On the Origins of Covid

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The market is not ground zero though, is it? It was in Europe at the same time as the market outbreak (Dec 2019), and the report seems to indicate it was probably in and around Wuhan since the summer.

I don’t think this changes much about the lab leak vs wild animal theory, but a deep dive into that market, its animals, proximity to a lab move in December etc. seems a bit pointless.

Unless those idiots kept leaking it over and over.

Sure doesn’t look like it was ground zero. The point is that ground zero is basically unidentified. And the Chinese government apparently hasn’t done the contract tracing and retroactive analysis of blood samples that would have shed light on that.

The anti-Chinese feelings, especially from some of our “enlightened” euro friends in this thread the past few days has been amazing to watch.

What anti-Chinese feelings are you talking about, exactly?

Wild conspiracy theories without evidence about a lab escape and coverup. The thread suddenly looking more like chiefsplanet than UP.

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The reason why there isn’t evidence available is because of the Chinese government!

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It’s getting pretty fucking annoying to see information linked from the NIH, WHO and MIT repeatedly called conspiracy theories.

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Even worse, European conspiracy theories!!

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Recognize when people call things “conspiracy theories” it is very often an attempt to silence and discredit without going through the annoying hassle of actually having a discussion and examining the question. That’s obviously what’s happening in this thread.

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As someone who identifies as a british, I’m getting pretty tired of all this anti-European bigotry in this forum.

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Are you defending Western chauvinism?

I don’t think that’s entirely fair. It’s certainly eye-raising that there’s this biolab that works with dangerous viruses right around the corner. Also the Chinese govt is certainly being secretive and shady af as per the usual. What people don’t get is that there are also these giant germ factories in the area where people take far fewer bio safety precautions.

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The WHO’s report says the lab is highly unlikely to be the source.

WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the probe did not adequately analyse the possibility of a lab accident before deciding it was most likely that the pathogen spread from bats to humans via another animal. In a briefing to member countries on Tuesday, he said he was ready to deploy additional missions involving specialist experts.

“Although the team has concluded that a laboratory leak is the least likely hypothesis, this requires further investigation,” Tedros said in a statement. The WHO chief has consistently said all lines of inquiry are open, but Tuesday’s comments mark the first time he’s speculated about the possibility of an accidental escape.

obviously he’s an anti-chinese bigot, just like Redfield and Alina Chan. Interesting nonetheless.

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What do you mean?

Any idea when the US is going to allow WHO in for the investigation, or when the US will track it’s ground zero case??

China voices satisfaction with WHO report

The much-anticipated report by the World Health Organization (WHO) and China experts into the origins of Covid-19 was released yesterday, and Chinese papers are full of articles highlighting China’s satisfaction at the joint team’s findings.

Members of the China team have today answered questions on the report in a local press conference, and sought to dismiss any suggestions the foreign team were given anything but full access during their visit.

The Chinese team leader of the joint-research team, Liang Wannian, has told media: “Some data could not be taken away or photographed according to Chinese law, but the analysis in Wuhan was carried out collaboratively”.

The CGTN broadcaster today similarly emphasises that the report was “based on facts” and China’s foreign ministry lauds the “scientific, diligent and professional spirit” of the joint team.

In particular, there is media satisfaction over the WHO report concluding it was “extremely unlikely” the virus had been introduced to the world via a “laboratory incident”.

Long-term, China has dismissed the idea the virus was leaked via a Wuhan laboratory. Global Times blames the US government specifically on being “determined to politicise the source of the novel coronavirus” and “hyping up conspiracy theories to try to discredit both China and the WHO”.

The World Health Organisation’s director-general has said further investigation is needed to conclusively rule that line out.

However, Chinese media have been propagating suggestions that if there was a lab leak, it came from a base in the US. Since the WHO team’s visit, official media have been mounting an aggressive disinformation campaign to perpetuate the idea that Covid-19 might have leaked from the biological lab at Fort Detrick, a military base in the state of Maryland.

Link to above…

The Fort Detrick theory isn’t a new one. I believe a US party went from Detrick to Wuhan for the annual germ warfare games in October 2019 but most references to it were removed from the interwebs about the time Covid broke in China :) I wonder whether they took anything with them?

I’m sure the US would be happy to let WHO in to do an investigation. Not every day you can get Chinese government propaganda debunked by an official UN investigation.