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....the recently published "An Abundance of Caution" by David Zweig.

I have not read this book, nor am I familiar with the author's other work.

Nevertheless, I want to challenge one claim about the motivation for school closures which I think the book makes; even if I am mistaken in ascribing this claim to the book, I know from conversation that some intelligent people are now saying that keeping schools in the USA for so long during the pandemic was irrational, because that policy was motivated by a "politically tribal" opposition to any public health measure urged by Donald Trump.

I do not know how sound all the arguments were for keeping schools closed were, but I am in no doubt that it was rational to believe, in a time of public controversy and imperfect information, that any recommendation from Trump was unsound in part just because it came from Trump, a man who at the time of the pandemic was known to be dishonest, captive to the interests of capital and the rich, and, as his longstanding opposition to Obamacare demonstrated, without a shred of real concern for the health of the mass of Americans. When in a position of great uncertainty, it makes sense to incorporate judgements of the character, intelligence, history and interests of those arguing for controversial changes in public policy.

As I I have already said, I don't know whether the school closure decisions were right; I do know that the mugwumpish poopooing of "partisanship" can be its own special kind of high-minded irrationality.

https://mitpress.mit.edu/featured-book-an-abundance-of-caution-by-david-zweig/

#PublicHealth #Covid #DavidZweig #AnAbundanceOfCaution #DonaldTrump #SchoolClosures #Pandemic