The Erosion of Evidence

First they came for the...

First they came for the institutions,
Claiming conflicts and hidden agendas at play,
"Follow the money," they said with conviction,
While building their empires of doubt day by day.

Then they came for the scientists,
"Bought and biased," they declared,
While selling their own truth for profit,
Their hypocrisy left unspared.

Then they came for the methods,
"Wrong questions!" they would cry,
But what they meant was simpler:
The answers made their worldview die.

Then they came with their "research,"
YouTube videos and random blogs,
Trading peer review for popularity,
And evidence for monologues.

They called themselves the truth seekers,
While burning books of centuries' light,
Claiming we were all blind followers,
While leading their own into endless night.

And when the consequences came,
When preventable ills took their toll,
They asked why science failed them,
Never seeing the truth they stole.

Now who is left to study?
To question? To explore? To find?
When skepticism turns to cynicism,
And we leave the scientific method behind?

-Jess Steier, DrPH