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Our choices with respect to masks and WHO are... they were right back then (masks are useless), they were wrong (masks are useful), or they were lying purposefully to mislead. People insist that authorities were lying... I prefer to think they were wrong. 1/

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Natalie Christie Peluso

she/her

@nataliepeluso

Oct 26, 2020

Replying to @StuartJRitchie and @MWStory

Great piece, although I personally continue to flinch whenever anyone suggests the WHO didn't recommend masks because they don't work. Global PPE shortage was insane in March & there was a clear motive to preserve what they had for hospitals. Plus clear evidence China used them.

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I think lying is too strong, and wrong is too weak: they were far too confident that they were right and paid insufficient attention to evidence that they might be wrong.

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Many authorities did deliberately lie and mislead about masks. It isn't a secret that they lied. They openly admitted that they were misleading the public about masks due to concerns about shortages for health care professionals. They weren't doing it maliciously but they did it.

1:35 PM · Oct 27, 2020Twitter Web App

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and

For other issues, they were simply wrong and overconfident, but it when it comes to this, it was primarily deliberate misinformation aimed at avoiding shortages of masks for health care workers. Is there really much doubt about that? The alternative is they're complete idiots.

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Either way, the WHO in particular is not a trustworthy source of information. They've been far worse than even the CDC which has been hobbled by political pressure and incompetence. WHO downplayed it and discouraged most effective ways of reducing the spread of the virus.

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Yes, I think you are right here.