Desmond Swayne refuses to apologise.
A Tory MP has refused to apologise for “out of order” comments in which he encouraged anti-lockdown campaigners to “persist” with their protests.
Senior Tory Desmond Swayne, who previously served as a aide to former PM David Cameron, told anti-lockdown group Save our Rights UK that NHS figures were being “manipulated” and intensive care units were actually running at normal capacity.
At the time of the interview, the death rate was just above the five year average, so his comments were perfectly accurate. Why should he apologise? Also, PHE have been caught manipulating the figures, so again, why should he apologise?
Cabinet Office Minister Michael Gove said the MP was “out of order” for making the “unacceptable” comments and urged him to issue a full retraction and apology.
Anyone who uses the word “unacceptable” needs to boil their head. Certainly they forfeit any right to be taken seriously. The usual crowd have piled in, of course. And, as is usual, a massive strawman has been constructed.
Our elected representatives and the media appear to be incapable of constructing a logical argument without resorting to fallacies. The strawman being the fallacy of choice in most cases. It’s like watching a bunch of children.
Imran Ahmed, chief executive of the Centre for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH), which has been investigating online misinformation about coronavirus and vaccines, said Sir Desmond’s words had given “legitimacy to crank anti-vaxxers”.
“This MP’s judgment needs to be seriously questioned when, by virtue of association, he lends legitimacy to crank anti-vaxxers and peddlers of falsehoods about Covid,” Mr Ahmed said.
“When we wear a mask or get vaccinated, we don’t just protect ourselves, we also protect those we love, the community we spend time in, and in turn help secure our country against coronavirus.
“While Covid continues to kill, turning science into a political football is a Trumpian act of grotesque irresponsibility.”
The lack of self-awareness on display here is staggering. There is no science that justifies a mandate on mask wearing. The science surrounding vaccination for an RNA virus is too new and experimental to be able to be sure how things will pan out – certainly the one we use for seasonal flu is hit and miss depending on the strain that is prevalent at the time. Scepticism is at the very heart of scientific endeavour. It is not Swayne who is turning science into a political football here. The only crank I see here is Imran Ahmed who heads up a crank organisation, which presumably we are having to pay for.
As I understand it, none of these vaccines will stop you getting the virus, or stop you passing it on.
The best you can hope for is that it reduces your chances of being killed by it. Maybe even masking the symptoms so that you unknowingly pass it on.
Am I right, or am I right?
Serious question.
Absolutely right Doon. Pfizers trials showed the risk of getting ill with covid is 0.88% and the risk of getting ill with covid after vaccination is 0.048% (that’s where the 95% comes from…..).
I am wondering though, what level of attack Boris, Hancock et al will be subjected too if in a year or threes time the vaccine is shown to be as good as useless (“all that money wasted”) or downright dangerous (“Thalidomide”!).
Sorry, typo alert “after vaccination is 0.048%” should read 0.044%.
My first response to Imran Ahmed would be to challenge him to prove that these are falsehoods being ‘peddled’. He’s made a serious allegation implying that what must be half the population are knowingly spreading lies. Should be investigated by his own cowboy outfit.
He’s the modern equivalent of the medieval catholic church fact checking Galileo.
Sir Desmond has my full support, more like him urgently needed to replace the sheep in HoC who frequently don’t read what they are voting on
Good article:
“Centre for Countering Digital Hate”. If in 1948 we’d had the technology we have today, Orwell would have used that instead of “Ministry of Truth”.
Be prepared for “Trumpian” to become word of the year 2021.