The British Covid inquiry was supposed to uncover and debate the mistakes made by the government during the pandemic years. And yet, many of the figures now proven to have been voicing legitimate concerns about lockdowns, vaccine mandates and the country’s future post-Covid were nowhere to be seen. Join UnHerd’s Freddie Sayers, Oxford professor of theoretical epidemiology Sunetra Gupta, Swedish journalist and author of ‘The Herd’ Johan Anderberg and author of ‘The Covid Consensus’ Thomas Fazi, for an alternative take on the UK’s pandemic legacy.
You can watch the full event above.
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SubscribeI’m a little surprised that Mr. Fazi couldn’t find a reason (or source) for the adoption of one narrative after investigation and writing 500 pages. I generally agree with Ms. Gupta’s position, and there are many fundamental inconsistencies of logic, as she puts it, that remain unchallenged.
Before I illustrate just three of these issues, some context: I was first in my community to wear a mask and one of the first to stop wearing a mask when the information changed.
Ivermectin
I have no proof – either way – of Ivermectin’s possible effectiveness against Covid, but as it has been used 100’s of millions of times safely for other illness I couldn’t see any harm in having it around in case. I asked my Doctor and she told me that she had been told (all Doctors had been told) that they could not prescribe it. There then followed a smear campaign falsely aligning the use of Human Ivermectin (no longer available) to Horse Ivermectin. Who was behind this?
Impossible rates of non-infection
Initially, the earliest USA based case was identified in Santa Clara, California, later another case even earlier in Washington State. The initial rates of infection – described as “exponential” – and graphed by the British university were accepted by most as a scary reality. Yet 3 months after the first West coast infection very few people were infected (under 2% of what would have been predicted) What could explain this huge anomaly – I wrote to several media organisations with detailed mathemmatical explanation and graphs and recived only one reply from the LA Times (who said that they too were puzzled). ZERO reportage on this and later (when a possible explanation around “strains” of virus came to light) again ZERO discussion/media
Wearing a mask outside
Aware of bias, I read and listen to media from many perspectives, including NPR – who must have repeated the “follow the science” mantra dozens of times a day. A year and a bit in the science was clear that the virus – a) spread by small droplets so masks were largely ineffectual and b) was exceedingly difficult to catch outside while walking or running (many scientific reasons). Yep NPR continued to have officials on categorically lying about this for more than 9 months afterwards.
There are so many more of these matters – vaccinating Children for example….
Shouldn’t an inquiry focus on each of these in detail and get to the bottom of who pushed the false narratives?
Odd that all the commenters are not interested in this? Anyhow…. Controversial virus-hunting scientist skewered at US COVID-origins hearingarticle in Nature https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-01305-z?utm_source=Live+Audience&utm_campaign=52cfde5305-nature-briefing-daily-20240502&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_b27a691814-52cfde5305-52557180
Had traditional means been relied upon to define active SARS-CoV-2 infection i.e. tissue-culture or microscopy and disease i.e. a host response with contemporaneous signs and symptoms consistent with either severe acute respiratory syndrome, milder lower respiratory tract disease or a severe systemic inflammatory response there would have been no pandemic at all. Instead, medicine was mesmerised by molecular microbiology and came to believe in the infallibility of RT-PCR tests of which there are many variants, manufacturers and methods all done without an international standard, no means of assuring quality and no proper calibration of the genomic load versus the proper reference methods. But then, I am an old-school microbiologist.
I wonder if Freddie and his guests are aware of the “One Health” counter narrative i.e. the corporate power grab implications of “One Health”?
https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/one-health
Following on from this….
Disinformation and hit pieces…things appear to to be going round in circles regarding alleged hidden or unhidden disinformation puppet masters, but we CANNOT afford in the confusion to dismiss urgent (just days urgent) legitimate questions about the WHO and United States Global Health Security Strategy. I was reading two alarming “hit pieces” today.
Legitimate question:
What is the US global health security strategy and why does it look a lot like the WHO pandemic treaty?
This question cannot be dismissed (and other legitimate questions), but some policy makers, journalists and some of the public will be totally taken in by the hit pieces and some will not. The Pandemic Treaty questions are in danger of being dismissed. Test and re-test. Fingers crossed.
Difficult times. There is cause to be afraid because too many of our institutions are “closed” in their thinking bubbles, corporate capture or otherwise. Follow the science or does science follow the money? Depends of course.
Thank you Thomas Fazi and others for your comments at the Alternative Covid Inquiry event.
Do YOU believe that the World Health Organisation (WHO) could be reformed if the corporate corruption and private conflicts of interests were removed?
We may know more at the beginning of June. Fingers crossed.
What’s the plan?
Geneva World Health Assembly (WHA)
The 77th WHA will be held in Geneva, Switzerland, on 27 May – 1 June 2024 with the theme All for Health, Health for All.
Related documents can be found here:
https://www.babymilkaction.org/archives/42390
Amendments to the International Health Regulations
Pandemic prevention, preparedness and response accord
Member States of the World Health Organization have agreed to a global process to draft and negotiate a convention, agreement or other international instrument under the Constitution of the World Health Organization to strengthen pandemic prevention, preparedness and response
Related, climate change discussion:
https://www.tni.org/en/publication/funding-for-profit-multistakeholderism
How the private sector took over global climate talks against the people and the planet. 2022