Beijing tightens grip over coronavirus research, amid US-China row on virus origin

[digsbe]

Beijing tightens grip over coronavirus research amid US-China row on virus origin - CNN

Hong Kong (CNN)China has imposed restrictions on the publication of academic research on the origins of the novel coronavirus, according to a central government directive and online notices published by two Chinese universities, that have since been removed from the web.


Under the new policy, all academic papers on Covid-19 will be subject to extra vetting before being submitted for publication. Studies on the origin of the virus will receive extra scrutiny and must be approved by central government officials, according to the now-deleted posts.
A medical expert in Hong Kong who collaborated with mainland researchers to publish a clinical analysis of Covid-19 cases in an international medical journal said his work did not undergo such vetting in February.
The increased scrutiny appears to be the latest effort by the Chinese government to control the narrative on the origins of the coronavirus pandemic, which has claimed more than 100,000 lives and sickened 1.7 million people worldwide since it first broke out in the Chinese city of Wuhan in December.
Since late January, Chinese researchers have published a series of Covid-19 studies in influential international medical journals. Some findings about early coronavirus cases -- such as when human-to-human transition first appeared -- have raised questions over the official government account of the outbreak and sparked controversy on Chinese social media.
And now, Chinese authorities appear to be tightening their grip on the publication of Covid-19 research.
A Chinese researcher who spoke on condition of anonymity due to fear of retaliation said the move was a worrying development that would likely obstruct important scientific research.
"I think it is a coordinated effort from (the) Chinese government to control (the) narrative, and paint it as if the outbreak did not originate in China," the researcher told CNN. "And I don't think they will really tolerate any objective study to investigate the origination of this disease."

China has been trying to spin and own the narrative on where the virus has originated, going so far as to blame it on the US military. They want to cover the tracks of their missteps and try to push all blame for this global pandemic on someone else. Denying publications, or having scientists "cook numbers" in regards to how this virus started and where it started should be seen as abhorrent in terms of trying to learn as much as we can so we can develop treatments and mount a response that will save lives.

This is the China virus, the US and other countries must re-evaluate their relationship with China as a bad state actor run by an evil government.

 

[ecofarm]

Everyone has always known the Chinese regime is, well, a regime. No one trusts their numbers on anything and no one should be surprised when any regime tries to hide things.

The Chinese regime has agreed, like the Saud regime, to limp into the 20th century through diplomatic and economic ties and incentives. That is unlike some regimes that have demonstrated no intention of gradual social development, the Iranian regime for example.

No one believes the Chinese regime are good guys. They ignore human rights, they internally manipulate currency value, they commit all manner of atrocity. And no one should be surprised when they hide things.

If China had been open about this from the start, it merely would have been two more weeks of denial in January.

 

[Mycroft]

Beijing tightens grip over coronavirus research amid US-China row on virus origin - CNN



China has been trying to spin and own the narrative on where the virus has originated, going so far as to blame it on the US military. They want to cover the tracks of their missteps and try to push all blame for this global pandemic on someone else. Denying publications, or having scientists "cook numbers" in regards to how this virus started and where it started should be seen as abhorrent in terms of trying to learn as much as we can so we can develop treatments and mount a response that will save lives.

This is the China virus, the US and other countries must re-evaluate their relationship with China as a bad state actor run by an evil government.

Beyond useless rhetoric, a country's response will be tempered by the degree that they are reliant upon Chinese trade and money.

For example, various EU countries need China's manufactured parts for their own assembly plants. Those countries would be reluctant to take effective steps against China concerning COVID-19 if it means losing access to those parts. Likewise, for products that those countries export to China.

I'm very happy that our President has already been taking steps to remove our reliance upon Chinese imports and exports. I encourage Trump to keep up the good work and finish the job.

 

[bearpoker]

Beyond useless rhetoric, a country's response will be tempered by the degree that they are reliant upon Chinese trade and money.

For example, various EU countries need China's manufactured parts for their own assembly plants. Those countries would be reluctant to take effective steps against China concerning COVID-19 if it means losing access to those parts. Likewise, for products that those countries export to China.

I'm very happy that our President has already been taking steps to remove our reliance upon Chinese imports and exports. I encourage Trump to keep up the good work and finish the job.

Interesting. what steps is the Trump administration taking?

 

[Felis Leo]

Everyone has always known the Chinese regime is, well, a regime. No one trusts their numbers on anything and no one should be surprised when any regime tries to hide things.

The Chinese regime has agreed, like the Saud regime, to limp into the 20th century through diplomatic and economic ties and incentives. That is unlike some regimes that have demonstrated no intention of gradual social development, the Iranian regime for example.

No one believes the Chinese regime are good guys. They ignore human rights, they internally manipulate currency value, they commit all manner of atrocity. And no one should be surprised when they hide things.

If China had been open about this from the start, it merely would have been two more weeks of denial in January.

I liked your comment, but it should have been written "No one should trust their numbers or anything." Too many people trusted their numbers, continue to trust their numbers and still constantly regurgitate their propaganda with all the simple and unquestioning credulity of a care home patient with advanced Alzheimers disease.

 

[Linc]

No amount of blame-shifting will cloud the trump response to the virus, which began in earnest on Jan.24. That’s when the trump admin gave a secret Intel briefing to GOP politicians.

Jan. 24 is also when GOP insider trading began, dumping service industry stock at its ‘peak’ and buying up health care stock. Which Pharma making hydroxychloroquine donate to trump and gops.

trump didn’t act to save lives for eight weeks after 1/24, and only after the DJIA lost 10,000 plus points. He ruined our economy with his inactions and science denials.

 

[Mycroft]

Interesting. what steps is the Trump administration taking?

For one...the tariffs.

 

[Felis Leo]

No amount of blame-shifting will cloud the trump response to the virus, which began in earnest on Jan.24. That’s when the trump admin gave a secret Intel briefing to GOP politicians.

Jan. 24 is also when GOP insider trading began, dumping service industry stock at its ‘peak’ and buying up health care stock. Which Pharma making hydroxychloroquine donate to trump and gops.

trump didn’t act to save lives for eight weeks after 1/24, and only when the DJIA lost 10,000 plus points. He ruined our economy with his inactions and science denials.

It is not blame shifting, Linc. It is the proper allocation of responsibility.

Donald Trump was the negligent firefighter who ignored the smoke from the house fire. China was the arsonist who lit the house on fire.

 

[bearpoker]

For one...the tariffs.

That's an ongoing fight that predates the virus. What else ya got?

 

[Roadvirus]

Is it my imagination or is China trying go for "Terrorist Nation" status?

 

[ecofarm]

I liked your comment, but it should have been written "No one should trust their numbers or anything." Too many people trusted their numbers, continue to trust their numbers and still constantly regurgitate their propaganda with all the simple and unquestioning credulity of a care home patient with advanced Alzheimers disease.

People use the numbers from China because we gotta use something for China estimations. Any estimation includes a range of possibilities based on a regime's numbers. No one takes the regime's numbers as facts and no one ever has.

 

[Mycroft]

That's an ongoing fight that predates the virus. What else ya got?

Predates. Yes.

That only means that Trump has been correct since the day he took Office.

 

[Mycroft]

People use the numbers from China because we gotta use something for China estimations. Any estimation includes a range of possibilities based on a regime's numbers. No one takes the regime's numbers as facts and no one ever has.

The WHO took their numbers as facts...and, it seems, everyone else took the WHO's statements as facts.

 

[Felis Leo]

People use the numbers from China because we gotta use something for China estimations. Any estimation includes a range of possibilities based on a regime's numbers. No one takes the regime's numbers as facts and no one ever has.

Tell that to anyone here who repeated the CCP's Party Line: "China has no new cases of Coronavirus" bilge unironically.

 

[ecofarm]

The WHO took their numbers as facts...and, it seems, everyone else took the WHO's statements as facts.

Discussing the numbers for any regime includes the fact that the numbers are from a regime. No one treats a regime's numbers as we take a democracy's numbers.

It's absurd to pretend anyone forgot China is a regime of human rights violations and secrecy. It's not as if, during this pandemic, people believed the Chinese regime is a source of facts. Still, we use the numbers we have from them without alternative and place a common sense asterisk.

 

[ecofarm]

Tell that to anyone here who repeated the CCP's Party Line: "China has no new cases of Coronavirus" bilge unironically.

I can't imagine who cares. "China claims..." only means so much.

 

[Linc]

It is not blame shifting, Linc. It is the proper allocation of responsibility.

Donald Trump was the negligent firefighter who ignored the smoke from the house fire. China was the arsonist who lit the house on fire.

I’m not a fan of both-siding and false-equivocating, Felis Leo. As trump told the world, he takes no responsibility. He owns this economy, just as Obama owned Bush’s.

What R’s support is the dysfunctional delay of three weeks after trump got back from Europe and blew a gasket because of a report from a ‘female’ doctor.

He’ll have the blood of tens of thousands of Americans on his hands

 

[Moonglow]

Beijing tightens grip over coronavirus research amid US-China row on virus origin - CNN



China has been trying to spin and own the narrative on where the virus has originated, going so far as to blame it on the US military. They want to cover the tracks of their missteps and try to push all blame for this global pandemic on someone else. Denying publications, or having scientists "cook numbers" in regards to how this virus started and where it started should be seen as abhorrent in terms of trying to learn as much as we can so we can develop treatments and mount a response that will save lives.

This is the China virus, the US and other countries must re-evaluate their relationship with China as a bad state actor run by an evil government.

Yet the capitalist run and throw money at China to give the capitalist the means to the end in profit margin....

 

[Linc]

The WHO took their numbers as facts...and, it seems, everyone else took the WHO's statements as facts.

Compare a WHO timeline to a trump timeline, with your further blame-shifting.

 

[SLC]

Beijing tightens grip over coronavirus research amid US-China row on virus origin - CNN



China has been trying to spin and own the narrative on where the virus has originated, going so far as to blame it on the US military. They want to cover the tracks of their missteps and try to push all blame for this global pandemic on someone else. Denying publications, or having scientists "cook numbers" in regards to how this virus started and where it started should be seen as abhorrent in terms of trying to learn as much as we can so we can develop treatments and mount a response that will save lives.

This is the China virus, the US and other countries must re-evaluate their relationship with China as a bad state actor run by an evil government.

There are Chinese scientific papers that point to one of the viral research labs as the source of the accidental release of the virus. The paper and presumably the scientist that wrote it is being suppressed now. They don't think its a weaponized virus however.