tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post31848352341143134..comments2023-12-19T09:40:12.020-08:00Comments on The Emoluments of Mars: This just in from Kerry Cassidy... Liesexpathttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10369924104634464934noreply@blogger.comBlogger34125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post-77950818031522870762020-03-11T09:52:20.558-07:002020-03-11T09:52:20.558-07:00Here's a couple of new vids with some welcome ...Here's a couple of new vids with some welcome info from experts in their fields.<br /><br />Joe Rogan with Michael Osterholm, an expert on infectious disease epidemiology<br />https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3URhJx0NSw<br /><br />Sam Harris with Nicholas Christakis, an expert on network science and health<br />https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwE0ldRtwGA<br /><br />These vids debunk all the conspiracy bollocks and misinformation out there, some of it from the media.<br />chrislnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post-84108132956055824432020-03-11T00:11:40.838-07:002020-03-11T00:11:40.838-07:00Forgive me, expat:
I reject your suggestion that ...Forgive me, expat:<br /><br /><i>I reject your suggestion that recent evolution of COVID-19 is analogous</i>(Sp)<i> to an ostrich suddenly acquiring flight.</i><br /><br />I was being a little facetious (and extreme) with the choice of bird (and its false reputation for sticking its head in the sand when endangered).<br /><br />The truth is that viruses do swap chunks of xNA on a regular basis, rapidly giving them abilities they did not evolve.<br /><br />What IS amazing to me is that viruses haven't long since wiped us all out, especially as there are no real cures, and they seemingly couldn't possess the intelligence to moderate their virility for their own long term survival. Ain't life futile?<br /><br />I certainly do agree with you from one POV about the sudden jump to humans, but the sudden amalgamation of characteristics is no mystery, if you consider intelligent involvement. By whom is the real question, but certain recent major outbreaks seem to fit a pattern and frequency that reinforces this notion.<br /><br /><br />Thanks chrisl, the video is informative, though perhaps not as easy for laypeople to understand as it could be. Maybe there's a better one I can link people to?<br /><br />Anyway, it's pretty clear that almost every country outside China is not doing enough. OTOH, to me it appears that many countries actually want to get themselves infected, in some egalitarian, Lemming-like leap off the cliffs. It's as if there's been a high level directive that says every country must get this (virus infection), for it to be fair and equal. And to therefore reduce global populations sufficiently. <br /><br />According to JHU, the total of infected countries is now 115, and it appears that God is not protecting "his people" as even the Holy See has at least one case.<br /><br />Isn't it peculiar that old people are at greatest risk of elimination, while babies and children have almost no risk? Sounds like a Capitalist dream, except for the loss of revenue to be had caring for the elderly until their funds are exhausted. And maybe that's also part of the plan, since it (milking the elderly until dry) is completely unproductive and quite an unethical business practice.<br /><br />But humans will never agree to take such measures voluntarily, so compulsion is the only realistic solution.<br /><br />Interesting story once here:<br /><br />https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=12309151<br /><br />Now deleted. Found in Gugel cache (for now...)<br /><br />Punchline: "somebody was entangled with the evolution of 2019-nCoV coronavirus."<br /><br />From original report entitled "The possible origins of 2019-nCoV coronavirus", by Chinese researchers, is evidently now disappearing from the Inyernet. Fake News or Real Truth?<br /><br /><br />Two Percentnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post-21143196847225392020-03-08T23:46:39.378-07:002020-03-08T23:46:39.378-07:00This video from the excellent 3Blue1Brown on EweTu...This video from the excellent 3Blue1Brown on EweTube is enlightening.<br /><br />Exponential growth and epidemics<br />https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kas0tIxDvrg<br />chrislnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post-13257416188164872682020-03-05T12:44:24.985-08:002020-03-05T12:44:24.985-08:002%
You make some good points, but I reject your su...2%<br />You make some good points, but I reject your suggestion that recent evolution of COVID-19 is analagous to an ostrich suddenly acquiring flight.<br /><br />The idea that COVID-19, Ebola, SARS, bird-flu.. etc. have been going about their business killing bats and pangolins for centuries without us noticing doesn't seem strange to me. What <i>is</i> strange is that they should all have made the jump to humans within a (human) generation. expathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10369924104634464934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post-56608557145130072052020-03-03T17:42:35.594-08:002020-03-03T17:42:35.594-08:00expat:
You missed it. Try again. COVID-19 is one ...expat:<br /><br /><i>You missed it. Try again. COVID-19 is one of a family of ... </i><br /><br />Ohh. That's what that was supposed to be. A response to unlikely to be fortuitous, having the meaning "intentional". Yes, I missed it!<br /><br />But since you have chosen to compare to birds, let's go down that track to explain what I was trying to say.<br /><br />So, we have many types of birds. Examples include song birds, birds of prey, aquatic birds, marine birds, nocturnal birds, binocular-sighted birds and monocular-sighted birds, migratory birds, flightless birds etc. Sure, they are all birds and share all the common bird characteristics that place them into the group known as birds.<br /><br />My point is that one kind of bird (e.g. a flightless bird like an ostrich) doesn't suddenly pick up the characteristic of winged flight. And then it doesn't suddenly also acquire binocular vision and become a song bird, all within the space of a few thousand generations.<br /><br />But that's what appears to have happened with "COVid-19".<br /><br />It's become "super-bird"...<br /><br />By what natural evolutionary mechanism, please tell. Where has it been suddenly acquiring and developing all these new abilities, while we didn't know about it? What host(s) has it been employing? All the apparent donor viruses supposedly originated in completely different host animals and locations, but suddenly, Hey Presto! <br /><br />Super virus! <br /><br />Suddenly, it jumps to humans. Why not the earlier versions, sooner?<br /><br />Supposedly from bats. Oh, maybe snakes (Yeah, Right - cold blooded snakes - what moron dreamed that one up?). Oh, maybe Pangolins? Jumped from camels, and from birds, and wherever else. Must have been to meerkats, then to us! So where did HIV spring from, while we're on that theme?<br /><br /><br />Apparently from the 1790's:<br /><br />Ring-a-ring o' roses,<br />A pocket full of posies,<br />A-tishoo! A-tishoo!<br />We all fall down.<br /><br /><br />How easily the world forgets.<br /><br /><br />FWIW, the virus is now on a linear growth path in China, but is exploding exponentially everywhere else.<br /><br />Again: <br /><br />https://gisanddata.maps.arcgis.com/apps/opsdashboard/index.html#/bda7594740fd40299423467b48e9ecf6<br /><br />Go to the small graph, bottom right. Click the 'Expand' circle to the upper right.<br /><br />Now click on the radio buttons "Mainland China" and "Total Recovered".<br /><br />What do you get!?<br /><br />Good Luck, world...Two Percentnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post-63098490728229844432020-03-02T06:14:57.843-08:002020-03-02T06:14:57.843-08:00« You didn't even respond to the fortuitous co...« You didn't even respond to the fortuitous comments »<br /><br />You missed it. Try again. COVID-19 is one of a <b>family</b> of ps-ss-RNA viruses. Other members of the same <b>family</b> are SARS, Hepatitis C, West Nile...<br /><br /><b>FAMILIES</b> of organisms by definition share characteristics. The enormous list of song birds I cited is a list of <b>familes</b> that share almost every charactertistic on the menu. The difference between species, in this case, might only be a slightly different tail feather or a very subtle difference in the song.<br /><br />It makes no sense at all, then, to look at the <b>family</b> of ps-ss-RNA viruses, note their similarities and say "Oh, what a coincidence!" or "Oh, how fortuitous!" <b>YES OF COURSE THEY SHARE CHARACTERISTICS. THAT'S EVOLUTION, BABY.</b>expathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10369924104634464934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post-21987928553246365882020-03-01T21:09:53.230-08:002020-03-01T21:09:53.230-08:00expat,
I think you didn't get my point, but n...expat,<br /><br />I think you didn't get my point, but never mind.<br /><br />You didn't even respond to the fortuitous comments, but that's the way it's done. Attack what you think you can and ignore what you can't.<br /><br />I just look at the major recent historical disease outbreaks around the world, and I note an interesting pattern that doesn't appear to fit with naturally evolved developments.<br /><br />I particularly like:<br /><br /><i>He said "I will say the reading that I have done of medical professionals suggest that the structure of the virus seems unlikely to have been man-made because if it was made to be a threat, you would expect to see certain characteristics that aren’t present.”</i><br /><br />What a vacuous, disingenuous, typically political statement!<br /><br />Says who? *Who* would expect...? Who's talking about 'threat'? This virus ain't no "threat". It's a population reduction device, plain and simple.<br /><br />What characteristics denote, or suggest, man-made viruses? So, we do have some of those, indeed! What, like SARS, MERS...? Name a few!<br /><br />Two Percentnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post-87155334815590431802020-02-27T06:18:30.252-08:002020-02-27T06:18:30.252-08:00Germo: "you seem more certain than does Ken C...Germo: "you seem more certain than does Ken Cuccinelli, the acting deputy secretary of the Department of Homeland Security."<br /><br />I dunno, I don't think our opinions are that different. He said "I will say the reading that I have done of medical professionals suggest that the structure of the virus seems unlikely to have been man-made because if it was made to be a threat, you would expect to see certain characteristics that aren’t present.”<br /><br />2% writeth:<br />==========<br />Echoing what I said before, there are just far too many convenient "coincidences".<br /><br />It's:<br />Like SARS<br />Like HIV<br />Like Ebola<br />Like what else? Bird 'flu? MERS? "Spanish 'flu"?<br /><br /><br />The first two are enough? How is that going to happen by accident? <br />==============<br />expat sayeth:<br />As previously noted, this virus is a Positive-sense single-stranded RNA virus. That means it's like all the other ps-ss-RNA viri. Indeed that family includes some familiar names. Hepatitis C, West Nile, even the common cold. Not ebola, however.<br /><br />How does it happen? Living organisms are grouped in families that share biological characteristics. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Songbird#Families" rel="nofollow">Here's a list</a> of the families in the order <i>passeriforme</i> of the class <i>aves</i>. These happen to be songbirds. Aren't we lucky that there aren't as many ps-ss-RNA viri?expathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10369924104634464934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post-34912449109249984972020-02-26T17:28:04.001-08:002020-02-26T17:28:04.001-08:00xPat, I disagree.
The dictionary meaning should p...xPat, I disagree.<br /><br />The dictionary meaning should prevail.<br /><br /><br />fortuitous<br />adjective: fortuitous<br /><br /> happening by chance rather than intention.<br /> "the similarity between the paintings may not be simply fortuitous"<br /><br />Unlikely to be <i>by chance</i>, therefore more likely to be <i>by intention</i> - being the true meaning of the word - Yes?<br /><br /><br />Echoing what I said before, there are just far too many convenient "coincidences".<br /><br />It's:<br />Like SARS<br />Like HIV<br />Like Ebola<br />Like what else? Bird 'flu? MERS? "Spanish 'flu"?<br /><br /><br />The first two are enough? How is that going to happen by accident? Eventually, by random mutations, maybe, in a few million years.<br /><br />---------------------<br /><br />The best words on death rate I've found so far:<br /><br />https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/coronavirus-death-rate/<br /><br />Now that we have a smidgen more data, we can be more accurate. Current range maybe 5 - ~15% - but it sure isn't the official 1 or 2%. (So sad!)<br /><br />Interestingly, the D/R <b>outside</b> China is higher than reported from China, which would indicate the already mentioned unreliability of the Chinese figures, especially given the relative levels of medical technology and resourcing burdens.<br /><br />By various accounts, it's living Hell in China - a war zone. So, WARS virus!<br /><br />And Japan is in grave danger, mainly it seems due to typical Japanese pride (stupidity), as occurred at Fukushima. "Ignore the news, don't wear masks, go to work, use the train..." Already people have been infected, apparently in the subway system.<br /><br />Not by chance, I say.<br />Two Percentnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post-38006175966272245512020-02-26T17:00:38.407-08:002020-02-26T17:00:38.407-08:00Well, you seem more certain than does Ken Cuccinel...<br />Well, you seem more certain than does Ken Cuccinelli, the acting deputy secretary of the Department of Homeland Security.<br /><br /><a href="https://dailycaller.com/2020/02/25/cuccinelli-coronavirus-dhs-china/" rel="nofollow"><br />dailycaller.com/2020/02/25/cuccinelli-coronavirus-dhs-china<br /></a>Germonimonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post-49613491308849427022020-02-26T13:43:36.946-08:002020-02-26T13:43:36.946-08:00"...unlikely to be fortuitous" means &qu..."...unlikely to be fortuitous" means "likely to be inherited" in my reading.<br /><br />I can't say that's ALL because I've only read the abstract.expathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10369924104634464934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post-81089133790153729182020-02-26T13:37:48.986-08:002020-02-26T13:37:48.986-08:00That's ALL???
"This uncanny similarity...<br /><br />That's ALL???<br /><br /><i><br /><br />"This uncanny similarity of novel inserts in the 2019- nCoV spike protein to HIV-1 gp120 and Gag is unlikely to be fortuitous."<br /><br /></i><br /><br /><a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.01.30.927871v1.full.pdf" rel="nofollow"><br />biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.01.30.927871v1.full.pd<br /></a>Germonimonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post-59155976525250472912020-02-26T13:29:28.688-08:002020-02-26T13:29:28.688-08:00Germon: I find your interpretation of the Indian p...Germon: I find your interpretation of the Indian paper eccentric, probably unjustified. As I read it they are saying that COVID-19 may be more closely related to HIV than is gnerally recognized, that's all.expathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10369924104634464934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post-68854380045152675082020-02-26T12:10:06.639-08:002020-02-26T12:10:06.639-08:00Then you honestly do admire the Indian scientists ...<br />Then you honestly do admire the Indian scientists for their skepticism that Coronavirus is a natural mutation? The implication of course, is that US and Chinese governments aren't forthcoming about the true origins, either because they have something to hide, or else that they are truly ignorant.Germonimonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post-88508305740722697212020-02-25T12:25:20.903-08:002020-02-25T12:25:20.903-08:00It was more of a front-handed compliment, I though...It was more of a front-handed compliment, I thought.expathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10369924104634464934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post-64225529875807294632020-02-25T11:32:38.773-08:002020-02-25T11:32:38.773-08:00
Dear Honorable Mister Expat Sir:
Are you being f...<br />Dear Honorable Mister Expat Sir:<br /><br />Are you being facetious, sarcastic, or just plain making a back handed compliment to Injuns?Germonimonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post-25607461382838664662020-02-24T16:22:00.040-08:002020-02-24T16:22:00.040-08:00Theadora: Read my text again, please. That's n...Theadora: Read my text again, please. That's not what I'm saying at all, but the evidence for deliberate genetic engineering is absent.<br /><br />Sam: Thanks for the comment. My mini-lectures are for the benefit of the readers of this blog. Education is always a good thing, I believe. As the French say, « Je vais me coucher ce soir moins con »expathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10369924104634464934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post-15973616083634377972020-02-24T15:52:40.949-08:002020-02-24T15:52:40.949-08:00Expat makes a good argument for what's entirel...<br />Expat makes a good argument for what's entirely besides the point, as if to obfuscate premeditation for the epidemic, but for benefit of whom? Sam Donald's Sonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post-72199274623565956762020-02-24T15:38:30.471-08:002020-02-24T15:38:30.471-08:00I never claimed to be a virologist, Patterick. Ar...I never claimed to be a virologist, Patterick. Are you saying that Coronavirus and SARS are not similarly, artificially, engineered in a lab? THEnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post-26944568785059267132020-02-24T15:19:17.200-08:002020-02-24T15:19:17.200-08:00Nice to see Indian microbiologists prominent in th...Nice to see Indian microbiologists prominent in this field of study. If you're thinking that this is support for your mistaken idea that a coronavirus splices into the DNA, think again Theadora. Spike glycoprotein refers to a particular site on the viral envelope that enables it to bind to receptors on the host cell.<br /><br />A SIMPLE TRUTH: RNA cannot insert into DNA.expathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10369924104634464934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post-66310824827628591492020-02-24T14:58:15.369-08:002020-02-24T14:58:15.369-08:00
“Uncanny similarity of unique inserts in the 2019...<br />“Uncanny similarity of unique inserts in the 2019-nCoV spike protein to HIV-1 gp120 and Gag”<br /><br />Our analysis of the spike glycoprotein of 2019-nCoV revealed several interesting findings: First, we identified 4 unique inserts in the 2019-nCoV spike glycoprotein that are not present in any other coronavirus reported till date. To our surprise, all the 4 inserts in the 2019-nCoV mapped to short segments of amino acids in the HIV-1 gp120 and Gag among all annotated virus proteins in the NCBI database. This uncanny similarity of novel inserts in the 2019- nCoV spike protein to HIV-1 gp120 and Gag is unlikely to be fortuitous.<br /><br />https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.01.30.927871v1.full.pdfTHEnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post-11516513761978451692020-02-24T11:12:13.857-08:002020-02-24T11:12:13.857-08:00Thanks for that expat.
My interpretation of The’s...Thanks for that expat.<br /><br />My interpretation of The’s comment is that the virus’ xNA (such details as RNA or DNA don’t trouble The) itself has been modified to make it what it is.<br /><br />I have also seen a credible story which says that it is an artificially modified SARS Virus. Will post the link later.<br /><br />As I see it, the whole story smells worse than the supposed Steven Paddock acting alone LV Massacre fairy tale. Too many “convenient “ coincidences.<br /><br />FWIW, my name for it is the WARS Virus, and that the gist of what THE said is correct.Two Percentnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post-59901415382112466002020-02-24T09:51:15.079-08:002020-02-24T09:51:15.079-08:00...and what a surprise that would be....and what a surprise that would be.expathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10369924104634464934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post-4135020471238527492020-02-24T08:36:19.128-08:002020-02-24T08:36:19.128-08:00OK, I just refreshed my memory of all this stuff I...OK, I just refreshed my memory of all this stuff I used to know so well, and here's my understanding FWIW:<br /><br />Retroviruses are single-strand RNA written in reverse. They use an enzyme called <i>reverse transcriptase</i> to turn themselves into a double-stranded DNA fragment. This then inserts itself into the host DNA at a random site, and the normal processes then take over. Transcriptase preoduces messenger RNA (mRNA) that then trots off to the ribosome for transcription into protein.<br /><br />sspsRNA viruses like COVID-19 skip the intermediate steps, and go direct to the ribosome, saying "Hello, I'm mRNA, please transcribe me". Apparently the ribosome buys the story and obediently churns out whatever nasty protein the virus wants to take over the world with.<br /><br />If this is all correct, Theadora's text is rubbish.expathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10369924104634464934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8051630750074978974.post-8965548149175419542020-02-24T08:27:21.837-08:002020-02-24T08:27:21.837-08:00Trekker,
We don’t often agree, so it’s great to b...Trekker,<br /><br />We don’t often agree, so it’s great to be in accord on this. Well, not so great, but you know what I mean.<br /><br />What you report echoes exactly what my own Chinese sources have been saying.<br /><br />Effectively, multiply the official figures by 10 if not 50!!<br /><br />Two Percentnoreply@blogger.com