Coronavirus from Wuhan (2019-nCoV) – My Conspiracy Theories

2020-01-31

Bartłomiej Magierowski

Prelude - first SARS in 2003

In July 2003, I arrived in Hong Kong. It was already the final stage of the SARS epidemic. Nevertheless, the planes were almost empty. Lufthansa offered me a free upgrade to business class because there were practically no passengers. At Hong Kong Airport, there were only 8 people waiting in total, 4 of whom were waiting for me. I was shocked as I walked alone towards passport control - normally in Hong Kong you wait around 20-40 minutes to cross the border, and hundreds of travellers stand in queues at immigration. I remember a man from the cleaning staff wearing a mask, who was standing next to me spraying some kind of disinfectant and wiping all the barriers, handles and door knobs. Why did I fly there? I was not afraid of the virus, because all my Chinese friends claimed that nothing serious was happening, that they did not know anyone who was ill, and that the whole situation was caused by foreign media. I was also younger, I did not have my own family, and I probably saw the world and risks differently. Indeed - according to both their and my own opinion, nothing tragic was happening, but the media had made the issue known all over the world and Hong Kong suffered greatly because of it; the city's economy collapsed. Only years later did it become clear that the authorities of the People's Republic of China had covered up the SARS epidemic and downplayed it for as long as possible.

Wuhan Coronavirus - the beginning

This time it is different - the situation with the Wuhan coronavirus 2019-nCoV is definitely much more serious and has affected the lives of the entire China and all Chinese people. According to findings at the time, the virus originated from a bat eaten by a snake, and people came into contact with that snake - it sounds almost like a legend. Many people may be surprised by this fact, but in China various such creatures, reptiles, amphibians and insects are still eaten. In the past, it was a result of poverty and hunger; today it is more of a local tradition or simply a curiosity. I would like to immediately point out that we cannot criticize an entire nation - not every Chinese person is a fan of unusual food. On the contrary - I know many people for whom such things are simply strange food, and they certainly would not search restaurant menus looking for snake, crocodile, bat or some kind of larvae. I also know a Polish person who tasted dog meat in China - also a curiosity, but I would never say on that basis that all Polish people eat dogs. We should not generalize or blame an entire nation. Of course, a different issue is the hygiene standards at markets such as the one in Wuhan. I have never been there, but observing similar markets in Shenzhen, Guangzhou or Shanghai, I can say that they are not exactly spotless. In the evening, someone comes and washes everything down with water; there are remains of feathers, shells, tofu, vegetables, meat and bones floating around - a huge mixture of everything. It is not difficult for viruses to appear there; on the contrary, such places are a paradise for various harmful microorganisms. The worst are markets with live animals - I remember areas around Shan Xia Jiu in Guangzhou or the DuShuCun market in Shenzhen, where there were cages on the street containing snakes, somewhere separately dogs and cats, bowls with scorpions, and further away chickens, ducks and guinea fowl. It was even interesting from a photographer's perspective, but today I look at it differently. Besides, many years ago these were considered "food products", whereas now many of these places simply sell domestic animals, such as puppies, parrots or aquarium fish. Although scorpions and snakes are still intended for consumption, and this is a tradition that China should abandon!

Conspiracy theories - Wuhan coronavirus, or perhaps from the USA?

I am not a fan of conspiracy theories, but... the longer this situation continues (and it will probably last another six months), the more I wonder about the circumstances surrounding the "creation" of this virus. What especially concerns me is the moment when this "epidemic" appeared. Right before the Chinese New Year? At the moment when the largest human migration in Asia takes place? It is true that apparently the first cases appeared already in November and December, but the disease gained momentum precisely in January. Was it intentional? If someone created a map showing all the journeys and changes of location made by Chinese people during this period, we would practically see all cities and towns connected. I personally know people who travel from Shenzhen to Jinan, from Shanghai to Bali, from Jinan to Osaka, from Guangzhou to Changsha, from Jiaxing to Yueyang - the list could go on for hours. If someone had intentionally released this virus, this would have been the perfect moment for it to spread most easily throughout the entire world!

It has been known for a long time that Donald Trump openly declared a trade war against China. In 2019, relations clearly deteriorated; the United States began increasing tariffs on many products, and the president and experts urged Americans to move production from China back to their own country and restricted the export of certain goods and food products. What was the reason? Probably the fact that China was becoming too strong a player on the international stage and the sheriff (meaning the United States) wanted to restore order. The USA wants to dominate the world, the USA wants to be the hegemon, it wants to possess the newest technologies, the most modern army and dictate conditions to the entire world. China should slow down and lose its position as a leader. How can this be achieved? American tariffs alone change nothing, because the Middle Kingdom is a huge and powerful machine that drives itself. What could effectively stop China's economy? The 2019-nCoV virus. All companies and factories had stopped working because of the Chinese New Year, but the vast majority were expected to return to work at the beginning of February. Because of the situation, the holiday period was extended by another week, and it lasted even longer. Now, in every city, town and village, people are staying at home. In 2019, during the Chinese New Year holiday period, retail and restaurant revenues reached almost 150 billion dollars! Now restaurants are closed, tourist attractions are closed, cinemas are closed as well. Chinese people exchanged red envelopes with money, but this money will not stimulate their economy in any way at the moment. On the contrary - many companies, hotels and restaurants will lose millions of yuan.

If we approached the virus like a detective approaches a murder case, the first question would be: did the victim have any enemies? China has many enemies, but it was fighting most openly with the United States, and without doubt these two countries are its biggest competitors. Of course, I am not accusing anyone here; I have no evidence, but this is my own (and probably not only my own) conspiracy theory. We also know that for a country like the United States, creating and researching viruses is not a difficult task. P.S. Fortunately, I had already moved my website from a server in the USA, because who knows ;-).

Coronavirus and the protests in Hong Kong

Somewhere on the Polish internet I read a comment claiming that the 2019-nCoV virus was spread by the Chinese authorities in order to take over Hong Kong. First of all - there would be no gatherings, people would stay isolated in their homes, there would be no protests, street incidents or all the chaos that damaged Hong Kong's economy in 2019. Of course, I understand the desire for freedom and democracy in this city-state, but the methods used in this struggle were absurd. One young man compared his fight to playing GTA! Did Polish workers or the Solidarity movement in the 1980s beat or burn people in the streets because they had different opinions? Did they destroy shops, banks, buses or railways? Probably not - this is not what a fight for freedom looks like. Returning to the topic - according to this theory, the Chinese military, medical services and police could enter Hong Kong under the excuse of fighting the virus and helping civilians, while the real goal would be taking control of the city. It is obvious that isolated individuals are easier to intimidate, arrest and monitor. It is also easier to control a sick person lying powerless in a hospital. This is completely different from dealing with a crowd of anonymous, angry and strong people on streets and squares. It is an interesting theory and it has some logic, but in my opinion the most effective method would simply have been to spread the virus directly in Hong Kong or neighbouring Shenzhen. Or maybe it intentionally started in Wuhan so that nobody would suspect it was meant for Hong Kong? Either way - unfortunately, the virus also reached Hong Kong.

Coronavirus originated from a secret laboratory in Wuhan

Did the Chinese themselves create and release the virus? Apparently, there is a modern laboratory in Wuhan that studies viruses. I do not know, I have never been there - but this is what the media report. If I had been there, I would probably have taken some photos from outside and once again some security guards would have chased me, demanding that I delete them from my memory card ;-). When asked "Can photos be taken here?" I answer myself: "Of course they can, you just need good running shoes ;-)."

It is difficult for me to believe that a cleaner accidentally entered a laboratory, dragged a mop over a virus and spread it throughout Wuhan. Or that some laboratory worker forgot to disinfect their hands or change clothes after work?! Such laboratories operate under extremely strict procedures, although accidents are possible and people unfortunately make mistakes.

Did the Chinese authorities test a new virus on their own citizens?

I am afraid that this article may bring me many enemies - but we can treat these theories of mine, and those borrowed from others, as pure fantasy and nonsense. I have already read about experiments on civilian populations, biological weapons testing, virus research and deliberately spreading sexually transmitted diseases among certain social groups. These cases were not related to Asia. It is possible that the authorities decided to release the virus. Why? To check how quickly it would spread, how local governments were prepared to fight an epidemic, and perhaps even to reduce the population? But would China deliberately destroy its own economy? Would it reduce its population, while for several years it has been encouraging couples to have two children? I admit that such a theory makes little sense, unless the Chinese authorities had completely lost their minds - and they do not appear to have done so.

Will the Wuhan virus reduce the world's population?

Maybe the virus was spread by some global rulers? Perhaps some super-secret organization decided that it was necessary to create chaos, but not locally - globally. Reduce the world's population, limit carbon dioxide emissions, clean up the planet? Maybe for them it is simply a form of entertainment, like playing the Atari game "Agent USA", watching a map showing where the virus is and how quickly it spreads? Or perhaps something like the game "Civilization"? Surely every one of us has complained at some point about crowds in queues. The queue for Kasprowy Wierch, the queue to the Louvre, queues at airports, crowded buses. A significant reduction in population and weakening of different economies would certainly reduce tourism and also make our wallets thinner. Maybe the world has developed too much and it is time to stop it in such a drastic way? Hopefully not...

Mask factories will profit

The simplest, but perhaps the most absurd theory would be the claim that the virus was released by mask manufacturers. Mask prices in China increased even tenfold. I read about a Japanese company whose shares more than doubled - naturally, the company produces high-quality masks, including N95 models, which are needed in China. It is difficult to imagine, but some companies from Poland even exported masks to China. Of course, they originally came from China themselves.

Theories are theories, but fighting the virus is what matters

Enough with these theories - the most important thing is that China quickly defeats this virus and, with the help of scientists from around the world, develops a vaccine. I know that Chinese people take this matter very seriously. The authorities and all services are truly doing everything they can, and their commitment deserves respect. A friend staying in Changsha sent me a video showing people shouting slogans supporting Wuhan from their windows and balconies. She wrote that she felt like crying when she heard it. The virus will certainly influence the strength and unity of the Chinese nation - it sounds quite communist, but after all, this is such a country. There, nobody criticizes; everyone tries to help in some way, and people support each other. I can already imagine what will happen in Poland a few days after the first infected person appears: "It is Tusk's fault!" "Why did Arłukowicz not prepare proper procedures in 2012?" "Now let Minister Szumowski prove himself." "You did not want resident doctors - so now you have them." We Poles have more bitterness and hostility than all those Chinese snakes put together!