LogFAQs > #934766029

yep, the lab theory is getting more traction globally. it's pretty sensible, the question just becomes how and why. that article mentions the possibility of the animal was sold on the wet market, which is hilariously the bat soup + lab theories combined. furthering these theories right now is that a state paper in china has stated that it didn't come from the wet market. so... if it didn't come from there yet still originated in Wuhan, what was it? right now it's basically just two options for how it originally happened - either food or the lab. there doesn't seem to be a third choice so that's what we've got.

so, the lab theories.
the least malicious one i've heard is that it was part of experiments on vaccines but it somehow got out. could be due to incompetence, people not following regulations, or an area that wasn't secure. the most entertaining one of these is that somehow a bunch of bats being experimented on got out and resulted in scientists getting covered in bat piss and blood. so china would've literally started a pandemic thanks to an accidental furry golden shower. whatever the cause, this one is the one that saves the most face and, should the lab theory be true, is what i expect to be the official story. it's a reasonable answer demanding few leaps of faith.

second most malicious, though scariest, is the bioweapon idea. this one hasn't died out yet since china's experimented and should still be experimenting with bioweapons in general and the coronavirus, as it's related to SARS, should be in that category of viruses they're interested in. it's a terrible idea to have anything like this in a major area but, well, it's china. so it's plausible. demands a bit of suspicion and is likely what other governments and businesses will take as the actual answer - they ain't gonna run with the theory of 'just a mistake.'

third is the scariest, by far the most out there, but could explain everything and isn't as crazy as it initially sounds: a member of a South Korean cult who worships its leader as the reincarnation of Jesus Christ worked in the lab caught it, and (purposefully or not) spread it without a care.

no seriously. this one demands the most information so here's a NYT article on it - it's mainstream news and rightfully so considering even if that theory isn't true, they are destroying South Korea.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/21/world/asia/south-korea-coronavirus-shincheonji.html

"As the countrys infection numbers soar, most cases have been connected to the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, which mainstream churches consider a cult."

before going further, do remember what South Korea's 2016 was: the impeachment of their president due to the revelation that she was the puppet of a cult leader with a shadow government run by 8 fairies/goddesses (most translations use fairies, i just knew a guy who went 8 goddesses and don't know what's the most accurate) and there being an anti-government faction working even deeper in other shadows. not a single word of this is bullshit, it's all very, very well documented (strangely, Financial Times had some of the best and most in depth coverage), and i fully recommend everyone read that for the wildest government ride. main point is that cults over there are not new and they are intense. a cult leader literally had the president fully in her control, to the point of what outfit to wear just 3 years ago.

alright, back to coronavirus: the first known carrier was part of this cult. this is an important piece of info because the reason South Korea has a Code Red right now is largely because of this one fucking cult.
this cult in particular has at times been called a death cult due to practices that seem to rush them head first towards death. they've released an official statement saying that this is "the devil's deed" sent by Satan to stop their church from spreading and they, like Job, need to hold strong to their faith. as for what that looks like, from the NYT article:

Now, health officials are zeroing in on the churchs practices as they seek to contain South Koreas alarming coronavirus outbreak, in which members of Shincheonji, along with their relatives and others who got the virus from them, account for more than half of the confirmed infections.

Unlike other churches, Shincheonji makes its members sit on the floor tightly together during services, in neat, militarylike ranks and files, said Lee Ho-yeon, who left the church in 2015. We were not supposed to have anything on our faces, like glasses or masks. We were trained to sing our hymns loudly.

We were taught not to be afraid of illness, Ms. Lee said. We were taught not to care about such worldly things like jobs, ambition or passion. Everything was focused on proselytizing, even when we were sick.

okay. so zero protection at all, got it. but again, how do we connect to Wuhan and the coronavirus? well, Patient No. 31, the first known carrier, is part of this cult and refused to be tested because she hadn't been to China or met anyone who did, far as she knows anyway. back to NYT:

Health officials were still trying to figure out how Patient No. 31 contracted the disease. Mr. Hwang noted that the church had been proselytizing among ethnic Koreans in northeastern China, many of whom it invited to South Korea.

Jung Eun-kyeong, director of the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said the authorities were investigating reports that Shincheonji had operations in Hubei, the Chinese province that includes Wuhan, where the virus emerged. The South Korean news agency Newsis reported on Friday that Shincheonji had opened a church in Wuhan last year, and that references to it had been removed from the churchs website. Church officials could not immediately be reached for comment.

okay?
so while this theory sounds wildly insane it needs one component before becoming fully plausible: the initial carrier. as it stands...

• a south korean cult exists that has zero precautions towards disease.
• said cult has operations in China, including one church that opened in Wuhan.
• some members are extremely zealous and seem to embrace death already. this bit's not in the article but from other places and is not necessary for this theory. it's only relevant if you're going the "purposeful" route, which takes another leap of faith. just not impossible. either way, this one has an asterisk of "not relevant now, hopefully not ever, but we'll see."

the only thing we're missing is someone from the lab to have been a me