I forgot to include links to the full story on the monolith

NY TIMES

BBC

and here's a video clip form the Department of Safety in Utah on their onsite encounter with the monolith



-M

People do lie; that's why it's important to hold authority figures accountable for their words and actions.

That's also why it's important to stick to the only self-correcting system that our species developed to understand the universe as it is, and not as we wish it to be: science. 

When it is mixed with a deep humanity (as is the case with, say, actor Stephen Fry or astronomer Hubert Reeves) it's even better. I wish the public at large paid more attention to such people.

Dr Fauci is an expert on infectious disease, and so is as trustworthy as they come when it comes to viruses. I can't agree that he has "guessed wrong" many times; he certainly never claimed, for example, that the virus would disappear as if by magic. On the contrary, from the very first day, he has insisted that this pandemic was a very serious crisis.

Has he changed his recommendations over time? Absolutely! That is not a sign of him not knowing what he's talking about, however: that is the sign of a proper scientist, who adjusts his model as more data comes in. For example, in the early months of the pandemic, we were told to stay at home and avoid all unnecessary contact. In such circumstances, wearing a mask offers only a minute amount of extra protection (since a mask has no purpose if one doesn't meet other people). What's more, because we hoi polloi tend to overreact to any situation, masks were disappearing from the shelves as fast as toilet paper was, leaving none for the medical staff that actually needed them. The official recommendation was therefore to stay indoors and not wear a mask.

Then we tentatively reopened society, and as long as we were keeping our distances, masks weren't seen as a necessity. A bit later numbers came in (after proper epidemiologic studies) and showed that in fact, masks did make a difference; the authorities then changed their tune and told us to wear them. It's like the old saying : "no plan survives contact with the enemy"; a responsible health official (Fauci, in this case) must adapt to the situation on the ground.

I agree with you that at this point, now that we know that young people are at very little risk of getting seriously ill, our focus should be on protecting the most vulnerable among us (the elderly, the immunocompromised, people with other medical conditions). That being said, I really don't see how we can do it without limiting the spread of the virus in the population at large (both among the young, where it is almost innocuous, and the elderly, where it can be lethal). Should we confine vulnerable people? If so, how do we feed them, provide them the medical care they need, and prevent them from going stir crazy while the rest of us  are enjoying a normal life? That's especially difficult in a country like the U.S., where medical care is not universal and is often associated with one's employment status. 

I don't know how this crisis should be handled, and I am not convinced that whatever Fauci suggests next will prove to be right in the long run. I just know that he is more qualified than just about anyone to make suggestions regarding COVID-19!

Plus, he practices what he preaches. That is a good point in his favour.

I almost entirely agree, except I think you are overly downplaying the potential risk to young people. Obviously the elderly and those with underlying conditions are at most risk, but to suggest it's nearly innocuous to the young doesn't seem right.

About that rumour, checked by Snopes.com :


During a Feb. 29, 2020, interview, Dr. Fauci said that at that time and under the circumstances pertaining to that date, Americans didn't need to change their behavior patterns.

However, Fauci did not say there was "nothing to worry about," and although he stated that Americans did not yet need to change their behaviors, he noted that what was then classified as the COVID-19 outbreak could require that to change.


So he didn't mislead anyone or change his mind. He adapted his message as the pandemic was progressing. Kind of like the Titanic's captain, who at first assessed the damage instead of immediately sending everyone to the lifeboats. When the ship started sinking, though, he didn't claim that it would remain afloat as soon as weather cleared; he did tell people to put on their lifejackets and abandon ship.

And I sincerely hope that a Titanic analogy will not prove prophetic!!! 

Yeah, a single statement from 9 months ago doesn't say much on how we handle it now, with 9 months of real worldwide actual data and study. It's not comparable. At all.

One thing I've read recently and hope to read more about is a finding that people with weak immune systems are indeed more susceptible to being infected by the virus - but they don't die from it. People die when their immune system overreacts; that's where the "cytokine storm" comes from. People who can't generate a cytokine storm just get sick for a while, or have no symptoms at all.