you do to keep science, "the candle in the dark"( as Carl Sagan put it) alive.
The real problem is that out society has lost any semblance of civility. That's what makes it tough.
Katelyn, you glossed over one very important point which must be called out. You noted that you received death threats and that random Twitter posters are running polls on how public health officials should be executed. Can you share with us how many death threats Kelley Krohnert received? I will venture that the number is zero. There is a fundamental difference between the anti-vax crowd (which undeniably encompasses the broader MAGA demographic) and those of us that believe in science and data. The MAGA crowd view death threats as a legitimate way to attempt to shut down discourse and ideas they don't like. I don't know anyone not in that camp who is making death threats, not one.
Your work in reaching out to the other side is both admirable and needed, and I am sorry you have been and undoubtedly continue to be subjected to abuse for talking about science and data. I just fear that talking to people who are cult members isn't going to get you or us far.
I have been called names like Nazi and Pharma Shill online, but some of the worst vitriol I've seen has been directed at female colleagues: apparently a woman speaking as an expert can trigger a special flavor of hatred from some people.
Fortunately for me, I have also had a lot of supportive comments online.
I am the only Virology expert most of my friends and family know, so throughout the pandemic I have answered a huge number of private messages. One of the most common types of message I get is just a practical "what should I do in this situation?" For instance in May 2020 a friend wanted to get her piano tuned but how to make that safe? I suggested (1) masks for all, (2) turn off HVAC and open windows, (3) put fans in windows of the room with the piano sending air from that room out the windows. That's what she did.
Another very common question I get from friends and relatives is "my [relative/in-law/colleague/whoever sent me this article full of sciency words, is it true?" In about 80% of such cases my answer is, "it's nonsense, here's what's wrong."
I am a nurse practitioner, and a deep believer in vaccines, God made the immune system to be amazing and we should use it to our best ability at all times. I do not do social media, I find a few use it responsibly. I get the YLE information directly to my gmail. By far, the most important and poignant comment I have is how frightening, concerning, and saddening is the tweet you posted. I cannot fathom, nor do I want to live in a country where that question would even be thought to be asked, have we not grown or learned anything in the past 200 years. That anyone would even pose the question is beyond my understanding, that people would actually take the time to respond is even more deplorable. A serial killer, who made a victim of one of your family members, I might be able to allow that kind of hate. Under any other circumstances, it is absolutely not acceptable for a civilized, intelligent, first world country. It saddened me beyond words.
Dr. J. — I commend you for your calm, professional, and open-minded approach to the wildly emotional nature of both public and political response to this pandemic. I LIKE it that you are trying to understand other points of view. What I DON’T LIKE is how too many responses are vicious, vindictive and violent. I don’t understand this attitude toward you and your colleagues in Public Health. You are the people, the pros, who work harder than anyone else to protect all of us!! And this gets you death threats?! You are the canary in the coal mine. We have no one else to alert us to health and safety issues in a timely and reasoned manner. The government delays, hides, or distorts information and direction we desperately need. And the media? Forget it! In their world, they have to have (or create) monsters or they lose their audience. And scientists? They are being judged and sentenced by people who don’t have a scientific bone in their bodies. They thrive on emotion and they don’t let data (if any is available) get in their way. We used to respect science and the professions that helped keep us safe and healthy. I am so sorry you and your colleagues have been treated so terribly. It’s part of the growing evidence that this country is in big, big trouble. I, for one, deeply appreciate what you are doing and I believe you are smart, sincere, and open-minded. We all need to engage in dialogue that brings us together. We don’t always have to agree with each other, but we do need to work together with respect, courtesy, and basic human decency. THANK YOU FOR ALL YOU DO AND ALL YOU ARE TRYING TO DO.
Your doing great, Katelyn. During Covid19 my biggest surprise was learning how the public was so clueless about emerging germ management being a fluid, exhausting dance while simultaneously playing every orchestral instrument as the data conducted changes in rhythm and key. Sadly politics compounds this often discordant performance. And the audience still doesn't see or understand all that's going on back stage with the goal of everyone going home safe and happy when the curtain closes...until the next germ show. And we epi-folks drop everything and strike up the band again. I started in the band during HIV emergence. Good work Katelyn. Needs saying alot!
You are examining the hard roads we travelled: one with a new, vicious virus, and the second with the unprecedented public debate that was conducted before knowledge of the dangers was broad. We are grateful that you are doing this work. There will be new crises in health and the medical/research/public sectors will benefit from hindsight and the wisdom you glean. 1.1 million Americans and their families don't have the luxury of just closing the book on Covid. We must change the temperature of these discussions. We must leave the bunker and honor science and service to community health, even when leaps of faith are sometimes required but disproven. Science is static and evolutionary. It's complicated for laymen, and we crave absolutes. That's not realistic. Demonizing people doing public health work will de-incentivize future scientists. You are a guide and we appreciate your translations for our daily lives. Thank you. I'm sorry that the rancor is louder than the gratitude.
I am a now retired family practitioner who worked "through" the pandemic.(not entirely sure it is over) We generally escaped the anger and death threats, but it was hurtful to have patients I cared for for over 3 decades view my advice with suspicion and denial. Some high risk people were persuaded after some quality time in the ICU, but some died. One woman I was doing a preop for accused me of wanting her to die when I refused to send in a prophylactic prescription for Ivermectin. I appreciate all the wonderful public health people who put in the long hours to keep us informed during these challenging years.
I applaud your cooperative effort with Kelley K. and am sympathetic to some aspects of her POV (e.g., in 2020, I thought the school closures would do more harm than good), but it's disappointing to see her follow-up piece include a statement such as this: " I am sorry that public health spent the past four years terrifying you about a virus that was never going to be stopped and that we are all going to get at some point..." This statement not only mocks the legitimate concerns expressed by public health officials about a disease that led to a huge number of deaths, it is illogical---i.e., the fact that the virus was never going to be stopped doesn't mean that officials shouldn't have regularly spoken out about the dangers of COVID.
Thank you for taking a leap of faith in reaching out and listening to other viewpoints. I really struggle to listen because I feel like there is no reciprocation or respect for science and medicine from the other side. And I hate that there are “sides” to this and that they frequently run along political lines. I’m so very sorry that you, your family, and others in the community have been threatened. I believe that you and your peers are truly the best of us. Thank you.
I love your columns and am sorry about the personal attacks. What I have gotten out of this pandemic is there are a lot of deliberate liars who are willing to say anything true or not to get their own way. An example is the people who refuse vaccines because "I don't trust that new fangled technology", when offered a traditional vaccine they still refuse because the first statement didn't reflect their reasons it was just an excuse.
I started out thinking that most people were telling the truth as they knew it and separating their opinions from the facts. Now I am not so sure. The Barrington dimwits were starting with false premises and going to impossibilities.
I believe that you are sticking to the facts and that the opinions you share are what you truly believe. Of course those beliefs and facts are reinforcing my initial stance so I can't be a good narrator.
I didn't like the last column because I have gotten to the point of ignoring anti vaxxers as being deliberately blind. I have a friend who didn't think covid-19 was as bad because he didn't know anyone who died. His parents are already dead, and he doesn't work in hospitals, or nursing homes. He has a limited social circle and most are the same age. He didn't think any of that was a reason why he personally didn't know anyone at that time who had died of covid-19.
Keep up the great work
Youre doing the right thing. hang in there.