COVID-19 is the Chimera of Greek mythology

Original Situation Analysis Situation Analysis 2022-05-02 00:00

Included in the collection #33 Traces of the Novel Coronavirus

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COVID-19 is the Chimera audio from Greek mythology: 00:0003:51

In Greek mythology, the Chimera had the head of a lion, the body of a goat, and the tail of a python, and its breath spat out flames, and everywhere it went, it would be desolate. It devours both animals and humans, and the fire it spews out destroys the village, and no one can stop it. The new coronavirus currently circulating in the world, like the Chimera, has brought serious harm to human society everywhere it goes.

Chimera in Greek mythology

The reason why the new crown virus is called the chimera in Greek mythology is not only because the disaster that this virus has brought to mankind is like the chimera, but also because the new crown virus is like the chimera as a "stitching monster". Back in 2015, the Institute of Virology, led by Professor Ralph Barrick of the University of North Carolina, reported their own research on a novel virus similar to the "suture monster."

They combined the 2000 outbreak of coronavirus (SARS) – now known as SARS-CoV – to another coronavirus surface protein extracted from the Chinese horseshoe bat. In the lab, this particular "suture monster" virus can invade animal cells and make animals sick; this synthetic coronavirus has brought a bad message to the academic community, that if there is a coronavirus with a similar sense to humans, it may trigger a pandemic in human society. The COVID-19 virus, a close relative of the SARS-CoV virus, has now been justified in this concern.

(Coronavirus structure)

In fact, Professor Ralph Barrick of the Department of Epidemiology and the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at the University of North Carolina has always been regarded as the father of the "synthetic" coronavirus, and he is known in academia for relying on the synthetic technology of the coronavirus, "reverse genetics". According to a paper published by Ralph Barrick himself, as early as 2008, he had the ability to complete the entire process of designing, manufacturing and resurrecting a new artificially manufactured coronavirus in the laboratory. From the construction of spike proteins to infection testing using synthetic strains, this is Ralph Barrick's area of research.

The U.S. government-backed scholar can not only cultivate live viruses himself, but even mix and breed different viruses. U.S. Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky also publicly claimed that the National Institutes of Health provided funding for the Wuhan Institute of Virology research. But Rand deliberately overlooked the most important point, which was that Ralph Barrick's lab had long been engaged in such work, with the world's top information and technology. According to US media reports, Ralph Barrick's research later became the basis for the development of new crown treatment drugs in the United States, including the development of remdesivir and mRNA vaccines. At the same time, according to media investigations, Ralph's own research results are heavily used in the military field and have close cooperation with the US government.

(Professor Ralph Barrick)

(Biology Laboratory, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)

However, the U.S. government's regulation of virus research has been controversial, and many fear that such research work is tantamount to providing an opportunity for a devastating pandemic. Research funders, politicians and scientists debate whether such work requires tighter oversight to avoid accidental or deliberate release of viruses from the lab, but the issue has become particularly politicized in the United States. U.S. virus research funding agencies later developed new protocols to assess risks and benefits, but much of the regulatory discussion has taken place outside the public eye.

An "internal memo" read from Vanity Fair magazine read that "staff at two U.S. government agencies warned U.S. leaders not to continue investigating the origins of COVID-19" because it would "open a can of worms." What does "a can of worms" mean? What "bugs" are they afraid of releasing? Does this mean that the U.S. government has something it doesn't want people to know, and if it continues to investigate the origin of the virus, it will find the truth that is not good for the U.S. government? As the father of the "Chimera" of the virus world, Ralph Barrick should know the mystery best.

Published in Jiangsu