The Tradicat Fact Checking Method

JMJ

I've had some interesting in-person conversations lately regarding my perspective on:

COVID-19:

Yes, I believe it is a pandemic and ...
I am researching whether or not it is on the same order of magnitude as the 1918 pandemic.

Morality of getting immunized

Yes, it is moral with the appropriate conditions
No, I don't care what ++Vigano and + Schneider say on the matter. I've done the research and they're wrong.

Safety of the vaccines

NO, I don't believe that I will die in 15 to 21 months because of the vaccine.

Efficacy of the vaccines

Yes, I believe they evoke an immune response.
For the record the Moderna response was found to be greater than that of the Pfizer.

What no one has asked is how I arrived at these perspectives.

Tradiate mentioned that I should, for your benefit, outline how I approach these topics.

Experience: I am familiar with the scientific process and environment.

I have the benefit of decades of experience working in a science environment on medical devices with scientists, engineers, software developers, technologists and trades people.
I have published my own research and also been author on other scientific papers.
I am familiar with how scientific papers are structured and presented. I've read hundreds of scientific papers in my career - dry reading but very necessary to try to build an understanding on a topic.

Study: I am curious about many things, so I read and study things that interest me.

Regular readers of this blog know that I will do deep dives into topics that interest me to gain an understanding. In many cases I present my findings here on this blog.
Right now I am very curious about comparing the 1918 Pandemic (Spanish Influenza) with the 2019 SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic.
I will read the source material in order to draw my own conclusions.
I have read a number of scientific documents on masks, vaccines, pandemics and pandemic responses.

Media: In general I avoid all talking heads on YouTube etc because after numerous checks I have found them to be promoting their own FUD invoking narrative. This has created a new classification: Fud-Muckers.

When a friend asks me to investigate or I come across an interesting article / video, my first step is to download the article or transcript of the video.

Time is too precious to waste on listening to someone with hair like Michael Voris drone on about how bad it is etc.
By downloading the text / transcript I can scan it for the important elements - such as their actual 'assertions' and any supporting information. These videos have a lot of hand waving and wringing so I go for the written word.

I cross check the person speaking / author of the "Media Article" to see if they "should" know what they are talking about.

The internet is a breeding ground for snake-oil salesmen / women and the SARS-CoV-2 has created an exponential explosion.
If the person doesn't have applicable credentials then I look for reputable information sources cited by the persons. If these are absent, they get an automatic fail because I have no confidence that they know what they are talking or writing about.

I look for any and all original articles that are referenced in the video or written article.

Are the sources from reputable journals or organizations?
I read the paper to see if I can understand the basic science and approach.
What are the conclusions of the study?

I compare the "Media Article" with the conclusions of the original

Are the conclusions made in the original article or by the video personality consistent with those of the study?
If not, then in most cases the article is just added to recycle bin and I move on. In some cases, I will save it for the basis of an article (one is in the hopper now).
If yes, well then I have to adjust my assessment ... but [spoiler alert] ... in the cases that I have fact checked - not one has passed the test.

Fact-checking articles typically take about three hours of research and at least one hour to write up my findings. Most of my articles on the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic take at least one to two hours and many could use more editing.

So, as you can see, this process takes time and time is a scarce commodity.

Once I have satisfied myself on a topic I don't keep searching, unless new verifiable information is brought forward in one of my scans.

So there you have it, I hope this helps people to understand that my conclusions are based on a reasoned process following Catholic principles. To change my mind, I need facts and references to original research, not hand wringing or waving.

Nota Bene: Not all comments are of the hand wringing / waving nature.

P^3

SSPX Transfers

+ JMJ Eponymous flow posted the following list of transfers etc. Source: http://eponymousflower.blogspot.com/2020/04/castling-of-leadership-at-sspx.html The departures Bishop Bernard Fellay, the third Superior General until 2018, leaves the General House in Menzingen and moves to the Seminary of St. Thomas Aquinas in the USA. Bishop Bernard Tissier de Mallerais, suffering from ill health, is being referred to the Seminary of St. Pius X in Ecene as a retreat. Fr. Christian Thouvenot, until now Secretary General of the General House, becomes a professor at the seminary in Ecene. Fr. Franz Schmidberger, until now Rector at the Seminary of the Heart of Jesus in Zaitzkofen, moves to the district of Germany. Fr. Jürgen Wegner, until now district superior of the DISTRICT USA, moves to the district of Austria. Fr. Philippe Brunet, until now Superior of the Autonomous House of Spain-Portugal, becomes professor at the Seminary U.L.F. and co-saviour of La Reja in...

Saint Athanasius - The True Upholder of Tradition - SSPXasia - Apologia Pro Marcel Lefebvre

+ JMJ The situation of the Church today does bear a striking resemblance of the Arian Crisis. There are two key elements to note: The vast majority of the hierarchy and presumably the faithful were infected with the heresy. St. Athanasius never refused to return to his See when able. P^3 Prayer Penance Patience Courtesy of SSPXasia Appendix I What happened over 1600 years ago is repeating itself today, but with two or three differences: Alexandria is the whole Universal Church, the stability of which is being shaken, and what was undertaken at that time by means of physical force and cruelty is now being transferred to a different level. Exile is replaced by banishment into the silence of being ignored; killing, by assassination of character. Mgr. Rudolf Graber, Bishop of Regensburg, Athanasius and the Church of Our Times, p. 23.

Morning and Evening and other sundry Prayers

+ JMJ Along the theme of P^3 (Prayer, Penance, Patience), and for my own reference ... here is a collection of Morning and Evening prayers from the Ideal Daily Missal along with some additional prayers. In this crisis of the Church, I do not think it is possible to do too much prayer, penance and have patience. P^3

Rorate-Caeli URGENT: Pope tells Italian Bishops he plans to abolish the motu proprio Summorum Pontificum

+ JMJ Now THIS is probably the most important news item in the last two years - yes I place this above the pandemic. I'm only surprised by how long it took for this to surface during this pontificate. I hope and pray that it is false or that if it comes to pass that somehow some good will arise out of the ashes of Summorum Pontificum. P^3 Courtesy of Rorate-Caeli URGENT: Pope tells Italian Bishops he plans to abolish the motu proprio Summorum Pontificum (Updated) Update (May 26): Rorate's additional sources in Rome have confirmed this Wednesday that Francis has indeed a text on Summorum Pontificum lined up, which has been developed for months, but what is not known at this point is if the text is just about a more limited take on the Summorum application questionnaire (first revealed by us in the spring of 2020) or about an overhaul of Summorum Pontificum in general: drafts could be dealing with both matters. It is also not impossible for a text to come ou...

A Reply to Martin Blackshaw’s FLAWED Remnant article titled: FLAWED: SSPX Advice on Abortion-tainted Vaccines

+ JMJ An article has appeared in the Remnant (link to article) and I am afraid that there are a number of flaws in it that need to be addressed. The author, Martin Blackshaw, believes that both the Church and the SSPX are misapplying the principle of Moral Theology called 'Cooperation In Evil'. Unfortunately, Mr. Blackshaw rests most of his arguments on citing authors that support his position, without considering the possibility that they are wrong. This highlights a key factor in this crisis: ignorance of the faith and its application . I don't am not singling out Mr. Blackshaw for this criticism, I have observed that it applies to laity and religious, superior and subject a like. No one seems immune in this enduring crisis, myself included. I further believe that this ignorance is why so many Catholics, both traditional and non, rely on their gut feeling or "Catholic conscience" for charting their way through this crisis of the faith. While...

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