Seven years have passed since the COVID “pandemic.” It was a catastrophic time that threatened not only our health, but also our trust in the state and in our fellow citizens. Those who got vaccinated have already put the events behind them. For them, life goes on as before – for the unvaccinated, it does not. Criticism of the COVID measures continues to be associated with right-wing extremism.
Antisemitic and uneducated
The Documentation Archive of the Austrian Resistance (DÖW) has published a new report on right-wing extremist incidents in Austria. The academic director of the DÖW, Andreas Kranebitter, commented as follows: “Antisemitism correlates – this will not surprise you – very strongly with conspiracy thinking, including in relation to the COVID pandemic and the measures taken to combat the pandemic. It also correlates with education, that is, with the length of schooling.”
As someone who is skeptical about COVID, this constant association with right-wing extremism frustrates me. Uneducated, antisemitic and conspiratorial – everything is lumped together, and has been since the outbreak of COVID.
(Un)educated conspiracy theorists?
Of course, the level of education is always mentioned first. If someone holds an opinion you don’t like, then they must be too stupid to understand what’s really going on – a common political practice. Since COVID, such a person has been labeled a “conspiracy theorist” (“Schwurbler”) or lateral thinker (“Querdenker”).
According to most media outlets and the state, I belong to this group – just like many doctors and scientists who also doubt the official pandemic narrative. And I thought that with a high school diploma (Matura) and two university degrees – one of them in molecular genetics – I would be considered reasonably intelligent. Apparently, I was wrong. How foolish of me!
Education isn’t everything, especially not in Austria. One only needs to look at the résumés of our politicians to see that many of them do not hold a university degree. To be clear: I have no problems with competent politicians without a higher education. But if a connection is drawn between level of education, right-wing extremism, and “conspiracy thinking,” then I expect that everyone who becomes a politician should demonstrate a solid education. Why is there no such must have requirement?
Blind trust in science is dangerous
My experiences have taught me that a person’s level of education says nothing about their actual intelligence. Hanging academic titles after one’s name is no proof of wisdom. Our outdated education system trains young people in blind obedience. Critical, independent, and creative thinking is not only unwelcome – in many cases, it is even punished. Some professors, teachers, and researchers hate it when their knowledge is questioned – knowledge they have dutifully memorized without ever critically examining it themselves.
This uncritical attitude toward science has often led to fatal “errors” in the past. For example, from the 1920s to the 1980s, it was claimed that tobacco and smoking during pregnancy were harmless or even beneficial. Asbestos was marketed as a safe miracle material, only to be later recognized as highly carcinogenic. The thalidomide (Contergan) scandal, various cases of lead poisoning, and mercury contamination in food are just a few examples providing evidence that industry and science have demonstrably manipulated data. All of this happened at the expense of public health, especially that of pregnant women. Will the mRNA vaccines be added to this list?
Independent thinkers threaten the system
For the system, critically thinking individuals are extremely dangerous. This is one of the reasons why the media and politicians chose the term “Querdenker” (lateral thinkers) to defame COVID skeptics. Lateral thinkers are people who think and act unconventionally. For the system, “unconventional” means uncontrollable and unpredictable. Even before the pandemic, such individuals were not welcome. And as history has taught us, Austrians tend to be followers rather than rebels.
Lateral thinkers were the first to question the official pandemic narrative. They were the ones who doubted the absurd laws and actions of the state. Associating COVID critics with the far-right serves to undermine their credibility. Anyone who deviates from the will of those in power – whether in thought or action – is classified as an extremist. People must obey the system, even if it leads to their own downfall. And with each passing day, we move a little closer to that downfall.
