21stcenturywire--2020-03-22--My Eight Day Journey Around the Planet – With COVID-19 on My Tail

Emirates was extortionate , but it was one of the last escapes from Hong Kong ( Image Credit : Andre Vltchek © 2020 ) Imagine that you are in Hong Kong , in a city where ‘ you are actually not supposed to be ’ in the first place .
You are ready to go home , to South America .
But just two days before your departure , via Seoul and Amsterdam , your first Sky Team carrier , Korean Air , unceremoniously decides to cancel all flights from the territory .
Several Korean religious freaks , apparently , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ half of all South Korea ’ s coronavirus cases are linked to a secretive ultra-religious cult whose leader believes he is immortal.
” Just reading that , I knew I may get royally screwed .
Nothing good comes from ultra-religious fanatics , and South Koreans are notorious for their political and religious extremism .
But that was not all .
The report continued : “ There are further reports of outbreaks in the psychiatric unit of a hospital in Cheongdo county , infections in Busan , and on the island of Jeju.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fly its glorious new Boeing 747-8 from Hong Kong to Incheon ( Seoul International Airport ) , has been carving-up its service , first reducing it to Boeing 777s , then to Airbus 330s , and in the end , cancelling all of its flights 3 days before my departure .
Incheon , South Korea .
Usually one of the busiest airports ( Image Credit : Andre Vltchek © 2020 ) To secure my monstrously long commute , I spent most of my Sky Team miles , to secure a business class set @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for it : I could not see .
Well , I could hardly see , at all .
Before Hong Kong , I had worked in Kalimantan , in the Indonesian part of Borneo , on an island which has been totally plundered by greed , corruption and the ineptness of the Javanese neo-colonialists .
An island where the present administration of president Joko Widodo ( known as “ Jokowi ” ) , is planning to build and move the new capital city , abandoning the enormous , more than 20 million population @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ sinking ” , ridden with countless urban slums , lack of sanitation and safe drinking water .
Writing a book about this monumental insanity , I continued investigating .
And in the process I got attacked , as almost anyone who visits Borneo does , by various and vicious parasites .
My guts got infected by something terrible , and then my eyes .
I flew between Balikpapan and Pontianak on Lion Air ’ s Boeing 737 ( yes , that Lion Air , which keeps cramming and periodically crashing planes , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ) .
I have no idea whether my eyes got attacked there , on board , or in some filthy ditch near the palm oil plantations of Borneo , where they are cutting down what is left of the island ’ s virgin tropical forest .
Wherever it was , it did get infected .
First the left eye .
It was like a white foam .
I could only see extremely abstract contours , as if between me and the world , there was a thick , white blanket .
It was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not only a writer and a philosopher , but I am also a filmmaker and photographer .
Doing what I do and not seeing almost anything is , you know , quite terrifying .
Before flying to Hong Kong , where I have been covering the riots ignited and financed by the West , I stopped over in Bangkok and went to an eye clinic , but the doctors there only cared about the payment .
They had no clue what was happening to my eye .
Then , in Hong Kong , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the infection spread to my right eye also .
At night , as I lay awake in my hotel room , I suddenly recalled how on board the Garuda Indonesia , between Pontianak and Jakarta , at least four people were coughing , loudly and desperately .
Nobody was checking them .
The Indonesian government had suggested that people pray , to avoid the outbreak of the coronavirus .
“ What else , ” I thought .
“ Am I also going to get the coronavirus ?
” I refused to succumb to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ knew that Korean Air was determined to ruin me .
While Air France ( my Sky Team carrier ) and KLM were offering re-routing and compensation to their passengers stranded in Asia , Korean Air showed a clear and vulgar indifference .
It did nothing to help .
It never even replied to my queries .
I was also aware of the fact that I may have to travel , at least for 7 days , through various detours , and without seeing almost anything .
Also , with twisted guts and a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ because of the tremendous stress .
Was it worse than being in Syria ’ s Idlib , in Afghanistan , or near Mosul after it had been taken over by ISIS ?
In a way , it was .
Being blind , chased around the globe by the novel coronavirus , with airports closing one after another , and with the prices of airline tickets going sky-high , everything seemed to be demeaning , depressing and unsettling .
Strangely enough , I felt no fear of the COVID-19 .
I kept discussing the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ colleagues , through WhatsApp , until my eyes totally let go and collapsed .
I had to make it through , to Santiago de Chile , which happened to be on the total opposite side of the world .
Western doctors that I knew , were sending long and useless advice which mainly repeated “ go see a doctor ” idiocy .
I told them I was in Hong Kong , which had been experiencing a near total lockdown .
I told them that I had already been to a Thai eye doctor @ @ @ @ @ @ @ condition .
Then , I realized that I could not rely on those that I am fighting against !
I needed comrades to help me .
My family contacted a Syrian lady doctor , an expert in infectious diseases , and a sister of my friend in Damascus .
I sent photo-images of my eyes .
She saw , asked for symptoms and prescribed some powerful oral antibiotics and drops .
I managed to convince a Hong Kong pharmacist to sell the medicine over the counter : I said it was a matter @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Syria and China saved me .
People were guided by intuition , not by rigid rules .
My last interview in Hong Kong ( Image Credit : Andre Vltchek © 2020 ) My nearest and dearest began helping me to re-route .
It took days .
It was horrible .
Airlines , from Korean Air to Cathay Pacific , began to cover their backs ; trying to squeeze every penny from those who were still able and willing to fly .
Some one-way economy tickets for 2 hours flights shot up to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on certain routes became miraculously cheaper .
As long as one could search – and as long as one could look at a screen .
To avoid quarantining , and to get out of Hong Kong , the easiest way was to fly in the totally opposite direction than where I was heading : to Bangkok , on Emirates .
A few business class tickets were still available , but at $ 600 , on a route where they used to cost under $ 400 .
It was one of the last available @ @ @ @ @ @ @ city .
I grabbed a seat on the Airbus 380-800 .
I somehow pulled through the totally empty Hong Kong Airport .
I could hardly see anything .
There were hardly any seats to rest on in the departure hall .
My backpack was almost 20kg in weight , with a professional camera , computer and mobile phones .
I have no idea how I managed to get to my plane .
With my damaged eyes , I could still see those huge numbers indicating gates .
I collapsed into my seat .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ away from where I was trying to fly .
I was some 20 thousand kilometers away from Santiago de Chile .
I thought , “ Santiago was bleeding , too !
” Its eyes were damaged .
People were fighting against the fascist regime imposed on them by Washington , and by the multinational corporations , in 1973 .
Like my own , their eyes were inflamed ; some , over 300 individuals , even lost their eyes , as they were shot at by the police .
On board my flight to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I was going to be able to return home , alive .
But I was going , through the night , towards Bangkok .
Would they even let me in ?
The first step .
They did .
Miraculously .
I must have looked like shit , but an unfriendly , insulting border police officer slammed a stamp into my passport , fingerprinted me , photographed me , and in the end , let me go .
That was it .
Hong Kong does not stamp passports .
Officially , my journey would @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 9 hours on the ground .
The airport was eerily empty .
People looked like streetwalkers , wearing masks , some even things resembling ski-glasses .
I went home to my place by the river , without even opening my luggage , I collapsed into my bed , but could not sleep the entire night .
Tugboats were pulling ghost-like barges , 31 floors below .
I could not see the barges , only contours .
This was my first day into the journey .
In the morning , very early , I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and rechecked my luggage all the way to Suriname , as that was the only airport in South America , which I was able to get to free ( using my air miles ) business class tickets , at least from Seoul .
Instead of re-routing or compensating me , Korean Air which had brutally cancelled my tickets from Hong Kong , was now charging me something absolutely ridiculous , to get from Bangkok to Seoul , where I was to catch a KLM flight to Amsterdam and many hours later , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ again .
The taking the shoes off , precisely as the U.S. masters have ordered .
The saturated spite of the Thai officials suffering from superiority complexes , followed by an old , dirty , 777-300 Korean Air aircraft .
I crashed into its unmaintained seat .
Just glanced at the food ( inedible-looking , cheap version of bibimba ) , and slept all the way to Seoul .
Coronavirus , greed , extreme capitalism , rudeness : everything accumulated into this monstrous journey .
Taking off from Hong Kong and later Bangkok @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Then , the Damascus-prescribed antibiotics began to kick in .
They were terrible , but I was warned .
Either or .
Either blindness and white fog , or total exhaustion , a collapsed body , but clearer sight .
I opted for sight .
I landed in Seoul , like a zombie , heavy rucksack on my back , wobbly , almost desperate .
My luggage was automatically transferred all the way to Paramaribo , using the Sky Team system .
But this was South Korea .
At the transfer desk I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ through security , then go to Sky Team Lounge and wait 8 hours for your flight .
They will give you boarding passes at the gate , ” I was told .
At the security check , they could not read English , or understand what was written on my E-tickets .
3 times I was humiliated , going back and forth between the transfer desk and security checkpoint .
The staff were clearly enjoying the game , perhaps waiting for when I would finally collapse .
The transfer desk person refused to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Security people were stubbornly refusing to read English .
This was precisely one of those moments when one loses all hope in humanity .
You think : “ Your body will let go !
You will collapse , at any moment .
Collapse and die.
” All this , just because you have been putting your life on the line , for some poor , devastated , enormous tropical island .
Just because some South Korean religious freaks went bananas .
Just because of human indifference and racism .
Just because , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The creepiness of a capitalist , right-wing trash universe .
I made it to the lounge , eventually , moving through the empty airport .
Everything was shut down .
The lounge was empty ; almost nothing to eat there .
The coronavirus scare .
At this point , all I wanted to do was to sleep .
I found a transit hotel and paid an exorbitant price for only a few hours of rest .
I collapsed .
I cursed capitalism , greed , and humanity ’ s collapse .
I knew @ @ @ @ @ @ @ world of dreams , or should I say nightmares , the People ’ s Republic of China , as well as Cuba , were fighting for our human race , against all the odds , against the monstrous propaganda originating from the West .
I had no right to kick the bucket in some bloody transit hotel room at the Incheon Airport .
China , Cuba , Russia , Venezuela needed me .
I saluted my comrades , the old fashioned way , and fell asleep .
The Korean Air clerk at the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , or where Suriname is located .
He was moonlighting for KLM , but was wearing a Korean Air uniform .
I told him what I thought about Korean Air .
Before that , he had not liked me for flying to “ some Paramaribo ” , but after that he started to hate me , openly .
The fact that I am a platinum member of his alliance meant nothing .
He began treating me as if I was the coronavirus incarnated .
By then , I could hardly see him .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ at any moment .
But I was not going to show weakness .
He began : “ Where is your visa to Suriname ” ?
“ So , where is your visa ?
” “ You have to show it to me.
” “ It is in front of you.
” Korean Air had stolen my money by cancelling flights and by refusing to re-route me .
Now , it was ruining my health .
But , there was zero remorse coming from the staff .
Eventually , a supervisor came , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ told her directly to her face : “ You should learn from North Korean people how to treat visitors !
” Her apparatchik essence kicked in .
She began threatening me .
I pulled out five press cards : “ Do you want to arrest me for expressing my opinion ?
” She started to look hesitant .
I demanded her name card .
She said she does not have one .
Bullshit : in north Asia everybody has one .
“ Are you a security agent or an airline staff ?
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ knew that in South Korea , it was the same thing .
Finally , she gave me my boarding passes , together with a look , which was full of hate .
This legendary racist horror , South Korean -style then disappeared .
I saw , the way she humiliated herself , bowing and kissing the asses of her fellow , South Korean , citizens .
I was welcomed on board by an outraged flight hostess who was originally from Suriname : “ She did not even know that my country exists , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on the shoulder .
While Seoul was terrified of the coronavirus , the Europeans looked totally indifferent to the possible danger .
That was on March 3rd , 2020 .
After the more than 11 hours flight from Seoul to Amsterdam , Schiphol airport appeared to be totally relaxed .
Even passengers from Seoul to Amsterdam looked undisturbed .
No masks , no panic .
Snoring contently , into the air .
777-200ER landed very early , at around 5 am .
I went through security , and located the Sky Team Lounge @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , but it happened to be totally empty .
I found a comfortable chair and fell asleep , almost immediately .
When I woke up , the lounge was full ; literally packed .
After being used to masks being worn all over North and Southeast Asia , what hit me was the absolute lack of any face protectors at the major Dutch airport .
People were drinking , eating tons , talking .
There was no sense of any emergency .
European and North American daily newspapers , in all languages , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Those freely distributed in the lounge , were only attacking China , totally and bizarrely avoiding the absolute lack of preparedness in the West .
Even the Italian daily papers , at that time at least , showed no signs of concern .
Not far from me , a group of Italian travelers , was chatting , embracing , kissing , drinking prosecco and coffee for breakfast , and calling home on their mobile phones .
There was only one lax coronavirus checkpoint , upon arrival from South Korea , at the time @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the world .
In retrospect , this was all totally bizarre and irresponsible .
Was the Western medical system so unprepared ?
Or was it told , even ordered , to behave in such a manner ?
Waiting for my flight to Paramaribo , I called my 84-year old mom , who has been living in Germany , where she is married .
“ They feed us with such crap , ” she told me , in Russian .
“ I mean , that stuff that they tell us through the mass media @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they say or write , ” she concluded .
“ All this is not going to end well.
” And she was absolutely right .
The Queen of the Sky , a majestic old Boeing 747-400 took off on time , towards Suriname .
Both KLM and British Airways were still flying these beautiful planes , although there were rumors that KLM will retire most of them in 2021 .
This was the last flight of the captain .
He was leaving KLM .
The flight hostesses were urging all the passengers to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ There was supposed to be a great celebration , a great party , in Paramaribo .
By then , I was almost losing my consciousness .
My eyes cleared , almost totally .
But the monstrous antibiotics and chronic exhaustion , doubled my body down .
Chile appeared to be far , far away .
Again , no masks , no precautions .
The 747 was going southwest , full of passengers , with zero medical safeguards .
The plane landed , and it was sprayed with water by a fire engine , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ captain .
In Suriname , after arrival of 747 KLM .
A ‘ welcome shower ’ , not disinfectant ( Image Credit : Andre Vltchek © 2020 ) No jetways : passengers had to climb down off the enormous aircraft .
Those who couldn ’ t were met by special vehicle , functioning as a lift , and by a bus .
But the lift and other vehicles were quickly engaged by the celebrations of the captain ’ s retirement .
Countless Surinamese passengers who were returning from Holland , after being treated @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the lift and the bus , abandoned by the ground staff .
No one to measure their temperature .
Nobody to even ask what kind of medical conditions they were suffering from .
By then , I had turned into a zombie .
I somehow managed to sail through the immigration of a shack defined as an airport .
I almost collapsed .
I asked for help , but was told by a local staff member : “ If you feel sick , go get medical help ” .
Later , the hotel @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ usual treatment people get here ” .
I somehow got stabilized , by getting my hands on a luggage trolley .
The universe was spinning around me .
My pre-paid taxi did not wait for me .
The hotel was some 50 kilometers from the airport .
In the end , I went to the airport police .
Instead of helping me , they began a rude scrutiny , clearly trying to extract some bribe .
“ I feel very sick , ” I said .
They couldn ’ t care less @ @ @ @ @ @ @ made me sick .
Was it the coronavirus ?
By then it was already called COVID-19 , and it was on my tail , chasing me as I was circling the globe .
I filmed the Suriname River and the rainforest of Suriname , to show the contrast with Borneo .
Suriname has been terribly damaged , but Borneo has been ruined , endlessly and some say , irreversibly .
I only had one full day .
I had to work fast .
My Indian driver had to hold me up while I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ collapse .
On the 5th March , I returned to the airport , ready to fly to Belem , Brazil .
Further humiliation , overcharging , insults .
I wanted to get out .
And never return .
One day I will write about those repulsive 48 hours in Suriname , but not now .
A 90 minutes flight , and everything fully changed .
Even under the fascist government of Bolsonaro , Brazilians were kind and caring .
Shortly after the plane door opened in Belem , I was put into a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ formalities .
There was no overcharging , no humiliation and no dramas .
Brazil was what it always has been : a great country with dire problems .
But a great country , nevertheless .
The next day I flew from Belem to Rio de Janeiro , via Brasilia .
Still , almost no masks .
Once or twice my temperature was checked .
That is all .
In Belem , all the Amazon riverfront cafes were kept open .
In Rio , while waiting for my flight to Chile , I went @ @ @ @ @ @ @ club , and to the totally packed Caso de Chuva cultural center , where Tom Veloso was singing the songs of Gilberto Gil .
Absolutely no precautions , no masks , people squeezed like sardines .
The evening of March 8th .
At Tom Veloso concert in Rio – just days before lock down ( Image Credit : Andre Vltchek © 2020 ) A day later , on March 9th , the airlines in South America began catching up with turbo-capitalist games .
Chilean LATAM , when I asked for an extra legroom @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 1,500 , for 4 hours on board a small Airbus 320 plane .
Naturally , I refused .
Santiago airport took the coronavirus seriously .
There were several checkups .
End of the games .
This is when strange things began to happen .
Two days after I landed in Santiago de Chile , South America moved from inactivity to hyperactivity .
One country after another began lock-ups ; from Argentina to Peru , to Chile .
Santiago began resembling a ghost town .
Entire regions of Chile began to close down .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ and to travel to Venezuela and Cuba , but it was becoming thoroughly impossible .
I arrived , I survived , but right away , I was grounded .
From one extreme , to another .
In South America and the West .
When confronted with the terrible medical emergency , China reacted like a Communist country , which it is .
It mobilized in the name of the people , and began fighting the battle .
It acted rationally and responsibly .
It never performed a total lockdown .
Without thinking twice @ @ @ @ @ @ @ putting the people first .
It has won the battle ; beating the virus back .
Almost no new cases now .
The hospitals constructed to treat the coronavirus are closing down .
Doctors and other medical staff are celebrating .
Cuba is near to developing a vaccine for the new coronavirus .
China and Cuba are cooperating .
China is sending airplanes with help to Italy , Spain and Serbia .
In the meantime , people in certain Western countries are being told that over 80 % of their citizens will get @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , even mullions , will die !
Why the hell , really ?
Some nations , from Italy to Chile ( where I am right now ) , are locking up everything : entire countries , entire regions , everything .
At the height of the crises , Beijing was open , and so was Shanghai and almost all other major cities .
Flights were arriving and departing .
What confidence !
What a success !
Just look at the Western nations , at Southeast Asia , or at South America ; people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is much more brutal than anything that has ever been implemented in China .
And what do they tell the Italians , French , Brits and North Americans ?
That they will be dying like flies !
Even now , when this essay is being written , more Italian people have died , than the Chinese .
That is , on a per capita basis , about 22 times more .
And in the West , things are getting worse and worse .
And , until now , it is not yet clear @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , to begin with .
Many believe that it was the U.S. military .
Still , China never stopped behaving like an internationalist country .
During my more than 20,000 kilometers long journey , I have seen a frightened , divided planet .
And then , I saw a great Chinese victory , and a Cuban victory .
I read how Cuba has rescued 600 people stuck on a cruise ship , the MS Braemar , belonging to one of its tormentors .
I witnessed panic in extreme right-wing countries like Chile .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ to Araucaria , to speak to the discriminated against Mapuche indigenous people ( according to Word they do not exist , as I am given red error sign ) , but precisely that area got hermetically sealed , closed down , one day before my planned 900-kilometer journey , and a month before the planned constitutional referendum .
In the West , and allied countries , the coronavirus has been used for political ends .
I am almost certain the Bolivian elections will be ‘ postponed ’ , “ because of the coronavirus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ regaining power .
I am back home , but home is not a real home , anymore .
Home is now China , Cuba , Russia .
Countries which are fighting against the Western tyranny that is sacrificing millions of human lives .
The coronavirus is a barometer of the state of the world .
It shows which countries bring shame to the word “ humanity ” , and which bring pride .
Andre Vltchek is a philosopher , novelist , filmmaker and investigative journalist .
He has covered wars and conflicts in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ latest books are “ China Belt and Road Initiative ” , “ China and Ecological Civilization ” with John B. Cobb , Jr. , “ Revolutionary Optimism , Western Nihilism ” , the revolutionary novel “ Aurora ” and bestselling work of political non-fiction : “ Exposing Lies Of The Empire ” .
View his other books here .
Watch Rwanda Gambit , his ground-breaking documentary about Rwanda and DR Congo and his film/dialogue with Noam Chomsky “ On Western Terrorism ” .
Vltchek presently resides in East Asia and Latin America , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
He can be reached through his website , his and his Patreon .

By
Emirates was extortionate, but it was one of the last escapes from Hong Kong (Image Credit: Andre Vltchek © 2020)
Andre Vltchek
21st Century Wire
Imagine that you are in Hong Kong, in a city where ‘you are actually not supposed to be’ in the first place. You are ready to go home, to South America. But just two days before your departure, via Seoul and Amsterdam, your first Sky Team carrier, Korean Air, unceremoniously decides to cancel all flights from the territory.
Several Korean religious freaks, apparently, are to blame.
On 22 February, 2020, Mail Online, reported:
“More than half of all South Korea’s coronavirus cases are linked to a secretive ultra-religious cult whose leader believes he is immortal.”
Just reading that, I knew I may get royally screwed. Nothing good comes from ultra-religious fanatics, and South Koreans are notorious for their political and religious extremism.
But that was not all. The report continued:
“There are further reports of outbreaks in the psychiatric unit of a hospital in Cheongdo county, infections in Busan, and on the island of Jeju.”
Korean Air, which was supposed to fly its glorious new Boeing 747-8 from Hong Kong to Incheon (Seoul International Airport), has been carving-up its service, first reducing it to Boeing 777s, then to Airbus 330s, and in the end, cancelling all of its flights 3 days before my departure.
Incheon, South Korea. Usually one of the busiest airports (Image Credit: Andre Vltchek © 2020)
To secure my monstrously long commute, I spent most of my Sky Team miles, to secure a business class set of tickets.
There was a reason for it: I could not see. Well, I could hardly see, at all.
Before Hong Kong, I had worked in Kalimantan, in the Indonesian part of Borneo, on an island which has been totally plundered by greed, corruption and the ineptness of the Javanese neo-colonialists. An island where the present administration of president Joko Widodo (known as “Jokowi”), is planning to build and move the new capital city, abandoning the enormous, more than 20 million population sized urban area of Jakarta which is “sinking”, ridden with countless urban slums, lack of sanitation and safe drinking water.
Writing a book about this monumental insanity, I continued investigating. And in the process I got attacked, as almost anyone who visits Borneo does, by various and vicious parasites. My guts got infected by something terrible, and then my eyes. I flew between Balikpapan and Pontianak on Lion Air’s Boeing 737 (yes, that Lion Air, which keeps cramming and periodically crashing planes, ever since the beginning of its operation). I have no idea whether my eyes got attacked there, on board, or in some filthy ditch near the palm oil plantations of Borneo, where they are cutting down what is left of the island’s virgin tropical forest.
Wherever it was, it did get infected. First the left eye. It was like a white foam. I could only see extremely abstract contours, as if between me and the world, there was a thick, white blanket. It was scary, very scary. I am not only a writer and a philosopher, but I am also a filmmaker and photographer. Doing what I do and not seeing almost anything is, you know, quite terrifying.
Before flying to Hong Kong, where I have been covering the riots ignited and financed by the West, I stopped over in Bangkok and went to an eye clinic, but the doctors there only cared about the payment. They had no clue what was happening to my eye.
Then, in Hong Kong, as Korean Air cancelled my flight, the infection spread to my right eye also.
At night, as I lay awake in my hotel room, I suddenly recalled how on board the Garuda Indonesia, between Pontianak and Jakarta, at least four people were coughing, loudly and desperately. Nobody was checking them. The Indonesian government had suggested that people pray, to avoid the outbreak of the coronavirus.
“What else,” I thought. “Am I also going to get the coronavirus?”
I refused to succumb to this horrible situation.
By then I knew that Korean Air was determined to ruin me. While Air France (my Sky Team carrier) and KLM were offering re-routing and compensation to their passengers stranded in Asia, Korean Air showed a clear and vulgar indifference. It did nothing to help. It never even replied to my queries.
I was also aware of the fact that I may have to travel, at least for 7 days, through various detours, and without seeing almost anything. Also, with twisted guts and a diabetic attack which had kicked my backside because of the tremendous stress.
Was it worse than being in Syria’s Idlib, in Afghanistan, or near Mosul after it had been taken over by ISIS?
In a way, it was. Being blind, chased around the globe by the novel coronavirus, with airports closing one after another, and with the prices of airline tickets going sky-high, everything seemed to be demeaning, depressing and unsettling.
Strangely enough, I felt no fear of the COVID-19. I kept discussing the new type of coronavirus with my medical colleagues, through WhatsApp, until my eyes totally let go and collapsed.
I had to make it through, to Santiago de Chile, which happened to be on the total opposite side of the world.
Western doctors that I knew, were sending long and useless advice which mainly repeated “go see a doctor” idiocy. I told them I was in Hong Kong, which had been experiencing a near total lockdown. I told them that I had already been to a Thai eye doctor who had absolutely no clue about my condition.
Then, I realized that I could not rely on those that I am fighting against! I needed comrades to help me.
My family contacted a Syrian lady doctor, an expert in infectious diseases, and a sister of my friend in Damascus. I sent photo-images of my eyes. She saw, asked for symptoms and prescribed some powerful oral antibiotics and drops. I managed to convince a Hong Kong pharmacist to sell the medicine over the counter: I said it was a matter of life and death. She understood.
Syria and China saved me. People were guided by intuition, not by rigid rules.
I was going home.
My last interview in Hong Kong (Image Credit: Andre Vltchek © 2020)
My nearest and dearest began helping me to re-route. It took days. It was horrible.
Airlines, from Korean Air to Cathay Pacific, began to cover their backs; trying to squeeze every penny from those who were still able and willing to fly. Some one-way economy tickets for 2 hours flights shot up to $1,600 US dollars. Business class on certain routes became miraculously cheaper. As long as one could search – and as long as one could look at a screen.
To avoid quarantining, and to get out of Hong Kong, the easiest way was to fly in the totally opposite direction than where I was heading: to Bangkok, on Emirates. A few business class tickets were still available, but at $600, on a route where they used to cost under $400. It was one of the last available ways out of the almost locked out city.
I grabbed a seat on the Airbus 380-800. I somehow pulled through the totally empty Hong Kong Airport. I could hardly see anything. There were hardly any seats to rest on in the departure hall. My backpack was almost 20kg in weight, with a professional camera, computer and mobile phones.
I have no idea how I managed to get to my plane. With my damaged eyes, I could still see those huge numbers indicating gates. I collapsed into my seat. The super-jumbo took off, Southeast; away from where I was trying to fly. I was some 20 thousand kilometers away from Santiago de Chile.
I thought, “Santiago was bleeding, too!” Its eyes were damaged. People were fighting against the fascist regime imposed on them by Washington, and by the multinational corporations, in 1973. Like my own, their eyes were inflamed; some, over 300 individuals, even lost their eyes, as they were shot at by the police.
On board my flight to Bangkok, I was not sure whether I was going to be able to return home, alive.
But I was going, through the night, towards Bangkok. Would they even let me in? The first step.
They did. Miraculously. I must have looked like shit, but an unfriendly, insulting border police officer slammed a stamp into my passport, fingerprinted me, photographed me, and in the end, let me go.
That was it. Hong Kong does not stamp passports. Officially, my journey would begin in Thailand.
I had only 9 hours on the ground. The airport was eerily empty. People looked like streetwalkers, wearing masks, some even things resembling ski-glasses. I went home to my place by the river, without even opening my luggage, I collapsed into my bed, but could not sleep the entire night. Tugboats were pulling ghost-like barges, 31 floors below. I could not see the barges, only contours. This was my first day into the journey.
In the morning, very early, I somehow managed to return to the airport, and rechecked my luggage all the way to Suriname, as that was the only airport in South America, which I was able to get to free (using my air miles) business class tickets, at least from Seoul. Instead of re-routing or compensating me, Korean Air which had brutally cancelled my tickets from Hong Kong, was now charging me something absolutely ridiculous, to get from Bangkok to Seoul, where I was to catch a KLM flight to Amsterdam and many hours later, to Paramaribo.
Thai fingerprinting and photographing again. The taking the shoes off, precisely as the U.S. masters have ordered. The saturated spite of the Thai officials suffering from superiority complexes, followed by an old, dirty, 777-300 Korean Air aircraft. I crashed into its unmaintained seat. Just glanced at the food (inedible-looking, cheap version of bibimba), and slept all the way to Seoul.
Coronavirus, greed, extreme capitalism, rudeness: everything accumulated into this monstrous journey.
Taking off from Hong Kong and later Bangkok, I experienced almost absolute blindness. Then, the Damascus-prescribed antibiotics began to kick in. They were terrible, but I was warned. Either or. Either blindness and white fog, or total exhaustion, a collapsed body, but clearer sight. I opted for sight.
I landed in Seoul, like a zombie, heavy rucksack on my back, wobbly, almost desperate.
My luggage was automatically transferred all the way to Paramaribo, using the Sky Team system.
But this was South Korea. At the transfer desk I was refused boarding passes: “Go through security, then go to Sky Team Lounge and wait 8 hours for your flight. They will give you boarding passes at the gate,” I was told.
At the security check, they could not read English, or understand what was written on my E-tickets. 3 times I was humiliated, going back and forth between the transfer desk and security checkpoint. The staff were clearly enjoying the game, perhaps waiting for when I would finally collapse. The transfer desk person refused to walk with me to the security check. Security people were stubbornly refusing to read English.
This was precisely one of those moments when one loses all hope in humanity. You think: “Your body will let go! You will collapse, at any moment. Collapse and die.” All this, just because you have been putting your life on the line, for some poor, devastated, enormous tropical island. Just because some South Korean religious freaks went bananas. Just because of human indifference and racism. Just because, just because… The brave new world. The creepiness of a capitalist, right-wing trash universe.
I made it to the lounge, eventually, moving through the empty airport. Everything was shut down. The lounge was empty; almost nothing to eat there. The coronavirus scare.
At this point, all I wanted to do was to sleep. I found a transit hotel and paid an exorbitant price for only a few hours of rest. I collapsed. I cursed capitalism, greed, and humanity’s collapse.
I knew that as I was entering the disturbing world of dreams, or should I say nightmares, the People’s Republic of China, as well as Cuba, were fighting for our human race, against all the odds, against the monstrous propaganda originating from the West.
I had no right to kick the bucket in some bloody transit hotel room at the Incheon Airport. China, Cuba, Russia, Venezuela needed me. I saluted my comrades, the old fashioned way, and fell asleep.
The Korean Air clerk at the gate had no idea where Paramaribo was, or where Suriname is located. He was moonlighting for KLM, but was wearing a Korean Air uniform.
I told him what I thought about Korean Air. Before that, he had not liked me for flying to “some Paramaribo”, but after that he started to hate me, openly. The fact that I am a platinum member of his alliance meant nothing.
He began treating me as if I was the coronavirus incarnated.
By then, I could hardly see him. My legs were about to collapse, at any moment. But I was not going to show weakness.
He began: “Where is your visa to Suriname”?
“Here,” I replied.
“What is that?”
“My visa.”
“So, where is your visa?”
“My visa is here.”
“You have to show it to me.”
“It is in front of you.”
Korean Air had stolen my money by cancelling flights and by refusing to re-route me. Now, it was ruining my health. But, there was zero remorse coming from the staff.
Eventually, a supervisor came, and began abusing me, too.
I told her directly to her face: “You should learn from North Korean people how to treat visitors!”
Her apparatchik essence kicked in. She began threatening me.
I pulled out five press cards: “Do you want to arrest me for expressing my opinion?”
She started to look hesitant. I demanded her name card. She said she does not have one. Bullshit: in north Asia everybody has one.
“Are you a security agent or an airline staff?” I asked her, point-blank. I knew that in South Korea, it was the same thing.
Finally, she gave me my boarding passes, together with a look, which was full of hate.
This legendary racist horror, South Korean -style then disappeared. I saw, the way she humiliated herself, bowing and kissing the asses of her fellow, South Korean, citizens.
I was welcomed on board by an outraged flight hostess who was originally from Suriname: “She did not even know that my country exists, did she?” She patted me on the shoulder.
While Seoul was terrified of the coronavirus, the Europeans looked totally indifferent to the possible danger.
That was on March 3rd, 2020.
After the more than 11 hours flight from Seoul to Amsterdam, Schiphol airport appeared to be totally relaxed.
Even passengers from Seoul to Amsterdam looked undisturbed. No masks, no panic. Snoring contently, into the air.
777-200ER landed very early, at around 5 am.
I went through security, and located the Sky Team Lounge. It was stuffed with excellent food, but it happened to be totally empty. I found a comfortable chair and fell asleep, almost immediately. When I woke up, the lounge was full; literally packed.
After being used to masks being worn all over North and Southeast Asia, what hit me was the absolute lack of any face protectors at the major Dutch airport.
People were drinking, eating tons, talking. There was no sense of any emergency.
Amsterdam Airport – no masks, no fear (Image Credit: Andre Vltchek © 2020)
European and North American daily newspapers, in all languages, were full of the coronavirus headlines. Those freely distributed in the lounge, were only attacking China, totally and bizarrely avoiding the absolute lack of preparedness in the West.
Even the Italian daily papers, at that time at least, showed no signs of concern.
Not far from me, a group of Italian travelers, was chatting, embracing, kissing, drinking prosecco and coffee for breakfast, and calling home on their mobile phones.
There was only one lax coronavirus checkpoint, upon arrival from South Korea, at the time one of the hardest hit countries in the world.
In retrospect, this was all totally bizarre and irresponsible.
Was the Western medical system so unprepared? Or was it told, even ordered, to behave in such a manner?
Waiting for my flight to Paramaribo, I called my 84-year old mom, who has been living in Germany, where she is married.
“They feed us with such crap,” she told me, in Russian. “I mean, that stuff that they tell us through the mass media. I don’t believe anything they say or write,” she concluded. “All this is not going to end well.”
And she was absolutely right.
The Queen of the Sky, a majestic old Boeing 747-400 took off on time, towards Suriname. Both KLM and British Airways were still flying these beautiful planes, although there were rumors that KLM will retire most of them in 2021.
This was the last flight of the captain. He was leaving KLM. The flight hostesses were urging all the passengers to write something short, something personal. There was supposed to be a great celebration, a great party, in Paramaribo.
By then, I was almost losing my consciousness. My eyes cleared, almost totally. But the monstrous antibiotics and chronic exhaustion, doubled my body down.
Chile appeared to be far, far away.
Again, no masks, no precautions. The 747 was going southwest, full of passengers, with zero medical safeguards.
The plane landed, and it was sprayed with water by a fire engine, to celebrate the last flight of the captain.
In Suriname, after arrival of 747 KLM. A ‘welcome shower’, not disinfectant (Image Credit: Andre Vltchek © 2020)
No jetways: passengers had to climb down off the enormous aircraft. Those who couldn’t were met by special vehicle, functioning as a lift, and by a bus.
But the lift and other vehicles were quickly engaged by the celebrations of the captain’s retirement. Countless Surinamese passengers who were returning from Holland, after being treated in European hospitals, were waiting in the lift and the bus, abandoned by the ground staff. No one to measure their temperature. Nobody to even ask what kind of medical conditions they were suffering from.
By then, I had turned into a zombie. I somehow managed to sail through the immigration of a shack defined as an airport.
I almost collapsed. I asked for help, but was told by a local staff member: “If you feel sick, go get medical help”. Later, the hotel manager told me that this is the “usual treatment people get here”.
I somehow got stabilized, by getting my hands on a luggage trolley. The universe was spinning around me.
My pre-paid taxi did not wait for me. The hotel was some 50 kilometers from the airport.
In the end, I went to the airport police. Instead of helping me, they began a rude scrutiny, clearly trying to extract some bribe.
“I feel very sick,” I said. They couldn’t care less.
No questions asked about what had made me sick. Was it the coronavirus? By then it was already called COVID-19, and it was on my tail, chasing me as I was circling the globe.
DEPOPULATED: Paramaribo, Suriname, depopulated (Image Credit: Andre Vltchek © 2020)
Desolate: The empty crossing of Suriname River (Image Credit: Andre Vltchek © 2020)
I filmed the Suriname River and the rainforest of Suriname, to show the contrast with Borneo.
Suriname has been terribly damaged, but Borneo has been ruined, endlessly and some say, irreversibly.
I only had one full day. I had to work fast. My Indian driver had to hold me up while I was working, otherwise I’d collapse.
On the 5th March, I returned to the airport, ready to fly to Belem, Brazil.
Further humiliation, overcharging, insults. I wanted to get out. And never return. One day I will write about those repulsive 48 hours in Suriname, but not now.
A 90 minutes flight, and everything fully changed. Even under the fascist government of Bolsonaro, Brazilians were kind and caring.
Shortly after the plane door opened in Belem, I was put into a wheelchair and zipped through immigration and other formalities. There was no overcharging, no humiliation and no dramas.
Brazil was what it always has been: a great country with dire problems. But a great country, nevertheless.
The next day I flew from Belem to Rio de Janeiro, via Brasilia.
Empty river front in Belem, Brazil (Image Credit: Andre Vltchek © 2020)
Still, almost no masks. Once or twice my temperature was checked. That is all.
In Belem, all the Amazon riverfront cafes were kept open.
In Rio, while waiting for my flight to Chile, I went to the legendary and packed Vinicius bosanova club, and to the totally packed Caso de Chuva cultural center, where Tom Veloso was singing the songs of Gilberto Gil. Absolutely no precautions, no masks, people squeezed like sardines. The evening of March 8th.
At Tom Veloso concert in Rio – just days before lock down (Image Credit: Andre Vltchek © 2020)
A day later, on March 9th, the airlines in South America began catching up with turbo-capitalist games. Chilean LATAM, when I asked for an extra legroom seat, suggested that I pay $1,500, for 4 hours on board a small Airbus 320 plane. Naturally, I refused.
Santiago airport took the coronavirus seriously. There were several checkups. End of the games.
This is when strange things began to happen.
Two days after I landed in Santiago de Chile, South America moved from inactivity to hyperactivity.
One country after another began lock-ups; from Argentina to Peru, to Chile.
Lima, Larcomar. No people in sight (Image Credit: Andre Vltchek © 2020)
Santiago began resembling a ghost town. Entire regions of Chile began to close down.
I needed to recover, quickly, and to travel to Venezuela and Cuba, but it was becoming thoroughly impossible.
I arrived, I survived, but right away, I was grounded.
From one extreme, to another. In South America and the West.
When confronted with the terrible medical emergency, China reacted like a Communist country, which it is. It mobilized in the name of the people, and began fighting the battle. It acted rationally and responsibly. It never performed a total lockdown.
It demonstrated tremendous enthusiasm and discipline.
Without thinking twice, it sacrificed its economic interests, putting the people first.
Corona Precaution: Hong Kong public transport (Image Credit: Andre Vltchek © 2020)
It has won the battle; beating the virus back. Almost no new cases now. The hospitals constructed to treat the coronavirus are closing down. Doctors and other medical staff are celebrating.
Cuba is near to developing a vaccine for the new coronavirus.
China and Cuba are cooperating. China is sending airplanes with help to Italy, Spain and Serbia.
In the meantime, people in certain Western countries are being told that over 80% of their citizens will get infected, and that hundreds of thousands, even mullions, will die!
Why?
Why the hell, really?
Some nations, from Italy to Chile (where I am right now), are locking up everything: entire countries, entire regions, everything.
At the height of the crises, Beijing was open, and so was Shanghai and almost all other major cities. Flights were arriving and departing. What confidence, and a clear success. Here, a clear victory of socialism over capitalism.
Just look at the Western nations, at Southeast Asia, or at South America; people are petrified. Control of the population is much more brutal than anything that has ever been implemented in China.
And what do they tell the Italians, French, Brits and North Americans? That they will be dying like flies! Even now, when this essay is being written, more Italian people have died, than the Chinese. That is, on a per capita basis, about 22 times more. And in the West, things are getting worse and worse.
And, until now, it is not yet clear, who brought the epidemy to Wuhan, to begin with. Many believe that it was the U.S. military. Still, China never stopped behaving like an internationalist country.
Coronavirus check at Santiago Airport, Chile (Image Credit: Andre Vltchek © 2020)
During my more than 20,000 kilometers long journey, I have seen a frightened, divided planet.
And then, I saw a great Chinese victory, and a Cuban victory.
I read how Cuba has rescued 600 people stuck on a cruise ship, the MS Braemar, belonging to one of its tormentors.
I witnessed panic in extreme right-wing countries like Chile. I was ready to drive south, to Araucaria, to speak to the discriminated against Mapuche indigenous people (according to Word they do not exist, as I am given red error sign), but precisely that area got hermetically sealed, closed down, one day before my planned 900-kilometer journey, and a month before the planned constitutional referendum.
In the West, and allied countries, the coronavirus has been used for political ends.
I am almost certain the Bolivian elections will be ‘postponed’, “because of the coronavirus”, to prevent socialist MAS from regaining power.
I am back home, but home is not a real home, anymore.
Home is now China, Cuba, Russia. Countries which are fighting against the Western tyranny that is sacrificing millions of human lives.
The coronavirus is a barometer of the state of the world.
It shows which countries bring shame to the word “humanity”, and which bring pride.
***
Andre Vltchek is a philosopher, novelist, filmmaker and investigative journalist. He has covered wars and conflicts in dozens of countries. Five of his latest books are “China Belt and Road Initiative”, “China and Ecological Civilization” with John B. Cobb, Jr., “Revolutionary Optimism, Western Nihilism”, the revolutionary novel “Aurora” and bestselling work of political non-fiction: “Exposing Lies Of The Empire”. View his other books here. Watch Rwanda Gambit, his ground-breaking documentary about Rwanda and DR Congo and his film/dialogue with Noam Chomsky “On Western Terrorism”. Vltchek presently resides in East Asia and Latin America, and continues to work around the world. He can be reached through his website, his Twitter and his Patreon.
READ MORE CORONAVIRUS NEWS AT: 21st Century Wire Coronavirus Files
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21stcenturywire--2020-03-22--Episode #319 – ‘Panic, Lockdown, Backlash’ with guests Andre Vltchek and Olsi Jazexhi

Episode # 319 of SUNDAY WIRE SHOW resumes on March 22 , 2020 with host Patrick Henningsen , broadcasting LIVE on the Alternate Current Radio Network ( ACR ) … 4pm-6pm UK Time* ( earlier start due to US daylight savings ) | 12pm-2pm EST ( US ) | 9am-11am PST ( US ) This week the SUNDAY WIRE broadcasts LIVE on ACR with host Patrick Henningsen covering the top stories in the US , Europe and internationally .
This week we ’ ll discuss the West ’ s total lockdown of society and implosion of their economies supposedly as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ COVID-19 disease – driven by pure fear and irrational hysteria – but not based on real science , and which will have devastating effects on the societies , politics , and the economy .
In the first hour we will speak to writer , journalist and educator Olsi Jazexhi for a report on the lock-down in Albania now in its second week , with bread riots already starting .
In the second hour we ’ ll speak to intrepid writer Andre Vltchek , filmmaker and author of 18 books , who just completed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ through different airports and coronavirus quarantine zones on three continents .
In the final segment we talk with SUNDAY WIRE Roving Correspondent for Culture & Sport , Basil Valentine , to look at how various people , governments are dealing with to the coronavirus crisis .
All this and much , much more .
Enjoy the show… SUPPORT OUR INDY MEDIA PLATFORM BY DONATING HERE AND ALSO BECOME A TEAM MEMBER @ 21WIRE.TV *NOTE : THIS EPISODE MAY CONTAIN STRONG LANGUAGE AND MATURE THEMES*

By
Episode #319 of SUNDAY WIRE SHOW resumes on March 22, 2020 with host Patrick Henningsen, broadcasting LIVE on the Alternate Current Radio Network (ACR)…
LISTEN LIVE ON THIS PAGE – START TIMES:
4pm-6pm UK Time* (earlier start due to US daylight savings) | 12pm-2pm EST (US) | 9am-11am PST (US)
This week the SUNDAY WIRE broadcasts LIVE on ACR with host Patrick Henningsen covering the top stories in the US, Europe and internationally. This week we’ll discuss the West’s total lockdown of society and implosion of their economies supposedly as a reaction to the outbreak of Coronavirus COVID-19 disease – driven by pure fear and irrational hysteria – but not based on real science, and which will have devastating effects on the societies, politics, and the economy. In the first hour we will speak to writer, journalist and educator Olsi Jazexhi for a report on the lock-down in Albania now in its second week, with bread riots already starting. In the second hour we’ll speak to intrepid writer Andre Vltchek, filmmaker and author of 18 books, who just completed an around the world journey, passing through different airports and coronavirus quarantine zones on three continents. In the final segment we talk with SUNDAY WIRE Roving Correspondent for Culture & Sport, Basil Valentine, to look at how various people, governments are dealing with to the coronavirus crisis. All this and much, much more. Enjoy the show…
SUPPORT OUR INDY MEDIA PLATFORM BY DONATING HERE
AND ALSO BECOME A TEAM MEMBER@21WIRE.TV
*NOTE: THIS EPISODE MAY CONTAIN STRONG LANGUAGE AND MATURE THEMES*
Download Episode #319
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21stcenturywire--2020-03-23--VIDEO: Comparing COVID-19 to History’s Deadliest Pandemics

This video visualizes some of history ’ s most deadly pandemics , from the Antonine Plague to the ongoing Novel @ @ @ @ @ .
The Novel Coronavirus outbreak started in China in December 2019 .
The World Health @ @ @ @ @ it a Public Health Emergency of International Concern on 30 January 2020 .
The outbreak @ @ @ @ @ on March 11 .

https://youtu.be/V4yUP6JruHk
SouthFront reports…
This video visualizes some of history’s most deadly pandemics, from the Antonine Plague to the ongoing Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. The Novel Coronavirus outbreak started in China in December 2019. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared it a Public Health Emergency of International Concern on 30 January 2020. The outbreak was officially declared a pandemic on March 11.


21stcenturywire--2020-03-23--CORONA CASINO: Las Vegas Goes ‘All-In’ on Strip Shutdown

This past week , in an unprecedented series of events for the gaming industry , MGM Resorts International announced it would close all its Las Vegas strip casino and hotel operations due to the coronavirus crisis , and then Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak ordered a statewide shutdown of all casinos at least for the next 30 days .
According to the Nevada Resort Association , in fiscal year 2018 , tax revenues generated from the hotel and gaming industry represented nearly 40 % of the State of Nevada ’ s total tax revenues .
The corona-induced shutdown could have lasting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , not only in terms of their employment status and standard of living , but the vast inland sea of public institutions they rely upon that is largely paid for by the gaming industry .
A potential ripple effect across the world is likely inevitable , given that so many of the hospitality brands that operate in the state and on Sin City ’ s hotel and casino strip have global reach .
It ’ s a ‘ surreal ’ moment for sure , watching slot machines power down , punters making their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and then walking out onto a strip that ’ s now become something of a modern ghost town .
It was a surreal moment for Andrea Henderson as she watched the slot machines power down at the Bellagio .
At the same time , people were still scurrying about , trying to buy in at the blackjack tables as half the casino was shut down .
Henderson , a floor supervisor , has worked at the Bellagio for 22 years , since the day it opened .
She never thought she ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ let alone every casino in the state .
But parent company MGM Resorts International announced March 15 that it would suspend operations at all its Strip casinos on March 16 and close its hotels on March 17 because of the coronavirus outbreak .
On March 17 , Gov .
Steve Sisolak ordered casinos statewide to close for 30 days .
Henderson has been paying attention to the virus since it first appeared in China in December and ended up forcing a 15-day closure of casinos in Macau last month .
“ When they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ‘ Oh gosh , this is big .
Could this be us ?
Oh , nah.
’ I blew it off , ” she said .
Then it happened .
“ This is not a joke anymore .
It was never a joke , ” Henderson said .
The American Gaming Association estimates 616,000 casino employees in the U.S. are out of work because of casino shutdowns .
Some 95 % of the country ’ s 465 commercial casinos and about 75 % of 524 tribal casinos have been closed , the trade @ @ @ @ @ @ @ providing two weeks of pay for its employees and extended health benefits .
And Henderson remains optimistic that she won ’ t be out of work for more than a month .
“ So many people are greatly affected by this ; they will not let Las Vegas go to sleep for longer than a month .
I just don ’ t believe it , ” she said .
How long the shutdown lasts will likely depend largely on the course the virus takes , medical experts said .
In Clark County as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ positive for coronavirus , where two people have died .
“ If at the end of the 30 days the situation has gotten much , much worse , then obviously we ’ ll have to extend it , ” said Dr. Brian Labus , epidemiology expert at the UNLV School of Public Health .
“ If we get closer to 30 days and everything is better , we ’ ll look at how to modify it .
It ’ s a place to start , but obviously because we don ’ t know @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s hard to say exactly how many days it will be and whether or not it will be enough .
”

By
This past week, in an unprecedented series of events for the gaming industry, MGM Resorts International announced it would close all its Las Vegas strip casino and hotel operations due to the coronavirus crisis, and then Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak ordered a statewide shutdown of all casinos at least for the next 30 days.
According to the Nevada Resort Association, in fiscal year 2018, tax revenues generated from the hotel and gaming industry represented nearly 40% of the State of Nevada’s total tax revenues.
The corona-induced shutdown could have lasting impacts on the residents of the state, not only in terms of their employment status and standard of living, but the vast inland sea of public institutions they rely upon that is largely paid for by the gaming industry.
A potential ripple effect across the world is likely inevitable, given that so many of the hospitality brands that operate in the state and on Sin City’s hotel and casino strip have global reach.
It’s a ‘surreal’ moment for sure, watching slot machines power down, punters making their last best guess at the card tables, and then walking out onto a strip that’s now become something of a modern ghost town.
The ‘Vegas Strip’ emptied out. (Image Credit: Steve Marcus/Las Vegas Sun)
Las Vegas Sun reports…
It was a surreal moment for Andrea Henderson as she watched the slot machines power down at the Bellagio. At the same time, people were still scurrying about, trying to buy in at the blackjack tables as half the casino was shut down.
Henderson, a floor supervisor, has worked at the Bellagio for 22 years, since the day it opened. She never thought she’d see the day it closed, let alone every casino in the state.
But parent company MGM Resorts International announced March 15 that it would suspend operations at all its Strip casinos on March 16 and close its hotels on March 17 because of the coronavirus outbreak. On March 17, Gov. Steve Sisolak ordered casinos statewide to close for 30 days.
Henderson has been paying attention to the virus since it first appeared in China in December and ended up forcing a 15-day closure of casinos in Macau last month.
“When they shut down Macau, I said, ‘Oh gosh, this is big. Could this be us? Oh, nah.’ I blew it off,” she said.
Then it happened. “This is not a joke anymore. It was never a joke,” Henderson said.
The American Gaming Association estimates 616,000 casino employees in the U.S. are out of work because of casino shutdowns. Some 95% of the country’s 465 commercial casinos and about 75% of 524 tribal casinos have been closed, the trade group said.
MGM Resorts International is providing two weeks of pay for its employees and extended health benefits. And Henderson remains optimistic that she won’t be out of work for more than a month.
“So many people are greatly affected by this; they will not let Las Vegas go to sleep for longer than a month. I just don’t believe it,” she said.
How long the shutdown lasts will likely depend largely on the course the virus takes, medical experts said. In Clark County as of Friday, 126 people have tested positive for coronavirus, where two people have died.
“If at the end of the 30 days the situation has gotten much, much worse, then obviously we’ll have to extend it,” said Dr. Brian Labus, epidemiology expert at the UNLV School of Public Health. “If we get closer to 30 days and everything is better, we’ll look at how to modify it. It’s a place to start, but obviously because we don’t know how this will play out, it’s hard to say exactly how many days it will be and whether or not it will be enough.”
READ MORE CORONAVIRUS NEWS AT: 21st Century Wire Coronavirus Files
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21stcenturywire--2020-03-24--2020 Election Roundup: Does Anybody Really Care Right Now?

With Bernie on the ropes and Biden in the lead , what will ‘ Act Two ’ be for Tulsi Gabbard ?
( Photo via Twitter ) After the early primaries and caucuses , followed by a trio of ‘ Super Tuesdays ’ , the Democratic Party ’ s nominating process for the 2020 Presidential election has quickly faded from the public consciousness and barely cracked through the news cycle due to the coronavirus pandemic .
Here ’ s a quick roundup of recent 2020 Election news , for anybody that cares : The DNC insists its summer nominating convention @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , but is probably privately plotting some Corona-contingency scenarios .
Former presidential candidate and billionaire stalking horse , Michael Bloomberg , is now facing at least two lawsuits for ‘ stiffing aides on pay ’ – the now laid-off campaign staffers said they were promised to be compensated through the general election .
Rep. Tulsi Gabbard officially dropped out of the race last week , offering her ‘ full support ’ for the party ’ s frontrunner , Joe Biden .
Some of Gabbard ’ s most ardent supporters argue that her best @ @ @ @ @ @ @ including 21WIRE editor Patrick Henningsen , called foul as news of her drop-out broke : Bernie Sanders is looking like the perennial runner-up , still hanging on as he trails Biden in the delegate count and his path to nomination narrowing to near impossibility by each passing day .
Feelin ’ The Bern : Bernie ’ s campaign appears to be on the brink of implosion .
Sanders has been attacked by the left for failing to build a majority coalition and instead banking on his losing ‘ 30 % ’ campaign strategy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ three options remaining , while his supporters sit traumatized in social isolation : • “ Slow-Bern ” – Stay in the race , spend the Bernie bucks , but tamp down attacks on Biden ; • “ Re-Bern ” – Reignite his campaign somehow , claim Corona-crisis as license to press on ; • “ Bern-Out ” – Suspend campaign , endorse establishment ’ s candidate , because that ’ s what Bernie does .
Meanwhile , Sleepy Joe is still toiling away at perfecting his digital campaign – hoping to breakthrough by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ victory over this coronavirus crisis :

By
With Bernie on the ropes and Biden in the lead, what will ‘Act Two’ be for Tulsi Gabbard?
(Photo via Twitter)
After the early primaries and caucuses, followed by a trio of ‘Super Tuesdays’, the Democratic Party’s nominating process for the 2020 Presidential election has quickly faded from the public consciousness and barely cracked through the news cycle due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Here’s a quick roundup of recent 2020 Election news, for anybody that cares:
The DNC insists its summer nominating convention is still on in Milwaukee as planned, but is probably privately plotting some Corona-contingency scenarios.
Former presidential candidate and billionaire stalking horse, Michael Bloomberg, is now facing at least two lawsuits for ‘stiffing aides on pay’ – the now laid-off campaign staffers said they were promised to be compensated through the general election.
Rep. Tulsi Gabbard officially dropped out of the race last week, offering her ‘full support’ for the party’s frontrunner, Joe Biden. Some of Gabbard’s most ardent supporters argue that her best days are ahead, while others, including 21WIRE editor Patrick Henningsen, called foul as news of her drop-out broke:
Let’s be clear, I don’t support Tulsi’s decision to support Biden (or anyone’s decision to do so for that matter) But there is only ONE person who was abandoned in this election as she fought for Assange, election integrity, ending the war in Syria, fair media, etc & thats TULSI. — Niko House 🌺🌹✊🏾 (@nikoCSFB) March 19, 2020
Have had a few days to think about @TulsiGabbard‘s pledged support of Joe Biden. Out of five potential choices she had, I believe dropping out and supporting Biden was the correct one. Thread. — K. Rosef (@kayrosef) March 22, 2020
I support #TulsiGabbard in all her endeavors. I hope she’s the VP or SoS in a Biden administration. Or I hope she runs for Senate in 2022. Or I hope she runs in 2024. She had no other option this time around, and she needs to be back on the world stage so her message can be heard pic.twitter.com/aNym68qvtm — Dennis Potvin 🌺 (@DennisPotvinDem) March 20, 2020
Talk about political suicide. Way to go #Tulsi… If Act Two is #TulsiGabbard becoming that female VP whom #Biden promised he’d have, then I’d say we really have proper s*** show on our hands in 2020 https://t.co/gBmLKkJlbD — Patrick Henningsen (@21WIRE) March 19, 2020
Bernie Sanders is looking like the perennial runner-up, still hanging on as he trails Biden in the delegate count and his path to nomination narrowing to near impossibility by each passing day.
Feelin’ The Bern: Bernie’s campaign appears to be on the brink of implosion.
Sanders has been attacked by the left for failing to build a majority coalition and instead banking on his losing ‘30%’ campaign strategy. It appears the Vermont Senator has three options remaining, while his supporters sit traumatized in social isolation:
“Slow-Bern” – Stay in the race, spend the Bernie bucks, but tamp down attacks on Biden;
– Stay in the race, spend the Bernie bucks, but tamp down attacks on Biden; “Re-Bern” – Reignite his campaign somehow, claim Corona-crisis as license to press on;
– Reignite his campaign somehow, claim Corona-crisis as license to press on; “Bern-Out” – Suspend campaign, endorse establishment’s candidate, because that’s what Bernie does.
Meanwhile, Sleepy Joe is still toiling away at perfecting his digital campaign – hoping to breakthrough by November, and lead us all to victory over this coronavirus crisis:
There is simply NO WAY that Sleepy Joe could lead us through this coronavirus. He can’t do a digital campaign event & there is precisely ZERO chance he could do 1/00th of what @realDonaldTrump has done! ⬇ pic.twitter.com/GPWM1rWSTj — Kayleigh McEnany (@kayleighmcenany) March 23, 2020
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21stcenturywire--2020-03-25--‘Not a Sexy Drug’: Coronavirus Patients in New York Getting Vitamin C Treatments

Doctors in New York state ’ s largest health system , Northwell Heath , are treating some of their ‘ @ @ @ @ @ with an intravenous regimen of the powerful antioxidant vitamin C – something big pharmaceutical companies @ @ @ @ @ hear about right now : Dr. Andrew G. Weber , a pulmonologist and critical-care specialist @ @ @ @ @ : “ The patients who received vitamin C did significantly better than those who did @ @ @ @ @ ” he said .
“ It helps a tremendous amount , but it is not @ @ @ @ @ not a sexy drug.
” A spokesperson for Northwell Health confirmed for the Post that @ @ @ @ @ patients are “ widely used ” across the system .
The Shanghai , China government @ @ @ @ @ for COVID-19 .

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Doctors in New York state’s largest health system, Northwell Heath, are treating some of their ‘seriously sick’ coronavirus patients with an intravenous regimen of the powerful antioxidant vitamin C – something big pharmaceutical companies don’t want to hear about right now:
Big Pharma won’t like this at all, unless they are selling it….https://t.co/La0ZSbOoNe — Patrick Henningsen (@21WIRE) March 25, 2020
Dr. Andrew G. Weber, a pulmonologist and critical-care specialist told the New York Post:
“The patients who received vitamin C did significantly better than those who did not get vitamin C,” he said. “It helps a tremendous amount, but it is not highlighted because it’s not a sexy drug.”
A spokesperson for Northwell Health confirmed for the Post that vitamin C treatments for coronavirus patients are “widely used” across the system.
The Shanghai, China government officially recommends vitamin C treatment for COVID-19.
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21stcenturywire--2020-04-16--COVID-19 Marshall Plan: Plunging UK Into Debt on a False Pretext

Independent analyst Andrew Mather presents his Regular Chart Update for the global crisis , this time with a brief intro @ @ @ @ @ to be a “ Marshall Scam , ” whereby the UK and other countries who @ @ @ @ @ imploded their economies and societies in order to declare ‘ war against an invisible enemy @ @ @ @ @ untold amounts of loans , emergency finance , and post-war austerity .
All in order @ @ @ @ @ , under a new and more centralised , corporatised and globalised Medical Marshall Law regime @ @ @ @ @ Establishment , it ’ s a race against time .
Will government and the central @ @ @ @ @ their COVID-inspired coup d ’ etat in time before the native become too restless ?
@ @ @ @ @ of this presentation here

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Independent analyst Andrew Mather presents his Regular Chart Update for the global crisis, this time with a brief intro into what is shaping up to be a “Marshall Scam,” whereby the UK and other countries who voluntarily suspend democracy and summarily imploded their economies and societies in order to declare ‘war against an invisible enemy’ – will now require untold amounts of loans, emergency finance, and post-war austerity. All in order to limp forward into 2021, under a new and more centralised, corporatised and globalised Medical Marshall Law regime.
Right now for the Establishment, it’s a race against time. Will government and the central bankers be able to execute their COVID-inspired coup d’etat in time before the native become too restless? Watch:
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Download PDF of this presentation here
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21stcenturywire--2020-04-16--US Expert: ‘Lockdown May Do More Damage, Claim More Lives Than COVID-19’

Temporary homeless shelter set up in a parking lot amid the coronavirus pandemic in Las Vegas , Nevada , USA ( Image Credit : David Becker/EPA/EFE ) We ’ ve been told repeatedly by government that the ‘ lockdown ’ and shutting down entire economies and societies is all about “ saving lives.
” However , upon closer examination , this proposition by government does not appear to be as straightforward as the popular sound bite might suggest .
Still , some hard questions has yet to be answered .
On what basis have government ‘ experts ’ made such @ @ @ @ @ @ @ policies really thought through by our political leaders , or merely driven by wild speculation , a hyperbolic media and general mass panic ?
Do they even make any scientific sense ?
Since this crisis has taken hold , a number of eminent experts have stepped forward to offer a more informed analysis than government , and are openly challenging the efficacy of extreme government interventions to the coronavirus .
Recently , Dr. David Katz has led a discussion on the concept of “ total harm minimization ” – a plan which he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ protect the most vulnerable people both from both Covid-19 and a whole range of ills including those which result from social isolation and economic shut-down .
It ’ s now obvious that none of these people were considered by government as it rushed to implement its total shutdown of society and the economy .
David L. Katz , MD , MPH , FACPM , FACP , FACLM is a preventive medicine specialist and globally recognized authority on lifestyle medicine .
He is the founder and former director of Yale University ’ s Yale-Griffin @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Past President of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine ; President and Founder of the non-profit True Health Initiative ; and Founder and CEO of Diet ID , Inc .

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Temporary homeless shelter set up in a parking lot amid the coronavirus pandemic in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA (Image Credit: David Becker/EPA/EFE)
We’ve been told repeatedly by government that the ‘lockdown’ and shutting down entire economies and societies is all about “saving lives.” However, upon closer examination, this proposition by government does not appear to be as straightforward as the popular sound bite might suggest. Still, some hard questions has yet to be answered. On what basis have government ‘experts’ made such profound and world-changing decisions? Were these policies really thought through by our political leaders, or merely driven by wild speculation, a hyperbolic media and general mass panic? Do they even make any scientific sense?
Since this crisis has taken hold, a number of eminent experts have stepped forward to offer a more informed analysis than government, and are openly challenging the efficacy of extreme government interventions to the coronavirus. Recently, Dr. David Katz has led a discussion on the concept of “total harm minimization” – a plan which he has formulated and which is designed to protect the most vulnerable people both from both Covid-19 and a whole range of ills including those which result from social isolation and economic shut-down. It’s now obvious that none of these people were considered by government as it rushed to implement its total shutdown of society and the economy.
David L. Katz, MD, MPH, FACPM, FACP, FACLM is a preventive medicine specialist and globally recognized authority on lifestyle medicine. He is the founder and former director of Yale University’s Yale-Griffin Prevention Research Center (1998-2019); Past President of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine; President and Founder of the non-profit True Health Initiative; and Founder and CEO of Diet ID, Inc.
Perspectives on the Pandemic (Part 3). Watch:
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21stcenturywire--2020-04-16--COVID-19: Why Big Government is the Disease, Not the Cure

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Letter to the Editor for the Daily Inter Lake March 29 , 2020 : A pastor once told me that , “ Every generation has a 100 percent mortality rate.
” The current “ pandemic ” can be used to illustrate societal problems more destructive than disease .
How Americans view the role of government in their lives and their belief that government can fix anything , including their mortality , demonstrates the madness that inflicts people when they become impressed with some delusion and run after it .
The present response to the coronavirus has led to panic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reactions .
Acting upon incomplete and probably inaccurate information , our government has embarked upon a spending spree and encroachment on the liberties of Americans of massive proportions .
Logic would dictate that from now on , every flu season , our economy must shut down and the government print , thereby inflating , more money and spend it on non-productive transfers .
The sphere of liberty shrinks as the size of government grows .
The current response to “ Chinese flu ” has led to policies unheard of in American history with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that government can cure anything ( pun intended ) , they are exhibiting symptoms of a disease far more serious than COVID-19 .
In slightly more than 200 years , Americans have moved away from self-reliance toward government dependence .
Our history has been one of people demanding and expecting the government to leave them alone .
Now , people are requiring the government to take care of them .
But at what cost ?
Being told that 1 million Montanans are under “ house arrest ” and that every “ non-essential ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ irrational response to save the lives of a few .
The logic displayed during this current “ pandemic ” would necessitate that nothing ever be allowed that would put more than 1 percent of a given population at risk .
So , driving cars must be banned , no American lives can be risked defending freedom , and high cholesterol foods taken off the shelves .
The assumption that the government can and should take care of your needs is a subtle destroyer of the American spirit .
Such a childlike attitude changes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ erodes the resilience of people to deal with a crisis .
Who will rescue us from our rescuers ?
We did not vote on the “ shelter-in-place ” dictum .
We did not vote on the shut down of all “ non-essential ” businesses .
Hysteria leads to a dismissal of the factual .
And the factual analysis of this current “ Wuhan flu ” is that many of the policies enacted here in Montana are irrational and insulting .
Does anyone believe that the “ vulnerable ” ( such as this mid-70s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ appropriate precautions on their own without the governor destroying the livelihoods of all our fellow Montanans ?
Does anyone really expect now that a governor has assumed the power to decide who is essential or not , that future governors will not expand on such policies ?
Increasing dependence on government and passively accepting that some “ elite ” somewhere knows best about our welfare is much more dangerous than the Wuhan virus .
The natural desire to be “ safe ” often suppresses the need to be free .
But abandoning one @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their own safety will result in government tyranny .
And you will still die .

A problem more destructive than disease
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Letter to the Editor for the Daily Inter Lake March 29, 2020:
A pastor once told me that, “Every generation has a 100 percent mortality rate.”
The current “pandemic” can be used to illustrate societal problems more destructive than disease. How Americans view the role of government in their lives and their belief that government can fix anything, including their mortality, demonstrates the madness that inflicts people when they become impressed with some delusion and run after it. The present response to the coronavirus has led to panic that has traded rational responses for irrational reactions.
Acting upon incomplete and probably inaccurate information, our government has embarked upon a spending spree and encroachment on the liberties of Americans of massive proportions. Logic would dictate that from now on, every flu season, our economy must shut down and the government print, thereby inflating, more money and spend it on non-productive transfers. The sphere of liberty shrinks as the size of government grows. The current response to “Chinese flu” has led to policies unheard of in American history with yet unknown consequences. When people believe that government can cure anything (pun intended), they are exhibiting symptoms of a disease far more serious than COVID-19.
In slightly more than 200 years, Americans have moved away from self-reliance toward government dependence. Our history has been one of people demanding and expecting the government to leave them alone. Now, people are requiring the government to take care of them. But at what cost?
Being told that 1 million Montanans are under “house arrest” and that every “non-essential” business must close its door is an irrational response to save the lives of a few. The logic displayed during this current “pandemic” would necessitate that nothing ever be allowed that would put more than 1 percent of a given population at risk. So, driving cars must be banned, no American lives can be risked defending freedom, and high cholesterol foods taken off the shelves.
The assumption that the government can and should take care of your needs is a subtle destroyer of the American spirit. Such a childlike attitude changes how people prepare for the future and erodes the resilience of people to deal with a crisis. Who will rescue us from our rescuers?
We did not vote on the “shelter-in-place” dictum. We did not vote on the shut down of all “non-essential” businesses. Hysteria leads to a dismissal of the factual. And the factual analysis of this current “Wuhan flu” is that many of the policies enacted here in Montana are irrational and insulting. Does anyone believe that the “vulnerable” (such as this mid-70s old man) are incapable of taking appropriate precautions on their own without the governor destroying the livelihoods of all our fellow Montanans? Does anyone really expect now that a governor has assumed the power to decide who is essential or not, that future governors will not expand on such policies? Increasing dependence on government and passively accepting that some “elite” somewhere knows best about our welfare is much more dangerous than the Wuhan virus.
The natural desire to be “safe” often suppresses the need to be free. But abandoning one’s own responsibility to provide for their own safety will result in government tyranny. And you will still die.
— Montana State Rep. John Fuller, R-Kalispell
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21stcenturywire--2020-04-17--Minnesotans Protest State Lockdown – Defying Fauci, Bill Gates, Big Pharma Agenda

More lockdown backlash today across the United States , this time in Minnesota , as protesters lined the streets of @ @ @ @ @ mansion residence , captured on video by CBS Minnesota : Minnesotans are joining citizens of @ @ @ @ @ the Fauci , Bill Gates , Big Pharma lockdown agenda .

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More lockdown backlash today across the United States, this time in Minnesota, as protesters lined the streets of Governor Tim Waltz’s mansion residence, captured on video by CBS Minnesota:
Minnesotans are joining citizens of other states now in defying the Fauci, Bill Gates, Big Pharma lockdown agenda.
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21stcenturywire--2020-04-17--UKC News: Government Doubles Down on COVID-19 Lockdown, Pushing Vaccine Solution

As the UK enters its fourth week of ‘ lockdown ’ and with the crisis having already peaked , the @ @ @ @ @ to give the pubic any indication when draconian quarantine measures will finally be lifted .
@ @ @ @ @ of the data and the actual science , there appears to be another deeper agenda @ @ @ @ @ political leaders across the lockdown states are now simultaneously calling for a mandatory ‘ pharmaceutical @ @ @ @ @ With each passing hour , it looks increasingly likely that the current COVID-19 upheaval has @ @ @ @ @ a series ill-conceived decisions and policies made by western governments themselves .
All this and @ @ @ @ @ and Patrick Henningsen bringing you the latest Coronavirus updates .
Watch : .
SEE MORE @ @ @ @ @

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As the UK enters its fourth week of ‘lockdown’ and with the crisis having already peaked, the government remains noncommittal and hesitant to give the pubic any indication when draconian quarantine measures will finally be lifted. However, upon closer examination of the data and the actual science, there appears to be another deeper agenda at play, as multiple political leaders across the lockdown states are now simultaneously calling for a mandatory ‘pharmaceutical solution’ to crisis. With each passing hour, it looks increasingly likely the current COVID-19 upheaval has been a direct result of a series of ill-conceived decisions and policies made by western governments themselves. All this and more.
Co-hosts Mike Robinson and Patrick Henningsen bringing you the latest Coronavirus updates. Watch:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHR3NwGcE7o
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21stcenturywire--2020-04-17--US Lockdown Numbers Never Real: So-called ‘Experts’ Simply Lied

In the US , trillions of dollars have already been spent – all based on the fear that the experts @ @ @ @ @ Trust in Fauci .
Trust in Trump .
Trust in Cuomo .
But were they @ @ @ @ @ of doomsday death predictions and around-the-clock fearmongering by both the US mainstream media and government @ @ @ @ @ is finally emerging from the ‘ fog of war ’ and it ’ s not @ @ @ @ @ for anyone – and most of all not for numerous ‘ experts ’ who have @ @ @ @ @ ’ policies .
In the end , there will be profound implications ; economically , @ @ @ @ @ responsible for ramping-up this unprecedented takedown of the global economy and societies should be held @ @ @ @ @ they ?
The Ingraham Angle reports .
Watch :

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In the US, trillions of dollars have already been spent – all based on the fear that the experts’ models were correct. Trust in Fauci. Trust in Trump. Trust in Cuomo. But were they ever right? After weeks of doomsday death predictions and around-the-clock fearmongering by both the US mainstream media and government officials, the true picture is finally emerging from the ‘fog of war’ and it’s not a pretty one, not for anyone – and most of all not for numerous ‘experts’ who have been pushing their ‘lockdown’ policies.
In the end, there will be profound implications; economically, socially and politically. Those responsible for ramping-up this unprecedented takedown of the global economy and societies should be held to account. But will they? The Ingraham Angle reports. Watch:
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21stcenturywire--2020-04-17--COVID-19 Reality: UK Lockdown Could Cause 150,000 ‘Avoidable’ Deaths

As more countries around the world pass the peak of coronavirus infections , it has been reported in British media that the UK ’ s response to the coronavirus crisis may cause 150,000 deaths that could have been avoided .
This figure is much higher than current projections of deaths from COVID-19 .
The figure came from Spectator editor Fraser Nelson who claimed it was a preliminary estimate circulating in Whitehall .
Most directly , many people are being denied life-saving medical treatments so that the health service can focus on COVID-19 patients .
It is being reported today that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deaths from a deficit of cancer treatments if the lockdown should last for 6 months .
Others will suffer from lost income , which alone will cause a great deal of stress and anxiety for untold numbers of people , in addition to any fears they may have of the virus .
It is logical that the added element of being made to stay home , potentially removed from loved ones , will contribute to loneliness , depression and suicide .
Furthermore , the record-breaking spike in unemployment will very likely lead to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
In times of such hardship , drug and alcohol abuse also tend to increase , as well as other social problems , such as domestic violence and divorce .
The economic and social costs , and those of knock-on effects are incalculable , and they will almost certainly have their own death toll .
It is a tragic irony , but scientists advising government ministers predict that the extreme restrictions imposed in response to the Covid-19 outbreak will lead directly to a surge in deaths greater than that caused by the virus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the Financial Times and the Spectator magazine , was presented to UK government ministers by scientists who had modelled the likely effects of the restrictions .
The cause of the non-Covid deaths will be varied , from cancer sufferers and other seriously ill people not getting treatment , from people avoiding going to hospitals ( visits to accident and emergency units are down by a third ) , from an increase in suicides among depressed people forced to self-isolate and from the effects of increased domestic abuse .
Asked about the 150,000-deaths @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Secretary Matt Hancock sought to play it down , describing it as “ not part of our internal analysis.
” But Mr Hancock will not be able to give the figure the brush-off for long , as each passing week reveals more clues as to the detrimental effects caused by the unprecedented lockdowns .
The use of the term “ avoidable ” deaths by the scientists is telling .
It stands in contrast to Covid-19 deaths , most of which are likely to be unavoidable , affecting as they largely do the very @ @ @ @ @ @ @ callous as it sounds , would not have seen next Christmas anyway .
It is for this reason that some have estimated that Covid-19 may not in fact cause any extra deaths by the end of the year , even if it does kill some people a bit earlier than they would otherwise have died .
The 150,000 estimate , along with dire warnings about the severe damage being done to the economy by the lockdown , has added urgency to an increasingly fraught debate in the upper echelons of British government about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ return the nation to a version of normal life…

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Coronavirus “Stay Home” billboard in London. (Photo: Kwh1050. Source: Wikicommons)
As more countries around the world pass the peak of coronavirus infections, it has been reported in British media that the UK’s response to the coronavirus crisis may cause 150,000 deaths that could have been avoided. This figure is much higher than current projections of deaths from COVID-19.
The figure came from Spectator editor Fraser Nelson who claimed it was a preliminary estimate circulating in Whitehall.
Most directly, many people are being denied life-saving medical treatments so that the health service can focus on COVID-19 patients. It is being reported today that leading oncologist Dr Karol Sikora estimates 60,000 deaths from a deficit of cancer treatments if the lockdown should last for 6 months.
Others will suffer from lost income, which alone will cause a great deal of stress and anxiety for untold numbers of people, in addition to any fears they may have of the virus. It is logical that the added element of being made to stay home, potentially removed from loved ones, will contribute to loneliness, depression and suicide. Furthermore, the record-breaking spike in unemployment will very likely lead to greater poverty and hunger among the populace. In times of such hardship, drug and alcohol abuse also tend to increase, as well as other social problems, such as domestic violence and divorce.
The economic and social costs, and those of knock-on effects are incalculable, and they will almost certainly have their own death toll.
More from Peter Andrews RT International…
It is a tragic irony, but scientists advising government ministers predict that the extreme restrictions imposed in response to the Covid-19 outbreak will lead directly to a surge in deaths greater than that caused by the virus.
The shocking estimate, first reported in the Financial Times and the Spectator magazine, was presented to UK government ministers by scientists who had modelled the likely effects of the restrictions.
The cause of the non-Covid deaths will be varied, from cancer sufferers and other seriously ill people not getting treatment, from people avoiding going to hospitals (visits to accident and emergency units are down by a third), from an increase in suicides among depressed people forced to self-isolate and from the effects of increased domestic abuse.
Asked about the 150,000-deaths estimate, the UK’s Health Secretary Matt Hancock sought to play it down, describing it as “not part of our internal analysis.” But Mr Hancock will not be able to give the figure the brush-off for long, as each passing week reveals more clues as to the detrimental effects caused by the unprecedented lockdowns.
The use of the term “avoidable” deaths by the scientists is telling. It stands in contrast to Covid-19 deaths, most of which are likely to be unavoidable, affecting as they largely do the very old and very infirm, who, callous as it sounds, would not have seen next Christmas anyway. It is for this reason that some have estimated that Covid-19 may not in fact cause any extra deaths by the end of the year, even if it does kill some people a bit earlier than they would otherwise have died.
The 150,000 estimate, along with dire warnings about the severe damage being done to the economy by the lockdown, has added urgency to an increasingly fraught debate in the upper echelons of British government about how to start easing the lockdown and return the nation to a version of normal life…
Continue reading this story at RT
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21stcenturywire--2020-04-18--China’s New ‘Coronavirus’ Surveillance Grid: 24/7 Tracking, Big Data, Drones – A Permanent State

As the crisis matures in the West , many people , politicians and media continue to point to China as the gold standard now for ‘ managing the pandemic.
’ However , few in the West have stopped to consider whether China ’ s crisis management and authoritarian social control grid is really appropriate for democratic societies around the world .
The Chinese model is now there for the world to see in all of its perceived glory and abject horror : a total surveillance police state with few civil liberties left , a color-coded system for its citizens through @ @ @ @ @ @ @ digital immunity passports , and cameras and drones to monitor social distancing , with drones even barking instructions and warnings at persons spotted outdoors in ‘ unauthorized gatherings ’ – all in the effort to ‘ fight the coronavirus.
’ There are also cash payments designed to encourage people to snitch on their neighbors .
Big data gives the government a real-time granular profile of each and every citizen , already with 200 million users and counting .
Shocking as all of this sounds , most of these measures are now being touted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ China ’ s ‘ national monitoring experiment ’ will not go away after COVID-19 is finally ‘ contained.
’ Rather , the measures will be permanent .
Watch :

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As the crisis matures in the West, many people, politicians and media continue to point to China as the gold standard now for ‘managing the pandemic.’ However, few in the West have stopped to consider whether China’s crisis management and authoritarian social control grid is really appropriate for democratic societies around the world. The Chinese model is now there for the world to see in all of its perceived glory and abject horror: a total surveillance police state with few civil liberties left, a color-coded system for its citizens through a ‘virus’ tracking app, digital immunity passports, and cameras and drones to monitor social distancing, with drones even barking instructions and warnings at persons spotted outdoors in ‘unauthorized gatherings’ – all in the effort to ‘fight the coronavirus.’ There are also cash payments designed to encourage people to snitch on their neighbors. Big data gives the government a real-time granular profile of each and every citizen, already with 200 million users and counting.
Shocking as all of this sounds, most of these measures are now being touted for roll-out in the western countries.
China’s ‘national monitoring experiment’ will not go away after COVID-19 is finally ‘contained.’ Rather, the measures will be permanent. Watch:
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21stcenturywire--2020-04-18--Sweden vs COVID-19: Why ‘Herd Immunity’ Matters and Why Lockdown Doesn’t Really Work

Professor Johan Giesecke , one of the world ’ s most senior epidemiologists , advisor to the Swedish Government ( he hired Anders Tegnell who is currently directing Swedish strategy ) , the first Chief Scientist of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control , and an advisor to the director general of the WHO , lays out with typically Swedish bluntness why he thinks : • UK policy on lockdown and other European countries are not evidence-based • The correct policy is to protect the old and the frail only • This will eventually lead to herd immunity @ @ @ @ @ @ @ initial UK response , before the “ 180 degree U-turn ” , was better • The Imperial College paper was “ not very good ” and he has never seen an unpublished paper have so much policy impact • The paper was very much too pessimistic • Any such models are a dubious basis for public policy anyway • The flattening of the curve is due to the most vulnerable dying first as much as the lockdown • The results will eventually be similar for all countries • Covid-19 is a “ mild @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and it was the novelty of the disease that scared people .
• The actual fatality rate of Covid-19 is the region of 0.1 % • At least 50 % of the population of both the UK and Sweden will be shown to have already had the disease when mass antibody testing becomes available

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Unherd shares the following…
Professor Johan Giesecke, one of the world’s most senior epidemiologists, advisor to the Swedish Government (he hired Anders Tegnell who is currently directing Swedish strategy), the first Chief Scientist of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, and an advisor to the director general of the WHO, lays out with typically Swedish bluntness why he thinks:
UK policy on lockdown and other European countries are not evidence-based
The correct policy is to protect the old and the frail only
This will eventually lead to herd immunity as a “by-product”
The initial UK response, before the “180 degree U-turn”, was better
The Imperial College paper was “not very good” and he has never seen an unpublished paper have so much policy impact
The paper was very much too pessimistic
Any such models are a dubious basis for public policy anyway
The flattening of the curve is due to the most vulnerable dying first as much as the lockdown
The results will eventually be similar for all countries
Covid-19 is a “mild disease” and similar to the flu, and it was the novelty of the disease that scared people.
The actual fatality rate of Covid-19 is the region of 0.1%
At least 50% of the population of both the UK and Sweden will be shown to have already had the disease when mass antibody testing becomes available
UnHerd host Freddy Sayers speaks with Professor Johan Giesecke about Watch:
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