4 ms·

> a backseat collaborator willing to get on an Air China jet, eat terrible food, and stay in bad hotels I'm not sure why this is supposed to be compelling evid

by saghm 5y ago

> a backseat collaborator willing to get on an Air China jet, eat terrible food, and stay in bad hotels I'm not sure why this is supposed to be compelling evidence. Are people who refuse to work unless provided first class plane tickets, meals at Michelin star restaurants, and five-star hotels expected to be more reliable? If anything, I imagine people would be way more willing fudge or flat out lie about their research if they were willing to get that kind of accommodation out of it.

thematrixturtle 5y ago
- TheMightyLlama 5y ago
  I suspect its a dig at terrible airline food.
- throwaway4good 5y ago
  Getoutahere. Nothing about this whole affair is "lowkey racist". It is all about science. The pursuit of truth. And doing your own research ...
  - thematrixturtle 5y ago
    The quoted DARPA official is slagging EcoHealth Alliance for "willing to get on an Air China jet, eat terrible food, and stay in bad hotels", which doesn't sound like it has much if anything to do with science. For what it's worth, to me Dazsak and EcoHealth sound sketchy as fuck and it's pretty obvious the WIV is frantically trying to cover its ass. However, this is a national pastime in China when anything goes wrong (exhibit A: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wenzhou_train_collision https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wenzhou_train_collision), and thus doesn't necessarily mean the WIV is directly responsible.
kenneth 5y ago
I've sat on a China Eastern jet (in first class) and gotten covid… and the flight was the more unpleasant of the two.
upsidesinclude 5y ago
Seems you have missed the greater point: these people were willing to do the science that the Administration granting money wanted to have done and no one of repute would sign up to do. Focusing on a small bit of hyperbole in order to reverse the argument is a weak stance to take
- saghm 5y ago
  If my stance on the correctness of their argument was stated weakly, it's because I don't have one. I do have a stance that criticizing people for having different standards for plane travel and hotels and cuisine is in poor taste, and that applies regardless of whether the greater point the criticism was intended to convey was valid or not.

by saghm 5y ago

thematrixturtle 5y ago

TheMightyLlama 5y ago
I suspect its a dig at terrible airline food.
throwaway4good 5y ago
Getoutahere. Nothing about this whole affair is "lowkey racist". It is all about science. The pursuit of truth. And doing your own research ...
- thematrixturtle 5y ago
  The quoted DARPA official is slagging EcoHealth Alliance for "willing to get on an Air China jet, eat terrible food, and stay in bad hotels", which doesn't sound like it has much if anything to do with science. For what it's worth, to me Dazsak and EcoHealth sound sketchy as fuck and it's pretty obvious the WIV is frantically trying to cover its ass. However, this is a national pastime in China when anything goes wrong (exhibit A: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wenzhou_train_collision https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wenzhou_train_collision), and thus doesn't necessarily mean the WIV is directly responsible.

kenneth 5y ago

I've sat on a China Eastern jet (in first class) and gotten covid… and the flight was the more unpleasant of the two.

upsidesinclude 5y ago

Seems you have missed the greater point: these people were willing to do the science that the Administration granting money wanted to have done and no one of repute would sign up to do. Focusing on a small bit of hyperbole in order to reverse the argument is a weak stance to take

saghm 5y ago
If my stance on the correctness of their argument was stated weakly, it's because I don't have one. I do have a stance that criticizing people for having different standards for plane travel and hotels and cuisine is in poor taste, and that applies regardless of whether the greater point the criticism was intended to convey was valid or not.