Trusting President Trump, the Taiwan success story, Samsung woes & more

COVID-19 has continued to ravage the world, afflicting the elderly, adults, and now children. Sadly, the growing number of infections is not the only consequence of this pandemic. Among the less tangible fallouts are the deepening of hatred and racism, the rise of anxiety, and the birth of conspiracy theories.

People want answers and clarity and, unfortunately, both are hard to come by these days. Contradictory information abounds. Are masks necessary? Is social distancing still required? Can the disease be transmitted through food? Are certain medications safe and effective treatment against the disease? For each of these questions, multiple (and conflicting) “answers” exist.

Without clear information, we fall prey to distorted thinking that is often inaccurate. As humans, we tend to get duped by the information that allays our fears and discard the information that feels threatening. So what do we do? Here we tackle some of the ways we can become savvy in navigating this information landscape. Let’s start by covering the question of who to trust.

Trusting President Trump as he takes hydroxychloroquine

On Monday, Trump admitted that he has been taking the anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine as a preventive measure to ward off COVID-19. When confronted on Tuesday with the Veterans Affairs study that reported the drug hadn’t helped patients, Trump dismissed the research as a “false study” in which the medication was only given to very sick people. When pressed further, he rejected the study as a “Trump enemy statement.” His position even shocked some Fox News anchors. Although the study wasn’t peer-reviewed, it was the largest of its kind. In fact, last month when the National Institute of Health published the findings, the Federal Drug Administration followed by issuing a warning against use of hydroxychloroquine to treat COVID-19.

Even in a world of fake news and fake leaders, this is a Molotov cocktail. President Trump is turning on his own National Institute of Health and the FDA. Fortunately, most people don’t take medical advice from Trump, but now some will doubt the experts at the NIH and the FDA. Under normal circumstances, dismissing experts who have contrarian views can be troubling, but in times like these, it can be life-threatening.

Bottom Line: We cannot blindly accept what President Trump claims as truth. We must seek proof from the experts.

Experts in power make Taiwan a success story

Taiwan’s success in managing the coronavirus sets it apart from most other countries. With a population of 23 million, it has only had 440 cases of COVID-19 and just 6 deaths all whilst avoiding shelter-in-place restrictions. Taiwan was able to keep its 11 million-strong labor force working and its economy running. How?

Taiwan’s secret weapon is Vice President Chen Chien-jen, a John Hopkins-trained epidemiologist and expert in viruses. While elsewhere in the world political leaders and scientists are at odds with one another, in Taiwan both come together in one person. As a result, the country was able to mobilize and respond quickly to the virus. Chen divides his time between talking to scientists about vaccines and cures, analyzing transmission trends, and guiding health officials and political leaders as they make decisions on containing the spread. “Evidence is more important than playing politics,” he said in a recent interview.

Bottom Line: When experts are in power, they can act quickly to detect, diagnose, and respond to the outbreak of a disease. In these times of crisis, governments need to look to scientists and experts.

Video intended to lure “normies” down a rabbit hole succeeds

Conspiracy theorists refer to those of us who have commonly held interests and beliefs as “normies”. They recently used clips from a documentary-style video known as the “plandemic video” to confuse and obfuscate facts about COVID-19. The video (which, among other things, peddled the lie that masks can make you sick) spread like wildfire, racking up millions of views on various social media platforms.

Masquerading as a legitimate documentary with high production value and extensively quoting the debunked scientist Dr. Judy Mikovits, the video was designed to appear authoritative. To make it look even more credible, medical misinformation was interspersed with truths that viewers would recognize. The video was launched across mainstream Facebook groups and on YouTube channels where viewers were urged to “bypass the gatekeepers of free speech” by downloading and sharing it through their own accounts.” It spread because it had sufficient, credible facts to make people want to dig deeper. And when they did, they were directed to other extremist sites with even greater misinformation.

Bottom Line: People masquerading as experts fool us when clarity is hard to come by.

Coming to terms with the Samsung CEO apology

Lee Jae-yong is worth $6 billion. The grandson of Samsung’s founder has been embroiled in a high profile bribery scandal. As we discussed in the book, Savvy, Lee’s guilt was highly contested. Many people in South Korea were convinced of his guilt, while employees, investors, and suppliers expressed support for the heir of a company that was responsible for 20% of the country’s economy. South Korea was divided in judging what was the truth.

Fast forward to May 5th, 2020, when Lee Jae-yong officially apologized for not meeting society’s expectations and upholding the law and ethical standards. In hindsight, it is clear that a mixture of bias and self-interest clouded the thinking of many South Koreans with whom he was affiliated. As William Shakespeare wrote in The Merchant of Venice, “The truth will out”, and now it has.

Bottom Line: Biases cloud thinking in the short-term but invariably the truth gets outed.

Safety factors to consider as the economy opens up

Health officials worry that early openings will lead to a spike in infections. Political leaders worry about social unrest. Here are some points to consider:

• Are you taking the necessary precautions to be ready for re-entry?
• Continue to limit exposure to crowds. Delay all unnecessary travel.
• Determine if the curve has flattened in your county. Understand local hospital capacity.
• Listen to a variety of expert voices as you make your own health & safety decisions.

Updates from last week’s newsletter

• Last week we discussed the imperative for leaders to tell the truth during a crisis. Medical News Today reminds us of the importance of having empathy when correcting misinformation. Responding with self-righteousness, anger, or ridicule won’t do much good.
• When determining whom to trust in the context of COVID-19, Dr. Anthony Fauci stands head and shoulders above everyone else. An outdated and out-of-context video of his, in which he downplays the importance of masks, is now circulating on social media. Don’t fall for it.

Savvy wins Distinguished Favorite Award!

Savvy was recently recognized as a Distinguished Favorite at the Independent Press Awards. This is the 5th major book recognition the book has received in the last five months. Savvy received a Gold Medal at Independent Publisher Book Awards, was a Finalist at the International Book Awards, and a Finalist at the American Bookfest Best Book Awards. If you’ve read the book, please leave a review on Amazon.com.

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