zlacker

>>nnx+(OP)
It's interesting to see that with Donald Trump out of office, the "lab escape" hypothesis is not roundly dismissed as a right-wing conspiracy theory anymore.

>>incrud+I2
Donald Trump would have used any present ambiguity to spin it into a conspiracy myth, like he has demonstrated e.g. in the last US election [1]. Unsurprisingly this practise doesn't really create a climate in which curiosity and open speculation will thrive.

Understandably, there are few researchers who would like their scientific speculation to become part the often colourful narratives Donald Trump and his followers tell each others.

Edit: edited to reduce snarkiness and polemic phrases

[1] For an example of Trump trying to find "material" that he can use for the stories he tells his following, see this transcript of Trumps call to the Georgia election official at the bottom of the page: https://apnews.com/article/election-2020-joe-biden-donald-tr...