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> The investigators believe the Chinese military had taken an interest in developing a vaccine for the viruses so they could be used as potential bioweapons. If

by aaplok 3y ago

> The investigators believe the Chinese military had taken an interest in developing a vaccine for the viruses so they could be used as potential bioweapons. If a country could inoculate its population against its own secret virus, it might have a weapon to shift the balance of world power. This part doesn't make sense to me. Coronavirus is known to mutate constantly and rapidly. Having a vaccine against a strand might provide a temporary advantage, but that advantage would subside quickly. Coronaviruses would make poor bioweapons considering how impossible it would be to control them. If an army wants to develop a virus-based weapon wouldn't there be better viruses to base it from than COVIDs?

revelio 3y ago
Viruses mutate because they are constantly exposed to the immune systems of people who were already previously infected, so they have to mutate in order to dodge prior natural immunity. That isn't a concern if most people who get infected die. Moreover, the first SARS-CoV-2 variant took a long time to start mutating and even then it was only minor mutations. If you release an extremely infectious very deadly virus and you have a vaccine for it, then at that moment it's a Deus Ex scenario and whoever can manufacture the vaccine can take over the world because your enemies are now collapsing and will do anything to obtain the vaccine including giving up their own autonomy. Guess that's the theory, at least. As to why SARS-CoV-2: because it's airborne and can spread long distances via gas-like clouds (which is why lockdowns, masks, wiping surfaces etc didn't work). You can't really get better if you want to very rapidly infect a whole country.
2devnull 3y ago
Governments investigate imperfect weapons. Consider LSD.
- th0ma5 3y ago
  [flagged]
Fomite 3y ago
To be frank, given SARS-CoV-1 as well as MERS, and the known prevalence of coronaviruses in and near China, if I was the military I think I'd be justified into looking at viruses not as potential bioweapons but as a force readiness problem. The U.S. has done this, and indeed, most of our public health infrastructure is an outgrowth of it.
cnity 3y ago
You don't do research and development on things that are already perfect. You do it on things you hope one day might be refined into something more useful. Similarly you don't halt all research on all other possible avenues because one single avenue _might_ be better.
LatteLazy 3y ago
You're not meant to ask questions. You're meant to blindly swallow this non-sense because it agrees with your pre-existing prejudices, political views or just emotional need to feel like you're part of a group of special people with inside knowledge trying to wake up the sheeple or something...

by aaplok 3y ago

revelio 3y ago

Viruses mutate because they are constantly exposed to the immune systems of people who were already previously infected, so they have to mutate in order to dodge prior natural immunity. That isn't a concern if most people who get infected die. Moreover, the first SARS-CoV-2 variant took a long time to start mutating and even then it was only minor mutations. If you release an extremely infectious very deadly virus and you have a vaccine for it, then at that moment it's a Deus Ex scenario and whoever can manufacture the vaccine can take over the world because your enemies are now collapsing and will do anything to obtain the vaccine including giving up their own autonomy. Guess that's the theory, at least. As to why SARS-CoV-2: because it's airborne and can spread long distances via gas-like clouds (which is why lockdowns, masks, wiping surfaces etc didn't work). You can't really get better if you want to very rapidly infect a whole country.

2devnull 3y ago

Governments investigate imperfect weapons. Consider LSD.

th0ma5 3y ago
[flagged]

Fomite 3y ago

To be frank, given SARS-CoV-1 as well as MERS, and the known prevalence of coronaviruses in and near China, if I was the military I think I'd be justified into looking at viruses not as potential bioweapons but as a force readiness problem. The U.S. has done this, and indeed, most of our public health infrastructure is an outgrowth of it.

cnity 3y ago

You don't do research and development on things that are already perfect. You do it on things you hope one day might be refined into something more useful. Similarly you don't halt all research on all other possible avenues because one single avenue _might_ be better.

LatteLazy 3y ago

You're not meant to ask questions. You're meant to blindly swallow this non-sense because it agrees with your pre-existing prejudices, political views or just emotional need to feel like you're part of a group of special people with inside knowledge trying to wake up the sheeple or something...