Sergey Syrvachev’s Post

The next US president says global warming is a hoax. If you think this is crazy, given 2024 will again be the warmest year, welcome to reality. Rough times for climate and science, not just in the US. In the old days, things were simply not known. Then science started, but access to it was a privilege. With the media and the web, anyone now has instant access to almost anything. The idea that a society is better off by understanding how the world works, by being able to quantify, and by using science and technology in clever ways, was never universally accepted but widespread until not long ago. Facts do not dictate decisions and facts are always interpreted in a certain context, but people obviously lying about facts faced consequences: it was embarrassing, they lost credibility, or their job. Everybody was entitled to have their opinions, but not their facts, as we say. Fast-forward to today. For many, it has become irrelevant whether something is true or not; truth simply doesn’t matter any more, you build your world around you with “alternative facts”. Kavanagh and Rich called it “Truth decay” (RAND, 2018) and argued it is more than fake news. It’s the conflation of opinion and fact in discourse, the absence of trust in expertise and trusted sources. Harry Frankfurt (2005) called it “bullshit”: while the liar knows the truth and tries to deceive, the bullshitter simply doesn’t care. The decline of journalism and the rise of social media and generative AI contribute to the flood of nonsense. Wind turbines cause cancer, a warming ocean will not cause sea level rise. Such statements are crazy, but what is worse is that such lies have become acceptable to many. Repeat them often enough, and the audience will even praise you for being outspoken and charismatic, and give you more power to lie. Facts are replaced by opinions and identities, both on the left and right. It’s "us" versus "them". Anything is justified to defeat the other side. And it’s not the less educated who don’t know, it’s deliberate propaganda and deceit by those who know and understand the power of psychology. It’s also not just a US thing, it’s happening in many places. Lies and bullshit may be comforting, but they are dangerous. Dangerous because ignorance kills: 200 just died in Spain in floods because authorities ignored weather warnings. Dangerous because major decisions today involve science and technology that the public needs to grasp: medicine, AI, energy systems, social media, privacy, cybersecurity. Dangerous because wealth is no longer about growing corn, but about innovation and technology. And dangerous because without a shared understanding of the facts and options, and willingness to hear other arguments, a meaningful societal debate is hard. Science cannot dictate decisions and just shouting louder the facts will not solve it. But facts, education, trust in science and institutions do matter. Fixing the problems will be hard and will need all of us.

The next US president says global warming is a hoax. If you think this is crazy, given 2024 will again be the warmest year, welcome to reality. Rough times for climate and science, not just in the US. In the old days, things were simply not known. Then science started, but access to it was a privilege. With the media and the web, anyone now has instant access to almost anything. The idea that a society is better off by understanding how the world works, by being able to quantify, and by using science and technology in clever ways, was never universally accepted but widespread until not long ago. Facts do not dictate decisions and facts are always interpreted in a certain context, but people obviously lying about facts faced consequences: it was embarrassing, they lost credibility, or their job. Everybody was entitled to have their opinions, but not their facts, as we say. Fast-forward to today. For many, it has become irrelevant whether something is true or not; truth simply doesn’t matter any more, you build your world around you with “alternative facts”. Kavanagh and Rich called it “Truth decay” (RAND, 2018) and argued it is more than fake news. It’s the conflation of opinion and fact in discourse, the absence of trust in expertise and trusted sources. Harry Frankfurt (2005) called it “bullshit”: while the liar knows the truth and tries to deceive, the bullshitter simply doesn’t care. The decline of journalism and the rise of social media and generative AI contribute to the flood of nonsense. Wind turbines cause cancer, a warming ocean will not cause sea level rise. Such statements are crazy, but what is worse is that such lies have become acceptable to many. Repeat them often enough, and the audience will even praise you for being outspoken and charismatic, and give you more power to lie. Facts are replaced by opinions and identities, both on the left and right. It’s "us" versus "them". Anything is justified to defeat the other side. And it’s not the less educated who don’t know, it’s deliberate propaganda and deceit by those who know and understand the power of psychology. It’s also not just a US thing, it’s happening in many places. Lies and bullshit may be comforting, but they are dangerous. Dangerous because ignorance kills: 200 just died in Spain in floods because authorities ignored weather warnings. Dangerous because major decisions today involve science and technology that the public needs to grasp: medicine, AI, energy systems, social media, privacy, cybersecurity. Dangerous because wealth is no longer about growing corn, but about innovation and technology. And dangerous because without a shared understanding of the facts and options, and willingness to hear other arguments, a meaningful societal debate is hard. Science cannot dictate decisions and just shouting louder the facts will not solve it. But facts, education, trust in science and institutions do matter. Fixing the problems will be hard and will need all of us.

The next US president says global warming is a hoax. If you think this is crazy, given 2024 will again be the warmest year, welcome to reality. Rough times for climate and science, not just in the US. In the old days, things were simply not known. Then science started, but access to it was a privilege. With the media and the web, anyone now has instant access to almost anything. The idea that a society is better off by understanding how the world works, by being able to quantify, and by using science and technology in clever ways, was never universally accepted but widespread until not long ago. Facts do not dictate decisions and facts are always interpreted in a certain context, but people obviously lying about facts faced consequences: it was embarrassing, they lost credibility, or their job. Everybody was entitled to have their opinions, but not their facts, as we say. Fast-forward to today. For many, it has become irrelevant whether something is true or not; truth simply doesn’t matter any more, you build your world around you with “alternative facts”. Kavanagh and Rich called it “Truth decay” (RAND, 2018) and argued it is more than fake news. It’s the conflation of opinion and fact in discourse, the absence of trust in expertise and trusted sources. Harry Frankfurt (2005) called it “bullshit”: while the liar knows the truth and tries to deceive, the bullshitter simply doesn’t care. The decline of journalism and the rise of social media and generative AI contribute to the flood of nonsense. Wind turbines cause cancer, a warming ocean will not cause sea level rise. Such statements are crazy, but what is worse is that such lies have become acceptable to many. Repeat them often enough, and the audience will even praise you for being outspoken and charismatic, and give you more power to lie. Facts are replaced by opinions and identities, both on the left and right. It’s "us" versus "them". Anything is justified to defeat the other side. And it’s not the less educated who don’t know, it’s deliberate propaganda and deceit by those who know and understand the power of psychology. It’s also not just a US thing, it’s happening in many places. Lies and bullshit may be comforting, but they are dangerous. Dangerous because ignorance kills: 200 just died in Spain in floods because authorities ignored weather warnings. Dangerous because major decisions today involve science and technology that the public needs to grasp: medicine, AI, energy systems, social media, privacy, cybersecurity. Dangerous because wealth is no longer about growing corn, but about innovation and technology. And dangerous because without a shared understanding of the facts and options, and willingness to hear other arguments, a meaningful societal debate is hard. Science cannot dictate decisions and just shouting louder the facts will not solve it. But facts, education, trust in science and institutions do matter. Fixing the problems will be hard and will need all of us.

The next US president says global warming is a hoax. If you think this is crazy, given 2024 will again be the warmest year, welcome to reality. Rough times for climate and science, not just in the US. In the old days, things were simply not known. Then science started, but access to it was a privilege. With the media and the web, anyone now has instant access to almost anything. The idea that a society is better off by understanding how the world works, by being able to quantify, and by using science and technology in clever ways, was never universally accepted but widespread until not long ago. Facts do not dictate decisions and facts are always interpreted in a certain context, but people obviously lying about facts faced consequences: it was embarrassing, they lost credibility, or their job. Everybody was entitled to have their opinions, but not their facts, as we say. Fast-forward to today. For many, it has become irrelevant whether something is true or not; truth simply doesn’t matter any more, you build your world around you with “alternative facts”. Kavanagh and Rich called it “Truth decay” (RAND, 2018) and argued it is more than fake news. It’s the conflation of opinion and fact in discourse, the absence of trust in expertise and trusted sources. Harry Frankfurt (2005) called it “bullshit”: while the liar knows the truth and tries to deceive, the bullshitter simply doesn’t care. The decline of journalism and the rise of social media and generative AI contribute to the flood of nonsense. Wind turbines cause cancer, a warming ocean will not cause sea level rise. Such statements are crazy, but what is worse is that such lies have become acceptable to many. Repeat them often enough, and the audience will even praise you for being outspoken and charismatic, and give you more power to lie. Facts are replaced by opinions and identities, both on the left and right. It’s "us" versus "them". Anything is justified to defeat the other side. And it’s not the less educated who don’t know, it’s deliberate propaganda and deceit by those who know and understand the power of psychology. It’s also not just a US thing, it’s happening in many places. Lies and bullshit may be comforting, but they are dangerous. Dangerous because ignorance kills: 200 just died in Spain in floods because authorities ignored weather warnings. Dangerous because major decisions today involve science and technology that the public needs to grasp: medicine, AI, energy systems, social media, privacy, cybersecurity. Dangerous because wealth is no longer about growing corn, but about innovation and technology. And dangerous because without a shared understanding of the facts and options, and willingness to hear other arguments, a meaningful societal debate is hard. Science cannot dictate decisions and just shouting louder the facts will not solve it. But facts, education, trust in science and institutions do matter. Fixing the problems will be hard and will need all of us.

The next US president says global warming is a hoax. If you think this is crazy, given 2024 will again be the warmest year, welcome to reality. Rough times for climate and science, not just in the US. In the old days, things were simply not known. Then science started, but access to it was a privilege. With the media and the web, anyone now has instant access to almost anything. The idea that a society is better off by understanding how the world works, by being able to quantify, and by using science and technology in clever ways, was never universally accepted but widespread until not long ago. Facts do not dictate decisions and facts are always interpreted in a certain context, but people obviously lying about facts faced consequences: it was embarrassing, they lost credibility, or their job. Everybody was entitled to have their opinions, but not their facts, as we say. Fast-forward to today. For many, it has become irrelevant whether something is true or not; truth simply doesn’t matter any more, you build your world around you with “alternative facts”. Kavanagh and Rich called it “Truth decay” (RAND, 2018) and argued it is more than fake news. It’s the conflation of opinion and fact in discourse, the absence of trust in expertise and trusted sources. Harry Frankfurt (2005) called it “bullshit”: while the liar knows the truth and tries to deceive, the bullshitter simply doesn’t care. The decline of journalism and the rise of social media and generative AI contribute to the flood of nonsense. Wind turbines cause cancer, a warming ocean will not cause sea level rise. Such statements are crazy, but what is worse is that such lies have become acceptable to many. Repeat them often enough, and the audience will even praise you for being outspoken and charismatic, and give you more power to lie. Facts are replaced by opinions and identities, both on the left and right. It’s "us" versus "them". Anything is justified to defeat the other side. And it’s not the less educated who don’t know, it’s deliberate propaganda and deceit by those who know and understand the power of psychology. It’s also not just a US thing, it’s happening in many places. Lies and bullshit may be comforting, but they are dangerous. Dangerous because ignorance kills: 200 just died in Spain in floods because authorities ignored weather warnings. Dangerous because major decisions today involve science and technology that the public needs to grasp: medicine, AI, energy systems, social media, privacy, cybersecurity. Dangerous because wealth is no longer about growing corn, but about innovation and technology. And dangerous because without a shared understanding of the facts and options, and willingness to hear other arguments, a meaningful societal debate is hard. Science cannot dictate decisions and just shouting louder the facts will not solve it. But facts, education, trust in science and institutions do matter. Fixing the problems will be hard and will need all of us.

The next US president says global warming is a hoax. If you think this is crazy, given 2024 will again be the warmest year, welcome to reality. Rough times for climate and science, not just in the US. In the old days, things were simply not known. Then science started, but access to it was a privilege. With the media and the web, anyone now has instant access to almost anything. The idea that a society is better off by understanding how the world works, by being able to quantify, and by using science and technology in clever ways, was never universally accepted but widespread until not long ago. Facts do not dictate decisions and facts are always interpreted in a certain context, but people obviously lying about facts faced consequences: it was embarrassing, they lost credibility, or their job. Everybody was entitled to have their opinions, but not their facts, as we say. Fast-forward to today. For many, it has become irrelevant whether something is true or not; truth simply doesn’t matter any more, you build your world around you with “alternative facts”. Kavanagh and Rich called it “Truth decay” (RAND, 2018) and argued it is more than fake news. It’s the conflation of opinion and fact in discourse, the absence of trust in expertise and trusted sources. Harry Frankfurt (2005) called it “bullshit”: while the liar knows the truth and tries to deceive, the bullshitter simply doesn’t care. The decline of journalism and the rise of social media and generative AI contribute to the flood of nonsense. Wind turbines cause cancer, a warming ocean will not cause sea level rise. Such statements are crazy, but what is worse is that such lies have become acceptable to many. Repeat them often enough, and the audience will even praise you for being outspoken and charismatic, and give you more power to lie. Facts are replaced by opinions and identities, both on the left and right. It’s "us" versus "them". Anything is justified to defeat the other side. And it’s not the less educated who don’t know, it’s deliberate propaganda and deceit by those who know and understand the power of psychology. It’s also not just a US thing, it’s happening in many places. Lies and bullshit may be comforting, but they are dangerous. Dangerous because ignorance kills: 200 just died in Spain in floods because authorities ignored weather warnings. Dangerous because major decisions today involve science and technology that the public needs to grasp: medicine, AI, energy systems, social media, privacy, cybersecurity. Dangerous because wealth is no longer about growing corn, but about innovation and technology. And dangerous because without a shared understanding of the facts and options, and willingness to hear other arguments, a meaningful societal debate is hard. Science cannot dictate decisions and just shouting louder the facts will not solve it. But facts, education, trust in science and institutions do matter. Fixing the problems will be hard and will need all of us.