Sunday, February 7, 2021

A Skeptic Promotes DDT...Again

Just in case we aren't already on the same page that getting your science information from people who call themselves babes is a bad idea, Yvette d'Entremont Ross (SciBabe) decided to make sure it was heard loud and clear with her "Moment of Science" dated January 30, 2021.

While the world is upside down and on fire, we can all take great comfort in the fact that Yvette is out there swooshing her lab coat over to the computer to type up a citation-less, expletive-peppered missive in defense of toxic chemicals and launch it onto her Facebook page.




DDT, the "miricle pesticide"


Here is the TL;DR version -

  • Early pesticides were very toxic and bad!
  • Enter organic chemistry...
  • DDT saves half a billion lives! Wow!
  • DDT safe!
  • DDT safe!
  • Everything's a chemical!
  • Rachel Carson's book is just overblown bullshit!
  • Okay so DDT was sorta bad for some birds...and it's a persistent organic pollutant...
  • It's also a probable carcinogen, but coffee, so just ignore that.
  • Risk is something I'm going gloss over in this sentence.
  • INVOKE 500 MILLION LIVES STAT AGAIN FOR MIC DROP
  • "DDT is good for me-e-e!" 🎶
  • People will know I'm full of shit when they read this, but...
  • Oh well! 

There is a veritable library of information on this topic, should readers wish to learn more about the history of DDT and malaria that Yvette seems to think isn't "nuanced" enough to include in her hastily written Facebook take. 

This isn't the first time SciBabe has used her platform to share myths about DDT, and it probably won't be the last. 

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3 comments:

  1. Ed DarrellFebruary 19, 2021 at 8:12 PM

    SciBabe isn't much on making corrections, either, I discover.

    Facts on DDT in this case:

    1. Dr. Quiggin: http://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/magazine/rehabilitatingcarson#.U6aVArGsjSg
    2. Conniff: http://e360.yale.edu/feature/rachel_carsons_critics_keep_on_but_she_told_truth_about_ddt/2908/

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Vixen ValentinoFebruary 24, 2021 at 8:55 AM

      That 1000% does not surprise me. I saw the comments on her website. Did you fall off your chair when she told you, "I don’t think you’ve read Silent Spring?" And what the hell was that old NYT link with no author?

      Delete
    2. Ed DarrellFebruary 25, 2021 at 12:04 AM

      It's difficult to understand how anyone could miss the message of "Silent Spring" if they'd read it; it was rather jaw dropping when she accused others of not having read Carson's book.

      Then others comment as if she had it right. Oy.

      Delete