[Politics] China, the WHO and the powergrab that fuelled a pandemic

[peterward]

Really quite spectacular and extraordinary article in todays Sunday Times by investigative journalists about the corruption and control [of China] within the WHO.

ST is behind a paywall but the link below is the article posted to a free to view site. A little lengthy, but really eye opening stuff, that makes the WHO look like the medical equivalent of Blatters FIFA.

Surely this wont be the last we hear about this pretty strong stuff in the coming months, the origins of the virus and how this human disaster could've been averted.

https://archive.is/If1WN#selection-1499.0-1629.108

 

[Randy McNob]

not sure how much Pete Townshend could have done about it

 

[The Clamp]

“Extensive sample-testing at the market failed to show a link between any of the animals there and the virus. It was also clear that many of the early human cases had no link to the market, and the conclusion was that the market was a crowded environment in which the virus had spread, rather than the point of introduction into Wuhan.
But there was an elephant in the room. Coronaviruses found in the Yunnan bat caves, including the world’s closest known match to Sars-CoV-2, were being kept at the Wuhan Institute of Virology at the time of the outbreak. To many it seemed a remarkable coincidence that, of all the 600 cities in China, the virus began in Wuhan, the home of an institute that houses the world’s largest collection of coronaviruses from wild bats and has a team of scientists who often travel to those same Yunnan caves.
The scientists had been seeking out coronavirus-infected bats and then transporting the viruses back to the laboratory in Wuhan. There they carried out highly controversial “gain of function” experiments to make the viruses more infectious to humans. The work was designed to help develop vaccines to pre-empt a potential coronavirus outbreak, but many scientists had warned that one safety lapse could itself cause a deadly pandemic.
Only a tiny handful of labs in the world carried out such high-risk experiments, and in 2018 inspectors sent by the US embassy in Beijing to the Wuhan institute had flagged serious safety concerns there. A US diplomatic cable leaked to The Washington Post stated: “During interactions with scientists at the WIV laboratory, they noted the new lab has a serious shortage of appropriately trained technicians and investigators needed to safely operate this high-containment laboratory”.


Exactly what I said on Corona virus thread and was ridiculed for being a “conspiracy nut”.

That article is astonishing. China needs to be seriously held to account for what they have done.
It’s mind blowing.

 

[peterward]

“Extensive sample-testing at the market failed to show a link between any of the animals there and the virus. It was also clear that many of the early human cases had no link to the market, and the conclusion was that the market was a crowded environment in which the virus had spread, rather than the point of introduction into Wuhan.
But there was an elephant in the room. Coronaviruses found in the Yunnan bat caves, including the world’s closest known match to Sars-CoV-2, were being kept at the Wuhan Institute of Virology at the time of the outbreak. To many it seemed a remarkable coincidence that, of all the 600 cities in China, the virus began in Wuhan, the home of an institute that houses the world’s largest collection of coronaviruses from wild bats and has a team of scientists who often travel to those same Yunnan caves.
The scientists had been seeking out coronavirus-infected bats and then transporting the viruses back to the laboratory in Wuhan. There they carried out highly controversial “gain of function” experiments to make the viruses more infectious to humans. The work was designed to help develop vaccines to pre-empt a potential coronavirus outbreak, but many scientists had warned that one safety lapse could itself cause a deadly pandemic.
Only a tiny handful of labs in the world carried out such high-risk experiments, and in 2018 inspectors sent by the US embassy in Beijing to the Wuhan institute had flagged serious safety concerns there. A US diplomatic cable leaked to The Washington Post stated: “During interactions with scientists at the WIV laboratory, they noted the new lab has a serious shortage of appropriately trained technicians and investigators needed to safely operate this high-containment laboratory”.


Exactly what I said on Corona virus thread and was ridiculed for being a “conspiracy nut”.

That article is astonishing. China needs to be seriously held to account for why they have done.
It’s mind blowing.

You are totally vindicated Clamp, you were right........ and sorry to band you together with a perma tanned raging lunatic (as you're clearly not) but even Trump for this much alone, was more right than wrong (which sickens me to say as 99% of what he did and said was wrong).

It is astonishing. even worse is what appears to be totally corrupt Chinese appointed and controlled leadership at the WHO that serves as a puppet working in cahoots with the Chinese Communist party to control the narrative and make sure findings are favourable/non punitive, rather than as an wholly independent arbitrator for the whole world.

 

[The Clamp]

You are totally vindicated Clamp, you were right........ and sorry to band you together with a perma tanned raging lunatic (as you're clearly not) but even Trump for this much alone, was more right than wrong (which sickens me to say as 99% of what he did and said was wrong).

It is astonishing. even worse is what appears to be totally corrupt Chinese appointed and controlled leadership at the WHO that serves as a puppet working in cahoots with the Chinese Communist party to control the narrative and make sure findings are favourable/non punitive, rather than as an wholly independent arbitrator for the whole world.

Ha!
Yeah China needs punishing, sanctioning, prosecuting, de-militarising and down-sizing. Just got to find a way to do that without triggering WW3!

 

[Neville's Breakfast]

Hang on a sec. I’m not saying you are wrong but that is pretty strong language based on an article that’s just appeared in the Sunday Times. Plenty of time for twists and turns in this story before conclusions drawn.

 

[studio150]

not sure how much Pete Townshend could have done about it

I Can't Explain

 

[peterward]

Hang on a sec. I’m not saying you are wrong but that is pretty strong language based on an article that’s just appeared in the Sunday Times. Plenty of time for twists and turns in this story before conclusions drawn.

I would argue that you would never have got near to the truth of the scale of corruption at FIFA all the while Blatter was holding the reins and control.

Conversely, if this is all even partially true, and it looks well researched and compelling. Then you wont get near the full truth with Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus as the leader of the WHO either.

 

[The Clamp]

Hang on a sec. I’m not saying you are wrong but that is pretty strong language based on an article that’s just appeared in the Sunday Times. Plenty of time for twists and turns in this story before conclusions drawn.

True. However the evidence cited is compelling. And the actions of the Chinese at the start of their outbreak? Deplorable.
I’ve long believed that the end of mankind will be brought about not by warmongers but by over-enthusiastic boffins with a bit of funding and no conscience.

 

[Originunknown]

I thought this was obvious?

 

[Motogull]

All because they wanted to keep eating bats? Sake, stop eating wildlife you kunnts. There's plenty other stuff to chose from. And pack in eating tiger nobs too.

 

[The Clamp]

I thought this was obvious?

To some.
I don’t know how many people are ready to accept that all this was down to human error/incompetence.

 

[The Clamp]

All because they wanted to keep eating bats? Sake, stop eating wildlife you kunnts. There's plenty other stuff to chose from. And pack in eating tiger nobs too.

No. That’s pretty much the complete opposite point of the article.

 

[carlzeiss]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sh-y7n1Bt-g

 

[Motogull]

No. That’s pretty much the complete opposite point of the article.

I didn't read the article, but your extract gave me that impression, i.e. they collected infected bats.

 

[The Clamp]

I didn't read the article, but your extract gave me that impression, i.e. they collected infected bats.

Yes. Not to eat. To use in Corona virus experiments in Wuhan Laboratories.
The article is worth a read. Long but worthwhile.

 

[The Clamp]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sh-y7n1Bt-g

Yeah, probably more subtle ways to deal with the situation

 

[carlzeiss]

Yeah, probably more subtle ways to deal with the situation

Can't thing of a more subtle way of preventing air travel China during a pandemic originating from that country than just call a halt .

Do you think wearing a wrist band would have been more effective ?

 

[The Clamp]

Can't thing of a more subtle way of preventing air travel China during a pandemic originating from that country than just call a halt .

Do you think wearing a wrist band would have been more effective ?

Was referring more to his language.

 

[Tyrone Biggums]

Jon Stewart nailed it months ago.