I'm struggling with the criticism I'm getting for sharing upbeat #COVID19 news.
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I'm struggling with the criticism I'm getting for sharing upbeat #COVID19 news.
For years, I probed data and shared accurate analysis showing COVID risks were higher than most thought. Many people liked and reposted me.
Today, I share that COVID is far lower than it's been in six years after two years of consecutively declining surges, and people act like I'm a COVID minimizer.
Same guy, same data, same analysis. If you welcomed my concern, I hope you'd equally embrace my optimism. 1/2
@augieray I think it's a very Mastodon thing, that could be applied to any number of circumstances. "How DARE you be happy?!?!" is the underlying principle.
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@augieray I for one immensely appreciate you sharing both the bad and good news. It's definitely been helpful for me, personally. Many thanks.
Co-signing this.
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I'm not saying COVID is gone or you shouldn't be cautious. I think it's vital people have the freedom to do what they think is right for their and their families' health. But doing the right thing requires valid information, and I'd hope by providing that, I help people.
COVID is going to surge again. The question is if we'll continue the trend to lower surges and a safer world, or will that reverse? I'll still be watching. I just hope people will accept good news as eagerly as they do bad. 2/2
@augieray Ever since Covid was politicised, the reaction to it from both sides has made no sense.
When, recently, the WHO announced that it was unlikely that hantavirus would lead to a pandemic, I saw a lot of snotty responses along the lines of "That's what the idiots said about COVID!"
If we can't accept that some science news might be good, then how can we say we trust it when the news is bad?
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Co-signing this.
@yosh @buffyleigh Thank you both very much!
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I'm struggling with the criticism I'm getting for sharing upbeat #COVID19 news.
For years, I probed data and shared accurate analysis showing COVID risks were higher than most thought. Many people liked and reposted me.
Today, I share that COVID is far lower than it's been in six years after two years of consecutively declining surges, and people act like I'm a COVID minimizer.
Same guy, same data, same analysis. If you welcomed my concern, I hope you'd equally embrace my optimism. 1/2
@augieray
I sure do, and I also sure appreciate that wastewater data tracking Covid and flu are now available online in France, where I'm at. -
I'm struggling with the criticism I'm getting for sharing upbeat #COVID19 news.
For years, I probed data and shared accurate analysis showing COVID risks were higher than most thought. Many people liked and reposted me.
Today, I share that COVID is far lower than it's been in six years after two years of consecutively declining surges, and people act like I'm a COVID minimizer.
Same guy, same data, same analysis. If you welcomed my concern, I hope you'd equally embrace my optimism. 1/2
@augieray your work is appreciated. Thank Science that some monitoring occurring despite cuts
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I'm struggling with the criticism I'm getting for sharing upbeat #COVID19 news.
For years, I probed data and shared accurate analysis showing COVID risks were higher than most thought. Many people liked and reposted me.
Today, I share that COVID is far lower than it's been in six years after two years of consecutively declining surges, and people act like I'm a COVID minimizer.
Same guy, same data, same analysis. If you welcomed my concern, I hope you'd equally embrace my optimism. 1/2
Social media is full of trolls whose purpose is to spread fear and anger. Ignore them.
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I'm not saying COVID is gone or you shouldn't be cautious. I think it's vital people have the freedom to do what they think is right for their and their families' health. But doing the right thing requires valid information, and I'd hope by providing that, I help people.
COVID is going to surge again. The question is if we'll continue the trend to lower surges and a safer world, or will that reverse? I'll still be watching. I just hope people will accept good news as eagerly as they do bad. 2/2
@augieray
I am very happy about this trend. But like you, I stay cautious. I am worried in the wrong hands it will be used to minimise when the possible next surge approaches.
The whole pandemic really broke a lot of trust of many people in many ways, including me. I also think most people just lost interest and don’t care anymore.
But I still read your toots and appreciate them very much! -
I'm struggling with the criticism I'm getting for sharing upbeat #COVID19 news.
For years, I probed data and shared accurate analysis showing COVID risks were higher than most thought. Many people liked and reposted me.
Today, I share that COVID is far lower than it's been in six years after two years of consecutively declining surges, and people act like I'm a COVID minimizer.
Same guy, same data, same analysis. If you welcomed my concern, I hope you'd equally embrace my optimism. 1/2
@augieray I was under the impression that wastewater data was really only good for near-term comparisons, e.g. “do current levels represent an increase or a drop from last week?” Do we have expert commentary somewhere on whether this has changed? I’d be happy to welcome good news if I could be convinced that we didn’t have to worry about other factors intervening in long range trends (examples off the top of my head — changes in typical viral load in excreta as the virus evolves, changes in wastewater dynamics due to extraneous factors like droughts/floods or engineering updates, changes in how the measurements are taken or reported). I mostly haven’t tracked the data since 2022, so it’s very possible there’s info I’ve missed.
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I'm not saying COVID is gone or you shouldn't be cautious. I think it's vital people have the freedom to do what they think is right for their and their families' health. But doing the right thing requires valid information, and I'd hope by providing that, I help people.
COVID is going to surge again. The question is if we'll continue the trend to lower surges and a safer world, or will that reverse? I'll still be watching. I just hope people will accept good news as eagerly as they do bad. 2/2
@augieray Thanks for all your information. The billionaire press is not going to report on COVID. What COVID did is alert us to the future world of a zillion viruses, with many of us feeling COVID messed with our immune systems. I feel more prepared now.
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@augieray I was under the impression that wastewater data was really only good for near-term comparisons, e.g. “do current levels represent an increase or a drop from last week?” Do we have expert commentary somewhere on whether this has changed? I’d be happy to welcome good news if I could be convinced that we didn’t have to worry about other factors intervening in long range trends (examples off the top of my head — changes in typical viral load in excreta as the virus evolves, changes in wastewater dynamics due to extraneous factors like droughts/floods or engineering updates, changes in how the measurements are taken or reported). I mostly haven’t tracked the data since 2022, so it’s very possible there’s info I’ve missed.
@emjonaitis there have been studies that have found their wastewater analysis is very predictive of things like infections and hospitalizations. Besides, if short-term wastewater analysis was suggested something as rising or falling then why wouldn't long term analysis do the same?
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R relay@relay.publicsquare.global shared this topic
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I'm struggling with the criticism I'm getting for sharing upbeat #COVID19 news.
For years, I probed data and shared accurate analysis showing COVID risks were higher than most thought. Many people liked and reposted me.
Today, I share that COVID is far lower than it's been in six years after two years of consecutively declining surges, and people act like I'm a COVID minimizer.
Same guy, same data, same analysis. If you welcomed my concern, I hope you'd equally embrace my optimism. 1/2
@augieray
I depend on your COVID reporting as a trusted source.I haven't abandoned my COVID cautions due to your good news.
I do use your new, more positive data to alleviate some of my anxieties about being in public spaces.
Don't let the haters affect your analysis.
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I'm struggling with the criticism I'm getting for sharing upbeat #COVID19 news.
For years, I probed data and shared accurate analysis showing COVID risks were higher than most thought. Many people liked and reposted me.
Today, I share that COVID is far lower than it's been in six years after two years of consecutively declining surges, and people act like I'm a COVID minimizer.
Same guy, same data, same analysis. If you welcomed my concern, I hope you'd equally embrace my optimism. 1/2
@augieray "Optimism" about covid is able to be, and is, weaponised to oppress immunocompromised people.
It is used as the justification to scale back affordances to protect the vulnerable, and to force those people into situations that are a risk to them, but perhaps not so much for the abled population.
One might argue that expressing optimism about Covid is inherently unethical, and for a doctor, directly contradicts the "do no harm" principle.
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@augieray "Optimism" about covid is able to be, and is, weaponised to oppress immunocompromised people.
It is used as the justification to scale back affordances to protect the vulnerable, and to force those people into situations that are a risk to them, but perhaps not so much for the abled population.
One might argue that expressing optimism about Covid is inherently unethical, and for a doctor, directly contradicts the "do no harm" principle.
@metaning if one can't see improvements in infectious risk as helpful and not harmful to immunocompromised people, that says more about your attitudes than it does the data or the risks.
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@emjonaitis there have been studies that have found their wastewater analysis is very predictive of things like infections and hospitalizations. Besides, if short-term wastewater analysis was suggested something as rising or falling then why wouldn't long term analysis do the same?
@augieray no, it wouldn’t — some processes can be treated as stationary over short intervals but not long ones. For example, if the measurement is affected by seasonality for some reason (eg a dry/wet seasonal pattern in the local climate), that won’t affect comparisons of measurements week to week, but it will affect long range comparisons. N.B. that example is made up; wastewater data analysis is outside my wheelhouse but I know enough statistics to have a sense of what I don’t know, if that makes sense.
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I'm not saying COVID is gone or you shouldn't be cautious. I think it's vital people have the freedom to do what they think is right for their and their families' health. But doing the right thing requires valid information, and I'd hope by providing that, I help people.
COVID is going to surge again. The question is if we'll continue the trend to lower surges and a safer world, or will that reverse? I'll still be watching. I just hope people will accept good news as eagerly as they do bad. 2/2
@augieray Hopefully you're getting an equal amount (or more!) of encouragement, thanks and appreciation. Cause that's what you have from me.
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@metaning if one can't see improvements in infectious risk as helpful and not harmful to immunocompromised people, that says more about your attitudes than it does the data or the risks.
@augieray "Optimism" about covid is what makes it impossible to see a dentist, because their staff may refuse to wear N95 respirators when you have to take yours off, because "Covid is over" and "Covid isn't so bad". Or, get trades in to your house, because even though you supply them with masks, they take them off when you're not looking.
It speaks to your attitude that you're not thinking from the perspective of people less fortunate than you.
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I'm struggling with the criticism I'm getting for sharing upbeat #COVID19 news.
For years, I probed data and shared accurate analysis showing COVID risks were higher than most thought. Many people liked and reposted me.
Today, I share that COVID is far lower than it's been in six years after two years of consecutively declining surges, and people act like I'm a COVID minimizer.
Same guy, same data, same analysis. If you welcomed my concern, I hope you'd equally embrace my optimism. 1/2
@augieray It’s probably terminally-online doomers that wanted the world to burn. The data is deflating their power fantasy (they’d survive any catastrophe of course) and thus they attack you.
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I'm struggling with the criticism I'm getting for sharing upbeat #COVID19 news.
For years, I probed data and shared accurate analysis showing COVID risks were higher than most thought. Many people liked and reposted me.
Today, I share that COVID is far lower than it's been in six years after two years of consecutively declining surges, and people act like I'm a COVID minimizer.
Same guy, same data, same analysis. If you welcomed my concern, I hope you'd equally embrace my optimism. 1/2
@augieray Oh, man! You don't deserve this.
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I'm struggling with the criticism I'm getting for sharing upbeat #COVID19 news.
For years, I probed data and shared accurate analysis showing COVID risks were higher than most thought. Many people liked and reposted me.
Today, I share that COVID is far lower than it's been in six years after two years of consecutively declining surges, and people act like I'm a COVID minimizer.
Same guy, same data, same analysis. If you welcomed my concern, I hope you'd equally embrace my optimism. 1/2
@augieray Mind-boggling. I've seen your stuff being shared here for years, and if anything, you sharing this news should probably be given *extra* weight and cheer.
I'm sorry you're catching hear for it, but I'm glad I saw this post today. I see your posts so often I assumed I was following you, but I realized today I was not. Now rectified.
