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This is like a string of dystopian Scwarzenegger apocalypse movies.
You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the old model obsolete. R. Buckminster Fuller
A whole bunch of different labs, in different countries, infected various mouse and hamster strains with both Delta and Omicron variants. Important findings: The degrees of pathology in their upper respiratory tracts was essentially the same between variants, but Delta deep lung pathology was more severe than Omicron. More severe including death in some cases. Not that Omicron did not cause deaths in certain sets of animals, but Delta caused significantly more. These differences were measured in several different ways, by different labs, and for different animals.
BUT (and it's a pretty big but) some of the most severe pathology was in a transgenic hamster strain that made human ACE2 receptors. And mouse and human immune systems are pretty different. So their conclusions are just about mice and hamsters, not humans. They are doing more work to track down why Omicron is less pathological for mice and hamsters. If we share those same mechanisms with mice and hamsters, then they might be able to say something about the relative pathogenicity of Omicron versus Delta in humans.
This is an excellent illustration of why real research is difficult: They can't do a lot of these experiments in humans. And when they do them in a (necessarily) imperfect animal model, they can't immediately draw conclusions about humans. But if they track down a particular RNA mutation that causes a particular protein change, where we share that affected biochemical activity with the animal model, then they can say how it could affect humans. It's all about determining mechanisms.
Another paper came out recently that said the changes to the spike RNA have nothing to do with virulence. They only affect spike binding and antibody evasion, and thus entry into the cell. Other mutations affect the proteins the virus makes once it's in the cell and has hijacked the replication mechanisms. Those are the culprits. But this may be more information than most of us need!
It's sad when people die from Covid, especially when they didn't have to, but we got billions of humans. There are only a few thousand Snow Leopards left, and this guy's not the first to die from Covid.
Last edited by pondering_it_all; 01/10/2208:57 AM.
Campbell has finally addressed the very real possibility of long run fat tail effects of a pandemic that's allowed to run wild.
Still not able to figure it out when it comes to posting vids. Upshot is I can quit muttering at him about long covid when I tune in to hear what he has to say. As others have been warning about from the beginning, Ya kinda can't let a bug run wild where we develop no lasting immunity for. Especially one that can have accumulating long run effects with each successive wave. A scientific theory of disease spread and robust public health system is handy here, unfortunately for us.
It's interesting to note that there are some countries that are trying elimination strategies and not the current 'living with it' model that our ruling classes are demanding of everyone.
One wonders if the virus will be do to children what scarlet fever did to previous generations of children. Only time will tell I guess. But hey, that spice doesn't mine itself!
Elimination is probably impossible. Some, including Campbell, are saying Omicron probably came back to humans after bouncing around inside a mouse population for months or years. That seems likely when you look at the origin of Omicron in terms of unique mutations. If not mice, then some other population of animals. Wildlife zoonotic disease programs in this country have vaccinated some skunks and racoons against rabies by dropping vaccine-laced bait. I'm sure vaccinating all the mice in the world would be a lot harder than vaccinating all the people.
CORRECTION: We are doubling every 10 days, according the US CDC data. So my prediction for the US is off. Same result, but unless people's behavior changes dramatically (like locking down voluntarily) it will take about two months instead of one. California has doubled in the last six days, so in about 5 weeks it will be mostly over here. My prediction for the UK was based on their Rt values, so it still stands.
Went to get my teeth cleaned today, and got a smog test so I can still drive my car. The dentists office is fully vaccinated and boosted, and I was impressed by their precautions. For example, how many dentists keep their office door wide open with fans running in January? Smog test was essentially outdoors, so that was probably okay too. But my wife is isolating from me for 5 days to see if I show signs of infection. That means sleeping in another room, wearing masks in common areas, etc.
BTW: Everybody getting infected does not mean everybody gets sick. It's bad news for the unvaccinated who were never infected, but for the majority of vaccinated folks it's asymptomatic.
Last edited by pondering_it_all; 01/11/2210:35 AM.
Two vaxxed + boosted people from work have returned to work following their bout with COVID. Both seem fine yesterday. Both said having COVID was really awful: chills, fever, trouble breathing, no visit to the hospital, though. Both said if this is how it was being vaxxed + booted, the peeps not vaxxed must be really, really struggling.
‘Anymore’. The gaslighting continues with the PMC incompetence. The ‘vaccines’ never did stop transmission. Hence the need for public health mitigation efforts based on evidence and not ‘stake holders’.
Aww Jeeze. The CDC is having a bad one. Having to course correct in the face of mounting evidence. One must not discount the damage to the PMC vanity when factoring in the science. Hat trick is to change your protocols without it sounding like you’ve changed your mind.
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