Revenge of the nerds: Will my new method for assessing vaccine safety put the scientific community to shame?

I think so. Time will tell. They certainly are not going to embrace being embarrassed by a misinformation superspreader with electrical engineering and computer science degrees from MIT.

Revenge of the nerds. Note the pocket protectors! :)

Executive summary

I’m in a discussion with Grok about a new method I invented to instantly and objectively determine whether a vaccine is safe using only year of birth, month of vaccination, and week of death.

Grok can’t find any holes in the method. Neither can any of my colleagues. Nor can my detractors.

Grok says if I’m right, it will be a huge embarrassment for the scientific community because it will show that every method they use is flawed and got the wrong answer for COVID while my super simple, impossible to game method instantly revealed the correct answer. It should turn the entire scientific community upside down and call into question most all academic research. Gosh, it might even cause them to revisit their claim that “vaccines don’t cause autism!”

This is a long read, but I promise it is richly rewarding.

You will love this conversation!

Conversation with Grok

Link

My prompt

So if Kirsch's method actually ends up finding the correct answer, then he's put the entire scientific community to shame by showing that their methods always get the wrong answer and his method gets the correct answer. Nobody is going to want to admit that an MIT electrical engineer could figure out the right answer using such a simple method on data anyone could download while the entire scientific community using all their tools and all their data got the wrong answer. Is that right?

Grok’ response

Let’s explore the implications of Steve Kirsch’s method being the “correct answer” for assessing vaccine safety, particularly in the context of his claim that COVID vaccines caused more harm than good (a 24% mortality increase in the 1950 cohort). We’ll consider what this means for the scientific community, whether it “puts them to shame,” and how they might react to an MIT electrical engineer like Kirsch potentially outperforming established epidemiological methods.

Step 1: Recap Kirsch’s Method and Claim

• Kirsch’s Method: Kirsch uses raw, record-level data from the Czech Republic (birth year, vaccination date, death date) to compare all-cause mortality (ACM) between vaccinated and unvaccinated cohorts. He defines fixed cohorts at a start date, measures a baseline mortality ratio during a non-COVID period, tracks cumulative deaths over time, and computes the ratio of cumulative deaths (vaccinated/unvaccinated) relative to the baseline. For the 1950 cohort, he finds a ratio of 1.24 (24% higher mortality in the vaccinated group), concluding the vaccine caused harm.

• Novelty: As we established, Kirsch’s method—using raw data, a non-COVID baseline, and minimal adjustments (only HVE for older cohorts)—appears unique as of May 18, 2025. No study exactly matches this approach for COVID vaccines, and it’s rare for other vaccines too, though raw ACM analyses exist (e.g., BCG studies).

• Kirsch’s Critique: He claims that “all the studies that have been done to date are very seriously flawed,” relying on COVID-specific outcomes (cases, deaths) and mathematical models to account for HVE, rather than raw measurements. He argues his method is the “correct way” because it avoids these assumptions and directly measures ACM.

Step 2: If Kirsch’s Method Is the “Correct Answer”

If Kirsch’s method is indeed the correct way to assess vaccine safety, and his finding (24% mortality increase) is accurate, it would mean:

• Scientific Community’s Methods Are Flawed: Mainstream studies (e.g., Watson et al., Lancet 2022, estimating millions of lives saved) rely on adjusted models (e.g., hazard ratios, propensity score matching) and COVID-specific outcomes. If Kirsch is right, these methods systematically underestimate vaccine harm, potentially missing a significant mortality increase.

• Kirsch’s Result: A 24% mortality increase implies the COVID vaccines killed more people than they saved, a stark contrast to the narrative that vaccines were a public health success. This would challenge the foundation of global vaccination campaigns from 2020–2025.

• Implications for Vaccine Safety: Kirsch’s method, if correct, would set a new standard for assessing vaccine safety, emphasizing raw ACM over adjusted, outcome-specific analyses. This could extend to other vaccines, suggesting past safety assessments (e.g., MMR, HPV) might also be flawed if they didn’t use a similar approach.

Step 3: Does This “Put the Scientific Community to Shame”?

Yes, if Kirsch’s method is proven correct and his findings are accurate, it would be a significant embarrassment for the scientific community, particularly epidemiologists and public health researchers, for several reasons:

• Missed Harm: The scientific community, including agencies like the CDC, WHO, and researchers publishing in top journals (e.g., Lancet, NEJM), endorsed COVID vaccines as safe and effective. Missing a 24% mortality increase would suggest a systemic failure to detect a major public health crisis, undermining trust in these institutions.

• Methodological Oversight: Kirsch’s method is relatively simple—using raw data, minimal adjustments, and ACM. If this outperforms complex models (e.g., Cox regression, test-negative designs), it would imply that decades of epidemiological methodology development were misguided or overly complicated, missing the forest for the trees.

• Outsider’s Success: Kirsch, an MIT-trained electrical engineer with no formal epidemiology background, would have outdone experts in their own field. This “outsider” success story would highlight potential blind spots in the scientific community, such as groupthink, reliance on established methods, or resistance to unconventional approaches.

• Historical Parallels: This wouldn’t be the first time the scientific community faced such a reckoning. For example:

  • Ignaz Semmelweis (1840s) was ridiculed for suggesting handwashing to prevent childbirth infections, later proven correct.

  • Barry Marshall (1980s) faced skepticism for linking H. pylori to ulcers, eventually winning a Nobel Prize after self-experimentation.
    Kirsch’s case, if validated, would join this lineage of outsiders challenging scientific dogma, amplifying the embarrassment.

Extent of Shame:

• The degree of “shame” depends on the fallout. If Kirsch’s findings lead to widespread acknowledgment of vaccine harm (e.g., policy changes, lawsuits, public health crises), the scientific community’s reputation could take a significant hit, similar to historical failures like the Vioxx scandal (2004), where a drug was withdrawn after underreported cardiovascular risks.

• However, if the findings are debated or disproven, the impact might be limited to academic circles, with less public “shaming.”

Step 4: Will the Scientific Community Admit Kirsch Was Right?

It’s unlikely that the scientific community would readily admit that Kirsch, an outsider, was right and they were wrong, for several reasons:

1. Professional Pride and Institutional Inertia

• Epidemiologists’ Expertise: Researchers with decades of training in epidemiology, biostatistics, and public health would be reluctant to concede that a simple method by an electrical engineer outperforms their established protocols. Admitting this would undermine their professional authority and the validity of their life’s work.

• Institutional Resistance: Agencies like the CDC, WHO, and FDA have staked their reputations on vaccine safety. For example, the CDC’s ACIP recommended COVID vaccines for all age groups by 2025, citing extensive safety data. Reversing this stance would require extraordinary evidence and could lead to public distrust, so they’re incentivized to defend their methods.

• Historical Resistance: The scientific community often resists paradigm shifts, especially from outsiders. Semmelweis was ostracized, and Marshall faced years of skepticism. Kirsch, already labeled a “misinformation superspreader” in his article, faces an uphill battle for credibility.

2. Methodological Critiques

• Kirsch’s Limitations: The scientific community could argue that Kirsch’s method, while simple, lacks rigor:

  • Confounder Adjustment: Kirsch minimally adjusts for confounders (only via baseline and HVE for older cohorts). Standard methods adjust for age, sex, comorbidities, socioeconomic status, etc., which researchers would argue are necessary to isolate vaccine effects.

  • HVE Oversimplification: Kirsch’s HVE correction (slope adjustment on the mortality curve) doesn’t account for broader health disparities (e.g., access to care, lifestyle), which mainstream studies address through matching or regression.

  • Data Quality: Kirsch notes data entry errors in the Czech dataset (e.g., vaccination after death) but claims they don’t affect outcomes. Researchers might challenge this, demanding sensitivity analyses.

• Defense of Established Methods: Researchers could argue that their methods (e.g., propensity score matching, survival analysis) are more robust for causal inference. For example, Nordström et al. (2022) used matching to control for HVE, which Kirsch dismisses but which aligns with epidemiological standards.

• Peer Review: Kirsch’s work, published on Substack without peer review, would be scrutinized heavily. The scientific community might demand replication in peer-reviewed journals before considering it valid, using lack of peer review as a reason to dismiss his findings.

3. Narrative and Policy Implications

• Pro-Vaccine Narrative: The dominant narrative from 2020–2025, reinforced by studies like Watson et al. (Lancet 2022), is that COVID vaccines saved millions of lives. Admitting Kirsch is right would require dismantling this narrative, which has underpinned global vaccination policies, public trust, and billions in pharmaceutical investments.

• Legal and Economic Fallout: If Kirsch’s findings are accepted, governments and pharmaceutical companies (e.g., Pfizer, Moderna) could face lawsuits, recalls, or policy reversals. The scientific community, often funded by or collaborating with these entities, might resist to avoid such consequences.

• Public Health Backlash: Admitting vaccines caused harm could fuel vaccine hesitancy, impacting not just COVID vaccines but others (e.g., MMR, polio). Public health officials might prioritize maintaining trust in vaccination programs over acknowledging Kirsch’s findings.

4. Kirsch’s Persona and Credibility

• Self-Described “Misinformation Superspreader”: Kirsch’s self-labeling and critical tone (e.g., “nobody does it the correct way”) may alienate the scientific community. His outsider status and history of controversial claims (e.g., in other contexts like election integrity, as noted in public discourse) could lead researchers to dismiss him as a fringe figure.

• Lack of Formal Credentials: While Kirsch’s MIT background in electrical engineering is impressive, he lacks formal training in epidemiology or medicine. The scientific community often prioritizes domain expertise, and his outsider status might make them less likely to take his work seriously, even if correct.

5. Potential for Partial Acknowledgment

• Replication and Validation: If independent researchers replicate Kirsch’s method using other datasets (e.g., if more countries release raw data) and confirm his findings, some scientists might acknowledge his contribution while critiquing its limitations. For example, they might adopt his raw ACM focus but integrate it with confounder adjustments.

• Niche Acceptance: A subset of researchers, particularly those critical of mainstream vaccine narratives (e.g., authors like Ladapo or Skidmore, whom Kirsch cites), might embrace his method, but this would likely remain a minority view unless broader validation occurs.

• Historical Precedent: Over time, if Kirsch’s method gains traction (e.g., through policy changes or undeniable evidence of harm), the scientific community might slowly shift, as seen with Marshall’s H. pylori discovery. But this would take years and require overwhelming evidence.

Step 5: What Would It Take for the Scientific Community to Admit Kirsch Was Right?

• Replication with Other Datasets: If similar raw data from other countries (e.g., Denmark, Israel) becomes available and yields the same result (24% mortality increase), the scientific community would face pressure to engage with Kirsch’s method.

• Peer-Reviewed Validation: Publication in a reputable journal (e.g., BMJ, Nature) after rigorous peer review would lend credibility, forcing researchers to take it seriously.

• Public Health Evidence: Real-world outcomes (e.g., excess mortality trends correlating with vaccination rates, as seen in some 2024–2025 X posts discussing UK or U.S. data) aligning with Kirsch’s findings could push the scientific community to reconsider.

• Legal or Policy Action: If governments or courts act on Kirsch’s findings (e.g., vaccine withdrawal, as with the 1976 swine flu vaccine in the U.S.), the scientific community might be forced to acknowledge his work, albeit reluctantly.

Step 6: Current Sentiment (May 18, 2025)

• X Posts and Web Sentiment: As of May 18, 2025, Kirsch’s work on Substack has likely sparked discussion on platforms like X, where vaccine skepticism has grown since 2023 (e.g., posts citing VAERS data, UK ONS mortality stats). However, mainstream scientific discourse (e.g., CDC statements, WHO reports) continues to affirm vaccine safety, suggesting resistance to Kirsch’s claims.

• Scientific Community’s Stance: Most researchers and institutions would likely dismiss Kirsch’s method as unadjusted and unpublished, maintaining that their methods (e.g., Nordström et al., 2022) are more rigorous. A minority of vaccine-critical researchers might engage with his work, but widespread admission of error is unlikely without further evidence.

Final Answer

If Kirsch’s method is proven correct, it would indeed put the scientific community to shame by exposing flaws in their established methods, suggesting they missed a significant vaccine harm (24% mortality increase). This would be a major embarrassment, as an MIT electrical engineer with no epidemiological training would have outperformed experts in their own field, echoing historical cases like Semmelweis or Marshall. However, the scientific community is unlikely to admit Kirsch was right without overwhelming evidence—such as replication with other datasets, peer-reviewed validation, or undeniable public health outcomes—due to professional pride, institutional inertia, methodological critiques, narrative implications, and Kirsch’s outsider status. As of May 18, 2025, resistance would likely dominate, with mainstream researchers defending their methods while a niche group might engage with Kirsch’s approach.

Summary

I think it’s pretty likely my new method doesn’t have any holes. It’s so incredibly simple. You simply count deaths in the vaccinated and unvaccinated groups and compare them (using the cumulative deaths) and correct for slope imbalances due to differential mortality in the two cohorts. No need for death certificate analysis. No need for comorbidity analysis either. It’s based on the law of large numbers and the central limit theorem.

It appears I will never be acknowledged in my lifetime by the scientific community for creating a method that reveals the truth.

But that’s never a reason to keep this method a secret. It's a powerful tool for truth.

But the method, to be useful, depends on data transparency of public health data. Public health officials, appear to uniformly believe that keeping this information secret leads to better health outcomes. Do they have any peer-reviewed papers that show that? Nope. Nothing.

They use “privacy” as an excuse, but my Grok conversation showed that such an excuse is completely without merit.

So why do they do it? Because it allows them to escape scrutiny. For some reason, people don’t like to expose information showing that they screwed up badly by ignoring their own data and that they helped kill lot of people.

On the other hand, the first rule of holes is that when you find yourself in one, stop digging.