It wasn’t only sunflowers

 

At the pond on Strathaven Dr. in far north Austin on July 7th it wasn’t only sunflowers (Helianthus annuus) I photographed. In today’s picture they sunnify the background beyond the portrait’s star, a curvy-stemmed firewheel (Gaillardia pulchella) doing its thing past the normal end of the peak season for that species.  

  

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(1) So you go to your doctor, who recommends that you take a certain medicine to treat a condition you have. You ask your doctor: “Do you have numbers to show that medicine is effective for my condition?” The doctor replies: “I don’t need to have numbers. I don’t have to have data to recommend this medicine.” What would you think of a doctor who said such a thing?

 

(2) So you’re in a restaurant and at the end of the meal the waiter says your bill adds up to a certain total. You ask the waiter: “Do you have numbers to show that that’s the right total?” Your waiter replies: “I don’t need to have numbers. I don’t have to have data to show this is the right total.” What would you think of a waiter who said such a thing?

 

(3) So it’s June 29th, and at a press conference where New York Governor Kathy Hochul touted her new gun control plans, Albany’s WRGB news anchor Anne McCloy asked: “Do you have numbers to show that it’s the concealed carry permit holders that are committing crimes? Because the lawful gun owner will say that you’re attacking the wrong person; it’s really people that are getting these guns illegally that are causing the violence — not the people going and getting the permit legally — and that’s the basis for the whole Supreme Court argument. Do you have the numbers?”

Governor Hochul replied: “I don’t need to have numbers. I don’t have to have a data point to point to say this.” What would you think of a governor who said such a thing?

 

© 2022 Steven Schwartzman