Weinstein repeated discredited theories to Rogan about HIV not being the cause of AIDS, alarming and infuriating public health experts.  

Bret Weinstein, the evolutionary biology professor turned podcaster and ivermectin guy, repeated a series of discredited pseudo-theories about AIDS in a recent appearance on Joe Rogan’s podcast. Weinstein, a frequent guest, told Rogan that he found the theory that party drugs like poppers cause AIDS to be “surprisingly compelling.” (It is not.) Weinstein also told Rogan he came to these ideas by reading a recent book by anti-vaccine activist and presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, creating a sort of unholy turducken of misinformation passed onto an audience of millions. 

  • UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world
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    10 months ago

    Then again, I wonder if he’s just a stoner wholeheartedly embracing the Dunning-Kruger Effect, thinking he’s got it allllll figured out.

    I mean, he’s rich well into the hundreds of millions of dollars. The guy has never been dumb, per say. He’s just made a career of playing a dummy on TV.

    Dude knows what he’s doing (or, he did at one point, perhaps before he fried his brain with DMT).

    Do you think he’s aware of the false equivalence fallacy

    I don’t think he particularly cares. He’s had pro-vax guys on his show. He’s had anti-vax guys. The dude is a Carney and his show is a three-ring circus. You can always find something to scratch your libidinal itch in there somewhere.

    but not recognize that there’s probably 999 pro-vaxx infectious disease experts, doctors, scientists for every one anti-vaxxer?

    Idk about that statistic. There’s certainly a healthy amount of denialism and conspiracy theory in mass media. Probably give you 10:1 on a good day.

    But even if it was 1 pro-vax doctor in 100 antis, the numbers don’t really matter. What matters is the spectacle of two people arguing a point the audience will never have the education to verify one way or another.

    This is, at its heart, infotainment. It isn’t about who is right and who is wrong. Its about putting people in a ring together and have them duke it out with words. Then cutting to another ring where MMA guys duke it out with fists.

    His show is about fighting. That’s all he wants.

      • GladiusB@lemmy.world
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        10 months ago

        Some would argue it is one way to measure a type of intelligence. Money gives the freedom to explore our deepest desires. Which is a freedom most don’t have. And it’s a freedom most want. In that way, he is intelligent.

          • GladiusB@lemmy.world
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            10 months ago

            You skipped every sentence and made shortcuts. There is a reason I included the sentences I did.

            • chicken@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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              10 months ago

              Right, I’m not saying this is what you meant, I am saying I do not understand, explaining how far I got in guessing what you might have meant, and requesting further clarification, because your logic is hard to follow.

              • GladiusB@lemmy.world
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                10 months ago

                If a person works for their life to pursue their passions it is a self awareness. I respect that. I think most people do. He isn’t selling his soul. He just asks questions and is stupid about most stuff. He is a comedian. Has he said shocking things? Sure. Eminem has. Howard Stern has. Elvis has. So many artists have done what they needed to do to pursue their passions. And if that makes him deplorable, sure.

                My point is that he earned his money to chase his passions and their is nothing wrong with having the freedom to do so. And planning for that for your own fulfillment is admirable. It is intelligent to be aware of yourself and your surroundings to work to achieve that.

                • chicken@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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                  10 months ago

                  Ok, so then I think what you are arguing then is more like, knowing what you want and pursuing it successfully is a sign of intelligence, and having money is evidence that you have done that. I can agree with the first thing to some extent, but not the second, thanks for elaborating though.

        • lennybird@lemmy.world
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          10 months ago

          That confers access, which relates to knowledge. Knowledge is not intelligence.

          Donald Trump got $412 million from his daddy. This in no way shape or form makes him intelligent.

          • GladiusB@lemmy.world
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            10 months ago

            This is a straw man. I in no way compared a trust fund to someone that earned with their own work. Granted I am not a Rogan fan. But I can’t blame him for being a host and entertaining people. He is a circus. And I don’t like that circus. But I understand others can like it.

        • RoosterBoy@lemm.ee
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          10 months ago

          Having freedom does not grant intelligence. Having money is NOT an accurate measurement of intelligence, especially in our current system. We can tell you enjoyed “Atlas Shrugged” which is a great measure of YOUR intelligence, which is none.

        • Clent@lemmy.world
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          10 months ago

          Some may argue that. I would argue those same people are morons.

          Having the freedom to explore our deepest desires doesn’t mean one does so. You are romanticized the wealthy.

          I suspect you fit inside the group sometimes referred to as “temporarily embarrassed millionaires” – i also suspect you disagree. I also suspect you think yourself more intelligent than you actually are.

          I also suspect that you feel me pointing this out indicates a fault in my personality rather than you being able to see it as a service to you. Polite society prevents the bottom half of the intellectual spectrum from being told they are in that bottom half.

    • voluble@lemmy.world
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      10 months ago

      The guy has never been dumb, per say

      Just to let you know, the expression is written ‘per se’:

      Borrowed from Latin per sē (“by itself”), from per (“by, through”) and sē (“itself, himself, herself, themselves”). Wiktionary source