It has become almost commonplace for the president to offer a tidbit from history that was never really historical at all – a distortion to bolster a false narrative.

Pieces of revisionist history. There was the time Canada burned down the White House in the War of 1812. The Civil War scholar David Blight, whose reputation is rather stellar, outlined another instance in this essay.

And now it’s time to alter science or at least ignore it.

Remember the push for STEM curriculum in our schools? From the Burroughs Wellcome Fund which finances the Tacher of the Year program in the state:

“In a rapidly changing world, the need for effective, high-quality STEM education has never been greater.

As we rush to keep up with a changing energy and employment landscape, and the growing influence of robotics and A.I.,a practical knowledge of STEM concepts will become critical for everyone in the developed world. Systems analysts, software developers, biomedical scientists and engineers—these are the roles of the tech-driven future.

Over the next decade, an estimated 80% of jobs will require STEM skills of some kind. In North Carolina alone, there are currently over 400,000 STEM-related jobs, and an estimated 70,000 more will appear by 2020. At both the state and national level, STEM education is the underpinning of our health, our economy, and our democracy. From vaccines and obesity, to energy production and environmental policy, issues related to STEM pervade our country, and our world.

Governments, industries, and heroic educators are working hard to meet the challenge. Top-down and bottom-up initiatives have done much to help students across North Carolina, and countrywide. But there is still much work to be done. Unfortunately, more than 20% of U.S. high schools fail to offer the full range of science and math courses. In North Carolina, as elsewhere, geography, race and socioeconomic status still determine access to STEM learning, to an unacceptable extent.“

Damn what real science says or at least allow it to be twisted to suit an egotistical need. Here’s this.

McEnany: "The president has said unmistakably that he wants schools to open…When he says open, he means open and full, kids being able to attend each and every day at their school. The science should not stand in the way of this." https://t.co/Nj065CIsxp pic.twitter.com/sJEAJPg2Jy

— CBS News (@CBSNews) July 16, 2020

Or you can just pretend that there is no science.

Hopefully, we can regain our respect for science.

Too many lives at stake.