Richard Feynman, eminant physicist, eccentric inconoclast
W.J. Astore
Investigating the Space Shuttle Challenger explosion, physicist Richard Feynman reached a famous conclusion: “For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled.”
The COVID-19 virus is not going to be fooled with lies. It’s not going to be fooled by a denial of medical science. You can’t “spin” the virus away with false information and happy talk. And this is precisely why President Trump (and indeed many other politicians) is uniquely unqualified to handle this crisis.
Trump is the man who sold us a fake university. Trump is the man who’s lied roughly 13 times a day since becoming president. Trump is a fantasist, a fabulist, a con man, a used car salesman, a huckster, an entertainer, take your pick. And he’s good at it. It’s a skill that got him to the White House. But it’s not a skill that works against the coronavirus.
The other day, I was listening to an interview with Noam Chomsky, and he made the point that Trump is a master propagandist. His skill is his shamelessness and sheer extent of his lying. Trump floods the market with lies, so much so that many people, and especially those sympathetic to him, lose the ability to tell truth from lies, fact from fiction. Politically, this helps Trump; but in meeting this medical crisis, it’s a skill that may cost America tens of thousands of lives, and, in worst-case scenarios, perhaps a million or more.
Living by the light of lies is a surefire way to get burned. Last night, I was reading Norman Mailer and came across this invaluable insight:
“Fascism is not a way of life but a murderous mode of deadening reality by smothering it with lies.”
The more lies we tell, the more we open ourselves to fascism. Mailer uses the word meretricious, which combines vulgarity with falseness and insincerity, and he proceeds to denounce our culture, our art, as sickening us because of its ugly dishonesty. (And Mailer was saying this in the early 1960s!)
Again, lies will not defeat COVID-19; they will only speed its spread through America. Lies will only kill us while smothering democracy.
Feynman was right: “Nature cannot be fooled.” So too was Mailer: As a leader, if you think you can deaden the reality of a pandemic with lies, you’re not thinking at all. You’re acting murderously instead.
Update (3/25): Our Dear Leader has decreed America will be open for business again by Easter. Don’t worry: the final decision will be based “on facts.”
They really felt they needed to add that coda: based on facts. And they did, because most of the Trump presidency has been based on lies.
Maybe my title should have been “The Coronavirus Feeds on Lies.” And we are giving it plenty to feed on.
Update (3/26): If America reopens by Easter with crowded churches and the like, prepare for lots of dead people, as this article and graph show (courtesy of the New York Times):
The Contrary Perspective 
Interesting way to formulate the concept of not fooling nature. Have said for years that man over nature never works but that has become part of the core philosophy of Capitalism/Fascism–the idea that man can best nature for profit and control.
As for this virus, some of the lies are facts of omission. If this virus were really looked at, not only as a biological event, but as part of an economic/political maneuver then we have an entirely new set of facts. On a biological level we have many ways to build resistance and to heal. All of them are non-drug treatments. Even China is using IV Vit C 25g/day for about 5 days for healing. Linus Pauling decades ago presented his research on Vit C for cancer and other forms of healling and was decried a fake by big pharma controlled powers (MSM and government). However, the lies did not kill reality and Vit C is one of the best ways to keep your immune system working well. At least 2g/day for building health and lots and lots more when sick–enough to real bowel tolerance. Sometimes as much as 20-50 gr/day to best the infection. Also Vit D in which most people are very deficient due to lack of sun on their skins and without sunscreen which prevents the necessary sun’s rays from interacting with out body to create the Vit D levels we need. Blood level of 50 is minimum for health, not just survival. 70-80 levels recommended when the immune system is weak. Homeopathy, the Queen of Cure during past epidemics is never mentioned. Many other healthful, inexpensive, available, safe and effective things to do to avoid getting sick, especially eating clean, whole foods and cutting out sugar, processed starches and food laden with chemicals.
Politically and economically this epidemic has worked beautifully to keep people so divided and locked down they cannot organize any protests that are visible. The fear mongering is a massively professional and well heeled strategy to prevent people from using any logic. The lying is extensive. Further, and most importantly I think, is what a great tool of distraction we have in this virus. How many have noticed the little piece int he 2 trillion dollar bailout that allows the government to stop employers from putting money into Social Security. Anyone old enough and with any memory left remembers how Bush tried to privatize Soc Sec implying people would be able to do their own investing and make more than the 6% interest standard used by the government for the fund. Their ignorance and greed did not see that the money would be required to be invested thru select large investment houses who would take a big chunk of the worker’s money and never guarantee the worker any profit. All could be lost with the investment house no worse for wear. We have the same efforts today of raping Soc Sec and claiming it is an unsustainable program. If fact economists and progressive political analysts all say it is one of the most successful programs ever–actually it is THE most successful one.
But we see other signs of nefarious goals in the works. The economy of working people is being crashed and will never recover, just as we never recovered from the S&L debacle of 1989-91 and then again the depression caused by Bush that Obama inherited. But outsourcing grew under Obama and then more so under Trump. Trade agreements keep worsening labor protections while covering corporate profits. Since when does our Constitution guarantee success for corporate interests. Since when does anything under Capitalism say the government’s purpose it to protect corporate profit and power! This is pure fascism and we again are seeing these huge bailout bills covering corporate interests with bare pennies for the public.
The fear mongering has to be seen as a part of the fascist tactic of controlling the pubic and ripening them for ever increasing draconian attacks on our civil liberties. The drug corporations stand to profit insanely from this as the people are in such a co-dependent state with the medical industry that they are willing to suppress their entire lives and freedom while drooling for a new vaccine that will only make billions for the drug/medical industry while never producing any immunity, health or safety. The effort will be to push further mandating of this poisoning. We do know the forces exist to make all vaccines mandated to every living being, including our pets. We do know not one of these vaccines will ever produce real immunity, they will weaken us as a species, they will be used to further the culling of the population with additives that cause miscarriages and infertility (we see this happening in Africa with the imposed flu vaccine for example) and then we have Bill Gates who keeps repeating this connected use of vaccines and population control. He has proven himself to be a pure eugenicist!
Here are 2 links from outside-the-box people talking about the use of this virus to reshape the world and the very concept of democracy.
https://www.wakingtimes.com/2020/03/19/david-icke-explains-how-the-elite-are-using-coronavirus-to-reshape-the-global-economy/?utm_source=Waking+Times+Newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=cef959e124-RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_term=0_25f1e048c1-cef959e124-54370757
http://themillenniumreport.com/2020/03/coronavirus-hoax-fake-virus-pandemic-fabricated-to-cover-up-global-outbreak-of-5g-syndrome/