Wu Flu

[Fat Cat]

China has imposed restrictions on the publication of academic research on the origins of the novel coronavirus, according to a central government directive and online notices published by two Chinese universities, that have since been removed from the web.

https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2020/04/12/asia ... ssion=true

[Fat Cat]

https://www.foxnews.com/world/state-dep ... e-lab-bats

A Chinese laboratory at the center of new theories about how the coronavirus pandemic started was the subject of multiple urgent warnings inside the U.S. State Department two years ago, according to a new report.

U.S. Embassy officials warned in January 2018 about inadequate safety at the Wuhan Institute of Virology lab and passed on information about scientists conducting risky research on coronavirus from bats, The Washington Post reported Tuesday.

The United Kingdom has said that the idea that the virus, which has turned into a full-blown global pandemic, was leaked from a Wuhan lab is "no longer being discounted."

A member of the U.K. government's emergency committee of senior officials claimed Sunday: "There is a credible alternative view (to the zoonotic theory) based on the nature of the virus. Perhaps it is no coincidence that there is a laboratory in Wuhan."

Foreign affairs expert Gordon Chang said in a recent opinion piece on Fox News that "many Chinese believe the virus either was deliberately released or accidentally escaped from the Wuhan Institute of Virology, a P4-level bio-safety facility."

He added: "This lab, known for studying coronaviruses, is not far from the market that had been initially identified as the source of the outbreak."

In a series of diplomatic cables labeled "Sensitive But Unclassified" U.S. Embassy officials warned that the lab had massive management weaknesses, posed severe health risks and warned Washington to get involved.

[nafod]

I saw that, and when I did, I thought, oooooh, FatCat gonna be happy.

[nafod]

My sister’s ex-husband, who I hear about due to the shared kids...he and his family run nursing homes on Long Island and lower New York State. I used to visit them with him when in town. He knew all the residents, who were generally there for the long term. Clients and friends. My sister told they’ve lost 20 residents and have another 20 or so in the hospital. Ugh.

[Fat Cat]

I saw that, and when I did, I thought, oooooh, FatCat gonna be happy.

Why would that make me happy? Why do you hate America's favorite cat?

[Fat Cat]

Drum beating louder

Sources believe coronavirus originated in Wuhan lab as part of China's efforts to compete with US

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/corona ... us-sources

[Bennyonesix1]

They all got trained by Baric in North Carolina while he was making N5H1 which is the real Captain Trips. I think NIH under Fauci was partially funding.

[Bennyonesix1]

My sister’s ex-husband, who I hear about due to the shared kids...he and his family run nursing homes on Long Island and lower New York State. I used to visit them with him when in town. He knew all the residents, who were generally there for the long term. Clients and friends. My sister told they’ve lost 20 residents and have another 20 or so in the hospital. Ugh.

This is where the trillions would have done the most good. Just brutal.

[Fat Cat]

Clearest statement yet, from The Diplomat: https://thediplomat.com/2020/04/did-xi- ... the-world/

Did Xi Jinping Deliberately Sicken the World?
PRC moral turpitude forces us to consider the unthinkable.

Such a question is of course inimical to human decency. And yet we must consider that Xi Jinping has produced the greatest program of ethnic cleansing in the world today. He has curtailed freedoms in China severely and is the father of the panopticon state. His incessant military buildup threatens neighbors while using economic and other subversive means to erode the sovereignty of countries around the world. We should not assume it was beyond his imagining to withhold a degree of support from the international community to ensure that China would not suffer alone.

Strong evidence supports this idea. Hearing the World Health Organization (WHO) repeat and praise the Party line while giving short shrift to health advice until quite recently has alarmed many. Seeing Beijing sell defective wares and claim it as humanitarian aid has angered many more. Spreading disinformation during the crisis and hinting at using life-saving goods for leverage (original here) — while denying even the faintest hint of wrongdoing — I suspect have ruined China’s reputation for some time to come. In short, China’s good offices have been reserved almost entirely for burnishing its image at the world’s expense, while calling it “the greatest kindness and good deeds.”

P.S. The author, Ben Lowsen, is a specialist in Chinese political and security affairs working as a China advisor for the U.S. Air Force’s Checkmate office. He previously worked as an Asia advisor for the U.S. Navy and served in the U.S. Army as a field artillery officer and China specialist. He completed tours of duty in Germany, Korea, Qatar, the Pentagon, and two tours in China, serving as Assistant U.S. Army Attaché in Beijing from 2013 to 2016.

[motherjuggs&speed]

That's what happens when you don't donate enough

The stimulus bill provides $100 billion to hospitals battling the coronavirus pandemic. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), whose closely tied super PAC is bankrolled by New York hospitals, pushed to secure those funds. Health industry groups including the American Hospital Association called for $100 billion, while for-profit hospitals asked for $225 billion. The health sector has smashed lobbying records in recent years and shown tremendous influence in Congress.

https://www.opensecrets.org/news/2020/0 ... ng-battle/

[Grandpa's Spells]

A little weird to not focus on how much of that money went to hedge funds and private equity companies, who should have gotten zero.

[motherjuggs&speed]

Interesting. I didn't notice that. It is telling who gets shoved under the spotlight and who doesn't.

[Fat Cat]

Very interesting development...

US source: North Korean leader in grave danger after surgery

(CNN)The US is monitoring intelligence that North Korea's leader, Kim Jong Un, is in grave danger after a surgery, according to a US official with direct knowledge.

Kim recently missed the celebration of his grandfather's birthday on April 15, which raised speculation about his well-being. He had been seen four days before that at a government meeting.

CNN has reached out to the CIA, National Security Council and the State Department for comment. CNN has also sought comment from the South Koreans.

Gathering intelligence out of North Korea is notoriously difficult -- one of the most challenging targets for US intelligence.

North Korea tightly controls any information surrounding its leader, who is treated almost like a deity within the country. His absences from official state media often spark speculation and rumors about his health

https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/20/politics ... index.html

[Alfred_E._Neuman]

Fingers crossed for a slow death.

[Fat Cat]

I don't know about that, I am coming around to a different view of NK. I think we should lay off them a bit and start to draw them out of China's orbit. Koreans are natural Chinese-haters and are purely engaged with them out of necessity. We should be peeling countries like DPRK and Russian Federation away from China's filthy yellow clutches.

Also, the word on the street right now is that the Gates Foundation, World Health Organization, and the Wuhan Institute of Virology have all been hacked by the /Chan/ collective and people are logging in via SSH and downloading EVERYTHING.

[Alfred_E._Neuman]

I would ad Iran to the list of current iffy players that we could court into the helping out. The Iranian people are by and large leaning toward wanting a more secular/liberal/western direction in the country. And they're currently as pissed at China as we are for this whole thing, apparently. With a little prodding I could see the mullahs being shown the door and we'd have another "ally" in the fight against the Chinese. Not to mention they're no ally of Isis or Taliban.

[Bennyonesix1]

The SoKos say no action re: NK on their networks. Tur has deleted her reporting.

O absolutely agree we should pivot to anti-China. Marines seem to be making sig. changes to make that their mission.

But we'll never thread the needle of being Israel's bitch and working with Iran.

[Fat Cat]

But we'll never thread the needle of being Israel's bitch and working with Iran.

AEN, I was coming to post this but B161 has pogrom'd the correct. The USA will need to make some *ahem* structural changes before that will happen.

Our anti-Iran policy really only serves one community, and it's not /ourguys/.

[Luke]

Also, the word on the street right now is that the Gates Foundation, World Health Organization, and the Wuhan Institute of Virology have all been hacked by the /Chan/ collective and people are logging in via SSH and downloading EVERYTHING.

Interesting!

[Fat Cat]

On China's Official Arabic-Language TV: COVID-19 Does Not Appear To Have Originated In China; Evidence Suggests It Came From The United States

https://www.memri.org/reports/chinas-of ... a-evidence

Hahahahahahaha don't ever forget China hates us and wants us dead.

[Alfred_E._Neuman]

TMZ reporting Kim Jong Un dead as fried chicken.

[nafod]

TMZ reporting Kim Jong Un dead as fried chicken.

Korean fried chicken is seriously the best.

[Fat Cat]

Korean fried chicken really is no fucking joke. Now, on topic:

I'm starting to think that NYC is committing a major fraud by classifying unrelated deaths, or at best co-morbidities, as COVID-19. Consider this: the ten largest cities in the world, like Tokyo, Dhaka, Cairo, Mexico City, Delhi, Beijing, Sao Paulo, Osaka, Shanghai, together have a combined population of 230+ million people.

Their total deaths, combined, from coronavirus are about 930.

New York City has about 8 million people, and is claiming 11,000+ deaths. That's a fatality rate 200 times the average of these other cities, many of which are not known for robust health care systems (e.g., Dhaka).

Is NYC just playing the numbers for the federal handouts? What's going on?

[motherjuggs&speed]

The CDC guidelines allow for a lot of wiggle room.

"In cases where a definite diagnosis of COVID–19 cannot be made, but it is suspected or likely (e.g., the circumstances are compelling within a reasonable degree of certainty), it is acceptable to report COVID–19 on a death certificate as “probable” or “presumed.”

https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvss/vsrg/vsrg03-508.pdf

[nafod]

Korean fried chicken really is no fucking joke. Now, on topic:

I'm starting to think that NYC is committing a major fraud by classifying unrelated deaths, or at best co-morbidities, as COVID-19. Consider this: the ten largest cities in the world, like Tokyo, Dhaka, Cairo, Mexico City, Delhi, Beijing, Sao Paulo, Osaka, Shanghai, together have a combined population of 230+ million people.

Their total deaths, combined, from coronavirus are about 930.

New York City has about 8 million people, and is claiming 11,000+ deaths. That's a fatality rate 200 times the average of these other cities, many of which are not known for robust health care systems (e.g., Dhaka).

Is NYC just playing the numbers for the federal handouts? What's going on?

Uhhh, the pandemic came to NYC.

How did Milan do? That’s a better comparison.

I’m betting they undercounted. People were dying of covid before they knew it was a thing, and the deaths at home have far exceeded normal numbers, with those home deaths not getting tested.