Donald Trump has been widely condemned after suggesting disinfectant could be injected into patients as a possible treatment for coronavirus (Covid-19). But condemned isn’t good enough. We need to go further and reject the normalisation of Trump’s ludicrous and dangerous rhetoric and say it loud and clear: Trump is a fucking idiot.
‘Mind-blowing nonsense’
No joke – we had a patient swallow Lysol as a #disinfectant a couple of weeks ago to prevent COVID19 infection. He made it out of the hospital after his gastrectomy…
This kind of nonsense is absolutely mind blowing. pic.twitter.com/gaVMYh0IY4— Jonathan Spicer MD PhD (@DoctorJSpicer) April 23, 2020
Trump daily briefing…#coronavirus #disinfectant #ultraviolet #Covid_19 #StayHome #Resist #1u #NotMeUs #disinfectants #Clorox #InjectDisinfectant #lysol pic.twitter.com/nz5mjEZGOn
— Richard Angwin (@RichardAngwin) April 24, 2020
Trump noted that researchers were looking at the effects of disinfectants on coronavirus and wondered aloud if they could be injected into people, saying the virus “does a tremendous number on the lungs, so it would be interesting to check that”.
William Bryan of the Department of Homeland Security science and technology unit said health officials were not considering such treatment.
It’s not just the fact that Trump is pushing such idiotic and dangerous ideas, though; it’s that the people around him don’t immediately jump in to stop him. And it’s that, for years, the media establishment has helped to normalise his presence in the world of politics.
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My theory:
Trump did in fact ask Dr. Birx et al about his (ludicrous) disinfectant/UV idea, and they cowered and said they'd look into it.
They didn't realize he'd go on TV and make a fool of himself.
1/2
— Ryan Goodman (@rgoodlaw) April 24, 2020
‘Seek help from qualified professionals’, not Trump
Meanwhile, the company which makes Dettol insisted that there are “no circumstance[s]” under which people should inject or consume disinfectants. The company stated:
As a global leader in health and hygiene products, we must be clear that under no circumstance should our disinfectant products be administered into the human body (through injection, ingestion or any other route).
And Parastou Donyai, director of pharmacy practice and professor of social and cognitive pharmacy at the University of Reading, said:
What is shocking about these latest comments is that they completely bypass other important facts about injections too.
Not only will home-made injections bruise, burn, or block the veins, they will almost certainly also introduce new infections straight into the body, the very thing people are desperate to avoid.
People worried about the coronavirus or Covid-19 should seek help from a qualified doctor or pharmacist, and not take unfounded and off-the-cuff comments as actual advice.
This. Is. Not. OK.
Trump is a product of a putrid political environment, where his main establishment opponent wants to beat him mainly on the basis that he’s slightly less horrible. But in 2016, that strategy failed. And it put Trump – one of the biggest idiots to have ever run for office – in power.
It’s time to say ‘this situation is not OK’. It’s time to fight for a real alternative.
Featured image and additional content via Press Association
