The SARS-CoV-2 Leak from a Chinese Lab? Maybe, Maybe Not

 

Over the weekend, the Department of Energy changed its assessment of the origin of the pandemic. It had said the origin was inconclusive, but now according to an article in the Times the agency now thinks it was a lab leak from a Wuhan lab.

The change was based on new intelligence (they won't say what) that "was relatively weak and that the Energy Department’s conclusion was made with 'low confidence,' suggesting its level of certainty was not high." DOE shared the same info with other agencies, none of which changed their assessments.

The article outlines the diverging views among different intelligence agencies:

In addition to the Energy Department, the F.B.I. has also concluded, with moderate confidence, that the virus first emerged accidentally from the Wuhan Institute of Virology, a Chinese lab that worked on coronaviruses. Four other intelligence agencies and the National Intelligence Council have concluded, with low confidence, that the virus most likely emerged through natural transmission.

If you think this level of disagreement based on low-confidence assessments doesn't merit much certainty, then you're not thinking like an aggrieved COVIDiot. Over at Fox "News" they are in a tizzy, demanding investigations and whining about the idea being previously dismissed as a conspiracy.

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