Friday Hodgepodge

Notable Commentary

Image by Simon Connellan, via Unsplash, license.

It has been a while since my last presentation of quotes from fellow travelers appearing on the pages of popular media. I think we can safely say that the new (but cumbersome) routine I'd come up with for finding and tracking such has failed, and it's time to move on.

Below is an almost certainly incomplete list of worthwhile material since -- cough! -- last April. Enjoy, and I look to return to making this a more frequent feature again, going forward.

In fact, there will be more next Friday.

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"The divisiveness over the pandemic, I believe, takes some of its root in the abstinence-only approach and led to the false dichotomy the country has been mired in the past year: with some proportion of the population acting as if a pandemic is not taking place, while another segment cannot navigate a world in which any risk of COVID-19 is present." -- Amesh Adalja in "'Abstinence Only' Approach to COVID Failed in 2021 -- Missed Opportunity for Teaching Harm Reduction," at The Hill

"The most valuable asset we have in the fight against COVID-19 is still unequivocally vaccination, and the presence of effective drugs doesn't change that." Amesh Adalja in "New COVID Antivirals Do Not Replace the Need to Vaccinate," at Scientific American

"Home COVID-19 tests, which should still be employed by symptomatic persons, should be converted to full FDA licensure and be expanded to cover other infectious diseases such as influenza, RSV, strep throat, mononucleosis and sexually transmitted infections..." -- Amesh Adalja in "With Vaccinations on the Rise, COVID-19 Testing Takes on a New Role" at The Hill

"Knowledge is something that must be acquired through a specific process." -- Amesh Adalja in "The Scientific Method and the Pandemic" at Medium

"Faith in 'impersonal value' generates a very real threat to the values of real people: the value of a home or a college education or energy to a California resident -- and that of a young woman's right to live her life without fear of an enforced pregnancy." -- Ben Bayer in "The Dark Roots of the Texas Abortion Ban's Vigilantism" at Medium

"[I]f the purpose of a vaccination campaign is to help the country return to 'normal,' then a crucial part of that normal is a respect for individual rights and personal medical autonomy." -- Paul Hsieh in "Not Everyone Wants to Be Vaccinated. I'm OK With That," at Forbes

"Even if cash prizes and conventional incentives may cause problems, some unusual incentives have apparently been quite successful." -- Paul Hsieh in "Perks and Incentives for Covid-19 Vaccination May Backfire" at Forbes

"Just as a business or restaurant can require wearing shoes or a shirt as a condition for entry, they should be allowed to require that patrons provide proof of vaccination (or wear a mask) as a condition for entry." -- Paul Hsieh in "Some State Governments Are Banning Businesses From Asking Customers About Covid-19 Vaccination Status -- Why That's a Bad Idea" at Forbes

"... I suspect that treating Americans like intelligent, responsible adults will work better in the long run than treating them like ignorant, foolish children." -- Paul Hsieh in "Governors Try Outreach and Persuasion to Improve Covid-19 Vaccination Rates" at Forbes

"His thought was that if his Achilles tendon completely ruptured, then his supervisor would be forced to operate." -- Paul Hsieh in "How Defying One's Boss Led to a New Medical Discovery" at Forbes

"[B]ecause they avoid most insurance hassles, DPC physicians endure fewer bureaucratic headaches, thus allowing them to spend more time doing what they went to medical school to do -- to practice medicine." -- Paul Hsieh in "Why Patients Should Consider Direct Primary Care (DPC)" at Forbes

"All of us are carrying our own burdens and challenges -- many of which might not be apparent to others." -- Paul Hsieh in "Riding the Roller Coaster of Holiday Emotions" at Forbes

"[W]hile we may not have their expertise, there are rational methods for non-experts to choose experts." -- Gus Van Horn in "Why Halloween Is Much Scarier Than GMOs at RealClear Markets

-- CAV