Stop the 'anecdotal' nonsense
By Jim Dicks
americanthinker.com
"Anecdotal" has suddenly transmogrified into a magic word with power to shut down any further inquiry, discussion, or debate of hydroxychloroquine's (HYQ) application as a Wuhan virus antidote. This one simple word has reached ultimate status in the world of TDS-sufferers everywhere as the definitive slayer of arguments for the drug's use to impede the deadly path of the virus.
This sad fact is representative of a pernicious chasm in our society. The deeply felt antipathy and revulsion of anything Trump by TDS-sufferers are so intense, raw, and vituperative that the one, and so far, only readily available treatment modality demonstrating high efficacy in stopping COVID-19 — when used in combination with zinc sulfate and azithromycin and administered early in the progression of the disease — is being withheld from widespread implementation as the ubiquitous solution to save lives and help end the plague.
The president's daily coronavirus press briefings immediately degenerate into full-blown verbal assaults from a shrill, mostly hateful press once questions begin. Reporters vie with one another to see who can win the daily prize for the best "gotcha" question rather than focus on how best to help the American public.
Under normal circumstances (whatever meaning normal has in the age of Trump), the majority of the nation unafflicted with TDS generally goes about its business with a "what can you do?" attitude toward these sufferers, carefully monitoring political weathervanes of friends, co-workers, and family to avoid triggering spite-filled outbursts and diatribes. However, with the pandemic upon us, the TDS-afflicted have devolved into reflexive resistance to HYQ as a promising solution to help stem the tide of ever-increasing deaths and suffering from the virus simply because Trump supports its use.
Dr. Fauci's constant rejoinder to the HYQ treatment solution is to dismiss it as anecdotal. But what is anecdotal? The ever-growing number of HYQ studies conducted by medical researchers, the case histories of practicing physicians such as Dr. Vladimir Zelenko of upstate New York, Dr. William Grace of New York City, and Dr. Anthony Cardillo of Los Angeles, as well as a growing number of doctors and hospitals around the country, are not "anecdotes," and it is outrageous for Fauci and the media to characterize them as such in the face of a thousand deaths a day from COVID-19. These are not personal accounts or stories, but rather in-the-field medical cases entered in patient records that can be verified by medical investigators. Enlightened, dedicated doctors in this desperate time are frantically searching for solutions to save their patients' lives. These practicing physicians are applying abductive reasoning, forming a conclusion drawn from known facts to arrive at the best possible outcome. They cannot wait, in a life-and-death crisis, for the absolute, definitive remedy when their patients' lives are hanging in the balance.
Dr. Fauci as well as all those opposing or dismissing the HYQ option as anecdotal are morally and ethically bound to tell us what is their alternative treatment to HYQ (with zinc sulfate and azithromycin given as early as possible to vulnerable covid sufferers) that demonstrates comparable results and is available in quantities sufficient to meet national demands. If they cannot identify a viable alternative they must either get fully onboard with this treatment modality until a better one appears or step aside and let others lead the effort to end this scourge, with full support from the CDC and the COVID-19 response team.
To do otherwise is to be knowingly complicit in preventable deaths and destroyed lives resulting from this nightmare.
"Anecdotal" has suddenly transmogrified into a magic word with power to shut down any further inquiry, discussion, or debate of hydroxychloroquine's (HYQ) application as a Wuhan virus antidote. This one simple word has reached ultimate status in the world of TDS-sufferers everywhere as the definitive slayer of arguments for the drug's use to impede the deadly path of the virus.
This sad fact is representative of a pernicious chasm in our society. The deeply felt antipathy and revulsion of anything Trump by TDS-sufferers are so intense, raw, and vituperative that the one, and so far, only readily available treatment modality demonstrating high efficacy in stopping COVID-19 — when used in combination with zinc sulfate and azithromycin and administered early in the progression of the disease — is being withheld from widespread implementation as the ubiquitous solution to save lives and help end the plague.
The president's daily coronavirus press briefings immediately degenerate into full-blown verbal assaults from a shrill, mostly hateful press once questions begin. Reporters vie with one another to see who can win the daily prize for the best "gotcha" question rather than focus on how best to help the American public.
Under normal circumstances (whatever meaning normal has in the age of Trump), the majority of the nation unafflicted with TDS generally goes about its business with a "what can you do?" attitude toward these sufferers, carefully monitoring political weathervanes of friends, co-workers, and family to avoid triggering spite-filled outbursts and diatribes. However, with the pandemic upon us, the TDS-afflicted have devolved into reflexive resistance to HYQ as a promising solution to help stem the tide of ever-increasing deaths and suffering from the virus simply because Trump supports its use.
Dr. Fauci's constant rejoinder to the HYQ treatment solution is to dismiss it as anecdotal. But what is anecdotal? The ever-growing number of HYQ studies conducted by medical researchers, the case histories of practicing physicians such as Dr. Vladimir Zelenko of upstate New York, Dr. William Grace of New York City, and Dr. Anthony Cardillo of Los Angeles, as well as a growing number of doctors and hospitals around the country, are not "anecdotes," and it is outrageous for Fauci and the media to characterize them as such in the face of a thousand deaths a day from COVID-19. These are not personal accounts or stories, but rather in-the-field medical cases entered in patient records that can be verified by medical investigators. Enlightened, dedicated doctors in this desperate time are frantically searching for solutions to save their patients' lives. These practicing physicians are applying abductive reasoning, forming a conclusion drawn from known facts to arrive at the best possible outcome. They cannot wait, in a life-and-death crisis, for the absolute, definitive remedy when their patients' lives are hanging in the balance.
Dr. Fauci as well as all those opposing or dismissing the HYQ option as anecdotal are morally and ethically bound to tell us what is their alternative treatment to HYQ (with zinc sulfate and azithromycin given as early as possible to vulnerable covid sufferers) that demonstrates comparable results and is available in quantities sufficient to meet national demands. If they cannot identify a viable alternative they must either get fully onboard with this treatment modality until a better one appears or step aside and let others lead the effort to end this scourge, with full support from the CDC and the COVID-19 response team.
To do otherwise is to be knowingly complicit in preventable deaths and destroyed lives resulting from this nightmare.
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