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Rolla Peace News October 12, 2021 |
Dear Friends:Editor's note: Please consider writing for our newsletter. It's always very exciting to be able to publish submissions from our readers.In this newsletter is: 1. NOON VIGIL FOR PEACE: THURSDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2021 2. THE MISFIT MATHEMATICIAN (Tom's column, http://tomsager.org) Yuri Deigin and COVID Origins 1. NOON VIGIL FOR PEACE: THURSDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2021 We vigil for peace in front of the Rolla Post Office, THIS THURSDAY, OCTOBER 14, FROM NOON TO 1:00 PM (and most subsequent Thursdays until Peace is established). Please join us this Thursday in saying NO MORE WAR AGAINST AFGHANISTAN or any other country. The temperature is predicted to be around 70. If you do not feel comfortable standing with us in front of the Post Office, please consider driving by and showing your support for our message by honking your horn and flashing a peace sign. Note 1: Since there are so few of us, generally 2 or 3, no need to cancel; but let's maintain social distancing. Note 2: In case of inclement weather, vigils may be canceled or terminated early. 2. THE MISFIT MATHEMATICIAN (Tom's column, http://tomsager.org) Yuri Deigin and COVID Origins Yuri Deigin“... those that understood him smiled at one another and shook their heads. But, for mine own part, it was Greek to me. ... Fare you well. There was more foolery yet, if I could remember it.” When I read an article, I usually skip the acknowledgment. Acknowledgments tend to be dull and boring, unless you know one of the folks being acknowledged. However, perchance, I looked at the acknowledgment in Nicholas Wade's The origin of COVID: Did people or nature open Pandora’s box at Wuhan? Wade writes: Deigin's essay, Lab-Made? SARS-CoV-2 Genealogy Through the Lens of Gain-of-Function Research, is filled with diagrams, charts and quotes from unintelligible academic papers; but unlike most, Deigin explains what they mean and why they are important. Although writing about a difficult subject, Deigin's treatment is light and humorous. Here's my favorite pun from Deigin's essay:“The first person to take a serious look at the origins of the SARS2 virus was Yuri Deigin, a biotech entrepreneur in Russia and Canada. In a long and brilliant essay, he dissected the molecular biology of the SARS2 virus and raised, without endorsing, the possibility that it had been manipulated. The essay, published on April 22, 2020, provided a roadmap for anyone seeking to understand the virus’s origins.” Deigin documents how virologists have been playing with dangerous “Gain of Function” research for well over 20 years, since before the SARS1 outbreak in 2003. “Gain of Function” refers to artificially enhancing the ability of a virus to cause disease in humans. This has been going on in the US, China and elsewhere. Sometimes US and Chinese virologists have been working on these projects together; sometimes in competition with each other. Sometimes sharing data; sometimes hiding data.“But perhaps the most important difference is that furin is also present inside the cell, so it can cut the S protein immediately after virion assembly, thereby providing new virions with the ability to merge with new cells right off the bat (no pun intended).” In this essay, Deigin opines that neither natural origin nor lab origin can be ruled out. But that was in April 2020. In a recent interview, however, he seems to give lab origin a much higher probability. After presenting historical and virological support for a lab origin, he ends by remarking:
Gain of Function + Deliberate Release So where do we stand now? Since early in the pandemic, “experts” have put forth the natural origin conjecture as the only viable explanation. To them, all else was conspiracy theory. But lately, particularly since Nicolas Wade's May 2021 article, it has become more and more difficult to ignore the lab origin conjecture. Lab origin covers a lot of ground: from accidental to deliberate release; from careless handling of natural specimens to Gain of Function experiments. My preferred conjecture: Gain of Function laboratory manipulation followed by Deliberate Release in an act of sabotage is still considered conspiracy theory. (I don't mind. In fact, I consider it a compliment.) But, as we're seen, this can change very quickly. So, perhaps this is a good time to review some evidence I've mentioned previously. Horrific Atrocities To begin with, after over 60 years as an activist in the US Peace Movement, demonstrating against horrific atrocities that have claimed hundreds of thousands, and in some cases, millions of victims, perhaps I am predisposed to look upon rampant deadly events as the work of deranged militarists and their corporate and political enablers. For example: Those who killed millions, spreading dioxin-laced agent orange over Vietnam, poisoning the land for decades to come, would they have qualms about releasing a deadly virus upon the world? Those who totally destroyed Iraq's water treatment capabilites, killing at least hundreds of thousands, would they have qualms about releasing a deadly virus upon the world? Those who killed millions, bombing North Korea, barely leaving a single brick atop another, would they have qualms about releasing a deadly virus upon the world? Those who maintain a nuclear arsenal capable of destroying the world many times over, those who have twice used and threaten to use again these omnicidal nuclear weapons, would they have qualms about releasing a deadly virus upon the world? The United States has a long history of germ warfare. Read about it in Bionoia, a six-part article by Mark Sanborne. And so it goes..... But lets consider specifics: Wilbur Ross My first inkling that things were not as they seemed came in late January, 2020, when the US had but five confirmed cases of COVID-19. Then Secretary of Commerce, Wilbur Ross, is quoted as saying: “So, I think it [the coronavirus outbreak in China] will help to accelerate the return of jobs to North America, some to the U.S., probably some to Mexico as well,” It seemed to me very likely that Ross had planned it this way — that he knew a lot more than he was telling. But, maybe I'm just reading something into this statement that isn't there. Still... Incidentally, it didn't work out the way Ross expected. China brought the pandemic quickly under control. Meanwhile, it spread around the world and the United States soon led the world in COVID-19 cases. By the end of 2020, China had experienced just 4.6 thousand deaths associated with COVID-19. The United States had experienced a whopping 366 thousand such deaths. In 2020, China's GDP increased by 2.3%, while in the United States, it fell by 3.5%. Letter in the Lancet In February, 2020, 27 “experts” wrote a letter that was published in the Lancet saying: This immediately made me think of another famous line from Shakespeare, “The lady doth protest to much, methinks.” [Hamlet 3:2, Just substitute scientist for lady.] What are these “experts” trying to hide, I thought.“The rapid, open, and transparent sharing of data on this outbreak is now being threatened by rumours and misinformation around its [SARS-CoV-2's] origins. We stand together to strongly condemn conspiracy theories suggesting that COVID-19 does not have a natural origin.” More eminent scientists and a subservient media piled on. The virulence with which these illuminati attacked the idea that the virus might have originated in a lab far exceeded the virulence with which the virus attacked its human hosts. But, maybe I'm just reading something into this statement that isn't there. Maybe this is merely an example of scientific groupthink. Still... To its credit, the WHO (World Health Organization) refused to jump on the bandwagon. Dr. Michael Ryan, Executive Director of the WHO, when asked about origins, merely replied: “We have listened again and again to numerous scientists who have looked at the sequences and looked at this virus; and we are assured that this virus is natural in origin.” Well said, Dr. Ryan! “We are assured.” And if their assurances are bogus? Well, that ain't our fault. We never endorsed their assurances. An Intelligence Leak In April, 2020, ABC News claimed that according to multiple unnamed sources, the National Center for Medical Intelligence had warned in November 2019 that a contagion was sweeping through China's Wuhan region. Interesting. This was at least a month before Dr. Li Wenliang became aware of the existence of seven cases of SARS-like infection in Wuhan. It couldn't have been a very large contagion. If US intelligence picked it up and passed it along, it must have been because they were actively looking for it. Now why would US intelligence be looking for an outbreak of SARS-like infections in Wuhan? Perhaps, because they had knowledge that it was planted there. Well, this could all be fake news. Still... China's Response I think the Chinese know, or at the very least, strongly suspect. Recently, China asked the WHO to investigate laboratories at Fort Detrick and the University of North Carolina for evidence of a possible release of SARS-CoV-2. Why don't the Chinese just lay their cards face up on the table? I suspect their hands are far too dirty for that. The United States and China play a dangerous game. It's way past time to end this game before many more millions die. No, It's far far from a proof; but, I think it easily rises to the level of a serious conjecture that ought to be taken seriously and not dismissed out of hand as conspiracy theory. As I began this snippet with a quote from William Shakespeare, so too, will I end with a quote from William Shakespeare: “Foul whisperings are abroad: unnatural deeds Rolla Peace News is distributed by email once a week on Tuesday evenings (except on rare occasions) and is posted on the web at http://tomsager.org (click on Rollaites for Peace: near the top of rightmost column).Wage peace, Tom yushasager (at) yahoo.com |