Dope: But that's not what happened during COVID: nobody knew much, and a lot of what the government was saying was either flat-out wrong (get the vaccine and you can't spread the disease) or so highly nuanced that what they were saying was essentially wrong (wearing a mask stops COVID transmission) that what was needed was in fact a rigorous public debate.

I followed Covid 19 scientific information for the first 1.5-2 years and there never was an advice or article, etc., that I read stating that if you got the vaccine you couldn't spread the disease. Initially it was 95% effective at you not getting it two weeks after injection. We understood it was evolving but were disappointed with 65% six months later. We also understood that if you did get it, it would be a lighter case and you could still spread in the lighter case. In other words, you still spread asymptomatically in the light case.

NEVER EVER did I ever read that masks STOPPED COVID transmission. In fact the mask grades tell you they don't. They made nice little chart memes that showed the effectiveness with an infected person wearing a mask, and not wearing a mask meeting people who wore no mask, a surgical mask, and N95 mask, etc.

And I might add, when you sense that it might be critical to your life to get the best information, seek out the best sources that can get the info to you and convey it in a way you can understand. Get rid of political and ideological sources.