From what I remember, the Western expert opinion about wearing masks in public changed from "a weird East Asian habit" to "something that could be useful" aroun

From what I remember, the Western expert opinion about wearing masks in public changed from "a weird East Asian habit" to "something that could be useful" around March 2020. The debate continued beyond that mostly because the issue had already been politicized. And because people who are used to prosperity are often unable to handle the uncertainty of living through a major change. Too many people prefer experts who don't change their minds over those who do. I also remember experts expecting effective vaccines by the end of 2020 already in January or February 2020. The key scientific challenge in vaccines was never about developing them but about collecting sufficient evidence that the vaccines are effective enough and safe enough in diverse populations. And beyond that, getting the vaccines approved and distributed to billions of people before the pandemic is over were even bigger challenges. One thing contrarians often miss is that science is fundamentally about building and changing the consensus. It's not about convincing yourself that you have discovered something new, but about trying to convince yourself that you are wrong. And failing to do that, trying to convince the relevant audience that you have in fact discovered something new. Believing in something is a matter of faith. Convincing a skeptical audience that is nonetheless open to new ideas is science.