“A PANDEMIC OF INCOMPETENCE” with Sam Harris & Nicholas Christakis
An informative discussion on COVID-19, though Christakis takes over to some extent, and I would have liked to have heard more from Harris (but perhaps he has spoken elsewhere). Notably — Christakis does not foresee much improvement before 2022, and more broadly, 2024. Some good lines:
11m — In sociology they say that “One person’s occupation is made up of the [rare] emergencies of other people (e.g. a plumber)”
39m — The spread of germs is the price we pay for the spread of ideas (i.e. human social interaction and cooperation, historically)
The final 30 minutes of the 90-minute discussion is available to subscribers here:
“They discuss:
-the breakdown of trust in institutions and experts -the corruption of science by politics -the ineptitude of the Trump administration in handling the pandemic -whether the gravity of Covid-19 has been exaggerated -preparing for future pandemics -whether Covid deaths are being over-reported -bad incentives in the medical system, tracking “excess death” statistics -the prospect that the novel coronavirus will evolve to become more benign -the efficacy of current treatments -safety concerns about a rushed vaccine -the importance of public health communication -when life might return to normal -the economic impact of the pandemic -long term social changes -the future of universities -Nicholas’s personal habits during the pandemic -the importance of rapid testing”
