RE: Are People Who Reject the Claims of Scientists Stupid?
Back in the 50s, lead was told to us, by scientists, that it just flushes out of the body. And that there is no harmful effects from leaded gasoline.
Now we are so paranoid about lead that we take it out of solder, just in case the item gets thrown in the dump, and it makes contact with water. That little bit of solder is considered too toxic.
Smoking used to be considered healthy. And maybe it is, but smoking cigarettes with tobacco cured with formaldehyde, etc, is now considered life threatening, enough so to warrant warning labels on each package.
And so, just because some scientists said so, does not make it true or that you should believe them. Especially if they are from Monsanto and do operations on mice to remove tumors, so that they will pass the FDA tests.
Further, there is huge evidence that vaccines are not as safe, or as good as they say they are. And it is a fact that the CDCC lied about their study results. Watch Vaxxed for the whole story, or you can do a freedom of information filing.
Even more, the climate change studies are BAD science. Just read their studies. And then there is evidence of changing the data. Massaging the data. Lying. Using predictive algorithms that have continuously failed.
So, at this time, the meme should read. We all should be highly suspect of the science findings in these areas. But we do have eclipse timing pretty nailed down.
Yes, having worked in several labs before, I know how easy it could be for scientists to fudge the numbers to their liking, so skepticism is always healthy. That's why we have the peer review system and duplication is attempted for confirmation in other labs. But it's not fool proof. The people doing the research have to be trustworthy.
As far as vaccines go, I can say with a pretty high degree of certainty that they do indeed work, and quite well. Yes, sometimes they are ineffective because they depend on the immune system of the patient to be firing on all cylinders, and so they will never be 100% effective. Some are not as effective as others though.
On the climate science front, I'm not any kind of expert in that area, but I have read about the massaging of data that you mention, which is quite alarming to say the least. I still think the basic theory is probably correct, but the magnitude is still up for debate, and even climate scientists don't agree on this, because they don't have enough data to actually generate accurate models. I'm not entirely convinced they know what they're doing with those models in part because I was told in my environmental studies classes that global warming would be so bad that by now NYC should have been under water. That doesn't necessarily mean that all of the science on the subject is complete garbage mind you, but that's the dire message that was being sent to the general public, including liberal arts students, and so the credibility of that message has been severely compromised at the very least in my opinion. They have a lot of work to do to earn back the public's trust.
Tobacco actually does have some positive health effects, but burning it and inhaling it into your lungs, just like any kind of smoke, is absolutely horrible for your health and does cause cancer. People who smoke a lot of weed or work around other types of smoke get cancer from it too. That's not to mention the tar and other crap that smokers hack up every day because it's not supposed to be in the lungs, irritating the respiratory tract. I was a smoker in my 20s, I know about this one first hand. I would cough up phlegm for a few minutes every morning when I woke up. Other than that, nicotine has a tendency to increase mental focus. This is part of the reason free cigarettes were given to GI's in WWII. Tobacco has natural antibiotic effects too. I read this one study in which they found that cigarette butts were being selectively used by birds for nesting material and scientists figured out that it was killing fungi that normally plague the birds' nests.
I'm pretty sure lead is just terrible for you. It accumulates in your system and doesn't clear easily. It finds its way into your bones, embrittling them, your other tissues including the brain, and it greatly disrupts neurological function. It's just bad stuff to have in your body.
Disclaimer: none of the above should be considered medical advice. I am not a medical professional.