It’s hard to explain exactly why these individuals, people like Christiane Northrup and Michael Yeadon, choose to cast away careers of reasonable repute for the world of conspiracy and anti-establishment propaganda. There are distinct financial gains for many to be made from engaging with this fringe, popularity, notoriety, and an opportunity to finger your nose at the establishment.

Perhaps Cahill feels she was worked over by the system, ignored, passed over for promotion, or simply sidelined. Perhaps her ambitions could not be matched by the environment she found herself in? Whatever the reason, she didn’t just jump off the sane scientist ledge, she literally leaped and has spiraled downwards ever since in a free fall of alternate health mumbo jumbo, pseudoscience, and pure fabrication. 

This article will examine the collapse of her career and her statements that led to it. We’ll provide proper context and expose the complete fabrications she has engineered in her efforts to discredit the pandemic and expose the public to heightened risk.

Who is Dolores Cahill?

According to a yet to be updated webpage on Researchgate Cahill is a Professor of Translational Science, School of Medicine & Principal Investigator at the Conway Institute, University College of Dublin. On March the 18th of this year, the Irish Times published an article confirming that Cahill had been relieved of her teaching position. 

Another article, shortly on the heels of the 1st one announced a few days later that Cahill had also resigned as leader of the Irish Freedom Party, no doubt ousted by party loyalists to the party with no taste for Cahill’s conspiracy theories and medical misinformation.

In June of 2020, Cahill was asked to resign from a high-profile EU scientific committee. In an hour-long interview with a popular alt-right activist on May 10th in the same year, which has been viewed hundreds of thousands of times, she promised to “debunk the narrative” of the pandemic. The European Commission said the claims made by Cahill, a professor of translational medicine in UCD, could cause “significant harm” if taken literally.

Her credentials are impeccable. She was widely recognized as a renowned expert in high-throughput proteomics technology development and automation, high content protein arrays, and their biomedical applications, including in biomarker discovery and diagnostics. Cahill pioneered this research area at the Max-Planck Institute of Molecular Genetics in Berlin, Germany, and she holds several international patents in this field with research, biomedicine, and diagnostic applications.

So where did it all go so horribly wrong?

The beginning of the end for Dolores Cahill

In 2017 there was already evidence that Dolores Cahill was having problems. A scientific journal retracted a study in which she was listed as a co-author. The 2016 paper was retracted after receiving criticism from outside researchers who raised concerns about its methodology and data.

The paper shares multiple authors with another paper that linked the vaccine for human papillomavirus (HPV) to behavioral problems in mice. Last year, a journal removed the study; later that year, the authors published a revised version in another journal. The retracted paper focused on the antibodies present in a form of lupus. The can read more on the topic here.

A statement made by Cahill in February of 2020 starts to give one a clearer indication of why her research may have been deemed, suspect. She has an agenda. She has an anti-vaccine agenda. In here own words, she claimed;

I Entered Politics Because The Schools Mandated Vaccines For Children — 3 Feb 2021

Dolores Cahill

It’s all been a pretty steep downhill ride for the professor, since she chose to go public with a number of misleading Covid revelations she continued to repeat in 2020, including that the vaccines were going make everyone ill and that there was no pandemic. We had all been lied to and simple treatment like hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) was going to save us if only the government would allow us access. Sorry Ms. Cahill, but on all scores, wrong. Fantastically wrong. 

On HCQ more than enough research exists to show it may only assist a small fraction of people, and then only marginally. It’s no miracle cure and it sure as hell isn’t a prophylactic. On the question of no pandemic, I’d recommend dropping Ms. Cahill in the middle of New Dehli and then watch her try and peddle her bullshit to hundreds of thousands of infected Indians. On the vaccine score, according to Cahill, millions should have died by now from these “dangerous vaccines” yet, strangely this hasn’t happened.

The truth is, for whatever the reasons, that Dolores Cahill is deluded. She may very well believe the untruths she is sprouting and may not even be motivated by grift, but her associations with anti-vaxxers across the globe and her rapid adoption into their ranks as one of their own, clearly shows where her loyalties lie. Loyalties that are most certainly no longer with evidence-based science. 

Evidence Cahill’s use of Del Bigtree, the conspiracy king of Youtube, to get her message out. This is a pattern we see repeated across the anti-vaxx clan hood, where individuals like Bigtree and Robert F. Kennedy, Jnr. offer up their platforms to promote views that resonate and reinforce their own warped views of medicine and health, 

Cahill is clearly willing to go to any lengths to endorse her own views on vaccines and is not averse to exposing the public to risk. She should be considered untrustworthy, a danger to public health and we strongly advise anyone against listening to her advice. History tends to be far more forgiving, than the scientific community. a fact Ms. Cahill would do well to remember.

The post Prof Dolores Cahill is the Latest Quack to Commit Career Suicide appeared first on Medika Life.

In late March of 2021, I wrote an article that highlighted the problems with Vanden Bossche’s theories (there are numerous) about the runaway evolution of the coronavirus if we continue with widespread vaccination. My article debunked numerous points, for instance, an immunology faux-pas he made that would make a first-year immunology student cringe in shame(he shows a dendritic cell activating an NK cell via antigen presentation) and more. You can read said article here.

This article won’t deal with his erroneous claims, we’ve done that already, but rather seek to examine how a literal nobody in the world of science has managed to propel himself to stardom (albeit notorious) in the space of a few weeks on the back of a clearly flawed paper, intentionally withheld from the peer review process for obvious reasons. Vanden Bossche isn’t out to save the world, he’s out to fleece it. Academia doesn’t pay enough.

Vanden Bossche, the marketing monster

In a self-marketing feat that would have left the likes of Apple and Samsung spinning their wheels in his dust, Geert Vanden Bossche has managed to create an iconic brand literally overnight. He portrays the image of a gentle, yet friendly and always reasonable scatterbrained professor. His hair is always a little unkept, a tip of the hat to his rebellious, but carefully controlled nature and his meticulously managed public persona just yells “trust me, I’m a doctor”.

And people apparently do, buying into both his image and his version of science. By the millions. Americans love him and well they should, given their established proclivity for drama, conspiracy, and anti-establishment propaganda. Canada follows hotly on their heels. Vanden Bossche has human nature on his side and is well aware of it. Everything he does, the language he uses, and the way he presents both himself and his theories, suggest he is all too well aware.

If he’d published his paper, created a furor, and then disappeared back into the academic obscurity from whence he came, we may even have credited him with possibly believing in the work he had published, flawed though it is. BUT HE HAS’NT. and that speaks volumes. It raises serious questions about the man, his motivation, and his plans for book deals, speaking appearances, and perhaps, dare he dream it, a movie offer. I can see the title now, “The Virologist that broke American Healthcare”.

Remember, just in case you’re tempted to confuse Vanden Bossche with a world-class microbiologist/virologist, he is actually board certified in Veterinary Virology, Microbiology, and Animal Hygiene, hasn’t published a research paper since 1995, and appears to have forgotten the basic activation mechanisms for an NK cell. But he’s not letting these minor obstacles stand in his way.

geertvandenbossche.org

Lo and behold, what should pop out of the digital ether this March but none other than Geert Vanden Bossche. His domain, geertvandenbossche.com was registered on the 14th of March 2021. Suddenly, and very coincidentally, his sudden interest to develop a website coincided with the release of his controversial “paper”. What follows is nothing short of spectacular and his epically flawed “scientific” dissection of mass vaccination pales in comparison.

From Zero to Anti-Hero in the blink of an eye. Vanden Bossche has managed to propel his previously non-existent website from total obscurity, 0 out 30 million websites to an Alexa ranking globally of 454,315. Even more impressive is the time scale. In less than two months, he now boasts being the 129,013 most read website in the US and in Canada, that figure shoots up to 32,015. Apparently, the only people who are bigger suckers than the Americans for a good Covid conspiracy are the Canadians.

To put the achievement below into proper context, he has skipped right past 29 646 000 other websites to achieve his current ranking, such is the volume of traffic he currently enjoys, traffic that mostly originates from Northern America.

Want to know where his traffic specifically comes from? Available statistics show Google sending him 31% of his traffic and Twitter accounts for 14.3%. Where do his visitors primarily go after spending an average of 1 minute 27 seconds on the site? Youtube, of course, 21.2% of his visitors head straight for his videos. The rest of his traffic, which equates to millions of views daily, isn’t available, isn’t analyzable, that how recent his success has been. Most platforms need at least three months of data to generate figures.

We have a pretty good idea where the other traffic is coming from though, having run a few backlink checks on his domain. Almost every single anti-vaxx website, alternate health website, covid conspiracy website, and even radical, Republican funded qanon styled sites have adopted Vanden Bossche, propelling him overnight to international digital stardom and enabling (which is their actual goal) the dissemination of his divisive articles and videos to a large audience. They believe they’re using Vanden Bossche to further their own agendas.

I suspect exactly the opposite is true. I think, and I’m not alone in this assumption, that Vanden Bossche has an ulterior motive and its financial. As we’ve already stated, he is intelligent and driven, but not by an altruistic desire to save his fellow man from the impending vaccine catastrophe he has prophesized.

Rather, it is to sell the world an alternative vaccine, designed and developed by none other than Vanden Bossche himself.

If you think this is a ridiculous proposition, we suggest your read up on the disgraced Andrew Wakefield, the king of the vaccine con and arguably the founder of the anti-vaxx movement. Ironic that both mens’ attempts to enrich themselves have led to a slavelike following of individuals apparently devoid of independent thought. In fact, Wakefield may very well have provided a blueprint for Vanden Bossche’s scam, the two appear similar.

The Fool-Proof Con

Vanden Bossche has created the ultimate medical con, one that is sufficiently complex to prevent his victims (the general public) from understanding it and they are therefore dependant on accepting his individual and professional credentials which on the surface appear beyond reproach. Vanden Bossche maintains an air of absolute conviction and professional dependability throughout, selling himself and by association, his ideas.

It would have been possible for him to explain his concept in far simpler terms, but it’s noticeable that these simpler phrases are retained for the shock statements, the warnings, and the “dire consequences”. The paper he created was never intended for professional dissemination and would have been ripped to pieces by his colleagues. It was designed entirely for you, dear reader. for the general public, to flummox and confuse, and judging by the interest he has generated, it’s been a spectacular success.

When it comes to this kind of work, never trust the man, trust the science. And science has proven him to be an incontrovertible fake.

Time is fleeting

And Vanden Bossche has a limited supply of it. In another six -12 months, the glaring flaws in his arguments are going to become apparent as the world does not succumb to his predicted supervirus. Also, his new conspiracy fans are a fickle mob, driven by whatever is trending on social media. In two months’ time, he’s going to be old news and it may very well be this aspect that has prompted America to do almost nothing to counteract his wild claims.

The statistics shown above indicate just how mistaken the American approach to Vanden Bossch has been. Since early April and probably well into June, he will continue to spread disinformation and distrust in the vaccines at an unprecedented rate, encouraging millions to reconsider getting vaccinated and contributing to the American failure to reach herd level immunization. Of course, Vanden Bossche can’t be credited with single-handedly contributing to America’s vaccine hesitancy.

There has been a continuous and sustained attack on vaccines almost since the idea for rapid vaccine development was first floated in early 2020. What we do know is that Vanden Bossche offer s a unique opportunity to study this model of medical quackery that is driven by greed and personal enrichment. His website and strategy show just how vulnerable international medical strategies can be to a concerted and well-supported propaganda attack.

America is about to discover just how much money they are going to have to fork out to try and undo the impact of one, Geert Vanden Bossche. Money that could have spent on healthcare, saving lives. Ensuring a mother from a disadvantaged community received enough pre-delivery care to save her and her child. Somehow, I doubt Vanden Bossche has trouble falling asleep at night. He just doesn’t seem the type.

Whoever is tasking with holding these quacks and con-artists accountable in a post-pandemic society (people will demand it), may not view him as kindly. He has blood on his hands and his words and advice continue to claim lives.

The post How Geert Vanden Bossche is Destroying American Herd Immunity appeared first on Medika Life.

In terms of context, our publication, Medika Life, deals on a daily basis with medical con artists, quacks, and dishonest individuals seeking to exploit the health concerns of a very vulnerable sector of our population. We apply a label to these individuals, that of Predatory Health Practitioner (PHP). These individuals prey on the weak, the vulnerable, and the uneducated for the purposes of self-enrichment. They are a global phenomenon but in the US they have embedded themselves within the Republican Party.

It is an impossibility in modern medicine to separate politics and healthcare. The two are intrinsically linked, bound by staggering sums of money, kickbacks, favors, and good old-fashioned sell-outs orchestrated by skilled lobbyists, who in turn, are bankrolled by large medical conglomerates.

The predatory practitioners we’ll meet below have taken this system and given it a digital upgrade. While commercialism of their quackery matters, there are also other factors at play, influenced by alliances they have formed. Links to QAnon, white supremacist groups, and conspiracy theorists offer a window into a depraved world where any and every tool is fair game in a propaganda war with ambitious designs.

Destabilizing established medical practice, depriving racial minorities of access to care through medical misinformation and fear, furthering their political careers, creating a platform of supporters from whom they can draw funding, and other twisted agendas all meld together under the unified blanket of the radicalized Republican.

We write about these quacks and con artists at length, exposing them one at a time and it has become glaringly obvious that their base of operations resides firmly within the GOP. The graphic below reads like a rogues gallery of Republican radicals and PHP’s. They are now so embedded as to appear a part of the GOP and they’re feted by the party loyalists like long-lost war heroes.

Here then the shocking truth of what really lies behind Covid misinformation in America and how these propaganda tools are being used to frighten racial minorities away from healthcare.

The Health&Freedom conference poster that speaks volumes

Take a really close look. Do you see the connection and the propaganda? It’s glaringly obvious, linking the concept of health to freedom and creating the perception that somehow healthcare is under threat in America. Don’t trust “the man” and don’t trust his medicine. Notice the choice of colors? Remind you of anyone? While we cannot disagree that personal freedoms are under attack, that’s old news. They’ve been under attack since they were handed out to us. Attaching these attacks to healthcare, however, is a recent tactic. One that’s taken center stage during the pandemic.

We’ll show how the Predatory Health elements, QAnon, White supremacists, and conspiracy theorists are now managing a Republican sanctioned attack on American healthcare. Strange bedfellows that have found comfort in their twisted views of society. You can argue till you’re blue in the face but the poster above spells it out more clearly than any article or confession ever could.

If you are a contributing member to the Republican party you are in effect funding racism, medical misinformation, and contributing to the attempted destruction of the American healthcare system by elements that have taken over your party and are eroding it from the inside out.

These are the same people who stormed your Capitol building. They are insurrectionists, con artists, and die-hard racists intent on dismantling healthcare, democracy, and any other form of rational democratic governance in America. The last item on the itinerary for their meeting was a public mask-burning event. You, as a GOP member, are aware of these elements unless you’ve been living in a cave, and by choosing to look away, you allow them to continue with their agendas, to grow, and to thrive.

Let’s examine a few of the faces on this poster.

Dr. Simone Gold — Political Affiliation, Republican

Photographed in the Capitol building among other insurrectionists, she is part of a countrywide network of quacks and a pharmacy chain, Ravkoo Pharmacy, trying to profit from the pandemic by selling unproven medication to people who they’ve frightened off the vaccine, She is a despicable example of an educated person who takes advantage of a vulnerable community, using her knowledge to incite fear and then profit by selling her “remedy”. You can read our damning expose of her scam here.

Dr. Christiane Northrup — Political Affiliation, Republican

Once feted by Oprah Winfrey, this doyen of women’s health has sunken into the slippery quagmire of conspiracies and medical misinformation, adopting causes like the dangers of 5G, criticizing vaccine safety, and sowing distrust in peoples minds with regards to the pandemic, vaccines and the dangers of the coronavirus. She is featured on Medika’s Quack Scale and you can read our detailed list of the medical misinformation she sells online.

Andrew Wakefield — Political Affiliation, Republican

We’ve avoided the use of the term doctor here, as this individual was stripped of his medical credentials by the British General Medical Council for manipulating data in a now famed fake paper on vaccines and their supposed link to autism. In addition, it was shown how he performed unsanctioned medical procedures on children and sought to profit by providing his own alternative vaccine, in the place of the MMR vaccine he was attempting to discredit. He’s a firm favorite now in Republican circles, meeting with Trump and other high-ranking members in the party. Shamed and disgraced in his home country, he’s now found a new home and continues to spread health misinformation. You can read our article on his disgraced past and form your own opinion.

Mike Lindell— Political Affiliation, Republican

This slick con artist and CEO of MyPillow was another favorite under the Trump term, invited into the inner sanctum of the Whitehouse where he attempted to sell his covid quackery to the President. Medika published an article in December of 2020, examing Lindell’s involvement with the fake covid cure, Oleandrin, he tried to sell to the Whitehouse. His recent ban on Twitter for promoting election fraud lies has led him to attempt to set up his own social media platform.

Lin Wood — Political Affiliation, Republican

Wood has continued to push numerous baseless conspiracy theories that the presidential election was fraudulent, which led Twitter to suspend his account. The State Bar of Georgia investigated two complaints filed against him and ordered him to undergo a psychiatric evaluation and he is the current subject of investigation for alleged voter fraud. His links to QAnon are evident and on public display.

Sidney Powell — Political Affiliation, Republican

Powell was banned by Twitter on January 8, 2021, for promoting the QAnon voter fraud conspiracy theory in the 2020 US elections. She has promoted personalities and slogans associated with the QAnon conspiracy theory. Powell alleges that a secret international cabal involving communists, “globalists”, George Soros, Hugo Chávez, the Clinton Foundation, the CIA, and thousands of Democratic and Republican officials — including Trump ally and Georgia governor Brian Kemp — used voting machines to transfer millions of votes away from Trump to Biden in the 2020 presidential election. Her unsubstantiated claims rapidly became an embarrassment to Trump’s legal defense (among which she numbered) and Rudy Giuliani and issued a November 22 statement that Powell was “practicing law on her own” and was not (or was no longer) a part of the Trump legal team. The President however still kept in contact with her. In the meanwhile, she’s received a $100,000 bill From Wisconsin, as the Governor demands legal fees over her election lawsuit.

Richard Bartlett — Political Affiliation, Republican

Most famously known for going public with budesonide (an inhaled steroid) as a cure for Covid in July of 2020, this doctor made various unfounded and unverified claims relating to the efficacy of the steroid in treating and curing patients with Covid. Hi suggestion to part of Japan, Singapore, and Asia had avoided deaths because of their use of budesonide was without basis and although this steroid may offer some relief to patients with covid it is a very far cry from a cure. As far as his claims to treating patients, at the point he went public, he’d treated two patients with budesonide, via remote health platforms. They were using other medications and suffered from additional medical conditions. Hardly what you’d call a clinical trial or hard evidence. Bartlett also suggested that a vaccine isn’t needed if inhaled budesonide is being widely used. After advancing the baseless claim about Taiwan’s wide adoption of the steroid, he stated:

“Taiwan, 24 million people, they don’t need to wait for a vaccine — they don’t have a problem that you should vaccinate 24 million people for.”

We could go through almost every name that appears on this poster and their stories would echo with an all-too-familiar ring. Voices tainted with conspiracy, racist bias, misinformation, and dystopian views promoted with the single intent of destabilizing America and its healthcare platform. We have identified some of the key motivators that drive these individuals.

• Financial self-enrichment and personal aggrandizement are key drivers for many of the individuals featured above. There are huge sums of money to be made and instant stardom awaits among a growing fan base.
• Racial agendas focused on restoring white supremacy to America. This is achieved by actively discrediting coronavirus vaccines and suggesting the virus carries no risk. The most at-risk populations suffer the most. There is sufficient data to show the success of their strategy among African-American and Hispanic communities and to encourage them to further action.
• Political gain, within the rapidly expanding base of support enjoyed by these groups, with aspirations for higher office and the associated perks.

Don’t make the mistake of dismissing these individuals as crazy kooks and conspiracy head cases and hope they’ll fade quietly away. They’ve struck a chord with a significant number of Americans who claim allegiance to the Republican party. They are intelligent, willful, and manipulative and these three traits combined with an intent to do harm to achieve their own goals make them extremely dangerous.

Does this mean the Republican party is essentially a racist institute populated by white supremacists and QAnon collaborators? No, Not yet, but left untended, the disease will consume the patient.

Alternatively, the larger portion of the GOP can begin a much-needed purge of the insidious cancer that is festering in its bosom, but I would encourage urgency as you don’t have much time left. The clock is ticking and you’re no longer just risking your own party’s stability by not acting. but the future of America as a whole. That fragile balance of opinion that has served democracy so well for generations, an evenly balanced two-party system, is under threat. We’ve provided you with the poster, now it’s up to you.

The post How Republican Radicals Are Weaponizing Healthcare in America appeared first on Medika Life.

We’ll kick off with the simple stuff and then move onto the more complex topics. There a lot of my often sad and questionable humor interspersed in this article. It isn’t there to make light of the situation, rather see it as an attempt to stave off the madness of having to repeatedly write these articles in the first place. We all need to lighten up a little and learn to think critically for ourselves and let’s be honest, some of this is side-splittingly funny. For the purposes of this article, the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes Covid is shortened to CoV-2. This is how you contract a virus.

A final thought on the context before you dive in. ALL the responses below are based on our personal exposure and experiences to and with the pandemic over the last 14 months. We have personal contact with medical professionals engaged in the field with research and critical patient care. Our concern is for the patient’s safety and wellbeing and where doubt exists on something, we are candid about it.

On the much-maligned subject of PCR testing

This tends to always feel like people clutching at straws. Also, the lack of understanding among the public regarding this topic is staggering. It allows for their manipulation by less than honorable agents.

1. PCR testing doesn’t prove you have Covid

Fact: Wow, astonishing. That’s actually correct and aside from stating the obvious we’re not sure why this statement has been latched onto. PCR testing is a screening tool used to look for genetic material that belongs to the virus. You can have this material and be either asymptomatic (no Covid) or you may have just have caught the virus and be on the fence (you may or may not develop Covid) or you may be recovering from Covid or possibly successfully have beaten the virus thanks to your immune system. So to recap, PCR is not to detect Covid. That’s just a silly statement as we all know Covid is a disease that’s caused by a coronavirus.

2. PCR tests don’t work properly

Fallacy: They do. Here’s an article that will explain exactly how well they work and what they’re really good at doing. Detecting genetic material. Detractors point to a statement by Kerry Mullis, the inventor of the PCR test shortly before his death where he was quoted as saying the tests aren’t good for detecting disease. Again, this is factual but completely misinterpreted and corrupted by Covid doubters. The tests should be used to screen for viruses and other materials that can cause or lead to disease. Exactly the way we use PCR to screen for the CoV-2 virus to confirm someone has Covid rather than a bad case of influenza. The tests also provide invaluable information about the spread of a virus in the general population. We can assess how dangerous, how viral, and how deadly a virus is from data collected from testing. Without this data, we’re guessing.

3. PCR tests are unreliable

Fallacy: They are very accurate, more so than many other screening tools and it’s why we use them. It is possible to mess up the results by contaminating samples or not following the manufacturer’s instructions for individual tests but this is human error and statistically insignificant in large samples or at the scale we’re dealing with now. Again, refer to this article.

4. Why are we testing healthy people? It’s a waste of time and money

Fallacy. A great question spoiled by a flawed conclusion based on a lack of proper public-facing education. Here’s why we test extensively. Write it down, memorize it, tell a friend. We need the data to protect the public. It’s that simple. Unless we can figure out how quickly a virus is spreading through a population, how many people are becoming ill, and how many are dying we can’t protect ourselves.

This data shows the infectiousness of a virus, how transmissible it is, how dangerous, and who it is affecting. It also means we can with reasonable accuracy suggest how deadly the virus is and whether you need to buy Twinkies and hide under your bed, or if you can mask up and move about in relative safety. Rapid and widespread testing is critical to understanding, managing, and containing viral outbreaks. If the pandemic has shown us anything about managing global viral outbreaks it is about how important the availability of accurate data is in managing unknowns. Testing provides this. So the next time someone tries to trash testing, you can explain this to them.

There is another benefit to testing that isn’t discussed in much detail but is of more importance. Research. Millions of samples help to turn up data that we may otherwise miss. Volume helps to establish patterns that researchers can look into or exploit for developing treatments. It can also alert us to new potential risks from a virus as it evolves. Without broad sampling, research is seriously hampered, and along with it, our understanding of what we are dealing with. HIV and SARS-CoV-2 are perfect examples of what large data sets can allow researchers to accomplish.

Masks Ahoy

This is my pet hate. Where to start on this one. There is so much rubbish that circulates about the futility of wearing a mask, the health risks if you wear a mask and the issues of personal freedom. Let’s deal with the most obvious and hopefully, somewhere along the line, the penny will drop if it hasn’t already. I apologize in advance for the tone in some of the answers, but seriously??? I’ll try and keep this portion brief.

1. Why should I wear a mask. There is no reason.

Fallacy: There are a million reasons. Here’s possibly the simplest explanation of all when it comes to this topic. When you sneeze, do you cover your nose and mouth with your hand and turn away from people? Simple yes or no answer. If you answered no then you’re probably one of the idiots wandering about without a mask. Yes, I know I shouldn’t, but your inability to comprehend basic hygiene is probably a combination of ignorance, arrogance, and inbreeding. This simple gesture designed to contain the sneeze is an acknowledgment that the fluids you’re about to spray around liberally from your nasal passages carry the potential for disease and death. We’ve been doing this out of respect and concern for our fellow citizens for centuries.

The simple gesture of turning away and raising your hand is one of the most telling things about you. Indirectly, you’re saying to the people around you, “I care about you bro, so I ain’t sharing”.

The mask does more to protect others than it does to protect you. Fact. It’s that hand, permanently in front of your nose and mouth to catch coughs and sneezes. If everyone wears one, then they also serve to protect you. They aren’t foolproof but they have a huge impact on the virus’s ability to become airborne and spread itself.

I always see doctors and nurses as the perfect proof of this. Many have been engaged with Covid patients for over a year. Although there have been a lot of positive cases of Covid, many medical professionals have not contracted the virus, despite it being so infectious. The reason. Masks and hygiene. The two go hand in hand.

2. N95 masks can’t stop the virus particles

True: but then we aren’t asking them to do this, are we? The virus is insanely small, small enough to pass through a normal N95 mask. However, on their own, CoV-2 particles are stranded. No legs, no wings, and no cellphone to order a Grab. They need to latch onto something to move around and airborne particles of moisture sprayed out of your mouth or nose offer the perfect ride. Luckily the N95 can cope with these small droplets and can easily capture them, preventing their passenger access to your gaping mouth or inhaling nostril. It isn’t perfect I’ll admit, but it is 100% more effective than no mask.

As the mask can trap the virus in these particles it is advisable to change your mask quite frequently and never reuse an N95 or similar type of material mask unless you have access to a sterilization unit. Washing can also compromise the mask’s fibers.

Don’t take off your mask and stuff it in your pocket. Immediately dispose of it on removal and wash your hands. Again, seriously, this is basic hygiene 101.

3. Masks being mandated infringe on my civil liberties

Fallacy: If you have so little concern for your fellow citizens that you refuse to place a small cloth square over your face when you’re in public, for the duration of the pandemic, then really, there’s nowhere to go with this other than to say if you do enjoy any civil liberties, they’re hugely underserved and definitely not as a result of any actions you’ve taken. Seat belts are mandated and in some states so are crash helmets. Are you also protesting these and while we’re at it, what about the requirement to wear clothes in public? Ridiculous, and clearly an infringement on your right to expose yourself.

Wearing a mask, seatbelt, or crash helmet is for your protection more than anything else. There is no real evidence to suggest the mask poses any hazard to your health, so like the crash helmet and the seatbelt, use them. Yes, they’re hot, yes they’re uncomfortable, and yes, they fog up your glasses, but they work. Science says so and data supports it.

4. Medical masks are dangerous and cause CO2 intoxication or oxygen deficiency

Fallacy: Considering the people and groups propagating this nonsense, perhaps we should print a disclaimer on the masks. Dangerous if consumed! You should not wear a mask while exercising, performing demanding physical labor, or engaging in carnal acts (unless of course, you paid extra for the mask). That’s simply common sense. Your oxygen demands increase exponentially and you need unrestricted access to air. This claim is also easily disproven by observing medical staff in an operating theater. You don’t see them collapsing or gasping for air, do you, despite attending procedures that last for hours. Clearly, under normal conditions, masks are uncomfortable but very safe.

The mystery of the missing virus

This is my all-time favorite. The depth of ignorance required to make the statement below is staggering.

We haven’t isolated the CoV2 virus yet

Fallacy: People spreading this gem claim that we only have a computer-based model of the virus and haven’t managed to actually isolate the real virus. This will come as very upsetting news to Wan Beom Park and his colleagues, who clearly thought they managed to do it back in February of 2020. Sorry Wan, but your paper entitled Virus Isolation from the First Patient with SARS-CoV-2 in Koreamust obviously be a mistake. Our public ‘experts’ say so.

I won’t bore you with an extensive list of the other laboratories that have isolated the virus, but rather pose a few simple questions to this group of non-believers to hopefully allow them to self-implode in a puff of logic-induced smoke.

Question one. You are aware, are you not, that the CoV-2 virus can be ordered by laboratories for the purposes of evaluation and experimentation? What do you think the CDC has been shipping to laboratories for over a year now? Two weeks after receiving their first sample of the virus in January of 2020, the CDC was able, over a period of two weeks, to generate enough SARS-CoV-2 (grown in cell culture) to distribute to medical and scientific researchers. You can read about their isolation of the CoV2 virus here.

Second question. How would be able to produce a vaccine that uses part of the virus’s RNA coding to simulate the spike protein on the virus, unless you had the actual virus to analyze? Hmmm? Guesses tend not to work too well in the field of molecular biology.

Third and final question. Accusing the world of intentionally releasing the virus on an unwitting public and then claiming we don’t actually have it are two opinions that are directly at odds with each other. You cannot have it both ways, can you? Decide which line of bullshit you want to pursue and stick to that, you cannot have both.

Covid-19 is caused by a bacterial infection

Fallacy: It’s easy to understand how folk can get this one mixed up. The CoV-2 virus is what causes the disease we call Covid-19. The disease is a result of the virus attacking our system, in particular, our lungs and other vital organs. Bacteria can then play a role as secondary infections may occur in the lungs and elsewhere, These can be treated with antibiotics as the infections are bacterial, but the antibiotics don’t impact the CoV-2 virus. Viruses are immune to antibiotics, which only work on bacterial infections. Certain viruses can be treated with very specific antiviral drugs that have been designed to target specific attributes in a chosen virus. HIV retrovirals are an excellent example.

On the topic of thermal scanners

You know the feeling right, every shop you stop at scans you. The entrance to the mall scans you and even your hairdresser scans you. There is no escape from handheld, wall-mounted, or checkout-style temp scanners and I am actually surprised no one has suggested yet we’re going to get tumors on our foreheads from all the scanning. Watch this space.

1. Scanners cannot pick up a CoV-2 infection

Yes and no. It’s a little bit of both here. While it’s true that the scanners cannot directly detect the virus, it is also true they can detect subtle changes in body temperature which may indicate an infection you are not aware of. That infection isn’t just an indicator of a viral infection though. It’s a warning sign that your body is engaged in a battle with something and that you should consider getting your butt to a doctor. Our bodies operate within a very limited temperature range, 36.5°C to 37°C, and these scanners are pretty good at picking up even a degree difference.

It’s worth mentioning that not having an elevated temperature shouldn’t be seen as an all-clear for a possible CoV-2 infection. Elevated temperature is not always present during an active infection, particularly in asymptomatic individuals. The scanning protocol is a temporary inconvenience for your protection. Get scanned and enjoy your shopping. Soon, scanners too will be a distant memory.

On the delicate topic of vaccines

This is probably the hot potato at the moment. It’s current and everyone is talking about the covid vaccines. One day they’re all declared safe, the next day it’s a maybe, Astra Zenica might cause clots, Johnson & Johnson may have issues, the mRNA vaccines will turn you into mutants, China’s vaccine may only be 3% effective and the list goes on. We’re going to work on the following assumptions here and then address the typical doubts individually.

• The FDA has issued Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) approval for three vaccines in the US. Pfizer/Biotech. Moderna and Johnson & Johnson. This means that all three vaccines have passed the safety requirements for Stage 3 trials. They cannot be fully approved yet as they haven’t proven themselves over a period of time, a requirement for final approval that takes anywhere from 3–5 years with most vaccines to ensure complete public safety.
• Short term we know they’re safe and that’s why they’ve been approved for EUA use. We don’t have the time now to hang about and wait out the three to five years while people are dying and these vaccines have the potential to stop that. Ergo, we are vaccinating now with EUA vaccines. Totally logical, given almost no short-term risk.
• We cannot engage at this point in speculation with regards to possible long-term consequences. This is an unknown, for everyone. What we do however know is that saving a life now and dealing with any (we hope there are none) subsequent consequences later, is a no-brainer. We are going to vaccinate and have been doing exactly this since December of 2020.

1. The mRNA vaccines are going to change my DNA

Fallacy. The basic answer is that in almost all cases RNA viruses, and that’s what the mRNA vaccine is based on, a viral RNA segment from the CoV-2 virus – the spike protein on the outside of the virus, to be completely accurate – cannot access our DNA. The process involved here is hugely complex and difficult to understand. I’ve just address new research on this topic and you can find the full article here. It includes an expansive but hopefully simple enough explanation of the processes at play and the rules regulating traffic from our DNA to RNA.

While it is true that some retroviruses can enter our DNA, retroviruses are a limited family of viruses that includes the HIV virus. The coronavirus is an RNA virus and incapable of a similar feat under normal conditions. The RNA used by the mRNA vaccines is synthetic and replicates a portion of the natural virus’s RNA. This teaches our cells to be prepared and on the lookout for the real thing and the reason they’ve chosen the spike protein is that this is how the CoV-2 virus gains access to our cells.

2. I got vaccinated. Party time.

Fallacy: No, no, and no. Being vaccinated doesn’t mean you cannot transmit the virus to others (act as a vector). It also doesn’t mean you’re out of the woods. Not immediately. It takes between ten and fourteen days to develop those immune cells you’ll need to stave off serious illness. Get sick in between, and you’re in for a rough ride. One of my BeingWell colleagues came down with Covid two days after being vaccinated. Contact tracing proved an exposure the morning of vaccination. What followed was nearly three weeks of hell for him as he fought off Covid and the effects of the virus. He now struggles with Long Covid symptoms.

We also don’t have conclusive evidence yet that you aren’t still a vector for variants. You may be able to spread these variants, even after you’ve developed your vaccine immunity and these may even make you ill, despite the vaccination. This is a fluid situation and vaccine formulations will change over time to address these variants and offer broader protection, but keep in mind, the virus continually mutates. It never loses this ability. So in short, keep your mask on, keep social distancing and act as though you haven’t been vaccinated. At least for now and let’s do our best to flatten curves that are once again going up in the wrong direction.

3. Natural immunity is far better, I’ll take my chances with the virus

50/50: This needs to be qualified. If you’re perfectly healthy, then this is your choice. It may be that naturally acquired immunity through exposure to the virus will produce a more resilient immune response than a medically introduced virus via a vaccine, but the inverse may also be true. We don’t have enough data yet to make a convincing case for either claim. That aside, there are a few things to consider here. I’ll list them below and you can make your own choice.

• If you suffer from anything on this list then you want to get the vaccine ASAP. People with various risk factors for developing serious Covid need to be vaccinated.
• The vaccines prevent you from developing serious Covid, in fact, some are almost 100% effective at this. That’s a guaranteed get-out-of-jail card if you’re obese, diabetic, or suffer from one or more of the conditions highlighted in the referred article.
• Covid can and does kill children on occasion and perfectly healthy young and middle-aged (30 to 40-year-old) adults with no apparent underlying health conditions. To see the effects of the B.1.1.7 variant on a closed community, follow this link.
• Although the science is still out on this, there may be benefits to being vaccinated after you’ve had a natural infection. We’ll get back to you on this as we’re looking at current and emerging research. The current data seems to suggest double the bang for your buck if you opt for the vaccine on top of your naturally acquired immunity.

The Crazies

Suggestions so ridiculous you’re tempted to ignore them, but that would be a mistake. For every crazy idea out there, there are thousands of eager fingers and phones, just waiting to amplify the madness. The more obscure, the more outrageous, the better.

1. 5G will give you Covid

Fallacy: This is one of those ideas that have no basis in science or common sense. You understand surely that 5G uses a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum that allows it to transmit data very effectively through a network of repeating stations. Data is not a physical thing. I can assure you of the following. 5G is not capable of teleportation. The virus is a physical particle, too small for us to see, but still subject to gravity and all the other wonderful forces that control physical objects on planet Earth. Sneeze it out and will gradually descend to the floor.

We haven’t figured out yet how to teleport physical objects from one location and place them in another location, let alone target your nostril. 5G isn’t capable of using its intangible medium to move a physical virus into your schnoz. Sorry, just ain’t happening, not by any crazy mechanism you try and dream up. To be infected with CoV-2, you need the actual physical virus and this needs to enter your body through either your mouth or nose. Lastly, have you wondered how it is that countries without 5G also mysteriously seem to have the virus spreading?

2. Bleach, ethanol, methanol, and other crazy home concoctions will protect you against covid

Fallacy: Until I saw reports on CNN of people that had actually consumed bleach, encouraged by then-incumbent President (term used loosely) Trump, I would have bet my last dollar that no one in the world would actually follow idiotic advice like this. I’ve come to learn over the last year that there are levels of stupid I couldn’t have imagined, ranging from errant quacks to people who have no idea of how to look after themselves and rely (very unfortunately) on the opinions of charlatans and con artists.

Let’s clear this up once and for all. There are no defenses against CoV-2. NONE!! The only way you can guarantee evading the virus is to lock yourself up in a sterile vacuum, clearly not a practical long-term solution. Vaccines only prevent us from developing serious disease (Covid) from the Cov-2 virus. Even as amazing as these tools are, they cannot stop a virus from entering our bodies.

There is no drug or treatment, product, drain cleaner, pesticide, bleach, or alcohol on the planet that can stop your body from being infected. If you cross paths with the virus it can infect you. Garlic, colloidal silver, and pepper may ward off the Cowens and your wife but won’t stop the CoV-2 virus. Gargling with salt and snorting spotted Panamanian anteater urine¹ harvested under a full moon won’t stop it either, even if you order today for the free bottle of desiccated lizard testicle extract. Nothing! Got the idea yet? You’re being conned, wasting your money, and in many cases, actually putting your health at risk.

The best way to help yourself out is to ensure your immune system is in tip-top shape and practice a few common-sense habits to help it stay that way.

• Try and eat a well-balanced and healthy diet, get regular exercise, stay happy and ensure you’re smiling and laughing. Depression and anxiety prey heavily on your immune system. Watch a comedy on the telly and stop stressing.
• Obesity is a huge contributor to serious Covid, try and reduce your weight if at all possible. Even losing five to ten pounds can make a huge difference to your general health. Again the best route is a proper diet and exercise. If you’re restricted try Yoga or Taichi via Youtube. Be patient and stick to it. There are no quick fixes and companies that offer you any are the same people who’ll sell you the bleach.
• Vitamins are for the most part an equally large waste of money and I’m including Vitamin C in this. You may as well flush your cash down the toilet as this is where most vitamins end up. We think Zinc and Vitamin D may be efficacious, but make sure you keep to the recommended dosages and buy a regular product from a well know and reputable brand. More, in medicine, is usually dangerous, not better, Vitamins are no exception. Your doctor will be happy to discuss any vitamin supplementation you may require. Rather spend the cash you waste on vitamins and supplements on buying fresh food, if you can get it. Bake, boil, steam, BBQ, air fry, and avoid frying or cooking in oil.

3. COVID-19 doesn’t actually exist

Fallacy. Do I really have to do this? Yes, thanks to individuals like David Icke (from the moon is hollow fame, no really, Google it) and InfoWars’ Alex Jones we do have to. The story goes like this. COVID-19 doesn’t actually exist but is a plot by the globalist elite to take away our freedoms. Anti-lockdown protests across several states in the US have been fuelled by Icke and Jones’s idiotic rhetoric and because believers increasingly refuse to observe social distancing measures, they are directly helping to spread the epidemic further in their localities. In case you haven’t made the connection, these are the same individuals refusing to wear masks.

There is only one way to reply to this. When, once, in the history of humanity, have we all been able to work in unison? Every country pursuing the same agenda? Go on, have a think, I’ll wait. When you’re done you might also spare a thought for the nearly 3 million who’ve died from a nonexistent disease. which brings us on nicely to the next craziness.

4. COVID death rates are inflated

Fallacy: The one individual, most notably responsible for getting this misinformation ball rolling is Dr. Annie Bukacek. Her speech, in April of 2020 warning that COVID death certificates are being manipulated has been viewed more than a million times on YouTube. Bukacek appears in a white lab coat and with a stethoscope around her neck, making her look like an authoritative medical source. Dig a little deeper, however, as Rolling Stone magazine did, and it turns out she’s a far-right anti-vaccination and anti-abortion activist, previously noted for bringing tiny plastic fetuses into the Montana state legislature.

Her insistence that COVID death rates are inflated has, of course, no basis in fact. More likely the current death toll is a serious under-count. To further clarify the issue, the Centers for Disease Control has published information about excess deaths associated with COVID-19.

If anything, it is in a country’s interest, particularly for its government and appointed leaders, to try and underreport deaths. Again, think logically. Want to be seen as the hero who controlled the Covid outbreak or the loser who let it get away with spiraling deaths? Good luck getting re-elected. Mexico is an excellent example, having recently acknowledged under-reporting nearly 120 000 Covid-19 deaths.

5. The virus was made in a laboratory in Wuhan

Fallacy: Most of this has to do with the anti-Chinese sentiment that was encouraged under a Trump-led Republican government. When your President resorts to petty tactics like calling CoV-2 “the China virus” it doesn’t take long for other clowns to sign up for the circus. In fairness, China tried to blame the virus on visiting American troops, probably in response to American tactics.

Politics aside, let’s look at the science. The SARS virus (SARS-CoV) and the subsequent MERS virus are both known to have animal reservoirs, notably Himalayan palm civetsin the case of SARS and dromedary camels (one hump please) for MERS. SARS-CoV-like viruses have been isolated from several bat species, predominately horseshoe bats (genus Rhinolophus). These viruses are zoonotic (animal to human origins) and there is no reason to assume SARS-CoV-2 is any different. It shares the majority of its genome with the SARS and MERS viruses. It is a coronavirus and its origins will, in time, be discovered. For now, this issue simply serves as a distraction from more important issues.

As an aside, lack of general knowledge can seriously impact our understanding of things. Almost every season’s new influenza strains emerge first in Asia and spread to the West. This historical process follows global seasonal weather patterns and actually affords the west an opportunity to rush out the current season’s influenza vaccines. Asia provides us with a heads up for what’s coming and, if anything, we should be grateful for the window they afford us, rather than trying to assign racially-based blame on countries that are in many ways more functional than the US.

6. The vaccines are inserting tracking devices into our bodies.

True: You can check this by walking naked in front of a monitor or flat-screen television with the frequency set to 1200Mhtz. You’ll notice the sudden interference on the screen every time you pass in front of the television. You can increase the acidity of your body to activate the nanotech. Drinking a glass of water diluted with a spoon of vinegar will help achieve full particle activation and we advise wearing rubber-soled shoes. Full instructions can be found here.

Okay, we (or rather I) have had my fun. This is in fact complete and utter rubbish. We aren’t even close to possessing this kind of tech and while we can place medical devices inside a person for examination purposes these devices have a limited lifespan of a few hours at best and are not individually identifying. Also, what is the point to being able to track everyone unless you can identify who is who? That would mean individualized tech for each person. Sorry, but you’ve got an extremely overinflated idea of your value to big brother. Get a grip.

Footnotes

1. No Spotted Panamanian Anteaters were harmed during the completion of this article.

The post Debunking Common Coronavirus and Covid Misconceptions, Myths, Lies, and Fairytales appeared first on Medika Life.