OMG. OMG. OMG.
I am reading the transcript of this week's 60 Minutes interview with whistleblower Frances Haugen, a data scientist who since June 2019 has been working as a product manager at Facebook.
"When we live in an information environment that is full of angry, hateful, polarizing content, it erodes our civic trust, it erodes our faith in each other, it erodes our ability to want to care for each other," Haugen said to CBS correspondent Scott...
The continuation of the COVID-19 pandemic is causing new levels of frustration amongst the populace, including among health care professionals. That frustration centres on the question of vaccination, in particular where uptake of vaccination is low, but vaccines are readily available.
The United States has a 54% reported rate of full vaccination relative to its entire population, while Canada has 69%, and Europe has 51%. The global rate is 31%.In the U.S. and Canada, vaccines are widely available....
It is a very difficult time to be an intelligent, respectful person.
I have surrounded myself with accomplished scientists and am privy to conversations that help me understand their plight.
When someone says, "What is wrong with the unvaccinated; can't they see that the science is settled, and that it is incredibly selfish to avoid vaccination?", my astute associates would say something like, "Anyone who understands science knows that we are all still learning about COVID-19 vaccines,...
We may be missing one of the main points in our arguments over vaccination against COVID-19. We may also be placing our efforts to increase vaccination uptake on the wrong things. Bribes, coercion, and political bickering are not necessarily helpful; building trust in vaccines is.
Vaccine passports and vaccination against COVID-19 have continued to be part of the dialogue in the lives of Americans and Canadians. The discussion has become a political tool in the...
Back in April, BIG Media published an excellent three-part series by Laurie Weston on science – its methods, its ethics, and its manipulation on public platforms today. Science – there is method to the madness, Manipulating science – activism and advocacy, Science and morality – ethics and judgment.
Her articles reinforced for me that science is very dynamic – ever changing, ever being improved, and ever needful of critical review and discussion.
Many articles that Laurie,...
This morning on CBC Radio 1, I heard the mayor of Vancouver refer to protesters of the incoming (for B.C.) vaccine passport as "kooks" among other disparaging remarks.
How can the mayor of one of Canada's largest cities think that it is acceptable to fan the flames of division? Of course, he is one of many North American politicians to take the position that the vaccinated majority rule the high moral ground, while those who...
Every day, it seems that there are more and more people in my network who accept the words of our politicians and chief medical officers as definitive facts. I find this perplexing, to say the least.
This is not a condemnation of the public officials' actions; I would not want to be in their shoes, facing myriad, daunting challenges that come with navigating the current crisis ... and some of their messages are indeed factual.
However, it...
As children, a lot of us were told to avoid talking to strangers. Thankfully, I never really took to that lesson.
At 10 p.m. on Dec. 28, 2019, after a full day of writing, I popped in to Earls restaurant in southwest Calgary to have a late pint and watch my favourite TV show "Raptors in 30", a condensed version of Toronto's basketball game versus the Boston Celtics played earlier that evening.
It was a busy night at...
Gasoline prices are on the rise across North America, but the trend is offset by the fact that talk is cheaper than ever.
One does not have to scroll too far down a social media feed to see someone complaining about the price of gasoline. Often, it is a person who has earlier decried the oil and gas industry for its supposedly evil ways. Hmm.
It seems to me that someone who wants our society to...
A friend recently questioned me about the BIG Media site not having a lot of fresh news content every day.
I replied, "Yes, while our competitors pump out tons of low-integrity, sensationalized content on the high-pressure, click-bait-driven 24-hour news cycle, we prefer to publish stories when they are ready, usually after exhaustive research."
We will never win the volume race, but we will consistently come out on top in quality of content. We can do that...
