Coffee With Scott Adams — Knowledge Archive May 24, 2026
Scott Adams Philosophy Archive
Search ideas

Context —

t happened. I don't have any information that would suggest that that happened but I'm saying that if you're looking at it from the outside and you're even a little bit objective it looks like, doesn't mean it happened, looks like it was designed to get you the wrong result. I know what a trial would look like if somebody's trying to get an accurate good useful result and it's the opposite of that…

← Previous segment →

is not commonly used early it's only used too late and the death rate was very high. And then the one at the top of the list they were using it early and the death rate was very, very low compared to the United States. Not even close. I mean way, way difference. And then as you go down the list you get down to countries that also use hydroxychloroquine early they also have way lower death rate than the United States. So so far that's consistent right? So all the people with hydroxychloroquine are having good results according to this one chart and the United States isn't, is getting bad result.

But here's the problem. If you look at the best people using hydroxychloroquine compared to the ones who are getting the worst result but are also using it in the same way early there's a gigantic difference. It's like a 10 times difference. So even the countries that reportedly are using it early there's something like a 10 times difference in their outcomes. What does that tell you? It tells me it's not the hydroxychloroquine. But that chart was supposed to tell you that it took the chloroquine. Which one of us is right?

So Dr. Zelenko obviously knows more about all of this than I do but the chart that he presented to make his case to me because I spend more time looking at data you know I used to do it for a living I've got an economics background etc. But when I look at the data that he presented it says to me it's not the hydroxychloroquine. It says that if you can have a 10 times difference using it there's something else going on. There's probably something that some of these countries have in common beyond that. So that doesn't mean it doesn't work. I'm just saying that I'm not convinced and I'm going to stick with my 30 percent chance it's a game changer which is a strong chance. You know 30 is pretty solid chance but it's less than half right? So I'm still on the side that if we were to do a controlled clinical style a gold standard scientific test that there's two to one chance you won't find it works. All right but a 30 percent chance you will.

Now if it turns out that it works will you say that I was wrong? You should not because you should remember that I just put odds on it and if something goes the 30 way versus the 60 something percent way it doesn't mean I'm right or wrong because the only thing I could be right and wrong about was assigning the percentages and I've given room for it to go either way.

All right I've talked too much I've gone too long so I think I'll end it here. Somebody says you mess it up bro about what? Yeah I see in your comments you're asking about whether zinc is included or not included. I've seen lots of contradictory studies. I've seen studies that say it's not the zinc. I've seen studies that say it is the zinc. I've seen studies tha

Context —

t say no no it's not the zinc it's the azithromycin. And so there are studies that have both zinc and azithromycin and hydroxychloroquine and then you say well that worked but was it the azithromycin that some people say is the active ingredient or was it the zinc or was it the combination of the two or the combination of the three? Those are all the things we don't know and it's a lot. All right…

Next segment → →