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Tareq I. Albaho, PhD's avatar

In the legal world, and you learn to look for a few things in fraud.

A first tell-tale sign is "superfluous adjectives". Farrar says he is "completely" neutral. The insertion of the word "completely" here is defensive (why?), and a giveaway Freudian Slip.

Again he uses "completely" when referring to "open-minded discussion". Again, the use of the word is superfluous unless it is defensive, and points that the opposite is being organised.

And again, when he is referring to the future WHO investigation in Wuhan, he describes an "expert group" with a "completely open mind".

I found the repeated use of "completely" when referring to being unbiased, to be telling.

Another example of a defensive, superflous adjective, when he says he is "honestly" at 50 on a scale 0-100. And then the use of exclamation marks. Very defensive. It is also non-credible by this stage. He is trying to sound like he has no opinion, without sounding like an idiot. A difficult circle to square. He clearly does have an opinion, but does not want to say it, lest he be accused of guiding the "debate" (which this is not - it is a closed conversation between a group of people clearly worried about external debate and scrutiny).

The repeated reference to "best minds" is also strange. On the one hand, he appears to be buttering-up the group, while on the other, setting up a scenario whereby this group will have the final say.

Another clue: look for what is not there. Farrar is clearly organising this, and the intention - as opposed to the declared intention - is to have a sealed consultation among the participants. Where is the reaching out to the larger scientific community? Not there. Instead there is a call at the beginning for secrecy "in total confidence" until "agreement" is reached. It is disturbing that no one objects to this or says "let's bring so-and-so in on this". But why would they? They are already the "best minds". No one else matters.

There is also a clear worry about the public debate on Twitter and WeChat. This is seen as a threat. The objective of this group is evidently to counter this public debate.

And finally, note the "respected organisation". Collins says that if WHO is not available, maybe Farrar can bring Welcome on board. The menu is limited, to organisations that the participants can control.

Some things are still missing, unless I have missed them, such as the "forceful" argument by Drosten, the PCR wizard. Or maybe I missed it.

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Luc Lelievre's avatar

Here's an explanation for this provided by Yale professor Ian Shapiro. In his 2003 book, 'The Moral Foundations of Politics,' the Yale professor writes: "Recall that (JS) Mill does not say that when harm occurs, the government should enact policies designed to minimize it or protect those who are most vulnerable to it, but rather government should act in 'the general interest of mankind.'" (p. 69) This aptly explains Hitler's Aktion T4 & Heindrich's Final Solution at the Wansee Conference (and Göring, who later signed the decree for the murder of countless people). Shapiro further adds: "The accepted scientific wisdom of the day may hold that the general interest of mankind is best served by [...] eugenics policies, or worse. So long as those wielding the tortometer decide that they are acting in an area where harm of some kind can occur to someone, there is nothing in Mill's argument to stop them from pursuing these coercive policies in response to it." (p. 70)

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