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Re:More Scientists Urge Broad Inquiry into Coronavirus Origins by temp8964 on Monday May 17, 2021 @09:10PM (#27190259)
I find the word "debunk" has been frequently used by one political side to label any idea they disagree with.

This is a very strange word. When I read history of science books, this word was almost never used. Change of scientific consensus is not uncommon in the history of science. Scientists disagree with each other, debate with each other, but they don't claim they debunk each other.

I don't believe people use this word in good faith. It seems to be politically loaded power grab.

Re:More Scientists Urge Broad Inquiry into Coronavirus Origins by mistermann on Monday May 17, 2021 @09:31PM (#27190382)
Misinformation is another word that has become extremely popular in the last year or two.

I don't think very many people think very deeply about the meaning of words, and how subtle changes in the ones that are chosen can influence the collective consciousness. A lot of people even seem to strongly dislike the topic being mentioned.

Re:More Scientists Urge Broad Inquiry into Coronavirus Origins by brippalcharrid on Tuesday May 18, 2021 @12:32AM (#27191279)
I think that practitioners of Postmodernism have spent a lot of time thinking about the meanings of words that they can cause people to perceive, and that they have had a very successful track record of using this to shift cultural parameters and achieve their political objectives.

They'd probably prefer that you didn't notice they were doing this.

Re:More Scientists Urge Broad Inquiry into Coronavirus Origins by mistermann on Tuesday May 18, 2021 @12:38AM (#27191295)
Politicians and journalists are probably a bit choked that others are stealing their bit!