zlacker

Peter Daszak, member of the WHO Covid origins team, was also the project lead for the US funded gain of function research of novel coronaviruses that was going on at the Wuhan BSL4 lab.

There is historical precedent of authorities blaming local meat markets to cover up a lab leak.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sverdlovsk_anthrax_leak

>>loveis+(OP)
I can't believe that Mr. Daszak is on the origins team... nothing like letting the accused do the investigation.

>>loveis+(OP)
Interesting pointer there but his answer on the issue seems plausible as well. Apparently they were "just fishing for funding":

https://twitter.com/PeterDaszak/status/1292819714935271424

I'm not a virologist but every TWiV episode I listened to, there was convincing talk about natural reservoirs being the most likely source of the virus.

AFAIR they also expect similar events to happen increasingly all over the world due to side effects of the climate crisis and global heating.

>>musha6+Sm
>I'm not a virologist but every TWiV episode I listened to, there was convincing talk about natural reservoirs being the most likely source of the virus.

In no way whatsoever does that detract from a potential lab leak. The vast majority of viruses used in gain of function research are taken from natural reservoirs.

>>loveis+(OP)
Peter Daszak was also signatory to this weird paper "in support of Chinese scientists".

> We sign this statement in solidarity with all scientists and health professionals in China who continue to save lives and protect global health during the challenge of the COVID-19 outbreak. We are all in this together, with our Chinese counterparts in the forefront, against this new viral threat. The rapid, open, and transparent sharing of data on this outbreak is now being threatened by rumours and misinformation around its origins. We stand together to strongly condemn conspiracy theories suggesting that COVID-19 does not have a natural origin. Scientists from multiple countries have published and analysed genomes of the causative agent, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), and they overwhelmingly conclude that this coronavirus originated in wildlife, as have so many other emerging pathogens.

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/339367143_Statement...

Scary piece of propaganda, considering it was China who started rumours and misinformation, and tying the lab leak hypothesis to not supporting health professionals. All-in-all, a grave conflict of interest for a supposed objective investigation into the origins.