Yes, that Tal Bachman, the singer, but he is also a commentator who knows a thing or two:
… it was the Enlightenment which initiated the replacement of parents, community elders, custom, tradition, religious belief, common sense, practical experience, myths, and even plain evidence, as sources of epistemic and normative authority over human life, with a new caste of authorities called scientists.
Two and a half centuries later, millions now reflexively regard whatever the most influential scientists happen to proclaim at any given moment, for any reason at all as The First And Last Word On Everything To Do With Their Lives. And now Wokists have, to a remarkable degree, captured “science” (its funding, its practice, its personnel, its findings, its prescriptions). As a result, they’re now using the unassailable, Enlightenment-engineered authority of science to further impose Wokism wherever possible.
Given that, of course I’m going to wonder about the Enlightenment—at least some parts of it. Everyone should. The scientism the Enlightenment fathered (however inadvertently) was bad enough. Wokist scientism, imposed by force, is a nightmare.
Tal Bachman, “Tal Bachman: We Have Met the Enemy, part XXIII” at Steynonline (October 8, 2021)
“Wokist science” is typified by the war on math and the war on science but just watch lots of people embrace the lunacies they demand.
Bachman adds,
But—getting back to the Enlightenment—if it is all true, it calls into question several important Enlightenment claims. That raises even more questions about what else the Enlightenment—the philosophical progenitor of our world—might have gotten wrong. What problems might there be, that we didn’t notice before?
Tal Bachman, “Tal Bachman: We Have Met the Enemy, part XXIII” at Steynonline (October 8, 2021)
Prediction: As the smarter portion of the population begins to piece together what’s happened in the past few years, “Science!” is going to take a beating in public reputation. That’s too bad. But, under the circumstances, the harm done by continued uncritical belief may be greater than the harm done by disillusionment. Agree or disagree, we will likely find out.
You may also wish to read: Vox on why you can’t trust Big Science. If you “trust” these science honchoes at all after this episode… well, COVID-19 is not as serious a threat as wilful stupidity. But going forward, another question looms: How much of “settled science” that has never been subjected to this type of careful outside scrutiny would likewise collapse? What ELSE don’t we know and what difference would it make in various science arenas?