The change in the Italian government’s approach to the management of Covid-19 has revived buzzwords such as ‘believing in Science’ and ‘trusting Scientists’ in the public debate. Like any (highly respectable) religious belief, ‘Science’ is elevated to the status of a deity to be worshipped uncritically through a host of saints and preachers. In Her name, beatifications, excommunications, auto-da-fé and (cultural) trials are promoted, reminiscent of those that condemned Guglielmo Piazza and Gian Giacomo Mora as untori —infecters. There has been no shortage, on the other hand, of charlatans, heirs of Alexander of Abonuteichos, and a myriad of individual ‘cults’ resulting from the arrogance, a sign of our times, of ‘knowing what they do not tell us’ in pure Napalm 51 style by Andrea Monti – Initially published in Italian on Strategikon – an Italian Tech blog. Continue reading “Science between Socrates and Gorgias”
Challenging the pandemic is not waging a war
This is an excerpt from COVID-19 and Public Policy in the Digital Age. It explains why the ‘war metaphor’ is a wrong message to deliver to the public.
Continue reading “Challenging the pandemic is not waging a war”
The Pro and Cons of Doctors’ Criminal Liability Shield
Decree-Law 44/2021 establishes the criminal non-punishability of vaccinators. Nevertheless, the rule is inapplicable and does not prevent legal action against health personnel. However, it solves a problem in the short term. The analysis of Andrea Monti – Adjunct Professor of public order and safety, University of Chieti-Pescara. Initially published in Italian by Formiche.net Continue reading “The Pro and Cons of Doctors’ Criminal Liability Shield”
On the release of AstraZeneca’s lots
After the Italian Council of State’s (the Supreme Court for Administrative Law) order on the off-label administration of hydroxychloroquine, once again judiciary powers judiciary show their unfamiliarity with logic and the scientific method. The price to pay is the delay in the vaccination campaign and the increase in distrust of vaccines by Andrea Monti – Initially published in Italian by Scienza in Rete Continue reading “On the release of AstraZeneca’s lots”
The problematic relationship between law, politics and the scientific method
Two seemingly unrelated events (one legal, one political) highlight the inability of decision-makers to make meaningful use of the scientific method. It is not a reversion to Lysenko’s theories. However, the lack of a rational approach toward science to justify choices that directly affect people’s lives is worrying by Andrea Monti – Initially published in Italian by Scienza in Rete
Continue reading “The problematic relationship between law, politics and the scientific method”