offguardian--2020-09-09--Assange: Ask not for whom the bell tolls

You find me hyperbolic ?
I ’ d love to hear your factually based reasons .
Ditto if you had a similar reaction to my many allusions to the USA – and other imperialisms defined as such by financial domination of the global south – as lawless .
I look to facts rather than lifelong imbued depictions , powerfully impressionistic and implicitly racist , of a morally superior West when all the evidence points quite the other way .
Take the US Empire .
It really is an extraordinary achievement by narrative managers that slavery , colonial plunder , land @ @ @ @ @ @ @ install US puppets and genocidally internecine quarrels ( the last one ending in the Pentagon testing newly acquired death technology on the Japanese people ) have been variously ignored , justified by half truths and flat out lies , or simply filed under the Bad Old Days before “ we ” learned to behave better .
The agents of this PR success story are by no means confined to news media .
They also take in our entertainment industries , education systems and other ideological gatekeepers .
What ’ s more – see @ @ @ @ @ @ @ our media – this success does not presuppose consciously mendacious actors .
In the main , the normal incentives of career motivation apply .
And here ’ s a now famous exchange from February 1996 , between the BBC ’ s Andrew Marr and Noam Chomsky : By 2017 Marr had honed his riposte : Which tells me several things .
One is that Marr is intellectually vain .
“ I immediately realised … ” can be read as defending his being lost for words at the time .
Another , more important @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Guardian and Telegraph pose very different worldviews .
For reasons I ’ ve set out many times , on issues that most matter to class rule , Marr , product of a privileged but narrow education ( Dundee High , Cambridge ) , is quite wrong on this point .
As for “ journalists varying hugely in politics and temperament ” , that is so spectacularly point missing , from an otherwise sophisticated man , as to corroborate an opinion I ’ ve long held .
In a corrupt status quo , career @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , for reasons to do with our limited capacity to tolerate cognitive dissonance , its own forms of obtuseness .
Finally , Chomsky is emphatically not a conspiracy theorist in any meaningful sense of the term – read him at source on these matters – far less in the degraded sense now routinely used to dismiss arguments – not just any old argument but those fatal to illusions which enable class rule to go quietly about its business – without the inconvenience of addressing their specifics .
Implicit in Marr ’ s usage @ @ @ @ @ @ @ – and this too is implicit – lays at Chomsky ’ s door .
Not that self interest leading to self censorship , without our being consciously involved in the process , is confined to news media .
It can be detected in all ideological agencies , aided by the reality that homo sapiens sapiens , for all her remarkable powers of reason , is first and foremost a psychological rather than logical animal .
Which goes some way to explaining why myths imbibed since infancy , of the fairness of our political @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and of a moral entitlement – nay , duty – to police the planet so often trump cold facts .
Especially when , on matters which do not cut to the heart of ruling class interests , the myths are not wholly inaccurate .
It is Julian Assange ’ s misfortune – and ours , if we could but see beyond the ends of our noses – that the threat he posed through truthful journalism did indeed cut to the heart of ruling class interests .
But that ’ s quite enough from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , writing today in WSWS .
The latest stage in the decade-long persecution of Julian Assange begins today , with the final three weeks of British court hearings for the extradition of the WikiLeaks publisher to the US , where he faces 175 years in prison for exposing American war crimes , human rights violations , coups and meddling operations around the world .
Whatever the court decides will likely be subject to years of legal appeal , but the scenario that Assange has warned of for the past ten years—that he risks @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , prosecuted for lawful publishing activities and thrown into a hellhole run by his CIA persecutors—is all too real .
The innumerable pundits and media commentators who derided these warnings as a conspiracy theory and promoted the slanders used to undermine public support for Assange have fallen silent .
The legal travesty underway in the land of the Magna Carta either goes unmentioned in the official press , or is discreetly buried in brief columns halfway through the papers .
The hearings are only proceeding because the attempt of the British state to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ danger of coronavirus infection has so far failed .
Throughout the pandemic , Assange has been held in the maximum-security Belmarsh Prison , where he has been denied a mask or any other protection , even as dozens of inmates and staff have contracted COVID-19 .
A bail application has been contemptuously dismissed , despite the fact that Assange has been convicted of no crime , as have warnings that his health continues to deteriorate .
Assange , facing the most consequential legal proceedings of his life , has been unable to meet @ @ @ @ @ @ @ months .
Weeks before the resumption of the trial , US prosecutors filed a superseding indictment , based on the lies and slanders of FBI informants , over a year after they were required to submit their final charge sheet .
The transparent purpose was to inundate Assange ’ s legal team with tens of thousands of documents , after they had finished preparing their case , to prevent even the possibility of a defence .
As a matter of law , the US extradition request should have been thrown out as soon @ @ @ @ @ @ @ innumerable treaties , laws and international conventions , including a ban on extraditions from Britain to the US for political offenses…

Philip Roddis
I began a recent post with this assertion:
The western world is inhabited by those who know we are ruled by sociopaths … and that much larger group which, taking at face value the surface forms of democracy informed by independent media, either cannot or will not accept this admittedly frightening truth.
You find me hyperbolic? I’d love to hear your factually based reasons. Ditto if you had a similar reaction to my many allusions to the USA – and other imperialisms defined as such by financial domination of the global south – as lawless.
I look to facts rather than lifelong imbued depictions, powerfully impressionistic and implicitly racist, of a morally superior West when all the evidence points quite the other way. Take the US Empire. It really is an extraordinary achievement by narrative managers that slavery, colonial plunder, land grabs, coups, colour revolutions to install US puppets and genocidally internecine quarrels (the last one ending in the Pentagon testing newly acquired death technology on the Japanese people) have been variously ignored, justified by half truths and flat out lies, or simply filed under the Bad Old Days before “we” learned to behave better.
The agents of this PR success story are by no means confined to news media. They also take in our entertainment industries, education systems and other ideological gatekeepers. What’s more – see my July post, political economy of our media – this success does not presuppose consciously mendacious actors. In the main, the normal incentives of career motivation apply.
Here’s what I wrote in 2016:
Journalists who know what’s good for them please editors. Editors who know what’s good for them please proprietors. Proprietors need advertisers and crave honours.
And here’s a now famous exchange from February 1996, between the BBC’s Andrew Marr and Noam Chomsky:
Marr: How can you know I’m self censoring? Chomsky: I’m not saying you are self censoring. I’m sure you believe everything you say. But what I’m saying is that if you believed something different you wouldn’t be sitting where you’re sitting.
By 2017 Marr had honed his riposte:
I was nervous of Chomsky. When he said “if you believed something different, you wouldn’t be where you’re sitting”, I immediately realised this was not so much brilliant as unanswerable […] I had said that the Guardian and the Telegraph posed very different world views. And that journalists varied hugely in politics and temperament. Chomsky is brilliant, but a brilliant conspiracist, so no, it wasn’t a matter of the penny dropping, still less an epiphany.”
Which tells me several things. One is that Marr is intellectually vain. “I immediately realised …” can be read as defending his being lost for words at the time. Another, more important, is that he really does believe Guardian and Telegraph pose very different worldviews.
For reasons I’ve set out many times, on issues that most matter to class rule, Marr, product of a privileged but narrow education (Dundee High, Cambridge), is quite wrong on this point.
(Or have I missed some profoundly subtle yet shatteringly radical difference between Guardian and Telegraph coverage of Assad, Assange, Chavez, Corbyn, Maduro, Mugabe, Putin and Xi? My, in a world of thugs and robbers, mostly in the global south, we can thank our lucky stars that the West, with its 500 year history of altruism, is ready and willing to act as the world’s selfless gendarme!)
As for “journalists varying hugely in politics and temperament”, that is so spectacularly point missing, from an otherwise sophisticated man, as to corroborate an opinion I’ve long held. In a corrupt status quo, career mindedness begets cynicism which in turn begets, for reasons to do with our limited capacity to tolerate cognitive dissonance, its own forms of obtuseness.
Finally, Chomsky is emphatically not a conspiracy theorist in any meaningful sense of the term – read him at source on these matters – far less in the degraded sense now routinely used to dismiss arguments – not just any old argument but those fatal to illusions which enable class rule to go quietly about its business – without the inconvenience of addressing their specifics. Implicit in Marr’s usage is the very circularity of reasoning he – and this too is implicit – lays at Chomsky’s door.
Not that self interest leading to self censorship, without our being consciously involved in the process, is confined to news media. It can be detected in all ideological agencies, aided by the reality that homo sapiens sapiens, for all her remarkable powers of reason, is first and foremost a psychological rather than logical animal.
Which goes some way to explaining why myths imbibed since infancy, of the fairness of our political and judicial systems, of media independence and of a moral entitlement – nay, duty – to police the planet so often trump cold facts. Especially when, on matters which do not cut to the heart of ruling class interests, the myths are not wholly inaccurate.
It is Julian Assange’s misfortune – and ours, if we could but see beyond the ends of our noses – that the threat he posed through truthful journalism did indeed cut to the heart of ruling class interests.
But that’s quite enough from me. Here’s Oscar Grenfell, writing today in WSWS.
The working class must defend Julian Assange! OSCAR GRENFELL, 7 SEPTEMBER 2020 The latest stage in the decade-long persecution of Julian Assange begins today, with the final three weeks of British court hearings for the extradition of the WikiLeaks publisher to the US, where he faces 175 years in prison for exposing American war crimes, human rights violations, coups and meddling operations around the world. Whatever the court decides will likely be subject to years of legal appeal, but the scenario that Assange has warned of for the past ten years—that he risks being hauled before a secret US court, prosecuted for lawful publishing activities and thrown into a hellhole run by his CIA persecutors—is all too real. The innumerable pundits and media commentators who derided these warnings as a conspiracy theory and promoted the slanders used to undermine public support for Assange have fallen silent. The legal travesty underway in the land of the Magna Carta either goes unmentioned in the official press, or is discreetly buried in brief columns halfway through the papers. The hearings are only proceeding because the attempt of the British state to kill Assange by exposing him to the danger of coronavirus infection has so far failed. Throughout the pandemic, Assange has been held in the maximum-security Belmarsh Prison, where he has been denied a mask or any other protection, even as dozens of inmates and staff have contracted COVID-19. A bail application has been contemptuously dismissed, despite the fact that Assange has been convicted of no crime, as have warnings that his health continues to deteriorate. Assange, facing the most consequential legal proceedings of his life, has been unable to meet with his lawyers for the past six months. Weeks before the resumption of the trial, US prosecutors filed a superseding indictment, based on the lies and slanders of FBI informants, over a year after they were required to submit their final charge sheet. The transparent purpose was to inundate Assange’s legal team with tens of thousands of documents, after they had finished preparing their case, to prevent even the possibility of a defence. As a matter of law, the US extradition request should have been thrown out as soon as it was submitted. It violates innumerable treaties, laws and international conventions, including a ban on extraditions from Britain to the US for political offenses…
Read the full piece here.
NOTES: [1] See also the observations of former UK Ambassador Craig Murray, present at the Old Bailey today for the resumption of Julian’s Extradition Hearing. [2] Emphasis here is mine. It is my view that of all the media vilification of Assange, the worst was from the Guardian. Its columnists – from Luke Harding to Marina Hyde and Suzanne “massive turd” Moore – led the way in cutting Assange loose from what should have been his natural support base, the liberal intelligentsia.


offguardian--2020-09-09--Flu is killing more people than Covid19, and has been for months

Latest ONS figures show the “ pandemic ” fatalities have slowed to a trickle , and lockdown has nothing to do with it .
Flu is killing more people than Covid19 , and has been for months A report from the UK ’ s Office of National Statistics ( ONS ) shows that since at least June 19th , more people in the UK have been dying of influenza than Covid19 .
This , of course , is despite the fact that “ Covid19 deaths ” are incredibly vaguely defined .
Under UK law a person only has to test @ @ @ @ @ @ @ point in the 28 days prior to their death for “ Covid19 ” to be on their death certificate , a policy which totally ignores the fact the majority of Sars-Cov-2 infections are completely symptomless ( and has already resulted in huge over-counts ) .
Meanwhile boring old influenza is lumbered with having to actually contribute to the death before being added to the death certificate .
And nevertheless , for three straight months , the UK has recorded more flu deaths than Covid deaths .
“ Ah ” , some of your @ @ @ @ @ @ @ just evidence that the lockdown , social distancing and masks have worked.
” But that is obviously not the case .
Clearly , if these measures did anything to halt viral transmission , the flu deaths would have gone down as well .
They have not .
They are right in line with the five-year average .
Despite social distancing and wearing masks and hand sanitizer on every corner…the spread of the flu virus has not halted one bit in its usual annual progress through society .
Ergo – the “ emergency measures @ @ @ @ @ @ @ viral transmission .
The “ novel ” coronavirus is still spreading all across the population and is now killing fewer people than normal flu viruses , even though it ’ s late summer and we ’ re well past the peak flu season .
Even following the state ’ s own coronavirus narrative – that every person who dies with the virus is a “ covid death ” , and that every positive test is actually a “ case ” and not a false positive – even then the Covid19 story is done @ @ @ @ @ @ @ those with weakened immune systems or who were already seriously ill , and is now moving harmlessly through the population – regardless of whatever draconian controls we put in place to ( allegedly ) stop it .
Just as many epidemiologists and virologists predicted it would .
Does this mean the lockdown is over ?
Does this mean we can dump “ the new normal ” and get back to the old normal , which – though I wasn ’ t enjoying it much at the time – I now look back on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ?
Does this mean the government are going to leave us alone ?
Instead , the social controls are getting stricter .
The UK has announced that , from Monday the 14th , no social gatherings of more than 6 people will be allowed .
There ’ s talk of a curfew too .
Oh , and those “ immunity passports ” ?
You remember , the ones only paranoid conspiracy theorists were ever worried about .
Well , they might be bringing those in to .
As a purely temporary measure you @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the movies again .
The numbers speak for themselves .
The “ danger ” – such as it ever was – is over .
The curve has been flattened , the hospitals protected , the hands well and truly sanitized .
And yet the lockdown is still here , and getting tighter all the time .
Maybe , just maybe , it was never about the virus .

Latest ONS figures show the “pandemic” fatalities have slowed to a trickle, and lockdown has nothing to do with it.
Flu is killing more people than Covid19, and has been for months
Kit Knightly
A report from the UK’s Office of National Statistics (ONS) shows that since at least June 19th, more people in the UK have been dying of influenza than Covid19.
This, of course, is despite the fact that “Covid19 deaths” are incredibly vaguely defined.
Under UK law a person only has to test positive for the Sars-Cov-2 virus at any point in the 28 days prior to their death for “Covid19” to be on their death certificate, a policy which totally ignores the fact the majority of Sars-Cov-2 infections are completely symptomless (and has already resulted in huge over-counts).
Meanwhile boring old influenza is lumbered with having to actually contribute to the death before being added to the death certificate. And nevertheless, for three straight months, the UK has recorded more flu deaths than Covid deaths.
See this graph:
“Ah”, some of your may be saying, “this is just evidence that the lockdown, social distancing and masks have worked.”
But that is obviously not the case. Clearly, if these measures did anything to halt viral transmission, the flu deaths would have gone down as well. They have not. They are right in line with the five-year average.
Despite social distancing and wearing masks and hand sanitizer on every corner…the spread of the flu virus has not halted one bit in its usual annual progress through society.
Ergo – the “emergency measures” have little to no impact on viral transmission.
The “novel” coronavirus is still spreading all across the population and is now killing fewer people than normal flu viruses, even though it’s late summer and we’re well past the peak flu season.
Even following the state’s own coronavirus narrative – that every person who dies with the virus is a “covid death”, and that every positive test is actually a “case” and not a false positive – even then the Covid19 story is done. The virus arrived, it hit those with weakened immune systems or who were already seriously ill, and is now moving harmlessly through the population – regardless of whatever draconian controls we put in place to (allegedly) stop it.
Just as many epidemiologists and virologists predicted it would.
Does this mean the lockdown is over? Does this mean we can dump “the new normal” and get back to the old normal, which – though I wasn’t enjoying it much at the time – I now look back on as golden age of calm and reason?
Does this mean the government are going to leave us alone?
In short, no.
Instead, the social controls are getting stricter. The UK has announced that, from Monday the 14th, no social gatherings of more than 6 people will be allowed. There’s talk of a curfew too.
Oh, and those “immunity passports”? You remember, the ones only paranoid conspiracy theorists were ever worried about. Well, they might be bringing those in to. As a purely temporary measure you understand, so people can go to the movies again.
The numbers speak for themselves. The “danger” – such as it ever was – is over. The curve has been flattened, the hospitals protected, the hands well and truly sanitized.
And yet the lockdown is still here, and getting tighter all the time. Maybe, just maybe, it was never about the virus.


offguardian--2020-09-10--16th Annual 9/11 Truth Film Festival

16th Annual 9/11 Truth Film Festival

2020 is an unusual year ; weddings have been cancelled , schools closed , almost all large public gatherings banned , the global economy dismantled ; the middle class and Main Street ’ s small and medium sized businesses are struggling to survive .
In California , the film industry , the theaters have been hit hard .
The Grand Lake Theater , which has generously hosted countless events and 15 prior 9/11 Truth Film Festivals is currently closed .
In March , the Northern California 9/11 Truth Alliance could no longer meet legally and was forced to hold meetings @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Zoom meetings and discussions and organizing continued , despite the obstacles and challenges that everyone faced .
The group voted to go “ virtual ” this year , with the assistance of No Lies Radio who has been webstreaming the live Film Festival for many years .
As this dramatic year continues to unfold , our program is evolving ; we have penciled in films that are still in production , as well as the best 9/11 Truth films that we could find , since last year ’ s Film Festival .
In @ @ @ @ @ @ @ address Covid19 and the problems facing the upcoming national election .
The impact of 9/11 continues to shape US domestic and foreign policy , robbing us of our liberties , and costing millions of lives , as the subsequent wars continue to wreak havoc abroad .
We have been committed to “ seek and disseminate truths about the terrible crimes committed on September 11 , 2001 , exposing gaps and deceptions in the official story .
Our goal is to inspire more eyewitness revelations , truthful media coverage , and a movement that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and eliminate governmental and corporate policies that enable criminal elements to commit such acts.
” For more information and access to online-tickets click here , or click here to read the rest of this post and see the full program .

The Northern California 9/11 Truth Alliance presents the 16th Annual 9/11 Truth Film Festival
Thursday, September 10, 2020, noon to 8:00 pm Pacific Daylight Time
2020 is an unusual year; weddings have been cancelled, schools closed, almost all large public gatherings banned, the global economy dismantled; the middle class and Main Street’s small and medium sized businesses are struggling to survive. In California, the film industry, the theaters have been hit hard. The Grand Lake Theater, which has generously hosted countless events and 15 prior 9/11 Truth Film Festivals is currently closed.
In March, the Northern California 9/11 Truth Alliance could no longer meet legally and was forced to hold meetings in cyberspace. No Lies Radio hosted Zoom meetings and discussions and organizing continued, despite the obstacles and challenges that everyone faced. The group voted to go “virtual” this year, with the assistance of No Lies Radio who has been webstreaming the live Film Festival for many years.
As this dramatic year continues to unfold, our program is evolving; we have penciled in films that are still in production, as well as the best 9/11 Truth films that we could find, since last year’s Film Festival.
In addition to 9/11, our speakers will address Covid19 and the problems facing the upcoming national election.
The impact of 9/11 continues to shape US domestic and foreign policy, robbing us of our liberties, and costing millions of lives, as the subsequent wars continue to wreak havoc abroad.
We have been committed to “seek and disseminate truths about the terrible crimes committed on September 11, 2001, exposing gaps and deceptions in the official story.
Our goal is to inspire more eyewitness revelations, truthful media coverage, and a movement that will bring the responsible criminals to justice and eliminate governmental and corporate policies that enable criminal elements to commit such acts.”
For more information and access to online-tickets click here, or click here to read the rest of this post and see the full program.


offguardian--2020-09-10--9/11 in the “New Normal”

9/11 in the “New Normal”

This 9/11 I think the most important think is to recognise the continuum between that ‘ catalyzing event ’ and the one we are currently living through .
Just as with Sep 11 2001 , the covid19 “ pandemic ” is being used to initiate a massive paradigm shift in the public consciousness and to render ‘ normal ’ that which was unthinkable before this began .
The problem is some of those who opposed the perpetual ‘ war on terror ’ paradigm ushered in by 9/11 are endorsing or accepting the ‘ new normal ’ paradigm , because they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ may even result in a better world of peace , love and happiness .
I think they are horribly mistaken .
I think if they want to know the type of world we are being prepped for they should read Huxley ’ s BRAVE NEW WORLD .
It ’ s pretty much a blueprint – as has been all but spelled out for us by numerous authorities and opinion makers .
Peace ?
Maybe , though it ’ s debatable .
But it will be the ‘ peace ’ of enforced conformity .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ about that one .
Happiness ?
Well , maybe if you take enough Soma ( benzos , Ritalin , or whatever other substance you ’ re prescribed to enhance your level of obedience…unless they just add it to the water supply ) .
And no , the masks and lockdowns will not go away because you accept them .
You have been told that clearly by the govt you are believing and obeying .
You need to start listening to what they are actually saying .
And so with that we declare OffG @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the “ New Pearl Harbor ” officially open .

Catte Black
This 9/11 I think the most important thing is to recognise the continuum between that ‘catalyzing event’ and the one we are currently living through.
Just as with Sep 11 2001, the covid19 “pandemic” is being used to initiate a massive paradigm shift in the public consciousness and to render ‘normal’ that which was unthinkable before this began.
The problem is some of those who opposed the perpetual ‘war on terror’ paradigm ushered in by 9/11 are endorsing or accepting the ‘new normal’ paradigm, because they believe it is benign, essential and may even result in a better world of peace, love and happiness.
I think they are horribly mistaken. I think if they want to know the type of world we are being prepped for they should read Huxley’s BRAVE NEW WORLD. It’s pretty much a blueprint – as has been all but spelled out for us by numerous authorities and opinion makers.
Peace? Maybe, though it’s debatable. But it will be the ‘peace’ of enforced conformity.
Love? Ask the people of Melbourne about that one.
Happiness? Well, maybe if you take enough Soma (benzos, Ritalin, or whatever other substance you’re prescribed to enhance your level of obedience…unless they just add it to the water supply).
And no, the masks and lockdowns will not go away because you accept them. You have been told that clearly by the govt you are believing and obeying.
You need to start listening to what they are actually saying.
And so with that we declare OffG’s commemoration of the 19th anniversary of the “New Pearl Harbor” officially open.


offguardian--2020-09-11--From Terrorists to Viruses: Dystopian Progress

For anyone old enough to have been alive and aware of the attacks of September 11 , 2001 and of so-called COVID-19 in 2020 , memory may serve to remind one of an eerie parallel between the two operations .
However , if memory has been expunged by the work of one ’ s forgettery or deleted by the corporate media ’ s flushing it down the memory hole , or if knowledge is lacking , or maybe fear or cognitive dissonance is blocking awareness , I would like to point out some similarities that might perk one up to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ two operations .
The fundamental tie that binds them is that both events aroused the human fear of death .
Underlying all fears is the fear of death .
A fear that has both biological and cultural roots .
On the biological level , we all react to death threats in a fight or flight manner .
Culturally , there are multiple ways that fear can be allayed or exacerbated , purposely or not .
Usually , culture serves to ease the fear of death , which can traumatize people , through its @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a long time served that purpose , but when religion loses its hold on people ’ s imaginations , especially in regard to the belief in immortality , as Orwell pointed out in the mid-1940s , a huge void is left .
Without that consolation , fear is usually tranquilized by trivial pursuits .
In the cases of the attacks of September 11 , 2001 and the current coronavirus operation , the fear of death has been used by the power elites in order to control populations and institute long-planned agendas .
There @ @ @ @ @ @ @ two events .
Both events were clearly anticipated and planned .
In the case of September 11 , 2001 , as I have argued before , linguistic mind-control was carefully crafted in advance to conjure fear at the deepest levels with the use of such repeated terms as Pearl Harbor , Homeland , Ground Zero , the Unthinkable , and 9/11 .
Each in its turn served to raise the fear level dramatically .
Each drew on past meetings , documents , events , speeches , and deep associations of dread .
This @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s playbook , not from that of an apprentice out of control .
And as David Ray Griffin , the seminal 9/11 researcher ( and others ) , has pointed out in a dozen meticulously argued and documented books , the events of that day had to be carefully planned in advance , and the post hoc official explanations can only be described as scientific miracles , not scientific explanations .
These miracles include : • massive steel-framed high-rise buildings for the first time in history coming down without explosives or incendiaries @ @ @ @ @ @ @ them being WTC-7 that was not even hit by a plane • an alleged hijacker pilot , Hani Hanjour , who could barely fly a Piper Cub , flying a massive Boeing 757 in a most difficult maneuver into the Pentagon • airport security at four airports failing at the same moment on the same day The list goes on and on .
And all this controlled by Osama bin Laden .
It ’ s a fairy tale .
Then we had the crucially important anthrax attacks that are linked to 9/11 .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Deception , brilliantly shows that these too were a domestic conspiracy .
These planned events led to the invasion of Afghanistan , the Patriot Act , the U.S. withdrawal from the ABM Treaty , the invasion of Iraq , the ongoing war on terror , etc .
Let us not forget years of those fraudulent color-coded warnings of the terrorist levels and the government admonition to use duct tape around your windows to protect against a massive chemical and biological attack .
Let me start in reverse while color-coded designs are fresh in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were underway , a funny thing happened as people were wishing that life could return to normal and they could be let out of their cages .
Similar color-coded designs popped up everywhere at the same time .
They showed the step-by-step schedule of possible loosening of government controls if things went according to plan .
Red to yellow to green .
Eye catching .
Red orange yellow blue green .
As with the terrorist warnings following September 11 , 2001 .
In Massachusetts , a so-called blue state where I live , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ blue , not green , with Phase 4 blue termed “ the new normal : Development of vaccines and/or treatments enable the resumption of ‘ the new normal.
’ ” Interesting wording .
A resumption that takes us back to the future .
As with the duct tape admonitions after 9/11 , now everyone is advised to wear a mask .
It ’ s interesting to note that the 3M Company , a major seller of duct tape , is also one of the world ’ s major sellers of face masks .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ 50 million N95 respirator masks per month by June 2020 and 2 billion globally within the coming year .
Then there is 3M ’ s masking tape…but this is a sticky topic .
After the attacks of September 11 , 2001 , we were told repeatedly that the world was changed forever .
Now we are told that after COVID-19 , life will never be the same .
This is the “ new normal , ” while the post-9/11-pre-Covid-19 world must have been the old new normal .
So everything is different but @ @ @ @ @ @ @ government website puts it , in the days to come we may be enabled to enact “ the resumption of ‘ the new normal.
’ ” This new old normal will no doubt be a form of techno-fascist transhumanism enacted for our own good .
As with 9/11 , there is ample evidence that the coronavirus outbreak was expected and planned ; that people have been the victims of a propaganda campaign to use an invisible virus to scare us into submission and shut down the world ’ s economy for the global @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , as Peter Koenig tells Michel Chossudovsky in this must-see interview , that is not a conspiracy theory but a blatant factual plan spelled out in the 2010 Rockefeller Report , the October 18 , 2019 Event 201 , and Agenda 21 , among other places .
Like amorphous terrorists and a war against “ terrorism , ” which is a tactic and therefore not something you can fight , a virus is invisible except when the media presents it as a pale , orange-spiked bunch of floating weird balls that are everywhere @ @ @ @ @ @ @ watch your face , mask up , wash your hands , keep your distance – you never know when those orange spiked balls may get you .
As with 9/11 , whenever anyone questions the official narrative of Covid-19 , the official statistics , the validity of the tests , the effectiveness of masks , the powers behind the heralded vaccine to come , and the horrible consequences of the lockdowns that are destroying economies , killing people , forcing people to despair and to commit suicide , creating traumatized children , bankrupting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of enriching the richest , etc.
, the corporate media mock the dissidents as conspiracy nuts , aiding the viral enemy .
This is so even when the dissenters are highly respected doctors , scientists , intellectuals , et al.
, who are regularly disappeared from the internet .
With September 11 , there were initially far fewer dissenters than now , and so the censorship of opposing viewpoints didn ’ t need the blatant censorship that is now growing daily .
This censorship happens all across the internet now , quickly and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ being forced on everyone as the new normal as presented in the Great Global Reset , the digital lie , where , as Anthony Fauci put it , no one should ever shake hands again .
A world of abstract images and beings in which , as Arthur Jensen tells Howard Beal in the film , Network , “ All necessities [ will be ] provided , all anxieties tranquilized , all boredom amused.
” A digital dystopia that is fast approaching as perhaps the end of that red thread that runs from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Thomas Hackett write in the New York Daily News : That was written on September 12 , 2001 .

Edward Curtin
For anyone old enough to have been alive and aware of the attacks of September 11, 2001 and of so-called COVID-19 in 2020, memory may serve to remind one of an eerie parallel between the two operations.
However, if memory has been expunged by the work of one’s forgettery or deleted by the corporate media’s flushing it down the memory hole, or if knowledge is lacking, or maybe fear or cognitive dissonance is blocking awareness, I would like to point out some similarities that might perk one up to consider some parallels and connections between these two operations.
The fundamental tie that binds them is that both events aroused the human fear of death. Underlying all fears is the fear of death. A fear that has both biological and cultural roots. On the biological level, we all react to death threats in a fight or flight manner.
Culturally, there are multiple ways that fear can be allayed or exacerbated, purposely or not. Usually, culture serves to ease the fear of death, which can traumatize people, through its symbols and myths.
Religion has for a long time served that purpose, but when religion loses its hold on people’s imaginations, especially in regard to the belief in immortality, as Orwell pointed out in the mid-1940s, a huge void is left. Without that consolation, fear is usually tranquilized by trivial pursuits.
In the cases of the attacks of September 11, 2001 and the current coronavirus operation, the fear of death has been used by the power elites in order to control populations and institute long-planned agendas. There is a red thread that connects the two events.
Both events were clearly anticipated and planned.
In the case of September 11, 2001, as I have argued before, linguistic mind-control was carefully crafted in advance to conjure fear at the deepest levels with the use of such repeated terms as Pearl Harbor, Homeland, Ground Zero, the Unthinkable, and 9/11.
Each in its turn served to raise the fear level dramatically. Each drew on past meetings, documents, events, speeches, and deep associations of dread. This language was conjured from the chief sorcerer’s playbook, not from that of an apprentice out of control.
And as David Ray Griffin, the seminal 9/11 researcher (and others), has pointed out in a dozen meticulously argued and documented books, the events of that day had to be carefully planned in advance, and the post hoc official explanations can only be described as scientific miracles, not scientific explanations. These miracles include:
massive steel-framed high-rise buildings for the first time in history coming down without explosives or incendiaries in free fall speed; one of them being WTC-7 that was not even hit by a plane
an alleged hijacker pilot, Hani Hanjour, who could barely fly a Piper Cub, flying a massive Boeing 757 in a most difficult maneuver into the Pentagon
airport security at four airports failing at the same moment on the same day
all sixteen US intelligence agencies failing + air traffic control failing.
The list goes on and on. And all this controlled by Osama bin Laden. It’s a fairy tale.
Then we had the crucially important anthrax attacks that are linked to 9/11. Graeme MacQueen, in The 2001 Anthrax Deception, brilliantly shows that these too were a domestic conspiracy.
These planned events led to the invasion of Afghanistan, the Patriot Act, the U.S. withdrawal from the ABM Treaty, the invasion of Iraq , the ongoing war on terror, etc.
Let us not forget years of those fraudulent color-coded warnings of the terrorist levels and the government admonition to use duct tape around your windows to protect against a massive chemical and biological attack.
Jump to 2020.
Let me start in reverse while color-coded designs are fresh in our minds. As the COVID-19 lockdowns were underway, a funny thing happened as people were wishing that life could return to normal and they could be let out of their cages. Similar color-coded designs popped up everywhere at the same time.
They showed the step-by-step schedule of possible loosening of government controls if things went according to plan. Red to yellow to green. Eye catching. Red orange yellow blue green. As with the terrorist warnings following September 11, 2001.
In Massachusetts, a so-called blue state where I live, it’s color chart ends in blue, not green, with Phase 4 blue termed “the new normal: Development of vaccines and/or treatments enable the resumption of ‘the new normal.’”
Interesting wording. A resumption that takes us back to the future.
As with the duct tape admonitions after 9/11, now everyone is advised to wear a mask. It’s interesting to note that the 3M Company, a major seller of duct tape, is also one of the world’s major sellers of face masks. The company was expected to be producing 50 million N95 respirator masks per month by June 2020 and 2 billion globally within the coming year. Then there is 3M’s masking tape…but this is a sticky topic.
After the attacks of September 11, 2001, we were told repeatedly that the world was changed forever. Now we are told that after COVID-19, life will never be the same.
This is the “new normal,” while the post-9/11-pre-Covid-19 world must have been the old new normal. So everything is different but normal also. So as the Massachusetts government website puts it, in the days to come we may be enabled to enact “the resumption of ‘the new normal.’” This new old normal will no doubt be a form of techno-fascist transhumanism enacted for our own good.
As with 9/11, there is ample evidence that the coronavirus outbreak was expected and planned; that people have been the victims of a propaganda campaign to use an invisible virus to scare us into submission and shut down the world’s economy for the global elites.
It is a clear case, as Peter Koenig tells Michel Chossudovsky in this must-see interview, that is not a conspiracy theory but a blatant factual plan spelled out in the 2010 Rockefeller Report, the October 18, 2019 Event 201, and Agenda 21, among other places.
Like amorphous terrorists and a war against “terrorism,” which is a tactic and therefore not something you can fight, a virus is invisible except when the media presents it as a pale, orange-spiked bunch of floating weird balls that are everywhere and nowhere. Watch your back, watch your face, mask up, wash your hands, keep your distance – you never know when those orange spiked balls may get you.
As with 9/11, whenever anyone questions the official narrative of Covid-19, the official statistics, the validity of the tests, the effectiveness of masks, the powers behind the heralded vaccine to come, and the horrible consequences of the lockdowns that are destroying economies, killing people, forcing people to despair and to commit suicide, creating traumatized children, bankrupting small and middle-sized businesses for the sake of enriching the richest, etc., the corporate media mock the dissidents as conspiracy nuts, aiding the viral enemy.
This is so even when the dissenters are highly respected doctors, scientists, intellectuals, et al., who are regularly disappeared from the internet.
With September 11, there were initially far fewer dissenters than now, and so the censorship of opposing viewpoints didn’t need the blatant censorship that is now growing daily.
This censorship happens all across the internet now, quickly and stealthily, the same internet that is being forced on everyone as the new normal as presented in the Great Global Reset, the digital lie, where, as Anthony Fauci put it, no one should ever shake hands again.
A world of abstract images and beings in which, as Arthur Jensen tells Howard Beal in the film, Network, “All necessities [will be] provided, all anxieties tranquilized, all boredom amused.” A digital dystopia that is fast approaching as perhaps the end of that red thread that runs from 9/11 to today.
Heidi Evens and Thomas Hackett write in the New York Daily News:
With the nation’s illusion of safety and security in ruins, Americans begin the slow and fitful process of healing from a trauma that feels deeply, cruelly personal […] leaving citizens throughout the country with the frightening knowledge of their vulnerability.
That was written on September 12, 2001.
Edward Curtin is a writer whose work has appeared widely. He teaches sociology at Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts. His website is http://edwardcurtin.com/. He is the author of the new book Seeking Truth in A Country of Lies


offguardian--2020-09-12--Contrived Spectacles of “Protecting and Caring for the People”

The 1970s marked an important turning point in the history of Western democracies .
Having led their populations to the obscene carnage of World War II in reaction to Nazi aggression , the elites of North America and their non-communist European subjects understood — above all , for pragmatic reasons linked to the need to rebuild markets and industries — that it was in their interest to provide ordinary citizens of their societies with social and democratic rights and privileges seldom , if ever , seen in the history of humankind .
The effort was , for the most part @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lay precisely the problem : the masses who had grown up during the three decades following the war did not understand that the economic and governmental elites had no intention of allowing the regimes of supervised democracy of those years to evolve , over time , into true receptacles of the popular will .
The masses ’ inability to comprehend the implicit limits on their political agency was not a new problem .
What was new were the restrictions on elite manoeuvrability imposed by the reality of the Cold War in this historical @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to overwhelming violence , as they had traditionally done , to crush youthful rebellions in areas under their control when heavy-handedness of this type was precisely what they were criticizing day after day in their anti-communist propaganda ?
An answer to the dilemma began to emerge in 1970s Italy with the so-called ‘ Strategy of Tension ’ .
The method is as simple as it is diabolical and depends on the following reasoning : no matter how sclerotic , corrupt and discredited the existing regime of supervised democracy might be , people will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ giving those structures an instant dose of added legitimacy ) when confronted with a generalized rise in levels of social fear .
How is this accomplished ?
By planning and executing from the within government ( or through non-governmental actors operating with the approval of key governmental factions ) violent attacks against the population and attributing them to official enemies of the regime of supervised democracy .
And when the expected panic occurs ( a panic magnified , of course , by the many allies of the managed democracy in the press ) @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the beneficent protector of the lives of the citizenry .
Sound nutty , like a far out “ conspiracy theory ” ?
It is not .
What I have just explained – perhaps best exemplified by the terrorist attack on the Bologna railway station in 1980 – is extremely well- documented .
The mystery is why so few people are familiar with these state crimes against the their populations .
Is it a matter of fact-suppression by the big media ?
Or the reluctance of citizens themselves to grapple with the fact their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ?
Or maybe both things simultaneously ?
From the creation of one-off events to the promotion of permanent crisis Once the ‘ democratic ’ challenges of the 1960s and 1970s were neutralized—in part by the ultra-cynical methods mentioned above , and in part by the strategic flaccidness of the activists themselves — the economic elites of the United States and its junior partners in Europe galloped as never before , consolidating during 80s and 90s a level of control over the Western political class that would have been absolutely unthinkable in the first @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The growing divide between the economic elites and the large mass of the population that resulted from these changes was hidden during the 1990s by , among other things , by the cyber revolution ( with its corresponding financial bubbles and quotas of mental distraction ) and by the enthusiasm arising from the collapse of communism and the apparent consolidation of the European Union .
But if there is one thing that elites — be they financial , clerical , or military — have always understood , it is that no system of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ less so in the age of consumerism , characterized , as Bauman reminds us , by the compulsive search for new future sensations , on the one hand , and rampant forgetfulness , on the other .
In this new , more ‘ liquid ’ context , a single terrifying event—such as the government-approved Bologna massacre—has a much more limited domesticating effect than before .
Because , in an environment dominated by forgetting and the headlong search for new and different consumerist sensations , the ‘ disciplinary ’ effects of a singular shock @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a much more limited time within the brain of the average citizen .
And it was in this context , in the late 1990s , that the strategists of the United States and its European servants , collaborating in the context of their well-financed ‘ Atlanticist ’ networks , began to adapt their “ perception management ” tactics to the new cultural reality .
By turning consumerism ’ s obligatory forgetfulness , which they had initially viewed as a hindrance to the process of imposing social discipline , into their great ally .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ limited temporal effect upon the citizenry , they would create ( or give implicit consent for others in their trust to create ) large social disruptions , the disorienting effects of which would extended sine die through the well-spaced application of smaller shocks .
Indeed , they wanted to put into practice what seemed unreal and absolutely dystopian when Guy Debord described it in 1967 : an all-enveloping and energy-draining spectacle that remains constant in terms of the amount of social space it occupies , while regularly changing its plastic , visual and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ omnipresence in the minds of the populace , often has only a very tenuous relationship the empirical material reality of their day-to-day lives .
When , during the last decade of the 20th century , talk began in Atlanticist military and intelligence circles of ‘ Full-spectrum dominance ’ , most observers understood it mainly in terms of classical military capabilities .
That is , the ability of the US and NATO to physically destroy the enemy in the widest possible variety of situations .
However , over time , it has become clear @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this doctrine is in the field of information control and “ perception management ” .
I do not claim to understand all the operational realities behind the attacks on the Twin Towers in 2001 .
What I am sure of , however , is that the spectacle organized in reaction to these acts of destruction was by no means spontaneous or improvised .
The most obvious proof of is that just six weeks after the attacks , the US Congress passed the Patriot Act , a 342-page piece of legislation which was nothing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of all the curbs on basic civil rights that the harshest elements of the US deep state had been dreaming about enacting for several decades .
The careful observer of the country ’ s information environment will find many more indicators of a surprising degree of coordination in the media treatment of the 2001 attacks , a pattern of behaviors that we might do well to reacquaint ourselves with as we try and make sense of the COVID phenomenon .
Below some of the more salient features of the spectacle that was generated @ @ @ @ @ @ @ place in New York nearly two decades ago .
1 .
The very and early constant repetition in the media that the attack was an absolutely ‘ unprecedented ’ phenomenon in the history of the country , and quite possibly in the world .
Those of us who study history know that there are very few occurrences that can not be compared to others in the past , and that , moreover , it is precisely this practice of making transtemporal analogies that endows history with its great social value .
Without this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ find ourselves trapped in the emotional sensations and pains of the present , without the ability to relativize what is happening to us , which , of course , is essential if we want to react to life ’ s difficulties with wisdom and proportion .
On the other hand , who might profit by having citizens living in a timeless bubble of trauma , convinced that no one else in history has suffered in ways they are currently suffering ?
I think the answer is obvious .
2 .
The constant repetition @ @ @ @ @ @ @ moment following the attacks , that this day would ‘ change everything ’ .
How can we know in the first moment following that this event or any other that our lives will be fundamentally and inexorably changed ?
In addition to being very complex and full of surprises , life is also us and our combined will to shape it .
And while there is no doubt that we have never had absolute control over the fate of our collective life , we have also never been mere spectators in its development @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we decide to relinquish that responsibility .
In whose interest is it to induce in us a feeling of futility and/or a lack of agency regarding the future ?
Who benefits by convincing us that we will not be able to sustain or recover long-cherished elements our lives ?
In whose interest is it that we abandon the idea that we can be something more than mere spectators in the drama before us ?
I suspect it is someone other than most of us .
3 .
TINA or ‘ There is no @ @ @ @ @ @ @ especially a very rich country with many tentacles in global business and world-wide institutions , is attacked , it has many tools at its disposal and , therefore , many ways to react to the event .
For example , had it wanted to , the US could have easily used the events of September 11th to showcase how justice could be achieved through cooperation between judicial and police forces from countries around the world , a position that had numerous eloquent adherents within the country and abroad .
But none of them @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s viewers .
No , from the outset , the media spoke relentlessly , not about the moral and strategic advantages or disadvantages of a military attack , but about its impending operational details .
That is , almost from the moment the towers fell , commentators spoke of a massive military attack on ‘ someone ’ , with the same naturalness one uses to observe that the sun rises in the morning .
We were told constantly , in large and small ways , that there was no alternative to this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a body of television commentators who , with very slight variations in style , political affiliation and policy proposals , subscribe to all the basic assumptions mentioned above .
In fact , when a careful study of these pundits is done , we find frankly terrifying levels of organizational inbreeding are seen among them .
As Thomas Friedman , one of the best-known members of this gang of ‘ experts ’ said in an unguarded moment of candor in a conversation with Israeli journalist Ari Shavit in 2003 : It was only members @ @ @ @ @ @ @ spokespersons , who had the ‘ right ’ to explain the ‘ reality ’ of the post-9/11 crisis to the country ’ s citizens .
5 .
To create , with the full indulgence of the big media , a regime of public punishment for those who were contrary to the prescriptions of the small group of neocon experts mentioned above .
For example , when Susan Sontag , perhaps the most notable female American intellectual of the second half of the twentieth century , wrote an article harshly criticizing the US government @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the attacks , she was severely reprimanded and shamed throughout the media .
A little later , Phil Donahue , whose talk show boasted MSNBC ’ s highest audience share at the time , was fired for having invited too many people with anti-war views to his program .
This is last statement is not speculation .
It was made clear in an internal company document leaked to the press shortly after he lost his job .
6 .
The constant seamless and non-sensical substitution of one supposedly important “ reality ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ attack by a group of Saudis became a pretext for the invasion of Afghanistan , and then Iraq .
Extremely logical , right ?
Obviously not .
But it is also obvious that the authorities understood ( in fact , the so-called brain of Bush , Karl Rove , boasted a posteriori of his ability to invent realities and have them amplified by the press ) that under the influence of the “ continuous spectacle ” , with its constant dance of images designed to induce amnesia and psychological dislocation , the task @ @ @ @ @ @ @ logic is a decidedly secondary requirement 7 .
The invention and repeated deployment of what Levi-Straus called ‘ floating ” or “ empty ” signifiers — emotionally evocative terms presented without the contextual armature needed to for us to imbue them with any stable and unequivocal semantic value — designed to spread and sustain panic in society .
The classic examples of this were the constant mentions of WMDs and terror warnings in form of a multicolored thermometers with various ‘ temperatures ’ of risk generated by Homeland Security beginning — what a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ original psychological shock of the 9-11 attacks was beginning to fade .
An attack where ?
By whom ?
A threat according to what sources ?
We were never clearly told .
And that was precisely the point : to keep us vaguely frightened , and therefore much more willing to accept any security measures imposed by our ‘ protective parents ’ in government .
Might there be a relationship between set of propaganda techniques I have just sketched out and the spectacle currently being generated in relation to the COVID-19 phenomenon ?
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ But in the interest of stimulating a more in-depth analysis of the subject , I will pose a few questions .
Is COVID-19 really an unprecedented threat when we consider , for example , the death tolls of Asian Flu of 1957 or the Hong Kong Flu of 1967-68 ?
We can really say , in light of the levels of mortality in many countries of the world in recent months , that , as has been said constantly since the beginning of the crisis , that COVID 19 is virus against which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and before which , therefore , the classic solution of herd immunity has no validity ?
Why should everything change with this epidemic ?
Epidemics have been a constant companion of human beings throughout their history on Earth .
If the epidemics of 1918 , 1957 and 1967-68 did not ‘ change everything ’ , why should is be the case this time ?
Could it simply be that there are very large centers of power that , for reason of their own , might want “ everything to change ” this time @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is a mere coincidence that , in a world where pharmaceutical companies move obscene amounts of money , and where the WHO and the GAVI depend almost entirely for funding on the money of a man obsessed with creating mass vaccination programs , the corporate media has systematically “ forgotten ” about the millennial human capacity to create defenses against new viruses ?
And that nearly all public discussions of solutions revolve — in true TINA ( There Is No Alternative ) fashion — exclusively around the development of a vaccine ?
Do @ @ @ @ @ @ @ allowed you to hear a wide range of expert opinions on how to respond to the epidemic ?
There are quite a few scientists of great prestige around the world in the world who , from the beginning have made clear that they do not accept the notion that COVID represents an ‘ unprecedented ’ threat to human beings not that this virus , unlike the vast majority of others in world history , can not be defeated by the herd immunity .
Do you find it strange that none of these people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ media ?
Have you examined the possible links to , and possible financial dependency upon , WHO , GAVI and other pro-vaccine entities among those most frequently appearing in the media ?
Do you think it is a mere coincidence that Sweden , which did not yield to the enormous pressure to curtail the basic freedoms of its citizens over COVID , and which has had per capita mortality levels below Italy , Spain , France , the UK and Belgium , has it been the constant target of criticism from prestigious media @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ?
Do you find it at all odd that the head of the anti-COVID effort in that country , Anders Tegnell , has been the subject of very aggressive interrogations in his contacts with journalists ?
While the walking epidemiological disasters , and cheerful destroyers of fundamental rights like Fernando Simón ( Spain ’ s chief adviser on the epidemic ) , and other similar authoritarian arsonists ( e.g.
, Governor Cuomo of New York State ) are always treated with docile respect by the same scribes ?
Does it seem normal to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of historically predominant moral logic , the press harshly questions those who most want to preserve the social fabric and the existing rhythms of life while they lionize those who most seek to disrupt it ?
Does it not seem a bit strange to you that the original pretext for cutting the in the fundamental rights of citizens — reducing the curve of infections so as not to overload the health system — disappeared suddenly and without a trace from our public discourse only to be replaced , as death rates were steadily @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the number of ‘ new cases ’ ?
Does it seem at all odd that no one now remembers or talks about the fact that many experts , including Fauci and the WHO before June 12 , spoke about on essential uselessness of mask-wearing in relation to a virus like this ?
Do you find it strange that almost no one talks about the report by the BBC ’ s Deb Cohen report which says that the WHO changed the recommendation on masks in June under heavy political pressure ?
Or that no @ @ @ @ @ @ @ how Sweden and the Netherlands , two countries known for the exceptional health care systems , have come out clearly and ambiguously against mandated mask-wearing in public ?
Have you considered the possibility that the term ‘ case ’ may be a floating or empty sign par excellence , in the sense that the media seldom , if ever , provide us the contextual information we need to turn it into a meaningful indicator of the real dangers we face with the virus ?
If you accept the premise , which as we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ COVID-19 is not like any other virus in human history and therefore the only way we have to eradicate it is with a vaccine , then increase in “ cases ” is clearly bad news .
But what if , as many prestigious experts who have not been able to appear in the major media think , the concept of herd immunity is perfectly applicable to the phenomenon of COVID-19 ?
In this context , an increase in cases , combined with a steady decline in the number of deaths at the same @ @ @ @ @ @ @ vast majority of countries in the world today ) , is , in fact , very good news .
Don ’ t you find it strange that this possibility is not even mentioned in the media ?
Beyond that , there is the indisputable fact that the vast number of those infected with COVID-19 are not in any mortal danger whatsoever .
That is not just my opinion .
It is the opinion of Chris Whitty , Chief Medical Officer for England , Chief Medical Adviser to the UK Government , Chief Scientific @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Social Care ( UK ) and Head of the National Institute for Health Research ( UK ) who , on May 11th , said of the virus : Unfortunately , there are many people , including some that see themselves as quite sophisticated , who , immersed in the consumptive logic of the spectacle , still think that what the US leadership class did after 9/11 attacks was a spontaneous and logical reaction to the acts committed by terrorists that had nothing to do achieve long-established goals of the country ’ s deep @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people , including local and state politicians of good will , who today think that what is being done in reactions the COVID-19 phenomenon is rooted a sincere and pure desire to the country from a life-threatening disease .
Observing this latter group , one can only conclude that deep within the secular culture that most of these people subscribe to , there exist religious impulse that is every bit as strong as that which existed in the supposedly primitive cultures of yesteryear .
Thomas S. Harrington is an essayist , photographer and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in Hartford ( USA ) .
In addition to his academic work , he is a frequent commentator on politics and culture in the US press and a number of international media outlets , especially the Catalan-language press .
You can find much of his public writing , photography and press interviews on his website .
A selection of his academic writings can be found at Academia.edu

Thomas Harrington
The 1970s marked an important turning point in the history of Western democracies. Having led their populations to the obscene carnage of World War II in reaction to Nazi aggression, the elites of North America and their non-communist European subjects understood — above all, for pragmatic reasons linked to the need to rebuild markets and industries — that it was in their interest to provide ordinary citizens of their societies with social and democratic rights and privileges seldom, if ever, seen in the history of humankind.
The effort was, for the most part, an enormous success. And therein lay precisely the problem: the masses who had grown up during the three decades following the war did not understand that the economic and governmental elites had no intention of allowing the regimes of supervised democracy of those years to evolve, over time, into true receptacles of the popular will.
The masses’ inability to comprehend the implicit limits on their political agency was not a new problem. What was new were the restrictions on elite manoeuvrability imposed by the reality of the Cold War in this historical moment.
How could the elites resort to overwhelming violence, as they had traditionally done, to crush youthful rebellions in areas under their control when heavy-handedness of this type was precisely what they were criticizing day after day in their anti-communist propaganda?
An answer to the dilemma began to emerge in 1970s Italy with the so-called ‘Strategy of Tension’. The method is as simple as it is diabolical and depends on the following reasoning: no matter how sclerotic, corrupt and discredited the existing regime of supervised democracy might be, people will seek refuge within its structures (thus giving those structures an instant dose of added legitimacy) when confronted with a generalized rise in levels of social fear.
How is this accomplished?
By planning and executing from the within government (or through non-governmental actors operating with the approval of key governmental factions) violent attacks against the population and attributing them to official enemies of the regime of supervised democracy.
And when the expected panic occurs (a panic magnified, of course, by the many allies of the managed democracy in the press), the government puts itself forth as the beneficent protector of the lives of the citizenry.
Sound nutty, like a far out “conspiracy theory”? It is not.
What I have just explained – perhaps best exemplified by the terrorist attack on the Bologna railway station in 1980 – is extremely well- documented.
The mystery is why so few people are familiar with these state crimes against the their populations. Is it a matter of fact-suppression by the big media?
Or the reluctance of citizens themselves to grapple with the fact their rulers might be capable of such things? Or maybe both things simultaneously?
From the creation of one-off events to the promotion of permanent crisis
Once the ‘democratic’ challenges of the 1960s and 1970s were neutralized—in part by the ultra-cynical methods mentioned above, and in part by the strategic flaccidness of the activists themselves — the economic elites of the United States and its junior partners in Europe galloped as never before, consolidating during 80s and 90s a level of control over the Western political class that would have been absolutely unthinkable in the first three decades of the post-war era.
The growing divide between the economic elites and the large mass of the population that resulted from these changes was hidden during the 1990s by, among other things, by the cyber revolution (with its corresponding financial bubbles and quotas of mental distraction) and by the enthusiasm arising from the collapse of communism and the apparent consolidation of the European Union.
But if there is one thing that elites — be they financial, clerical, or military — have always understood, it is that no system of ideological control lasts forever. And even less so in the age of consumerism, characterized, as Bauman reminds us, by the compulsive search for new future sensations, on the one hand, and rampant forgetfulness, on the other.
In this new, more ‘liquid’ context, a single terrifying event—such as the government-approved Bologna massacre—has a much more limited domesticating effect than before.
Why?
Because, in an environment dominated by forgetting and the headlong search for new and different consumerist sensations, the ‘disciplinary’ effects of a singular shock to the social system will endure for a much more limited time within the brain of the average citizen.
And it was in this context, in the late 1990s, that the strategists of the United States and its European servants, collaborating in the context of their well-financed ‘Atlanticist’ networks, began to adapt their “perception management” tactics to the new cultural reality.
How?
By turning consumerism’s obligatory forgetfulness, which they had initially viewed as a hindrance to the process of imposing social discipline, into their great ally.
Now instead of administering small shocks of limited temporal effect upon the citizenry, they would create (or give implicit consent for others in their trust to create) large social disruptions, the disorienting effects of which would extended sine die through the well-spaced application of smaller shocks.
Indeed, they wanted to put into practice what seemed unreal and absolutely dystopian when Guy Debord described it in 1967: an all-enveloping and energy-draining spectacle that remains constant in terms of the amount of social space it occupies, while regularly changing its plastic, visual and verbal forms…a spectacle that for all its omnipresence in the minds of the populace, often has only a very tenuous relationship the empirical material reality of their day-to-day lives.
When, during the last decade of the 20th century, talk began in Atlanticist military and intelligence circles of ‘Full-spectrum dominance’, most observers understood it mainly in terms of classical military capabilities. That is, the ability of the US and NATO to physically destroy the enemy in the widest possible variety of situations.
However, over time, it has become clear that the most dramatic progress made under this doctrine is in the field of information control and “perception management”.
I do not claim to understand all the operational realities behind the attacks on the Twin Towers in 2001. What I am sure of, however, is that the spectacle organized in reaction to these acts of destruction was by no means spontaneous or improvised.
The most obvious proof of is that just six weeks after the attacks, the US Congress passed the Patriot Act, a 342-page piece of legislation which was nothing more and nothing less than a compendium of all the curbs on basic civil rights that the harshest elements of the US deep state had been dreaming about enacting for several decades.
The careful observer of the country’s information environment will find many more indicators of a surprising degree of coordination in the media treatment of the 2001 attacks, a pattern of behaviors that we might do well to reacquaint ourselves with as we try and make sense of the COVID phenomenon.
Below some of the more salient features of the spectacle that was generated in response to the attacks that took place in New York nearly two decades ago.
1. The very and early constant repetition in the media that the attack was an absolutely ‘unprecedented’ phenomenon in the history of the country, and quite possibly in the world.
Those of us who study history know that there are very few occurrences that cannot be compared to others in the past, and that, moreover, it is precisely this practice of making transtemporal analogies that endows history with its great social value.
Without this ability to compare, we would always find ourselves trapped in the emotional sensations and pains of the present, without the ability to relativize what is happening to us, which, of course, is essential if we want to react to life’s difficulties with wisdom and proportion.
On the other hand, who might profit by having citizens living in a timeless bubble of trauma, convinced that no one else in history has suffered in ways they are currently suffering? I think the answer is obvious.
2. The constant repetition in the media, from the first moment following the attacks, that this day would ‘change everything’.
How can we know in the first moment following that this event or any other that our lives will be fundamentally and inexorably changed? In addition to being very complex and full of surprises, life is also us and our combined will to shape it. And while there is no doubt that we have never had absolute control over the fate of our collective life, we have also never been mere spectators in its development.
That is, unless and until we decide to relinquish that responsibility. In whose interest is it to induce in us a feeling of futility and/or a lack of agency regarding the future? Who benefits by convincing us that we will not be able to sustain or recover long-cherished elements our lives? In whose interest is it that we abandon the idea that we can be something more than mere spectators in the drama before us? I suspect it is someone other than most of us.
3. TINA or ‘There is no alternative’.
When a country, especially a very rich country with many tentacles in global business and world-wide institutions, is attacked, it has many tools at its disposal and, therefore, many ways to react to the event.
For example, had it wanted to, the US could have easily used the events of September 11th to showcase how justice could be achieved through cooperation between judicial and police forces from countries around the world, a position that had numerous eloquent adherents within the country and abroad.
But none of them appeared on the screens of the nation’s viewers. No, from the outset, the media spoke relentlessly, not about the moral and strategic advantages or disadvantages of a military attack, but about its impending operational details.
That is, almost from the moment the towers fell, commentators spoke of a massive military attack on ‘someone’, with the same naturalness one uses to observe that the sun rises in the morning. We were told constantly, in large and small ways, that there was no alternative to this plan of action.
4. Create a body of television commentators who, with very slight variations in style, political affiliation and policy proposals, subscribe to all the basic assumptions mentioned above.
In fact, when a careful study of these pundits is done, we find frankly terrifying levels of organizational inbreeding are seen among them. As Thomas Friedman, one of the best-known members of this gang of ‘experts’ said in an unguarded moment of candor in a conversation with Israeli journalist Ari Shavit in 2003:
I could give you the names of 25 people (all of whom are at this moment within a five-block radius of this office) who, if you had exiled them to a desert island a year and a half ago, the Iraq war would not have happened.”
It was only members of this group, or their designated spokespersons, who had the ‘right’ to explain the ‘reality’ of the post-9/11 crisis to the country’s citizens.
5. To create, with the full indulgence of the big media, a regime of public punishment for those who were contrary to the prescriptions of the small group of neocon experts mentioned above.
For example, when Susan Sontag, perhaps the most notable female American intellectual of the second half of the twentieth century, wrote an article harshly criticizing the US government’s violent and clearly disproportionate reaction to the attacks, she was severely reprimanded and shamed throughout the media.
A little later, Phil Donahue, whose talk show boasted MSNBC’s highest audience share at the time, was fired for having invited too many people with anti-war views to his program. This is last statement is not speculation. It was made clear in an internal company document leaked to the press shortly after he lost his job.
6. The constant seamless and non-sensical substitution of one supposedly important “reality” for another.
What was officially an attack by a group of Saudis became a pretext for the invasion of Afghanistan, and then Iraq. Extremely logical, right? Obviously not.
But it is also obvious that the authorities understood (in fact, the so-called brain of Bush, Karl Rove, boasted a posteriori of his ability to invent realities and have them amplified by the press) that under the influence of the “continuous spectacle”, with its constant dance of images designed to induce amnesia and psychological dislocation, the task of complying with the basic postulates of logic is a decidedly secondary requirement
7. The invention and repeated deployment of what Levi-Straus called ‘floating” or “empty” signifiers — emotionally evocative terms presented without the contextual armature needed to for us to imbue them with any stable and unequivocal semantic value — designed to spread and sustain panic in society.
The classic examples of this were the constant mentions of WMDs and terror warnings in form of a multicolored thermometers with various ‘temperatures’ of risk generated by Homeland Security beginning — what a coincidence — precisely at the moment the original psychological shock of the 9-11 attacks was beginning to fade.
An attack where? By whom? A threat according to what sources? We were never clearly told.
And that was precisely the point: to keep us vaguely frightened, and therefore much more willing to accept any security measures imposed by our ‘protective parents’ in government.
*
Might there be a relationship between set of propaganda techniques I have just sketched out and the spectacle currently being generated in relation to the COVID-19 phenomenon?
I can’t be sure. But in the interest of stimulating a more in-depth analysis of the subject, I will pose a few questions.
Is COVID-19 really an unprecedented threat when we consider, for example, the death tolls of Asian Flu of 1957 or the Hong Kong Flu of 1967-68?
We can really say, in light of the levels of mortality in many countries of the world in recent months, that, as has been said constantly since the beginning of the crisis, that COVID 19 is virus against which human bodies have no known defense, and before which, therefore, the classic solution of herd immunity has no validity?
Why should everything change with this epidemic? Epidemics have been a constant companion of human beings throughout their history on Earth. If the epidemics of 1918, 1957 and 1967-68 did not ‘change everything’, why should is be the case this time? Could it simply be that there are very large centers of power that, for reason of their own, might want “everything to change” this time around?
Do you really think it is a mere coincidence that, in a world where pharmaceutical companies move obscene amounts of money, and where the WHO and the GAVI depend almost entirely for funding on the money of a man obsessed with creating mass vaccination programs, the corporate media has systematically “forgotten” about the millennial human capacity to create defenses against new viruses? And that nearly all public discussions of solutions revolve — in true TINA (There Is No Alternative) fashion — exclusively around the development of a vaccine?
Do you really think that your media has allowed you to hear a wide range of expert opinions on how to respond to the epidemic?
There are quite a few scientists of great prestige around the world in the world who, from the beginning have made clear that they do not accept the notion that COVID represents an ‘unprecedented’ threat to human beings not that this virus, unlike the vast majority of others in world history, cannot be defeated by the herd immunity.
Do you find it strange that none of these people are regularly asked to appear in big media? Have you examined the possible links to, and possible financial dependency upon, WHO, GAVI and other pro-vaccine entities among those most frequently appearing in the media?
Do you think it is a mere coincidence that Sweden, which did not yield to the enormous pressure to curtail the basic freedoms of its citizens over COVID, and which has had per capita mortality levels below Italy, Spain , France, the UK and Belgium, has it been the constant target of criticism from prestigious media, starting with The New York Times?
Do you find it at all odd that the head of the anti-COVID effort in that country, Anders Tegnell, has been the subject of very aggressive interrogations in his contacts with journalists? While the walking epidemiological disasters, and cheerful destroyers of fundamental rights like Fernando Simón (Spain’s chief adviser on the epidemic), and other similar authoritarian arsonists (e.g., Governor Cuomo of New York State) are always treated with docile respect by the same scribes?
Does it seem normal to you that, in a dramatic reversal of historically predominant moral logic, the press harshly questions those who most want to preserve the social fabric and the existing rhythms of life while they lionize those who most seek to disrupt it?
Does it not seem a bit strange to you that the original pretext for cutting the in the fundamental rights of citizens — reducing the curve of infections so as not to overload the health system — disappeared suddenly and without a trace from our public discourse only to be replaced, as death rates were steadily falling, with the journalistic obsession with the number of ‘new cases’?
Does it seem at all odd that no one now remembers or talks about the fact that many experts, including Fauci and the WHO before June 12, spoke about on essential uselessness of mask-wearing in relation to a virus like this?
Do you find it strange that almost no one talks about the report by the BBC’s Deb Cohen report which says that the WHO changed the recommendation on masks in June under heavy political pressure?
Or that no one in American media will talk about how Sweden and the Netherlands, two countries known for the exceptional health care systems, have come out clearly and ambiguously against mandated mask-wearing in public?
Have you considered the possibility that the term ‘case’ may be a floating or empty sign par excellence, in the sense that the media seldom, if ever, provide us the contextual information we need to turn it into a meaningful indicator of the real dangers we face with the virus?
If you accept the premise, which as we said before is eminently debatable, that COVID-19 is not like any other virus in human history and therefore the only way we have to eradicate it is with a vaccine, then increase in “cases” is clearly bad news.
But what if, as many prestigious experts who have not been able to appear in the major media think, the concept of herd immunity is perfectly applicable to the phenomenon of COVID-19?
In this context, an increase in cases, combined with a steady decline in the number of deaths at the same time (the reality, in the vast majority of countries in the world today), is, in fact, very good news.
Don’t you find it strange that this possibility is not even mentioned in the media?
Beyond that, there is the indisputable fact that the vast number of those infected with COVID-19 are not in any mortal danger whatsoever.
That is not just my opinion. It is the opinion of Chris Whitty, Chief Medical Officer for England, Chief Medical Adviser to the UK Government, Chief Scientific Adviser at the Department of Health and Social Care (UK) and Head of the National Institute for Health Research (UK) who, on May 11th, said of the virus:
The great majority of the people will not die from it….. Most people, uh well, a significant proportion of people, will not get this virus at all at any point in the epidemic which is going to go on for a long period of time. Of those that do, some of them will get the virus without even knowing it, they will have a virus with no symptoms at all, asymptomatic carriage. Of those that get symptoms, the great majority, probably 80 per cent, will have mild or moderate disease. It might be bad enough for them to go to bed for a few days, not bad enough for them to go to the doctor. An unfortunate minority will have to go as far as hospital. The majority of them will just need oxygen and then leave hospital. And then a minority of those will have to go to severe and critical care. And some of those, sadly, will die. But that’s a minority, one percent, or possibly even less than one percent overall. And even in the highest risk group, this is significantly less than 20 percent, i.e. the great majority of the people, even the very highest groups, if they catch this virus will not die. And I really wanted to make that point really clearly.
Unfortunately, there are many people, including some that see themselves as quite sophisticated, who, immersed in the consumptive logic of the spectacle, still think that what the US leadership class did after 9/11 attacks was a spontaneous and logical reaction to the acts committed by terrorists that had nothing to do achieve long-established goals of the country’s deep state.
Similarly, there are many people, including local and state politicians of good will, who today think that what is being done in reactions the COVID-19 phenomenon is rooted a sincere and pure desire to the country from a life-threatening disease.
Observing this latter group, one can only conclude that deep within the secular culture that most of these people subscribe to, there exist religious impulse that is every bit as strong as that which existed in the supposedly primitive cultures of yesteryear.
Thomas S. Harrington is an essayist, photographer and Professor of Hispanic Studies at Trinity College in Hartford (USA). In addition to his academic work, he is a frequent commentator on politics and culture in the US press and a number of international media outlets, especially the Catalan-language press. You can find much of his public writing, photography and press interviews on his website. A selection of his academic writings can be found at Academia.edu


offguardian--2020-09-11--My daughter was “positive” for Covid…without ever being tested

My family was told to self isolate , based a on a test that never took place .
My middle child has always struggled with lung issues .
She is prone to asthma incidents and attacks after a triggering event .
Such an event would be if she were to go swimming when the ambient temperature is very low .
A few weekends ago she went for a walk by a river with her friends and their dad and upon her return I saw from her blue lips that they must have taken a dip into the river .
Her @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but surely her coughing and wheezing worsened over the next 10 days despite the use of asthma medication .
After a sleepless night I contacted the doctor to ask for dissolvable steroid tablets because I knew by then that the situation would not clear itself without stronger meds .
Our General Practitioner has barricaded herself into her surgery and away from her patients since March .
This has resulted in us being reduced to requesting medical assistance and advice vicariously through the GP ’ receptionist .
This has its downsides .
She has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ myself whom she instructed her receptionist to order me to attend the local hospital ’ s A & E department with a suspected heart attack – which I am delighted to report I was not in the midst of .
I also had my medical condition discussed in front of a sizable crowd of patients via the intercom system linking the receptionist ’ s desk with the car park .
It is fair to say we have not been well served by this doctor for some months now .
But I was confident @ @ @ @ @ @ @ few steroid tablets and leave it at that .
Instead , the receptionist advised me that I had to take my daughter to an “ Acute Clinic ” in another part of town .
I assumed that this clinic was one dealing with acute respiratory infections and conditions .
Our first indication that all was not well occurred as we walking in the door of the building .
Security guards in visors and masks yelled at us to stand still , then nursing staff came running with hand sanitiser and face masks .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ , “ Is this a Covid clinic or a respiratory clinic ?
” It was , of course , the former .
I was told nevertheless to stay as GPs were inside and they would be able to diagnose any condition and offer treatment .
Ok I thought , the carry on at the door had left my daughter rather stressed , but at least a doctor was a short wait away .
We were led into a surgery room and went through a triage with a nurse .
Once we had discussed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ find the doctor .
The doctor examined my daughter , said that she could not hear any underlying chest infection issue , agreed that her problem related to asthma and she prescribed the medicine I had asked for already from my GP .
So far so good .
As I rose to leave the doctor then started talking about how my daughter ’ s symptoms could be Covid19 symptoms .
I said that I disagreed , we had gone through a list of those symptoms with the nurse and with the exception of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the symptoms mirrored any issues she had .
I pointed out that even the cough was not relevant because it was caused by the asthma and the doctor had agreed she could hear no infection in her chest .
The doctor kept on insisting that I consider her taking the Covid19 test .
When even my daughter said no she didn ’ t want it , the doctor then said that I must then ensure that our whole household “ self isolate ” for 14 days .
I asked on what possible @ @ @ @ @ @ @ must self isolate .
She had already made the clinical decision that my daughter had asthma and prescribed the treatment .
She had not treated any additional condition so where was this Covid claim coming from ?
I explained that my children had just gone back to school after 5 months of it being denied to them and I was not going to disrupt that because the doctor wanted to pretend my daughter had a condition that was not supported by her clinical findings .
Only afterwards did it dawn on me that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ symptoms ” occurred was all but up .
I didn ’ t keep the children out of school and my daughter ’ s condition improved dramatically after she took the steroids .
That , I thought , was the end of that !
The Scottish Health Service had other ideas though .
A few days later a receptionist from our local GP ’ s office called .
She ’ d been asked by the bunkered down GP to let us know that , wait for it , my daughter ’ s Covid19 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ meant that the whole household must self-isolate for 14 days .
Let me remind you at this point that my daughter had not been given a Covid19 test .
I demanded to know why doctors were lying that asthma was Covid19 .
I demanded to know why a person that refused to take a test had a test result written up in their notes .
I demanded to know where they felt they had the right to ruin my children ’ s education once more .
I got no answers at all , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the barricaded GP .
I have since submitted a formal complaint for a full inquiry into this matter , and await some news from them .
I feel appalled by the breakdown of trust and respect I feel has occurred between myself and the medical practitioners .
I do not want them to be making political decisions when treating me .
I do not want them to act as if patients are some form of biohazard to be hosed down in chemicals at the door if they are ever deemed important enough to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ place .
Politicians can not supplant their politicized agenda into the health care of children .
When a doctor examines a patient then they , not some Minister or public policy drafter , are aware of all the facts they need to diagnose that person .
People can not then have their worlds turned upside down by what they do not have , after the doctor has determined what they do have .
Helen Ilitha is a South African/Scottish lawyer currently living in Scotland .
Working in the legal tech sector .

My family was told to self isolate, based a on a test that never took place.
Helen Ilitha
My middle child has always struggled with lung issues. She is prone to asthma incidents and attacks after a triggering event. Such an event would be if she were to go swimming when the ambient temperature is very low.
A few weekends ago she went for a walk by a river with her friends and their dad and upon her return I saw from her blue lips that they must have taken a dip into the river.
Her cough developed within an hour and slowly but surely her coughing and wheezing worsened over the next 10 days despite the use of asthma medication. After a sleepless night I contacted the doctor to ask for dissolvable steroid tablets because I knew by then that the situation would not clear itself without stronger meds.
Our General Practitioner has barricaded herself into her surgery and away from her patients since March. This has resulted in us being reduced to requesting medical assistance and advice vicariously through the GP’ receptionist.
This has its downsides. She has been massively over diagnosing patients, including myself whom she instructed her receptionist to order me to attend the local hospital’s A&E department with a suspected heart attack – which I am delighted to report I was not in the midst of.
I also had my medical condition discussed in front of a sizable crowd of patients via the intercom system linking the receptionist’s desk with the car park. It is fair to say we have not been well served by this doctor for some months now.
But I was confident that she’d simply prescribe a few steroid tablets and leave it at that. Instead, the receptionist advised me that I had to take my daughter to an “Acute Clinic” in another part of town. I assumed that this clinic was one dealing with acute respiratory infections and conditions.
Our first indication that all was not well occurred as we walking in the door of the building. Security guards in visors and masks yelled at us to stand still, then nursing staff came running with hand sanitiser and face masks. It was only then that I asked, “Is this a Covid clinic or a respiratory clinic?” It was, of course, the former.
I was told nevertheless to stay as GPs were inside and they would be able to diagnose any condition and offer treatment. Ok I thought, the carry on at the door had left my daughter rather stressed, but at least a doctor was a short wait away. We were led into a surgery room and went through a triage with a nurse. Once we had discussed the asthma, she went off to find the doctor.
The doctor examined my daughter, said that she could not hear any underlying chest infection issue, agreed that her problem related to asthma and she prescribed the medicine I had asked for already from my GP. So far so good.
As I rose to leave the doctor then started talking about how my daughter’s symptoms could be Covid19 symptoms. I said that I disagreed, we had gone through a list of those symptoms with the nurse and with the exception of the unspecific “persistent cough” none of the symptoms mirrored any issues she had.
I pointed out that even the cough was not relevant because it was caused by the asthma and the doctor had agreed she could hear no infection in her chest.
The doctor kept on insisting that I consider her taking the Covid19 test. When even my daughter said no she didn’t want it, the doctor then said that I must then ensure that our whole household “self isolate” for 14 days.
I asked on what possible basis could she tell us that we must self isolate. She had already made the clinical decision that my daughter had asthma and prescribed the treatment. She had not treated any additional condition so where was this Covid claim coming from?
I explained that my children had just gone back to school after 5 months of it being denied to them and I was not going to disrupt that because the doctor wanted to pretend my daughter had a condition that was not supported by her clinical findings.
We left.
Only afterwards did it dawn on me that the 14 day period from when the “symptoms” occurred was all but up. I didn’t keep the children out of school and my daughter’s condition improved dramatically after she took the steroids.
That, I thought, was the end of that!
The Scottish Health Service had other ideas though. A few days later a receptionist from our local GP’s office called. She’d been asked by the bunkered down GP to let us know that, wait for it, my daughter’s Covid19 test had come back positive and this meant that the whole household must self-isolate for 14 days.
Let me remind you at this point that my daughter had not been given a Covid19 test.
I admit I hit the roof.
I demanded to know why doctors were lying that asthma was Covid19.
I demanded to know why a person that refused to take a test had a test result written up in their notes.
I demanded to know where they felt they had the right to ruin my children’s education once more.
I got no answers at all, just told that I must speak to the barricaded GP.
I have since submitted a formal complaint for a full inquiry into this matter, and await some news from them.
I feel appalled by the breakdown of trust and respect I feel has occurred between myself and the medical practitioners. I do not want them to be making political decisions when treating me. I do not want them to act as if patients are some form of biohazard to be hosed down in chemicals at the door if they are ever deemed important enough to allow into the building in the first place.
Politicians cannot supplant their politicized agenda into the health care of children. When a doctor examines a patient then they, not some Minister or public policy drafter, are aware of all the facts they need to diagnose that person.
People cannot then have their worlds turned upside down by what they do not have, after the doctor has determined what they do have.
Helen Ilitha is a South African/Scottish lawyer currently living in Scotland. Working in the legal tech sector.