‘The science’ suffers from self-inflicted political wounds

A Pew Research Center survey finds public trust in science is down 8 percentage points since the start of the coronavirus outbreak.

A third of Americans say science is a wash, equally positive and negative, and 8 percent say it's mostly negative.

Some scientists, especially those in official positions, began wielding "science" as a shield against debate and a tool for control.

Up to this point, the eroding credibility of science was largely a partisan matter.

Democrats "followed the science" to restrictive public-health policies.

Republicans doubted that public health officials wrapping themselves in science as if it was priestly garb could be trusted.

Jettisoning politics and refraining from using science to push policies and personal preferences would be a good start.