THE CORONAVIRUS CRISIS IS FLINT, WRIT LARGE (Opinion piece)

[Siwsan]

snip:
Flint is a cautionary tale about how a government produced calamity by putting economics above people, contempt above empathy and politics above science. And Flint illustrates how a handful of people in power scoffed at the concerns of citizens who turned out to be right all along. A state report later said officials used "scorn and derision," as well as "aggressive dismissal" and "belittlement" to respond to the concerns of people. Now children may spend a lifetime paying the price.

If Flint offers any lessons, it is to let our leaders exercise the fine art of listening: to the doctors and nurses treating patients in our hospitals, as well as to the mayors and governors and hospital executives scrambling for beds and equipment. Flint also teaches us to listen to whistleblowers, scientists and citizens alike, and to act quickly based on their concerns. If the government relies upon their expertise, then we, in turn, can rely on our government.

Trust, after all, is a fragile thing, and Flint instructs leaders in how to build or shatter it. Residents even today suffer from a profound distrust in government, after being lied to and ignored during more than a year of poisoning. That distrust is on display now, tragically: "Half the people I know simply don't believe any of the numbers and fairly consistently believe we're being lied to about everything," said one Flint resident of the pandemic. Flint teaches our leaders to tell the truth.

https://www.newsweek.com/coronavirus-crisis-flint-writ-large-opinion-1500148?fbclid=IwAR3o49TXuGuGN4xTbw0dOHzmFypmQ1A-29AWuY1nixzRUR5d972YJ3E0FX4

[gibraltar72]

1. Snyder didn't have the truth in him.

He constructed a web around him who insulated him from the blame. His AG protected him. as did his inner circle. The AG brought charges against some but it was for show only very weak cases they knew would be thrown out. Snyder lied in front of congress and being Republicans they ignored it. I talked personally to governor Whitmer who told me she wanted to bring Snyder to justice. Current AG saw how badly the evidence was handled and dropped cases. Investigation was to continue then this happened. I hope if we get back to "normal" Snyder will be hauled before the bar of justice for real.