High intelligence doesn’t predict good judgement
I taught medical students for over 30 years. The bar to admission at Saint Louis University Medical School was pretty high for metrics like GPA and MCAT scores. But as a professor, I realized that crossing those bars was no guarantee of sound judgement.
Erica Schwartz, Trump’s CDC director nominee, wasn’t a SLUSOM grad*, but she is a case study supporting my contention that, in humans, the traits of high intelligence and good judgement are unlinked.
“As the hearing proceeded, I began to hear rumblings in my public health group chats. The hearing was not going well. Schwartz was failing to give straightforward answers to lay-ups. Clips began appearing on my social media feeds. It was not good. Before long, it looked like a complete implosion.
“Schwartz would not give clear statements debunking links between vaccines and autism. Ouch.
“She did not know that the CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health is, for all practical purposes, closed. (This is despite smoking cessation being the “number one thing” she focused on while serving the Navy.) Ouch.
“She claimed to be unaware of a relatively recent HHS policy spurning mRNA vaccine research. Ouch.
“Asked if she would carry out an order to stop promoting the flu vaccine during a deadly flu season, Schwartz would not answer directly. Ouch.
“Even worse, when asked if she would report to Congress if she received any directive from Kennedy or others that was anti-scientific or that could harm the health and well-being of the American people, her answer was shockingly feeble. Instead of simply saying yes — that was indeed an available option — she said that she did not believe that would happen. Ouch. Ouch. Ouch.
“Together, these were incredibly poor answers to toddler questions. Her answers indicated some combination of incompetence, ignorance, and subservience. Given the current state of the CDC, and HHS overall, that simply will not do.”
She’s not stupid, she’s just foolish. The fact that her mistakes were predictable just makes it worse.
*she got her MD degree at Brown, an Ivy League university 15 minutes away from where I live.
Trump nominee fail
Erica Schwartz, Trump’s CDC director nominee, wasn’t a SLUSOM grad*, but she is a case study supporting my contention that, in humans, the traits of high intelligence and good judgement are unlinked.
“As the hearing proceeded, I began to hear rumblings in my public health group chats. The hearing was not going well. Schwartz was failing to give straightforward answers to lay-ups. Clips began appearing on my social media feeds. It was not good. Before long, it looked like a complete implosion.
“Schwartz would not give clear statements debunking links between vaccines and autism. Ouch.
“She did not know that the CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health is, for all practical purposes, closed. (This is despite smoking cessation being the “number one thing” she focused on while serving the Navy.) Ouch.
“She claimed to be unaware of a relatively recent HHS policy spurning mRNA vaccine research. Ouch.
“Asked if she would carry out an order to stop promoting the flu vaccine during a deadly flu season, Schwartz would not answer directly. Ouch.
“Even worse, when asked if she would report to Congress if she received any directive from Kennedy or others that was anti-scientific or that could harm the health and well-being of the American people, her answer was shockingly feeble. Instead of simply saying yes — that was indeed an available option — she said that she did not believe that would happen. Ouch. Ouch. Ouch.
“Together, these were incredibly poor answers to toddler questions. Her answers indicated some combination of incompetence, ignorance, and subservience. Given the current state of the CDC, and HHS overall, that simply will not do.”
She’s not stupid, she’s just foolish. The fact that her mistakes were predictable just makes it worse.
*she got her MD degree at Brown, an Ivy League university 15 minutes away from where I live.
Trump nominee fail