A false flag disease?

Inventing the AIDS Virus (1996)
Authors: Peter H Duesberg and Bryan J Ellison

With all the controversies surrounding Coronavirus, whether it is a man-made virus or a naturally occurring one, the debate is just proving to be so convoluted. On one side, the Americans are accusing the Chinese of sending a bio-weapon out to the world to screw up everybody's economy. On the other end, the Chinese are alleging the USA sent the genetically altered virus to China, but the virus has come back to bite them. The situation becomes murky as the rest of the world are taking the Chinese government to court as they concur that Chinese underplayed the seriousness of the disease when it hit them.

Throwing a spanner in the work of discovering the origin of the virus is the suggestion that the novel Coronavirus, COVID-19, could be a retrovirus, just the most famous retrovirus of all - HIV. For recollection, a retrovirus is a type of RNA virus that inserts a copy of its genome into the DNA of a host cell that it invades, thus changing the genome of that cell.

This fact brought about the discussion about HIV-AIDS and how this disease is denied by a significant group of activists. They vehemently deny the virus named HIV as the causative agent of a collection of manifestations, or syndrome called AIDS.

The story of microbes causing ailments came about in the 1890s after Robert Koch, the German physician and bacteriologist, laid down his postulates as the groundwork to prove a particular agent in the genesis of disease. The microbes must be identified in the sick, it must be isolated and grown outside the body and induce sickness when introduced to a healthy subject.

The world was excited that they could give an explanation to many of the maladies around them. Unfortunately, in the earlier part of the 19th century, scientists without much scientific basis, lumped many sicknesses to have a microbial origin. It was thought that pellagra, scurvy and beriberi was caused by germs. This was before vitamins were identified.

The scientific community was all relieved when Jonas Salk discovered the polio vaccine. The idea of viruses causing all unknown illness became vogue. With the splurge of finances in the USA after benefitting most from the post WW2 era, many research facilities and funds were made available for virus research. A link between cancer and any other explainable sickness was attempted. Virologists became the new superstars and viruses their nemesis.

In the 1960s, a polio-like paralytic condition named SMON (Subacute Myelo-Optic Neuropathy) was a big menace. It even threatened to cancel the Tokyo Olympics. Scientists went from gut bacteria to mycoplasma to viruses as the causative agent. When they could not pin down their suspect, they started creating new entities like slow-viruses. Finally, it came to light that it was probably related to the consumption of Clioquinol, an anti-amoebal, anti-shigella medication. Hence, toxins were the cause here.

The world, through its many agencies, like the National Health Institute (NIH) and the Centre for Disease Control (CDC), took the virus approach in investigating many afflictions. The 1976 unexplained pneumonia was attributed to a common pathogen named Legionella when it was discovered during a legionnaires' conference. Kuru, a debilitating brain infection, was blamed on a slow-virus which in most cases remain undiscovered. The same story, according to the author, is present in SSPE, multiple sclerosis, hepatitis C, Epstein-Barr virus in Burkitt's lymphoma and even when Coxsackie-B virus was implicated in Type I diabetes. Also though many in the scientific community accepted these findings, the question of reproducibility often arose.

The story of retroviruses started way back when it was suggested in 1975.

Most microbiologist view at Koch's postulate as the holy grail in pinpointing a particular organism in infections. In the case of viruses, it had to be modified as culturing microorganisms was not easy.

When a mysterious collection of symptoms started among a particular segment of a population in the early 1980s - homosexuals, haemophiliacs, heroin users and Haitians, the CDC sprung into action. Pioneers in the filed on HIV include Luc Montagnier of Paris, and Robert Gallo of Cancer Institute in Bethesda are said to have discovered the offending virus. Montagnier published the identity of the virus which turned out to be identical (to the genomic sequence) of Gallo's. A court case ensued which was settled amicably out of court through Jonas Salk who had similar issues with Albert Sabin over polio vaccine. There were rumours of Gallo stealing Montagnier's work!

From the word go, some sceptics were wary of the convenient association of HIV (initially named HTLV) to the collection of symptoms called AIDS. Doubters questioned whether HIV was just a passenger particle. The diagnosis of HIV is made by testing for antibodies which shows that the immune system is intact, but the very disease weakened the immune system. Are we just testing the innocent bystander here?

The possibility of overlooking exposure to toxins was put forward. The failure to identify the virus in organs affected by AIDS was apparent. Even though Kaposi's Sarcoma was unheard before this epidemic has become the sine qua non of AIDS. Unfortunately, there also were HIV-negative patients with Kaposi's Sarcoma. The other manifestations are Pneumocystis Carinii and HIV dementia.

Homosexuals subjects in their epidemiological studies show that their abuse of intoxicants like amyl nitrite as aphrodisiacs and muscle relaxant as well as IV heroin usage. These habits were suggested for their pulmonary affliction, rather than a viral aetiology.

Haemophiliacs who started receiving purified Factor VIII had a lower transmission rate of HIV positivity. The possibility of other viruses like CMV was put forward.

People like the author and those who are labelled 'HIV deniers' (like the Holocaust deniers) are not saying that it is a fictitious disease. It is just that the world could be barking up the wrong tree. These controversies never stopped the unwavering political support for the virus hypothesis.

The spread of any viral infection usually follows a particular pattern, a bell-shaped distribution curve, as described by William Farr in 1840 (for smallpox). In the case of HIV-AIDS, this type of peak never materialised. The threat of epidemic which was predicated in the mid-80s never emerged; the numbers never reached pandemic proportions. Is it because of the preventive measures like condom usage and needle exchange programmes or the use of Zidovudine (AZT) in HIV + patients with deteriorating symptoms?

Coming to AZT, it is said to the classic case of where the treatment is more damaging the disease. AZT, a failed cancer drug, was promoted to be the mainstay of treatment. It is thought that since retroviruses cause sarcomas in chickens, there must be a basis for viruses in human cancers. This is where the role of big pharmaceutical giants like Burroughs-Wellcome come in. Many accused of the drug being fast-tracked to clinical use without proper double-blind studies and deceitful trials. The name of Anthony Fauci, who is the headlines of late, as the director of NIH who is fighting the COVID-19, appears as a facilitator. The role of the media (print and cable news networks) and its practical usage by the powers that be cannot be overstated in creating public anxiety as well as securing public approval cannot be underestimated.

The book quotes many instances where asymptomatic HIV+ individuals becoming gravely ill after commencing AZT. It helps to tip an HIV+ person into becoming a full-blown AIDs patient with its immunosuppression. Hence, is there a place for usage of AZT as prophylaxis?

HIV and AIDS have become a big business that generates income from the third world. Many corrupt governments also benefit from aids that are channelled to their countries to combat AIDS.

40 years into HIV and we are struggling to keep this condition under wraps. Perhaps the people who are entrusted to protect our affair are lured away by other personal interests. Media is a convenient tool towards this end. We should be careful that COVID-19 may follow the same path. One day it is a man-made virus, then the next day, scientists swear that it cannot be man-made but a freak of Nature. Later yet another day, like a science-fiction script, the virus mutates within a single season. It is mind-boggling. There is a push for the creation of a vaccine by the drug companies and philanthropic organisation who tend to benefit most from such an exercise.

The forward of this book was written by the inventor of PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction) and Nobel Laurette, Kary Mullis. He believes that climate change and climate change and the HIV/AIDS connection are due to a conspiracy of environmentalists, government agencies, and scientists attempting to preserve their careers and earn money, rather than scientific evidence.

This book was brought to attention via the YouTube videos of Dr Shiva Ayyadorai, who is on a crusade to expose the malicious intents of Big Pharma.

Kary Mullis interviewed.

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Somebody to ape?

Friends (1994-2004; Season 1-10)

People need role models to guide them through the uncertainties of life. Every living day is a new experience. Hence, newbies who step into different stages of their lives necessitate the presence of someone with authority to emulate. Parents and teachers are sparse representations of adulthood. Their paths are dull, unexciting and merely outdated. Juniors need to follow routes that are 'compelling' and approved by their contemporaries. They aspire for someone or some icon to tell them what normality is.

For teenagers who peeled their inner eyes of awareness at the turn of the century, the Gen-Y's, the TV rom-com 'Friends' could have influenced their perception of what relationship is all about. 

Come to think of it, a generation before them formed their opinions on more significant life issues from Oprah. Oprah Winfrey set the standards on women empowerment, relationship issues, and accepting body image issues. It was as though the whole world had one set of values and it was dictated by the divas in the superficially glamorous city of Tinseltown.

The Gen-Ys (a.k.a. Millennials, born 1981-96), the middle-class English speaking urbanites, moulded their lives around the characters of 'Friends'. It was the norm to have close friends of either gender who may be intimate friends of any kind, with no holds barred, including those considered taboo by the generation before them to go to in time of crises. The social and cultural norms deemed 'normal' are as determined by their favourite characters or collectively by the cast of 'Friends'.

For those who have been living in hibernation, the sit-com 'Friends' is about a group of six friends, two apartments and a coffee shop that they hang out as well as the people as they meet in their lives. They were in their 20s when they started the show. Ross and Monica are siblings. Chandler attended the same high school as Ross. Rachel was Monica's high school mate while Joey joined the group when he became Chandler's roommate. The sixth member of the group is Phoebe, the free-spirited 'hippie', who once lived off the streets and now works as a masseuse. 

Ross is a palaeontologist in a museum. Chandler is a statistic analyst while Joey is a struggling actor. Monica is trying to make it big as a chef. Rachel started as a waitress at the cafe they hang out, Central Perk, but later found a job in the fashion industry.

The earlier seasons were refreshing, but as more episodes get churned, one cannot help but notice that the scriptwriters were running out of ideas. I guess one cannot ask too many questions like how some cash-strapped struggling young adult could afford to live in Manhattan and spent most days chilling at their favourite cafeteria. And why a palaeontologist and an academic would find the company of blue-collar workers more appealing. As their funny bone shrunk, their canned laughter seemed to reach higher decibels, and their threshold for laughter fell to almost zero. The writers dragged airtime by creating lazy jokes with sexual innuendos and sometimes in-your-face tasteless language labelled as a comedy. Another time-buying manoeuvring was replaying clip shows and operating on sentiments of nostalgia. The show failed to show a growing maturity in the characters. They seem to be excited by the same jokes all throughout the seasons.

It is ridiculous when in one season Joey and Rachel are lovestruck and the next, they are finding dates and discussing ways to bed their respective dates. Sure, it is all supposed to be taken lightly, it is after all showbiz, I find it comical when a couple who has fallen out of love with each other can look at each other in the face like nothing happened. And live in the same apartment, on top of that! Or is that modern love or something called moving on?

After being in the limelight for ten seasons, the producers finally pulled the plug on the show after episode #236, leaving a string of broken hearts and rudderless souls. They await a reunion of the cast in a single unscripted comeback show which was supposed to out in March 2020 but postponed due to COVID-19.


It is not for me to say, but maybe it is for social scientists to explore. The male characters are not given prominence in the series, much like many of the shows that are churned out from Hollywood. The male personas appear the not so intelligent ones, jokers, laid back, indecisive and be wrapped around the fingers of their female counterparts. It would be interesting to see how social dynamics in other parts of the world get moulded by the American Dream and the American perspective of women empowerment. It is good to know just how much the teaching of the art of flirting and promiscuous lifestyle that is sold to the general public actually modify our social mores?

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Like a surgeon! Rapid and precise.

Uri: The Surgical Strike (Hindi; 2019)


It happened a couple of times before. Rogue parties have often made mischiefs previously. Like the Malay proverb goes, 'Baling batu, sembunyi tangan' - the perpetrator would start trouble by throwing stones, but with a sleight of hand, he would fold his hands behind and join the crowd acting innocent. 

It is an exercise of futility cracking our heads, doing the conventional way, trying to be fair, exhausting all avenues in attempting to mete justice. Many a time, we have to depend on gut feeling and God-given intellect to deduce and do the right thing. Like the hand of a traditional surgeon, he uses his senses, makes a diagnosis, makes a precise surgical incision and removes the offending ailment and returns the patient back to health. Time is of the essence. Dilly dallying with formalities and pusillanimous inertia will just tip the feeble to the point of no return.

In recent history, at least twice the Israeli integrity was put to a challenge. In 1972 Munich Olympics, when a Palestinian terrorist group held Israeli athletes hostage, the German police killed five of the eight kidnappers. Hostages perished in the massacre. The prisoners were later exchanged when a Lufthansa flight was hijacked by the same group a month later. The Israelis did not wait for natural justice to take place. Neither did it remain idle for the international community to deliberate and drag its feet to condemn and advise. The following year, the Israeli Army retaliated by bombing Palestinian refugees in Lebanon. The Mossad hunted down to last remaining kidnapper and killed them in broad daylight in the 'Operation Wrath of God'. The last of the kidnappers died in a planted car bomb in 1988.

Another enviable rescue mission carried by the Israeli intelligence was 'Operation Entebbe'. An Air France flight from Tel Aviv to Paris was rerouted to Entebbe, Uganda. The 100-over Israeli passengers were held, hostage. Israel managed to sneak in their commandos under the cloak of the night. How they outmanoeuvred the Ugandan radars (Idi Amin supported the terrorists) still remains an enigma till date. There are many unverified reports of how they deployed the expertise of Uri Geller and his psychic powers. In 90 minutes, the Israeli commandos killed all hijackers and rescued all but 3 of the 106 hostages.

Uri Geller - the spoon-bending psychic spy.

This 2019 film follows the same direction as many of the new movies that are coming out of Bollywood. It combines excellent cinematography with new young actors and a new narrative as told by the young minds of New India. 

The India-Pakistan enmity has been going on like forever. Pakistani dirty interference has been implicated in many upheavals and terrorist activities in India. This film is about one of them. When a military barrack in Uri, Jammu-Kashmir was attacked, and nineteen of Indians soldiers were killed, India had to rise to the occasion. This story is about how the Indian Army, with the help of the latest surveillance equipment, modern warfare machines, espionage and a little help from Pakistani turncoats, managed to hunt down the perpetrators of the Uri Massacre and flatten their launchpads in Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir (PoK).

A high octane movie of high standards. The fighting scenes are believable. The actors are young and built well for their roles. The deployment of fighter planes and military strategies appear convincing enough. 4.5/5.

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It started with a fizz...

A sign of women empowerment?

Gin and Tonic - a lady's drink?

Gin shops, unlike taverns, had 

feminine interior with pink walls,

mirrors and lacey curtains.

It started with COVID-19 and the movement control order. Even though the notification notices from my WhatsApp had been disabled for the next year, curiosity took the better of me. I was curious where those 100 over messages came from. Was I so likeable that people found that extra time to keep my acquaintance?

First, there was a debate on whether hydroxychloroquine was effective against coronavirus infections. The messages went a full circle, finally ending up with two sides vehemently defending or denying its usefulness. Both back up their stands with statistics and accuse the other of sabotage. One party said there is no rational explanation to use an antibiotic to fight a virus; a vaccine is needed. The other quoted success story with recovery numbers; to use what is freely available. The question of vested financial gains kept cropping up.

Yet another group suggested that perhaps nothing would be lost by prophylactically consuming hydroxychloroquine, not in its synthetic form but rather in its equivalent of the real McCoy. Quinine, its precursor, derived initially from a bark tree, is freely available as tonic water (~80mg/litre). So, what a way to combine work and pleasure than to sip gin and tonic?

Gin Lane, where mothers forgot
breastfeeding their infants during
the Gin Craze.

Gin as a drink made itself to the tropics because of British efforts to civilise the natives. After defeating Tipu Sultan in India, the British found many of their soldiers were down with malaria. As prophylaxis against the disease, they introduced quinine combined with gin as a refreshing evening drink. The ever-admiring natives also followed suit and gin-tonic. To date, it remains a favourite drink amongst Western-educated elitists in most urban pubs even though Anopheles, the plasmodium carrying mosquito, has long migrated to the countryside.

Even earlier, in the 18th century, gin was promoted as a Protestant drink by William of Orange to offset the import of French brandy and wines to the UK. More importantly, the Crown wanted to impoverish the Local Distillers' Guild. Local breweries and drinking houses were encouraged. Women were empowered and drawn into the industry as distillers and shopowners. It led to a Gin Craze with a nation of extreme drunkenness, abandonment of economic duties and neglect of social responsibilities. Taxes were introduced repeatedly to discourage over-indulgence, invoking ire among the people and finally, a riot. The people's interest in gin waned as the price of grain became more expensive, distillation was costly and earning power was low.

So be wary when someone says, "there is nothing a stiff drink cannot fix!" The first one could be the beginning of the many problems that need to be fixed later. 

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The Phoenix has arisen?

Claw of the Red Dragon (2019)

The society, via consensus of the majority, as prompted by the powerful, coined laws to ensure the smooth running of nations. It worked fine as long as the ruled remained stupid, and the rulers had the upper hand. But, once the one being ruled rose to the occasion, the playing field is level no more. The goal post is shifted, and new rules are brought in. So say the newcomers. The old dogs will talk about ethics, philosophy or something unrelated to the matter in hand.

In the 1980s, when China was a struggling economy and would work for peanuts, the mighty USAF thought it would be cheaper to outsource their work to China. The US now alleges that China had utilised the task to learn and spy on the US. Their development of 5G technology would make espionage as well as cyberwar easier, making it a fraction of their expenditure on military intelligence. 

The US says too much information held by the Communist is terrible for the free world. They assert that only the West can preserve democracy, liberty, freedom, and the pursuit of Happiness. The Communist would stifle human rights and freedom of speech. The Chinese cry foul. In their defence, they say that Huawei and all the mega projects initiated by China Incorporated are just business ventures, not megalomaniac schemes to conquer the world.

In the old Imperial World, such a checkmate would call for war. In the modern world, however, such an exercise would be a perfect recipe for Armageddon. Hence, the long arm of the law has been employed. 

The CFO of Huawei, the biggest telecommunication company in the world, was arrested in Canada in 2019 for fraud and having business deals with 'rogue nations' like Iran. More recently, in an unrelated case, a Texan lawyer had put up a class-action suit against China for causing COVID-19. Similarly, The International Council of Jurists (ICJ) and All India Bar Association (AIBA) have filed a complaint in the United Nations Human Rights Council seeking unspecified amount as reparations from China over the global spread of coronavirus.

This 1-hour Canadian made-for-TV drama is based on the arrest of Huawei's CFO, Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver. It is told from the viewpoint of a young couple. A journalist in Vancouver Post who makes it a life ambition to cover the arrest has to deal with her boyfriend who is working in Canada's branch of Huawei. The boyfriend tries to use the girlfriend's position to paint an excellent public image of his employer. 

The production is financed by Steve Bannon, Trump's former chief political strategist.

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Does anybody love anyone anyway?

Sillu Karupatti (சில்லுக்கருப்பட்டி, Tamil; 2019)

Netflix

Picking a movie from a list of Netflix is like opening a box of chocolates. "You never know what you gonna get!..." I was pleasantly surprised by my choice. Sometimes it is the movie unheard of with an equally unfamiliar cast may be the one with the most exciting storyline. 

This movie is an anthology of four unrelated stories with love being the common theme. Its four stories try to show that the emotion that releases butterflies in the tummy, the special feeling called love, at different age groups. Love needs are different at various times of one's life, and it carries a different meaning at other periods of their lifetimes.

The first story revolves around teens and love blossoms in the most unromantic place of all, the city dumpster. A slum-boy who scavenges the trash comes across some greeting cards, memorabilia and a photograph of a young girl. Curious how the girl would be in real life, he follows the garbage trump to get a peek at the owner. In summary, it is puppy love. Looking at the apparent disparity in social class and education levels of both, the viewers can guess the relationship would go nowhere.

The next one is the love of the contemporary kind, involving all modalities considered modern. There is the current Chennai landscape complete with spanking new highways and clean Hyundai cars, Ole call cab service, modern private medical centres and social media. Here a young man in his early 30s, who is all excited in anticipation of tying the nuptial knots with his gal that he found on an online matrimonial page, is diagnosed with testicular cancer. His beau bolts and he has to deal with the ailment on his own. Love is found again in strange places; this time in the form of a fellow occupant of a shared cab. Love blossoms by being an anchor weathering the storm.


The third story is about love in the twilight years. The traditional way of Indian life would dictate that those senior years of experience is the opportune time to prepare for the ethereal world. Not so in the modern world, it seems. Loneliness and fairly robust health necessitate romantic liaisons, especially when the offsprings are nowhere around to be seen. 

A scary piece of device. It eavesdrops.
Like the nosy neighbour auntie, Alexa.

The final clip is about love in contemporary times. After years of marriage, the spark that drew the couple together is somewhat missing. Husband and wife just carry on life doing their society-sanctioned duties without giving second thoughts to the amorous need of the other. Life, as each knew it, was the repetitive action of working at home or office, caring for the needs of kids and being trapped in the quagmire of the cycle of repetition. Remedy comes through the cupid work of a modern AI device.

Love, as they say, makes the world to stay relevant. At the spring of adolescence, with the raging of hormones, the youths think with their impulse. Nature needs them to be amorous. Progeny has to happen. The young cannot be wasting time in critical thinking and analysing. Continuity of the species is of paramount importance.

It used to be a time when society, which used to be patriarchal, dictated how the female species were left with no choice but conform to assume their role in society. With female empowerment came reduced fertility and threat of extinction. Nature fought back. Love had to bloom somehow, and it does.

It is love that holds a family and a society together. Left to their own devices, Man can be self-centred with their 'selfish gene' taking charge. The weak and the old would be left to rot. Hence, love manifest as compassion to care for the ones left behind in the race of time. Even the participants at the twilight stage of their years need someone to ride into the sunset...

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Just earning a living, you know...

Bait (2019)

I heard a joke many years ago. A venture capitalist was out on vacation in a remote place in Mexico, and he was fascinated at a lagoon with he saw. He saw a sombrero-donning gentleman dozing off on a fishing rod with a half-burnt cigar half-dangling off his lips. 
"Senõr," he said. "You fish here often?"
The Senõr obviously irritated being disturbed from his short siesta replied, "Si, senõr!"
"What if I change this place into a top marina with yachts that would bring in lots of money?"
"So?" he replied nonchalantly.
"So that you and your family can be rich. They would get good clothes, good education, a good life... And you can go for holidays in the Caribbeans."
"Why should I go on holidays in the Caribbeans?" the local was annoyed at the unsolicited advice.
The venture capitalist was not finished with his business pitch.
"So you enjoy the sun, laze around, go fishing and chomp on your Cuban..."
"But Senõr, I am already doing that!"

This British movie is intriguing as it was made with a vintage hand-held camera to produce a distinctive grainy film where audio was added on later, coming out with a disjointed but an expressive offering and extreme close-ups.

Seeing the famous philosopher Diogenes the 

Cynic basking under the autumn sun, Alexander 
asks him for whatever he could offer. He said,
"Stand aside to stop blocking the sun." 

A Cornish fishing village is losing its traditional appeal to the New World Order. Outsiders are swamping in to sell the attraction to the outside world. They are not there to contribute directly to the local economy but to take back their earnings to the big towns. The locals feel that their more straightforward way of life is impinged upon. Their age-old craft is lost. The newcomers are there not to spur the local industry but to set up Airbnb to showcase the town like museum artefacts.  Even the established local businesses also cater to the newcomers and their demands. The old lustre is all gone. New rules and regulations make the locals feel like they are foreigners in the land of the forefathers. The emigrè with their noses in the air and posh lifestyle is no match for the locals.

Two brothers who inherited a lodge and a fishing trawler as a family heirloom from their father had to give it all up because of economic reasons. The lodge had to be sold off to be converted into an Airbnb by out-of-towners who laze their time there during summer and rent it out during the off-season. The trawler had to be converted to a ferry to bring tourist around for a fee. One of the brothers still struggles with the family profession, hardly making ends meet fishing.

The newcomers, on the other hand, feel they are instrumental in bringing prosperity to their plebeian way of living. And they also just want to earn a living. Don't we all?

There is no panacea for these difficulties people go through. Nobody owns exclusivity to anything on this planet. We not only have to share this world with fellow human beings and other creatures.

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