Fake Science Wrecks Civilization
The more we know about the bad data behind so much policy, the more shocking it becomes. Fake science is everywhere: pharma, economics, climate change, and so much more.
BY BROWNSTONE INSTITUTE
The more we know about the bad data behind so much policy, the more shocking it becomes. Fake science is everywhere: pharma, economics, climate change, and so much more.
This weekend, Brownstone fellow Maryanne Demasi stunned watchers of pharmaceuticals by discovering a hidden data deception at the heart of a newly approved RSV product for babies. We will be running her piece this week, so watch for it.
Meanwhile, another study we commissioned last year has been getting attention. That’s because the co-author EJ Antoni was just appointed to head the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Big changes are coming that could disrupt the methodology behind labor and inflation numbers.
Meanwhile, we’ve seen some progress: Jay Bhattacharya and Robert Kennedy have somehow managed to cancel half a billion dollars of funding for mRNA development at BARDA. That’s a genuine victory!
Registration for the fifth annual Brownstone conference and gala is now live with early-bird pricing. The dates: Oct 31 - Nov 2. The place: Salt Lake City, Utah. All the luminaries who have led the way for these years will be there, discussing all the crucial subjects. It will be the first year of the Brownstone Prize, which will be awarded at the Saturday Gala dinner.
If this follows recent events, this will sell out completely. Now is the time to move and get your tickets.
In preparation for our Polyface event (now with a long waiting list to get in), Jeffrey Tucker’s new book is available. Kindle is available and physical is already selling well. “A blueprint for psychological resistance disguised as cultural commentary,” says the first review. It’s short but inspiring with 15 original pen-and-ink drawings, which is why the physical book is the way to go.
On Wednesday, August 20th, the West Hartford Supper Club welcomes John Hart, an experienced investigator of government who has been on the front lines with one central question: where is the money going? John will share with us insights on what it is like to be in his position at Open the Books (which first discovered Anthony Fauci’s gigantic salary) as a voice of fiscal sanity while working with DOGE in DC. Get tickets here.
The Greater Boston Supper Club welcomes writer, speaker, consultant, and the founder of Inner Compass Initiative Laura Delano on Tuesday, September 2nd. Laura’s new memoir, Unshrunk, recounts her harrowing 14-year relationship to the American mental health industry. Laura will share some of her story, how her book has been received by the media and psychiatry, and what she senses shifting in the public discourse around psychiatric drugs and diagnoses. Also: we have a new venue! Get tickets here.
On Monday, September 8th, the Midwest Brownstone Supper Club welcomes Andrew Horning, former Libertarian candidate and advocate for Constitutional rule of law. How well do you understand the US Constitution? Test your knowledge when you join us for an engaging and informative evening. Get tickets here.
Please remember Brownstone Institute in your charitable giving. We support many of the best writers and researchers in our focused area, and they are making a huge difference. Also, we get zero in government or pharma funding. We have a branch in Spain and are hoping to open one up in Italy if we can raise the funds.
We are only supported by you. Big or small, we deeply appreciate all donations. But for such a small institution, Brownstone has been making a gigantic difference.
Here is some content since our last email.
To Share Weights from Neural Network Training Is Dangerous By Jessica Rose. What would happen if the weights got into the “wrong hands” and people started to be targeted intentionally? There can be no probable cause when using AI targeting systems, but would it even matter? What if probable cause was made up?
A Hidden Post-Pandemic Increase in the Decline of Female Health By Carla Peeters. While male health seemed to bounce back, mortality and disabilities in women continue to rise above earlier trends and are not expected to solve themselves soon. This might cause a fundamental change in the dynamics of the gender mortality gap.
The Meaning of the Semiquincentennial By Jeffrey Tucker. There is every reason to be proud to be an American. But with that must come the humility to recognize that this country can be “more perfect.” The pathway there is through a deeper understanding of the Founding.
The Creation of New ICD-10 Codes for Post-Covid Vaccine Syndrome By Christopher Dreisbach. Failure to create ICD-10 codes for PCVS would be to ignore the reality of the syndrome, leaving the sick to face the grim consequences of inaction – left adrift in a medical system unwilling to acknowledge our existence and desperate need for treatment.
Global Governance vs. Democratic Sovereignty By Ramesh Thakur. The need is not to rush into a new global health framework absent ‘a thorough public debate,’ Kennedy said, but to ‘strengthen national and local autonomy to hold global organizations in check and to restore a real balance of power.’
Consequentialism Discredited By Reverend John F. Naugle. There is no reconciliation possible between the two competing modes of moral thinking that arose out of modernity; law, duty, intention, and consequences all really do matter, and the deontologist and consequentialist are always going to be talking past each other.
New Designer DNA by the Wellcome Trust By Jessica Rose. According to a recent article in the BBC, some person at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology was given $10 million by the Wellcome Trust to start making new designer DNA. Because our DNA is such a crapshoot.
The Boomer Mirage By Josh Stylman. While the specific figures combine data from multiple sources, the trend is undeniable: in 1950, over half of 30-year-olds were married homeowners. By 2025, some analysts project that number as low as 13%.
A Small Book About Real Life By Jeffrey Tucker. I’ve never been as excited and nervous about a new book of mine. Each chapter covers an animating spirit of the historical American ethos: respect, hard work, pioneering, gratitude, patience, faith, independence, forbearance, and so on.
Your Spouse Started Antidepressants and Became a Stranger By Roger McFillin. Welcome to the SSRI marriage apocalypse: a phenomenon so widespread that entire online communities have formed to support its casualties. Spouses gathering in digital refugee camps, comparing notes about partners who transformed into unrecognizable strangers after starting antidepressants.
Seven Philosophical Criticisms of Evidence-Based Medicine and Evidence Hierarchies By Toby Rogers. The era of corporate EBM is over, and the future of medicine is decentralized, N-of-1, non-corporate, non-government, person-to-person, direct primary care, based on the totality of evidence, decency, life experience, dialogue, and personal values.
What Makes a Germophobe? By Steve Templeton. Germophobia isn’t generally considered a condition all by itself. Not all people with OCD are germophobes, but it’s much safer to say that most, if not all, germophobes are further along the OCD spectrum than most.