Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2020/03/30/read-this-contentious-new-york.html
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Not a good year to have the last name “Epstein.”
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Christ, what an asshole.
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Christ, what a self-important asshole.
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His arrogance is astounding, especially in the face of overwhelming evidence disproving his claims. Asked why we should trust his expertise over that of epidemiologists he says crap like
…I’ve worked on evolutionary theory for forty years in its relationship to law.
Guess what, bro? Virus isn’t going to be persuaded by legal arguments or your tenuous grasp of evolutionary theory. Virus don’t give a shit where you went to law school. Virus is gonna virus and there’s nothing you can do about it.
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Looking through Epstein’s profile on the Hoover<1> Site - I don’t see much expertise in epidemiology or even statistical modelling. Perhaps I’m missing his massive experience on pandemics? Or is he another one of the rentagobshite right wingers that drive policy even though they have no subject specialist knowledge? (See also Steve Bannon and Dominic ‘herd immunity’ Cummings)
<1> How fitting that a body named after one of the worst US Presidents is informing a similarly piss poor one.
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These shit heads have so much influence (he’s America’s most cited legal scholar!) over a broad range of policy, and propose things that are measurably bad for most people but the rich minority, and it rarely gets commented on or interrogated like this piece does.
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Epstein is currently the Laurence A. Tisch Professor of Law and director of the Classical Liberal Institute at New York University
Classical asshole.Anyone still trying to pull that classical liberal dodge is a bit slow on the uptake - or just well into their dotage.
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Wait, a Libertarian turned into a petty, juvenile dick-waving asshole when confronted with the fact that he doesn’t know everything? What???
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Epstein is the perfect Trump Co. / TGOP conspirator, replete with all the nice degrees / positions and the ear of homicidal maniac who happens to be the President…
What could go wrong?
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from the New Yorker article, Epstein:
“But I was not so much interested in explaining why my number was right. I was interested in explaining why the other projections were wrong.”
Just to be clear, Epstein is one of those Hoover Institute clowns who spends his time finding “flaws” in the work of others but is simply not capable of doing “the work” himself.
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There was also a weak-ass (and erroneous) appeal to authority in there:
Epstein: Bill Gates agrees with me, I’m happy to say.
Reporter: [Reads Bill Gates quote stating the exact opposite opinion in the strongest possible terms]
Epstein: I misread him then. Whatever Mr. Gates said, that’s fine. That strikes me as more populist than I am.
I mean, I know this guy is a shitty epidemiologist but I’m wondering how he could even hold down a job as a lawyer with such a tenuous grasp of established fact. Imagine a lawyer who calls a witness to the stand expecting them to back up his theory only to have said witness refute every part of the lawyer’s version of events in devastating detail.
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He’s a busy man, what with his climate change denialist “work” and all.
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This dangerous arsehole is lucky that tenure exists. Otherwise he’d be completely reliant on the wingnut welfare machine.
A LIbertarian relying on logical fallacies to make his case. I’m sure we’re all shocked.
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It amazes me that people that should stay in their lane cannot help travelling in other people’s lanes.
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Ah, the classic false dilemma of “you’re a unfamiliar with this topic, so I must be right” as if those are the only possibilities.
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It’s giving him too much credit even to call it a “logical fallacy.”
Appeal to authority is a logical fallacy. This wasn’t even that, because the authority in question said the exact opposite thing that the lawyer claimed he did. This would be like saying “Evolution is a myth. Charles Darwin agrees with me, I’m happy to say.” It’s just… fucking insanely wrong. So far from the truth that any human being capable of shame should have apologized and slinked away as soon as they were called out on it. Ugh.
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This probably sums up most of his “argument”:
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He’s just a classic double-down Donnie dumbass. One can expect nothing of validity from his lips. I’m right because I said I’m right, therefore you are wrong.
edit; additional thought
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There’s your problem. He and other assholes infesting “think tanks” like this survive by shrugging off case after case of their errors and lies, and simply moving on, because they have no shame.
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