https://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0321/p09s01-coop.html
Please click on the above link and read the original in full form. I'm presenting a highly plagiarized summary here because most of yous are deadbeats who can't even be bothered to read a highly plagiarized summary. In which case, just skim the bold parts.
The trick here is it's an article from 2006. To me, this is a dot that deserves connecting. And as many of you know, I'm not one for conspiracy theories. But it seems the WHO, CDC, and the government at-large have been itching to pull the trigger on lockdowns and declaring something a pandemic for a long while now. And the issues outlined in this 14 year old article are just as valid today. One begins to wonder if COVID even fits the definition of pandemic!
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President Bush asked Congress for $7.1 billion for "pandemic flu preparedness,"; critics replied "not enough." Meanwhile, public health officials seem obsessed with preparing for an impending crisis.
Lacking in the overall discussion about pandemic flu is disagreement, criticism, and skepticism - once the bedrock of science.
According to the WHO, the first outbreak of H5N1 avian flu killed 6 people in 1997 in Hong Kong. Since then, H5N1 has allegedly killed 97 more, most living in poor, rural areas.
Flu scientist Peter Palese told NYT that H5N1 is a false alarm. He points to studies that indicated that millions of people had natural antibodies to H5N1.They had been infected and recovered without becoming sick - not the outcome from a virus as feared as this one.
The CDC estimates that 36,000 deaths in the US occur during an average flu season. During the last flu pandemic of 1968, however, they state 34,000 Americans died.
In response to questioning the reliability of US flu death statistics, the CDC countered that "it cannot be assumed a priori that pandemics will cause more mortality than inter pandemic seasons." This information is rarely explained to the public.
The CDC's statement is echoed by scientists at the NIH. "The mild 1968 pandemic was actually exceeded by a few more recent severe A(H3N2) seasons," they say. In other words the annual flu season can [be] more deadly than a pandemic. Despite, the WHO informs readers that "Large numbers of deaths will occur."
If regular flu seasons can be worse than pandemics, what does the word mean? Merriam-Webster reports that "pandemic" was the 7th most frequently looked up word in '05. The dictionary doesn't include the definition that flu scientists employ.
To flu researchers, a "pandemic" occurs when the flu virus in wide circulation has changed more dramatically than the normal seasonal variation. Historian John Barry put it, "The last time a new flu virus reached pandemic levels was 1968, but [it] was not deadlier than a typical flu season."
CDC director Dr. Gerberding stated "We've been putting [a] lot of attention on pandemic flu, so flu is on people's minds, and I think the factor of pandemic flu is very frightening to people." One begins to wonder whether some officials might not cherish their worst case scenario, and even see vindication in it.
There are better ways to promote America's health than selling sickness through fear. Before the government employs "all instruments of national power," including "quarantine authority", we need to be told what "pandemic flu" really means. So far, we have not been given the full story in plain language.
© The Christian Science Monitor.
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