5 ms·

Deep dive into stupid: Meet the growing group that rejects germ theory

20 points by arunbahl 5y ago

peakaboo 5y ago
Wow the language in this article... Don't think I've seen something so disrespectful from an official magazine before.
- Damogran6 5y ago
  I'm betting it's fatigue from dealing with so many stupid people. Can't say as I blame them.
- xg15 5y ago
  please explain.
- guilhas 5y ago
  In general arsetechnica article quality has been way down from a year or so a go. Too political, always on the offensive, comments short from wishing people dead. Or just something that looks like a promotion/advert for someone. Very few articles actually worth reading.
- quantified 5y ago
  Consider the topic. Apart from acknowledging the complexity of a higher organism, and anticipating the idea of microbiomes, terrain is a pretty bad idea. Which is more predictive of catching cholera, eating salami or drinking water with cholera in it? I agree they could be less snarky, but there’s less to respect in that point of view than flat-eartherism.
- heraclius 5y ago
  What’s an ‘official magazine’?
- 8bitsrule 5y ago
  Actually, refreshing to see someone take the gloves off and tell it like it is. 'Toxic ignorance' (of the willful variety) definitely exists - has repeatedly been demonstrated in all eras of human history - and is definitely capable of creating a lot of misery. After hundreds of thousands of deaths: Non-violence is a wonderful idea in general, but when someone points a gun at you, it's not the most pragmatic response. I wish that could have been made clearer on Jan. 6.
Justsignedup 5y ago
The rate of increase shows we have a systemic information problem.
r00tanon 5y ago
Yet another example of the negative consequences that come from selling snake oil in the "click-based" economy created by social media algorithms. The people feeding this Facebook group are likely making a tidy living off this. Something that would have been far less likely before Facebook, Twitter, etc. The cumulative effect of so many fringe groups being pumped up like this is, paradoxically, they act like viruses that make society itself sick.
- syshum 5y ago
  I dont know if that is true.. Many of the groups existed for decades before social media in various forms none of this is really new, just more exposed.
  - Lutzb 5y ago
    And drastically better connected. Connecting the village idiots maybe wasn't such a great idea after all.
    - syshum 5y ago
      While that is one way to look at it, it is also true that more people are exposed true information as well, many people have been brought OUT of these toxic groups due to exposure to more information online You are only looking at 1/2 of the equation. On Balance I think it is a net gain for side a truth. Keep in mind that media and human in general tend to be bad at risk assessment, People believe they have a greater chance of dying in an airplane than on the road as an example, or that terrorism is a greater threat than it is. Or more recently slight up tick in violent crime is worse than it really is... Sure some people that may not have been exposed to things like the Flat Earth or Anti-Vax were, but I did to look at the over sensationalized media reports of these groups being "epidemic" that social media is to blame for as self serving since the media is used to being gate keepers of information, having lost that power to social media and the internet in general they are looking to demonize the technology in order to regain their position as the Arbiters of Truth Dont get me wrong, I think Twitter and Facebook are terrible, I just to no support the idea that solution to these problems is with centralized "Fact Checkers" who are conveniently part of the old guard media establishment, Make no mistake that is what ars is pushing for.
briefcomment 5y ago
Pasteur may have conceded that Bechamp was correct on his deathbed, according to Hans Selye[1]. [1]http://www.susandoreydesigns.com/insights/pasteur-recant.html http://www.susandoreydesigns.com/insights/pasteur-recant.htm...
jleyank 5y ago
Usually a bad bet to say that things can be experimentally proven don’t exist. Unless they argue that the agar plate needs to detox after being scratched or the milk when it’s a few too many days old. And I recall they proved the helicobacter pylori relation with ulcers by drinking them and then taking antibiotics. Wishing doesn’t usually make it so.
specialist 5y ago
Disruption -- technological, political, disaster, whatever -- makes people go nuts. Plus, the way social media amplifies hysteria for profit would make William Randolph Hearst and Joseph Goebbels blush. FWIW, I found these interesting: Agnotology, the study of ignorance https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agnotology https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agnotology The Last Archive https://www.thelastarchive.com https://www.thelastarchive.com Prediction: Like coronavirus, these memetic pathogens are the new normal.

20 points by arunbahl 5y ago

peakaboo 5y ago

Wow the language in this article... Don't think I've seen something so disrespectful from an official magazine before.

Damogran6 5y ago
I'm betting it's fatigue from dealing with so many stupid people. Can't say as I blame them.
xg15 5y ago
please explain.
guilhas 5y ago
In general arsetechnica article quality has been way down from a year or so a go. Too political, always on the offensive, comments short from wishing people dead. Or just something that looks like a promotion/advert for someone. Very few articles actually worth reading.
quantified 5y ago
Consider the topic. Apart from acknowledging the complexity of a higher organism, and anticipating the idea of microbiomes, terrain is a pretty bad idea. Which is more predictive of catching cholera, eating salami or drinking water with cholera in it? I agree they could be less snarky, but there’s less to respect in that point of view than flat-eartherism.
heraclius 5y ago
What’s an ‘official magazine’?
8bitsrule 5y ago
Actually, refreshing to see someone take the gloves off and tell it like it is. 'Toxic ignorance' (of the willful variety) definitely exists - has repeatedly been demonstrated in all eras of human history - and is definitely capable of creating a lot of misery. After hundreds of thousands of deaths: Non-violence is a wonderful idea in general, but when someone points a gun at you, it's not the most pragmatic response. I wish that could have been made clearer on Jan. 6.

Justsignedup 5y ago

The rate of increase shows we have a systemic information problem.

r00tanon 5y ago

Yet another example of the negative consequences that come from selling snake oil in the "click-based" economy created by social media algorithms. The people feeding this Facebook group are likely making a tidy living off this. Something that would have been far less likely before Facebook, Twitter, etc. The cumulative effect of so many fringe groups being pumped up like this is, paradoxically, they act like viruses that make society itself sick.

syshum 5y ago
I dont know if that is true.. Many of the groups existed for decades before social media in various forms none of this is really new, just more exposed.
- Lutzb 5y ago
  And drastically better connected. Connecting the village idiots maybe wasn't such a great idea after all.
  - syshum 5y ago
    While that is one way to look at it, it is also true that more people are exposed true information as well, many people have been brought OUT of these toxic groups due to exposure to more information online You are only looking at 1/2 of the equation. On Balance I think it is a net gain for side a truth. Keep in mind that media and human in general tend to be bad at risk assessment, People believe they have a greater chance of dying in an airplane than on the road as an example, or that terrorism is a greater threat than it is. Or more recently slight up tick in violent crime is worse than it really is... Sure some people that may not have been exposed to things like the Flat Earth or Anti-Vax were, but I did to look at the over sensationalized media reports of these groups being "epidemic" that social media is to blame for as self serving since the media is used to being gate keepers of information, having lost that power to social media and the internet in general they are looking to demonize the technology in order to regain their position as the Arbiters of Truth Dont get me wrong, I think Twitter and Facebook are terrible, I just to no support the idea that solution to these problems is with centralized "Fact Checkers" who are conveniently part of the old guard media establishment, Make no mistake that is what ars is pushing for.

briefcomment 5y ago

Pasteur may have conceded that Bechamp was correct on his deathbed, according to Hans Selye[1]. [1]http://www.susandoreydesigns.com/insights/pasteur-recant.html http://www.susandoreydesigns.com/insights/pasteur-recant.htm...

jleyank 5y ago

Usually a bad bet to say that things can be experimentally proven don’t exist. Unless they argue that the agar plate needs to detox after being scratched or the milk when it’s a few too many days old. And I recall they proved the helicobacter pylori relation with ulcers by drinking them and then taking antibiotics. Wishing doesn’t usually make it so.

specialist 5y ago

Disruption -- technological, political, disaster, whatever -- makes people go nuts. Plus, the way social media amplifies hysteria for profit would make William Randolph Hearst and Joseph Goebbels blush. FWIW, I found these interesting: Agnotology, the study of ignorance https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agnotology https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agnotology The Last Archive https://www.thelastarchive.com https://www.thelastarchive.com Prediction: Like coronavirus, these memetic pathogens are the new normal.