To summarise. A bat coronavirus pandemic began in the city with the biggest bat coronavirus lab in the world, a long way from where those viruses are found naturally. It was caused by the first and so-far only sarbecovirus with a furin cleavage site in it, a feature that had been inserted into other coronaviruses nearby, and that had been planned to be inserted into a sarbecovirus for the first time. And the lab in question has refused repeatedly to publish a list of all the viruses it possesses. Oh, and the other possible cause of the pandemic – an infected animal in a market – has still never shown up.
Matt Ridley is co-author of Viral: The Search for the Origin of Covid-19, with Alina Chan. – Matt Ridley, February 27, 2023
A key point from Jonathan Turley: All the deception at the highest levels has charged the whole concept of “conspiracy theory” with a fascinating new relevance:
Academics joined this chorus in marginalizing anyone raising the theory. One study cited the theory as an example of “anti-Chinese racism” and “toxic white masculinity.”
As late as May 2021, the New York Times’ Science and Health reporter Apoorva Mandavilli was calling any mention of the lab theory “racist.”
She embodies the model of the new “advocacy journalism” at the Times. Reporters who remained wedded to the dated view of objective journalism were purged from the ranks of the Times long ago.
Mandavilli and others made clear that reporters covering the theory were COVID’s little Bull Connors. She tweeted wistfully “someday we will stop talking about the lab leak theory and maybe even admit its racist roots. But alas, that day is not yet here.” – February 26, 2023
Who was it that said: “These days, the lead time between a conspiracy theory and everyday news is about two years?”
But didn’t Elon Musk get that down to six months at Twitter?
You may also wish to read: Lab leak theory vindicated in upper echelons Turley has the receipts. The COVID crazies have singlehandedly done more damage to “the science” and “trust the science!” than anyone who actually hated science could possibly do.
From Respectful Insolence
FBI Director Makes Stunning Admission About COVID-19
By David Rufful – February 28, 2023
OPINION | This article contains opinion that reflects the author’s views.
In agreement with the U.S. Department of Energy, the FBI has officially announced they have confidence that the COVID-19 pandemic was most likely caused by a lab leak in Wuhan, China.
FBI Director Christopher Wray did not mince words during an interview with Fox News. “The FBI has for quite some time now assessed that the origins of the pandemic are most likely a potential lab incident in Wuhan,” Wray said.
“Here you are talking about a potential leak from a Chinese government-controlled lab,” he added.
Chinese virologist Dr. Li-Meng Yan says it’s not possible for the leak to have occurred accidentally. “Of course, it was not an accident,” the virologist said. “I can tell you based on the protocol and also the other surveillance system it will be impossible for the lab leak accidentally happen in such a lab and also cause the Wuhan outbreak and also the pandemic.”
FBI Director Wray also pointed the finger at the Chinese Communists for thwart any investigation into the lab.
Wray continued, “I will just make the observation that the Chinese government, it seems to me, has been doing its best to try to thwart, and obfuscate the work here, the work that we’re doing, the work that our U.S. government and close foreign partners are doing. And that’s unfortunate for everybody.”
For over three years, many people have argued that the virus leaked from the Wuhan lab, but they were silenced and labeled “false” by Facebook’s fact-checkers like ScienceFeedback.co, which has since updated its own misleading fact-check articles.
Despite agreement from the Energy Department and FBI, four other U.S. agencies still argue the pandemic was likely the result of a natural transmission. Two agencies are undecided.
Based on “new intelligence,” the Dept. of Energy and FBI said they have “moderate confidence” that the virus originated from the lab, but they did not argue it was intentional.
Speaking to Dr. Yan, Fox News host Tucker Carlson said, “You said three years ago that you believe this virus was intentionally released by the government you once worked for, the government of China. Today we’re hearing in this leak to The Wall Street Journal that it was accidental. Do you believe this leak was accidental or intentional?”
Back in September 2020, she said, “From my first report, I can present the solid scientific evidence to our audience that this virus, COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2 virus, actually is not from nature. I work with the top corona virologists in the world. So together, with my experience, I can tell you this is created in the lab. This is from that template owned by China military. And also it is spread to the world to make such damage.”
I love being vindicated I also love watching the people from two years ago that passionately said I was just a conspiracy theorist squirm
AaronS1978 at 2, a lab leak was never a “conspiracy theory.” It’s a reasonably foreseeable risk.
Treating it as a conspiracy theory was the strongest reason for keeping it on the front burner and mistrusting official reassurances that only a racist would scrutinize a lab in upcountry China – in the very town that was the epicentre of the pandemic.
If that’s how some want to approach things, fine. But they can’t have both that attitude and credibility among reasonable people. Increasingly, the credibility is falling apart.
As noted above, “Trust the SCIENCE!” could end up taking one heck of a pummeling over all this.
New motto: If it sounds unbelievable, don’t believe it. And, when in doubt, doubt.
News
A few more words of advice.
My government does not care one whit about the common folk.
The news complex cannot be believed about anything and are nothing but vast and unrelenting propaganda machines.
The entire educational system are indoctrination centers
We are on our own and must find our own way and do our own vetting.
We are on our own as it pertains to our personal safety
The so called skeptics on this blog are the kool aide drinkers.
Believe what you see not what anyone says.
Authoritarianism is the last chapter and we are seeing it develop in real time.
Finally always keep in mind that people want to be lied to.
Vivid
With all due respect to what passes for news today: Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.
Unless some here were actually there, can speak Chinese, and see for yourselves, this whole thing could be something or nothing.
No one wants to be lied to. It’s like saying that you’re willing to lie to family and friends. It’s more accurate to say that there are certain things that are out out of our hands. That we cannot control. It would also be accurate to say that the people with the most money don’t want to die, or see their family and friends at risk. They get the actual news. They know what’s really going on. I mean the people worth billions of dollars. They get the actual news. The peasants get whatever the ruling class wants them to hear.
So, that said, take care of yourself, your family and friends. Be kind to strangers holding signs that read: hungry, homeless.
Nicholas Wade wrote the definitive article on this two years ago.
It was based on intelligent design principles. Nothing new above.
https://nicholaswade.medium.com/origin-of-covid-following-the-clues-6f03564c038
More convincing testimony.
https://twitter.com/RWMaloneMD/status/1630752670423175168
“No one wants to be lied to. “
They do want to be lied to if it fits their purpose or furthers their agenda. Any lie they can use to use, no matter what the lie, to allow them to live in their fantasy world they will be more than happy to embrace.
You are correct though there are many who do not want to be lied to so I should have not used a sweeping indictment about everyone.
As to the who to the they and them. The they and them are those I mentioned , the ones who for ideological reasons of all stripes that would rather embrace the lie than admit they are wrong. Hope this clarifies what I meant.
Vivid
Vivid at 8,
The ruling class needs to stay right where they are. Admitting any wrongdoing? That would diminish their position in society. So, at the end of the day, all the common man can do is speak among those in his near circle – family, close friends – while those who can spend a billion dollars on whatever they want will continue to do so. The peasants are needed to buy whatever gets produced. And to make/manufacture it.
They don’t wear crowns or robes but it’s the wealthy, the landowners, the king and his court – as before.
An interesting twitter thread by Richard Fernandez
https://twitter.com/wretchardthecat/status/1631064317914226693
More from the thread.