Covid 19 virus CDC library |
This led to a great deal of speculation among Sinophobes that the virus was accidentally or deliberately leaked from the Wuhan Institute of Virology, the only lab in that city known to have an active research program on coronaviruses. They did research on bat viruses, including what is known as Gain of Function where viruses are deliberately made more infections to study spread and mitigation. Some of that research was apparently funded by USA and in some way involved Dr. Fauci, currently a favourite Republican villain.
The source of Covid 19 is back in the news because The DoE reversed an earlier conclusion to say now that they believe the virus could have come from the laboratory, giving it the same "Low Confidence" that they had given their earlier conclusion. Of course the Republicans jumped all over this, ignoring the "Low Confidence" the same way they ignore 'a well regulated militia'.
I've been a sceptic myself because of one thing. The Wet Market Source people say that the DNA analysis of the virus indicates no connection to the lab, while the Lab Source people claim that a cleavage point in the virus is at exactly the same spot that a research proposal from the lab wanted to put one. Neither side gave any sources to back up their claims. I did question an article which touted research proposal and cleavage points only to have the messenger shot rather than the issue dealt with.
So I turned to my Blogger friend Cheryl Rofer who writes The Nuclear Diner. Cheryl is a 'retired' nuclear scientist who has been and done so many different things in her career. She knows all stuff scientific so I run all my favourite conspiracy theories past her because I trust her. This time I got the goods I was looking for. I sent her the following article from WaPo. I suggest reading it for background information. Also because one of the authors is from Veterinary and Infectious Diseases Organization (VIDO) locate on the campus of the University of Saskatchewan.
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/03/07/evidence-covid-origin-spillover
An earlier article argued that focusing on the lab leak rather than natural spillover from animals to humans was the wrong way to look at it.
Consider one implication you might draw from a lab leak: We need less science, especially of the sort that fiddles with dangerous viruses. And from a natural spillover: We need more science, especially of the sort that studies dangerous viruses lurking in wild animals.
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/01/23/covid-origin-house-subcommittee-scientists
Cheryl came back with the following information: She referred me to an article she had just written for Scientific American explaining to difference between an intelligence agency report and a scientific report. www.scientificamerican.com/article/lab-leak-intelligence-reports-arent-scientific-conclusions/.
An intelligence assessment isn’t a scientific conclusion. They are different beasts. The summary itself observes that different agencies weigh intelligence reporting and scientific publications differently. The important factor for intelligence assessments is the veracity of sources, whereas scientific conclusions depend on data and the coherence of the argument the data support. However, data from a scientist who has proved unreliable in the past will weigh less heavily in scientific conclusions, and intelligence analysts will regard fanciful stories from an otherwise reliable informant skeptically. The scientific data are available to the public, unlike the reporting that underlies the intelligence assessments.
does it matter? if we don't wear a mask...we're fucked.
ReplyDeleteAs long as you have all your shots you should be OK with Covid 19. It is the next one I worry about especially in the states that have banned any intelligent reaction to an infectious disease.
Deletere your "hope that the world will be better prepared for the next one" may be true for most of the world but sadly not in red America. https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2023/03/08/covid-public-health-backlash/
Delete"Conservative and libertarian forces have defanged much of the nation’s public health system through legislation and litigation as the world staggers into the fourth year of covid." In many places public health no longer can require school, business or church closures, mask mandates, vaccine mandates, etc. In Columbus Ohio health officials couldn't even close a restaurant with a Hepatitus A outbreak. Idiots insisting on their right to endanger their own lives and that of their friends and families.
And infectious diseases are no respecters of political persuasion, state lines or anything else. If only Republicans were infected it would be wonderful. Are there genetic markers for conservative tendencies?
DeleteI thought the media was very slow to report the "low confidence" proviso.
ReplyDeleteHard to make a shock and awe story or headline with a wussy low confidence tag line.
DeleteThank you! I am going to share this info with my other friends.
ReplyDeleteThankyou. Whether it will slow down the lab conspiracy theorists is questionable but every bit helps
DeleteI always thought the Bat Soup explanation sounded far fetched myself. I think it does matter how it began so that safeguards can be in place to ensure a better response and more transparency should something like this manage to happen again... whether accidentally or on purpose. You just never know with Governments, any of them, they rarely have full disclosure of anything they're actually doing and fucking around with that could go sideways. Plus, Nature has a way of checks and balances, gotta have some Natural Selection going on with us pesky Humans or we'd surely overrun the damned Planet as the Apex Predator and most out of control Species.
ReplyDeleteGood points raised, Dawn.
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