Over the weekend, the CIA updated its assessment of the origins of Covid-19, stating with “low confidence” that the virus likely originated in a Chinese laboratory. This aligns the agency with the Department of Energy and the FBI, both of which have expressed support for the lab-leak hypothesis. While this revelation should command national attention, it has instead been greeted with a collective shrug. The silence is deafening, and it reflects a troubling unwillingness to confront the missteps of our public health and media institutions.
A Shocking Turn Once Labeled “Conspiracy”
Not long ago, the lab-leak theory was treated as heresy. Questioning the official narrative earned one the label of “conspiracy theorist,” and the consequences were severe. Social media platforms limited the reach of those who dared to consider the possibility. Scientists who dissented from the mainstream consensus faced intimidation and defamation. Allegations of deliberate obfuscation are now surfacing, including claims that some intelligence officials were offered “significant monetary incentives” to revise their positions on the virus’s origins.
The media, too, bears responsibility. Former New York Times reporter Donald McNeil described himself as a “victim of deception,” misled by a coordinated campaign to discredit the lab-leak theory. Despite this, there is little appetite today to revisit these errors. Those who enforced this false consensus would rather let sleeping dogs lie than face their failures.
The “Conspiracy of Boredom”
This apathy is understandable, but it is not acceptable. For those who were raked over the coals for suggesting the lab-leak theory had merit, this moment of validation feels hollow. Meanwhile, those who perpetuated a culture of intellectual conformity are eager to move on. But we must resist this “conspiracy of boredom.” A nation that shrinks from self-reflection risks repeating its mistakes.
This failure of judgment isn’t confined to Covid’s origins. Public health elites made similarly disastrous decisions in other areas, with consequences that we are still grappling with today.
The Cost of Closing Schools
Take the prolonged closure of schools, a decision that was underpinned more by hysteria than science. A recent study in the Journal of Infection found no evidence that reopening schools changed the trajectory of Covid cases, hospitalizations, or deaths. Parents, who instinctively understood the damage remote learning would cause, warned policymakers. They predicted the rise in truancy, the decline in academic performance, and the mental health challenges that would result from isolating children.
But their voices were ignored. Teachers’ unions and their political allies framed any push for in-person learning as reckless endangerment. Even as data began to emerge showing that schools were not significant vectors for transmission, union leaders like Randi Weingarten and Becky Pringle refused to back down. Some even threatened “safety strikes” to keep schools closed.
Now we are left to reckon with the aftermath: educational setbacks, skyrocketing absenteeism, and a generation of students struggling to regain their footing.
When Common Sense Was Dismissed
This pattern of dismissing common sense in favor of elite dogma was not unique to schools. Americans who stockpiled firearms in early 2020 were mocked, yet they were prescient in anticipating the societal upheaval and lawlessness that followed. Similarly, warnings about the inflationary effects of government spending were brushed aside until inflation became impossible to ignore.
At every turn, ordinary Americans were pressured to suppress their instincts and accept the wisdom of a self-appointed elite class. But time and experience have vindicated the skeptics.
The Importance of Retrospection
No one relishes revisiting the pain and chaos of a pandemic, but we must. If we do not examine the failures of judgment, the misplaced priorities, and the outright deceptions of those in power, we will be doomed to repeat them.
The late acknowledgment of the lab-leak theory is not just an embarrassment for those who dismissed it—it is a call to accountability. For the sake of our future, we must confront these uncomfortable truths and commit to a more honest and transparent discourse. Only then can we hope to rebuild trust in the institutions that failed us when we needed them most.
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