Rambling Reflections of an Old Geezer

When we started Trust the Evidence, we decided to stick to the facts as we could ascertain them. We decided to draw conclusions only when we could and avoid witch hunts by naming and shaming.

As time passed, we realised that powerful people had witch-hunted us, so we decided to expose a few by naming them. Pride of place - of course - went to the former UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock, who regarded folk like us as enemies.

We looked at the evidence on various topics, told stories, made the odd joke or two, and injected a bit of irony into what we felt were appalling situations. Examples included referring to members of the  MHRA’s ​​Commission On Human Medicines (CHM) COVID-19 Vaccines Benefit Risk Expert Working Group as “secret squirrels” and making up press conferences based on President Biden’s plentiful gaffes. 

Our controversial jokes started in September 2020, when in the Daily Mail, we referred to the “Dad’s Army of highly paid individuals with little experience of the job at hand” advising the PM, Boris. For which we got into all sorts of trouble.

We ran educational series like the one on John Snow. We also let off steam as the need arose. Strangely or not so strangely, letting off steam and speaking with emotion were among the most liked of our offerings.

We invented what we hoped would be our trademark: the two old geezers. The other morning, my wife was suddenly woken up by me laughing as a reader sent something that said, “When I grow up, I want to be an old geezer.” It was 3 a.m., but after the H5 post, our phones never stopped buzzing. I wonder which old geezer he wants to grow up into.

Unexpectedly, we have built up a large following, including politicians, zillionaires, rock stars, media and those of you who keep commenting on our stuff, which we appreciate. 

There are a few downsides: some of the work is hard, reading regulatory documents is difficult, and we have made mistakes. These are not intentional, but piecing together the jigsaw is a poisoned chalice. We do not have the mainstream media support we had while working on Tamiflu. We also checked some of the output of public bodies and reported on relevant court battles.

One aspect of all this surprises me; honestly, it irritates me intensely. A few times through third parties, we have received messages asking why we have not looked at this or that. The latest concerns the Scottish Covid Inquiry. The answer is twofold.

First, we lack the resources. Only four of us are in the office: the two old geezers and our dogs (one each). Despite this, many are unwilling to part with tuppence for a post, even if they are swimming in cash. Then, some use our posts for their business—we have some visibility of who the latter are.

Second, we are not John Wayne (he wore a wig) or Clint Eastwood (I am better looking). We do not go into each town with guns blazing to kill all the baddies. We are not sheriffs; we are clinical epidemiologists trying to keep a balanced view and refusing to be dragged into drawing hasty conclusions.

We like to present facts. Maybe comment, but leave any conclusions for our readers. If we do not know or do not understand, we say so. We also like to explain how we put those facts together. These are called “methods” in science-speak, but we try to keep the mumbo jumbo to the minimum. However, when we see poor-quality work, we say so.

I do not speak to mainstream media after an episode in the summer of 2020. A journalist from the Italian broadsheet Repubblica interviewed me on SARS-CoV-2. This used to be an OK outlet, but it has followed the BBC, NYT, and most of the MSM down the pan. 

The guy asked me if I knew where the “virus had come from”. My reply was: “I have never met it; if I do, I shall ask and tell you.” The Next day, the headline screamed, “Expert says Covid does not come from China”. Bizarrely the story is still around - I found it on a weather forecast app a few days ago.

What a wonderful catch for character assassins feeding the Encyclopedia of Character Assassinations, formerly known as Wikipedia.

I have since met “it” (yes, it’s an “it”) several times and posed the question but did not get an answer. So I still DO NOT KNOW. 

By the way of viruses, a heads up: the MSM is now taking an interest in a respiratory virus called Human Metapneumovirus (HMPV), which has been, around for decades (probably even before I was born). The next thing you need to keep an eye on is the sudden separate reporting of HMPV in surveillance systems (similar to what happened to RSV). Or if they have been doing so already, say, since the 2010s, look out for the sudden appearance in the reports of a paragraph devoted to HMPV. These are sure signs that something is brewing—no prizes for guessing what. 

Now quiet down, old geezer, before you give up all the tricks you have learned since being a physician to Caesar’s legions.

No, a last indicator: I was asked to write a chapter on HMPV for a book on the topic. I declined since I have not met “it” either (to my knowledge), so I DO NOT KNOW much about it.

We have come to the end of my steam release. I hope you enjoyed it. Please be good or I shall send Matt Hancock after you.

An old geezer - which one (?) - wrote this post.