Thread

Nearly 200 people under observation after Irkutsk lab worker dies from plague

187 points · 150 comments · ericmay

robmusial · 1791169542 · focus · HN ↗
I literally just finished Annie Jacobsen's book 'Biological War: A Scenario' last week where the central plot point is an accidental release of modified form of pneumonic plague from a lab in Siberia. Very coincidental timing, especially since it made me wonder how often labs like these have accidents and we never hear about them because it is cleaned up without issue.
1. petcat · 1791170758 · focus · HN ↗
  > made me wonder how often labs like these have accidents and we never hear about them because it is cleaned up without issue.
  Did anyone ever confirm if the lab in Wuhan China was the originator of COVID? I remember that was a rumor but never heard if there was anything to it.
  1. mvlipwig · 1791171014 · focus · HN ↗
    It's difficult to say for sure, but the consensus is leaning towards zoonotic origin from a bat or pangolin in a wet market. (I'm not very well researched on this topic and don't have any formal background in it, so hedge accordingly)
    SV_BubbleTime · 1791174191 · focus · HN ↗
    >but the consensus is leaning towards zoonotic origin from a bat or pangolin in a wet market
    I literally had to check the date on this post.
    Does anyone else remember when claiming it was a lab in China that leaked was “racist”… but “they eat tainted exotic animals at wet markets” was “the consensus”?
    Wild times!
    refulgentis · 1791175324 · focus · HN ↗
    Calling it the “Chinavirus” was obviously racist and weird. It was an ex posto facto thing to claim saying it was a lab leak was racist. I’m sure someone said that, however, no one serious was nor was it a common position.
    ipaddr · 1791177365 · focus · HN ↗
    I don't the formula: place + virus is racist. Racism is a serious issue and shouldn't be labelled on things that aren't making judgement using someone's race.
    Normally city + virus using country + virus is incorrect. But to call it racist or transphobic or fascist would be an incorrect usage.
    dwattttt · 1791177982 · focus · HN ↗
    The Spanish Flu's first known case was in Kansas. French papers changed from calling it American Flu to Spanish Flu to avoid angering an ally (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_flu#cite_note-fiction-57" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_flu#cite_note-fiction-...).
    Maybe place + virus isn't inherently racist, but it's been politically charged & exploited; best to put the combination down.

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