In June of 2022, the NIH published a study bemoaning Americans’ depleted trust in public health: “Public trust in federal government agencies has never been as important as it has been during the Covid-19 pandemic, yet public suspicions of scientific experts and levels of distruct of government institutions are increasing for a variety of reasons[.]” But the authors failed to identify the real reason for this loss in trust: executive agencies did not “follow the science” during the pandemic, but instead adopted policies and engaged in covert action apparently designed to silence dissent, benefit pharmaceutical companies and protect the reputations of allies. They have lost the public’s trust because they are not worthy of it.


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