#SackWhitty seems to be trending. It's time to remind you that Whitty has been both working on the wards and leading the UK science response alongside SAGE. It's not his fault that politicians have gotten in the way. Blaming him allows the government to get away with negligence

Like any healthcare professional, I have been quizzical over certain decisions, but I doubt that Whitty has been the problem. We are led by science, but politics delays the response. We should have locked down earlier, opened later, and been more restrictive.
The #eatouttohelpout campaign was a political exercise that led to disaster. The Tier system was recognised early as a bad idea. The push from scientists and medical teams has always been to lock down earlier, restrict more. This is not nice, but nescessary.
It has been Johnson and Co who have delayed everything, tried to have their cake and eat it, sold PPI contracts and track and trace to cronies and friends. It has been certain pundits and commentators that have denied the outbreaks and slowed responses and sowed doubt.
The government will look for a scapegoat, and now they don't have the EU they will blame the 'experts' as per the brexit scheme, no blame can reflect on themselves. Note how this works, if they can't blame Whitty they will blame immigrants and mental health.
Its always the same, blame the 'undesireables' (as defined by them.) This government has always drawn a line between white English middle class/working class and everyone else, including immigrants and the sick. They added experts when the experts called it out.
One christmas Whitty, along with thousands, worked on the wards. What did the politicians do? Whitty stood before millions trying to help whilst balancing the political idiocy of the PM next to him. Whitty should not be sacked, he should be knighted.
So if you see this #, consider why. Is it really the consultant medic following science who is the problem, or the etonian sycophants who hold the finances offshore, who deport nationalised immigrants, who sneered at Grenfell victims, and whose mates made millions from contracts?
COVID19 is a harsh reality. We need to lock down, we need to be conservative, but not misled by The Conservatives. I would not have an issue with the party if they were sensible. It's always been about holding their image of strength, and it's been their weakness.
It is not weak to lockdown over a virus. It is not weak to use a mask, social distance or prioritise urgent care. These are the actions of a society that respects reality and their duty to each other, not to their own ego or the pockets of mansion owners.
So, in summary, #sackwhitty is a trick, a rouse and a cowardly act. Do not fall for it.
And ask yourself one question, that should give you the answer.

During a novel virus pandemic where the data changes daily, early recognition of the virus and sensible and life-saving countermeasures are needed, who do you trust more?

I know my answer, what's yours?
Oh and before you ask

1) I am not paid by pharma
2) I am a mental health doctor, employed by NHS
3) I have no financial interest in vaccines
4) My motivation is to stop people dying.
5) I make no money by tweeting this
6) Politics < science, and that's the issue.

More from Science

"NO LONGER BEST IN THE WORLD"
UNEP's new Human Development Index includes a new (separate) index: Planetary pressures-adjusted HDI (PHDI). News in Norway is that its position drops from #1 to #16 because of this, while Ireland rises from #2 to #1.
Why?

https://t.co/aVraIEzRfh


Check out Norway's 'Domestic Material Consumption'. Fossil fuels are no different here to Ireland's. What's different is this huge 'non-metallic minerals' category.
(Note also the jump in 1998, suggesting data problems.)
https://t.co/5QvzONbqmN


In Norway's case, it looks like the apparent consumption equation (production+imports-exports) for non-metal minerals is dominated by production: extraction of material in Norway.
https://t.co/5QvzONbqmN


And here we see that this production of non-metallic minerals is sand, gravel and crushed rock for construction. So it's about Norway's geology.
https://t.co/y6rqWmFVWc


Norway drops 15 places on the PHDI list not because of its CO₂ emissions (fairly high at 41st highest in the world per capita), but because of its geology, because it shifts a lot of rock whenever it builds anything.
This is a thread on statistics in science: 1/7 (via @LogicofScience)

Basic Statistics Part 1: The Law of Large Numbers https://t.co/wUH8eAAIak

#Science #Statistics


Basic Statistics Part 2: Correlation vs. Causation

https://t.co/Azhyl8pDsX (2/7)

Basic Statistics Part 3: The Dangers of Large Data Sets: A Tale of P values, Error Rates, and Bonferroni Corrections

https://t.co/LetN6aEBRM (3/7)

Basic statistics part 4: understanding P values

https://t.co/K8MMMgTCOf (4/7)

Basic Statistics Part 5: Means vs Medians, Is the “Average”

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