To your last point, I've viewed the government-driven corona craziness as an extension of our pervasive CYA culture. A school shooting happens, so now every superintendent at every school district in the country insists upon metal detectors and police presence and every security measure they can undertake just so no one can ever blame them for the tiniest safety infraction. I see it constantly, in almost all walks of life. It's a destructive cycle and COVID became its zenith.
China locks down its citizens because it can. This is communism at work. Communism is not logical, rational, or scientific. It is all about power. Will the Chinese keep doing this over and over in regards to this virus even if the west finally decides not to play the same stupid communist games - yes.
The most likely explanation is ongoing spike injury from both covid and vaccines. If this is it, then repeated covid infections and more boosters will continue to increase death rates -- the only way out is early treatment, no more vaccines, and ideally finding a way to alleviate latent spike injury.
"I think institutions in mass society develop behaviours and even ideologies that are beyond the understanding of the individuals who participate in them."
Good interviewing a friend who is skeptical of your opinions! Always good to keep some perspective. I, too, have these sorts of conversation with others (my wife, for one) whose objective is to 'talk me down off the roof' when I get into runaway speculation. Your friend is more rational and much more knowledgeable than my wife or my friends and colleagues.
Yeah, maybe the motivation behind the official response to Corona in the West was merely gross incompetence - it wouldn't be the first time governments and institutions are guilty of that. But, like you, I see certain anomalies which stick out and continue to bother me. The sudden belief by officials in made-up science, for one, along with the harsh censorship of reasonable scientific debate. Another thing which caught my attention was the assassination or mysterious deaths of 4 African leaders and the President of Haiti in 2021, all of whom were outspoken opponents of the mass-vaccination effort. There are too many other similar coincidences to mention here, but for each and every one you can be assured that there are multiple 'fact-checking' sites energetically 'de-bunking' each of them. Which, to me, of course, is only more evidence that they may not be coincidences at all.
I've been asking that question as well: Does the CCP know something about this virus that we don't because omicron is the sniffles and this is way overdone unless the threat is real or they just love dominating their people.
The lockdowns actually go to western planners as far back as 2005 according to the author of Liberty or Lockdown, Jeffrey Tucker: "The problem runs deeper than mere silence. Everything about lockdowns and mandates were constructions by intellectuals themselves. Thus do they bear responsibility, to deploy Chomsky’s term. The modelers and coercive controllers concocted their scenarios as early as 2005 and their ranks grew year by year: in research labs, government offices, universities, and think tanks. They became so engrossed in the world they created on their laptop screens that their imaginations came to outpace any understanding of history, cell biology, public health, much less human rights and law."
Which makes sense when you think about the west's first reaction to the virus as lax. Even Fauci who would know since he was funding the damn virus wasn't panicked about it, until it became politically useful to panic. Then in lock step all nations ran toward lock downs.
I think you're over-analyzing. China's way is the way of brute force and oppression, period. This is what they know and believe despite the damage lockdowns do. Somewhere Xi is saying, "we'll get it right this time, no matter how many people we kill".
It's insane how the CCP is trying to control this virus! I have wondered about everything you discussed here and was hoping someone would dig into it. Thank you.
As ever, I agree with much of your analysis. I think it's also worth noting that the Chinese have a pretty strange attitude to colds, for which they go to hospital for repeated intravenous drips. No soldiering on. No 'take a couple of asprin and drink plenty of water'. Just go to hospital.
The other element worth considering is the response to SARS version one. This involved some local lockdowns - quite how local, I'm not sure (I arrived in the aftermath). I understand much of the response was guided by international experts (WHO?). Much of their response planning is rooted in that epidemic. The story of SARS-1 and the role of international experts in it is one I'd like to see someday.
Chinese domestic fear-mongering back in early 2020 was based around the experience of SARS as a national trauma. I was warned by friends there about the long-term effects of infection - stories of people who nearly 17-18 years later were still suffering. I quickly dug for anything to back up these claims and found some suggestions of bone weakness in survivors, presumably caused by treatments. Still, what odds there lies the origin of long covid?
Have you explored the possibility of genetic targeting (or exclusion, in the case of the Chinese)? If SARS-CoV2 is indeed an engineered bioweapon, that could be one reason the Chinese didn’t suffer as much from the original strain.
"Mass containment is a worldwide delusional rain dance: Everyone hops about trying to coax water out of the heavens, copying whatever dance was current in the first place it started to rain."
Gonna steal this to use w new favorite: PCR tests have diagnostic accuracy of Ouija boards. :~)
Why are the Chinese losing their minds over Omicron?
To your last point, I've viewed the government-driven corona craziness as an extension of our pervasive CYA culture. A school shooting happens, so now every superintendent at every school district in the country insists upon metal detectors and police presence and every security measure they can undertake just so no one can ever blame them for the tiniest safety infraction. I see it constantly, in almost all walks of life. It's a destructive cycle and COVID became its zenith.
strange, post has been up for an hour, 7 likes, 3 comments, 240 views. maybe some kind of email glitch, or i have just been unusually boring.
China locks down its citizens because it can. This is communism at work. Communism is not logical, rational, or scientific. It is all about power. Will the Chinese keep doing this over and over in regards to this virus even if the west finally decides not to play the same stupid communist games - yes.
The excess mortality in the United States is worse today than it has been during the entire pandemic. https://www.usmortality.com/excess-absolute and https://www.usmortality.com/excess-percent -- click the "filter" link and check "all ages" to see a breakdown.
The most likely explanation is ongoing spike injury from both covid and vaccines. If this is it, then repeated covid infections and more boosters will continue to increase death rates -- the only way out is early treatment, no more vaccines, and ideally finding a way to alleviate latent spike injury.
THIS:
"I think institutions in mass society develop behaviours and even ideologies that are beyond the understanding of the individuals who participate in them."
Good interviewing a friend who is skeptical of your opinions! Always good to keep some perspective. I, too, have these sorts of conversation with others (my wife, for one) whose objective is to 'talk me down off the roof' when I get into runaway speculation. Your friend is more rational and much more knowledgeable than my wife or my friends and colleagues.
Yeah, maybe the motivation behind the official response to Corona in the West was merely gross incompetence - it wouldn't be the first time governments and institutions are guilty of that. But, like you, I see certain anomalies which stick out and continue to bother me. The sudden belief by officials in made-up science, for one, along with the harsh censorship of reasonable scientific debate. Another thing which caught my attention was the assassination or mysterious deaths of 4 African leaders and the President of Haiti in 2021, all of whom were outspoken opponents of the mass-vaccination effort. There are too many other similar coincidences to mention here, but for each and every one you can be assured that there are multiple 'fact-checking' sites energetically 'de-bunking' each of them. Which, to me, of course, is only more evidence that they may not be coincidences at all.
I've been asking that question as well: Does the CCP know something about this virus that we don't because omicron is the sniffles and this is way overdone unless the threat is real or they just love dominating their people.
The lockdowns actually go to western planners as far back as 2005 according to the author of Liberty or Lockdown, Jeffrey Tucker: "The problem runs deeper than mere silence. Everything about lockdowns and mandates were constructions by intellectuals themselves. Thus do they bear responsibility, to deploy Chomsky’s term. The modelers and coercive controllers concocted their scenarios as early as 2005 and their ranks grew year by year: in research labs, government offices, universities, and think tanks. They became so engrossed in the world they created on their laptop screens that their imaginations came to outpace any understanding of history, cell biology, public health, much less human rights and law."
https://brownstone.org/articles/the-responsibility-of-intellectuals-2-0/
Which makes sense when you think about the west's first reaction to the virus as lax. Even Fauci who would know since he was funding the damn virus wasn't panicked about it, until it became politically useful to panic. Then in lock step all nations ran toward lock downs.
No one in power will ever admit they did something that didn't work. Just listen to the People parroting:
👉 "If he didn't get triple vaxxed, his death would have been much worse."
👉 "We may mask up again. Get ready to pivot."
👉 "I know I still have neurological damage from the vax and also just got over Covid, but I would do it all over again because the vax works."
👉 "Our efforts have been successful."
(All quotes paraphrased)
This dovetails amazingly with the article I'm writing today:
TL;DR: They are doing it on purpose to 'nudge' our behavior.
I think you're over-analyzing. China's way is the way of brute force and oppression, period. This is what they know and believe despite the damage lockdowns do. Somewhere Xi is saying, "we'll get it right this time, no matter how many people we kill".
It's insane how the CCP is trying to control this virus! I have wondered about everything you discussed here and was hoping someone would dig into it. Thank you.
As ever, I agree with much of your analysis. I think it's also worth noting that the Chinese have a pretty strange attitude to colds, for which they go to hospital for repeated intravenous drips. No soldiering on. No 'take a couple of asprin and drink plenty of water'. Just go to hospital.
The other element worth considering is the response to SARS version one. This involved some local lockdowns - quite how local, I'm not sure (I arrived in the aftermath). I understand much of the response was guided by international experts (WHO?). Much of their response planning is rooted in that epidemic. The story of SARS-1 and the role of international experts in it is one I'd like to see someday.
Chinese domestic fear-mongering back in early 2020 was based around the experience of SARS as a national trauma. I was warned by friends there about the long-term effects of infection - stories of people who nearly 17-18 years later were still suffering. I quickly dug for anything to back up these claims and found some suggestions of bone weakness in survivors, presumably caused by treatments. Still, what odds there lies the origin of long covid?
Many times I have heard them described as pragmatic.
Their response to omicron seems like the direct opposite of that.
Have you explored the possibility of genetic targeting (or exclusion, in the case of the Chinese)? If SARS-CoV2 is indeed an engineered bioweapon, that could be one reason the Chinese didn’t suffer as much from the original strain.
Couple other good posts about this today:
• Edward Slavsquat (Riley Waggaman): https://edwardslavsquat.substack.com/p/open-thread-can-we-talk-about-whats
• Jordan Schachtel: https://dossier.substack.com/p/shanghai-under-lockdown-witness-the
And you guys gotta see this freaking badass evading the corona-gestapo:
https://twitter.com/manyapan/status/1509977263277813762
"Mass containment is a worldwide delusional rain dance: Everyone hops about trying to coax water out of the heavens, copying whatever dance was current in the first place it started to rain."
Gonna steal this to use w new favorite: PCR tests have diagnostic accuracy of Ouija boards. :~)
The bureaucracy may or may not exhibit systemic racism, but all bureaucracies certainly exhibit systemic stupidity.