I do not think that word means what you think it means


Jordan Klepper continues his journey among the vaccine deniers and MAGAheads. He went to meetings of local school boards which have become the new focal point of the anti-maskers who have been using the public comments portion of the meetings to vent their feverish conspiracy theories. I linked to a compilation of those comments recently.

One of the things I noticed in the Klepper video below is that a couple of the people rationalized their weird beliefs by saying that they had done ‘research’ on it. They seem to think that the scientific-sounding word ‘research’ means finding some sources on the internet that support their beliefs, rather than an evaluation of actual research results supported by empirical data that has been done and carefully analyzed by credible experts.

The new slogan of those opposed to any anti-Covid 19 measures for children that are mandated by the government seems to be “I don’t co-parent with the government”.

I did learn something new, and that is that Satanist rituals involve people wearing masks and standing six feet apart from each other. What more evidence do you need that masks and physical distancing are evil? Wake up, sheeple!

Comments

  1. Pierce R. Butler says

    … Satanist rituals involve people wearing masks and standing six feet apart from each other.

    Most boring orgy ever.

  2. flex says

    … Satanist rituals involve people wearing masks and standing six feet apart from each other.

    So, why are the Satanist’s doing this? Do they know something we don’t know? Are they protecting themselves from COVID infections? Are they going to be the only ones left after Christians are extinct because Christians are not wearing masks and standing six feet apart from each other?

    I’m just asking questions (JAQing off), but it seems to me that Christian’s can:

    Defeat them at their own game!
    Wear masks and keep your distance from each other, while continuing to proclaim your allegiance to Jesus, the personal savior!

    If that crappy message gets people to wear masks, I’ll use it.

  3. blf says

    One of the things I noticed in the Klepper video below is that a couple of the people rationalized their weird beliefs by saying that they had done ‘research’ on it. They seem to think that the scientific-sounding word ‘research’ means finding some sources on the internet that support their beliefs, rather than an evaluation of actual research results supported by empirical data that has been done and carefully analyzed by credible experts.

    I now cannot recall where I heard or read it, but very recently found a pithy retort to this “do research on it” nonsense. Paraphrasing from memory, “Doing research on the Internet is deciding which fridge to buy, not deciding whether or not experts with years of education and experience are right or not.”

  4. dean56 says

    All too often “Doing research on the Internet ” is done by people who don’t have the education to know what they’re looking for, believe chiropractors and naturopaths are more than what they really are, quacks, and who want to show that the “system” won’t control them.

  5. bargearse says

    Ima leave this here. I’d provide proper attribution but it’s something from facebook a friend emailed me. His brother (who is also my boss) is leaning anti vaxxer and we’ve been trying to find ways to change his mind:

    “Do your research!!!”
    Here’s the thing. Research is a learned skill; it is hard, it is nuanced and complex, and it is true that the majority of people would not even know where to begin or even HOW to do [their own] research.
    Research is NOT:
    Googling, scrolling your FB newsfeed, or watching YouTube or 4Chan 😖 to search for the results you are hoping to find to be “true.” These are called confirmation biases, and are quickly and easily ruled out when doing actual research.
    A post credited to Linda Gamble Spadaro, a licensed mental health counselor in Florida, sums this up quite well:
    “Please stop saying you researched it.
    You didn’t research anything and it is highly probable you don’t know how to do so.
    Did you compile a literature review and write abstracts on each article? Or better yet, did you collect a random sample of sources and perform independent probability statistics on the reported results? No?
    Did you at least take each article one by one and look into the source (that would be the author, publisher and funder), then critique the writing for logical fallacies, cognitive distortions and plain inaccuracies?
    Did you ask yourself why this source might publish these particular results? Did you follow the trail of references and apply the same source of scrutiny to them?
    No? Then you didn’t…research anything. You read or watched a video, most likely with little or no objectivity. You came across something in your algorithm manipulated feed, something that jived with your implicit biases and served your confirmation bias, and subconsciously applied your emotional filters and called it proof.”
    This doesn’t even go into institutional review boards (IRB’s), also known as independent ethics committees, ethical review boards, or touch on peer review, or meta-analyses.
    To sum it up, a healthy dose of skepticism is/can be a good thing…as long as we are also applying it to those things we wish/think to be true, and not just those things we choose to be skeptical towards, or in denial of.
    Most importantly, though, is to apply our best critical thinking skills to ensure we are doing our best to suss out the facts from the fiction, the myths, and outright BS in pseudoscience and politics.
    Misinformation is being used as a tool of war and to undermine our public health, and it is up to each of us to fight against it.

  6. mnb0 says

    “They seem to think that the scientific-sounding word ‘research’ means finding some sources on the internet that support their beliefs”
    Way too charitable. Like creacrappers with evolution they deliberately change the meaning of the word research with a clear purpose in mind.

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