Artist Arctic Plague Ship

Posted on by Thor

In August of 2024, which was the height of the 5th wave of the COVID pandemic, 100 artists, writers and musicians set sail from Longyearbyen, the world’s northernmost town. The Arctic Circle Cruise  sailed around Svalbard, a group of islands in the Arctic circle. This 15 cruise dubbed an artist residency has been sailing each year since 2009. There were many acclaimed artists and writers on the ship. Artists rely on their brains for creative inspiration. Despite this the cruise set out with no protocols inn place for COVID. The doctor on board had no COVID tests, masks or anti virals like Paxlovid. More than half the artists on board became infected with COVID-19.

A very accomplished author developed long COVID which causes brain fog, and it could completely disable the artist’s career. The cruise organizers chose to pretend that COVID was a thing of the past. Any mention of the virus would go against the feel good vibes that they were promoting for the cruise. Testing passengers on such a small cruise should have been an easy task, but instead the health of the passengers was ignored. If one artist is infected in such a tight space the infections would spread quickly which is what happened. People with symptoms weren’t encouraged to wear a mask or avoid contact. Instead they were encouraged to mix and mingle even if infected.

One passenger found out that another passenger tested positive the day before the ship set sail. The passenger that tested positive decided not to go on the cruise, but everyone was encouraged to board without any testing. The “You do you” attitude doesn’t work to contain the ongoing pandemic. The Arctic Cruise organizers were negligent and they put every passenger at risk for long term disability due to long COVID. Each repeat infection increases the chance of developing long COVID.

Rebound

Posted on by Thor

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the U.S. government’s top infectious disease expert, caught COVID-19 and experienced a recurrence of symptoms after taking the Pfizer’s oral antiviral medication Paxlovid as a treatment for COVID-19.

Fauci reported that he had initially experienced only mild symptoms upon becoming infected with COVID-19 in mid-June 2022. “When [the symptoms] increased, given my age, I went on Paxlovid for five days and I felt really quite well, really just a bit of (runny nose) and fatigue,” said Fauci, 81.

After finishing his course of Paxlovid, Fauci claimed he tested negative for COVID-19 on antigen tests for three days in a row. But on the fourth day, he again tested positive. He also began to experience worsening symptoms. “It was sort of what people are referring to as a ‘Paxlovid rebound,’” Fauci said. Fauci is currently on another course of Paxlovid, he confirmed.

The phenomenon, known as COVID-19 rebound, has been acknowledged by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In May, the CDC issued an advisory on the potential recurrence of symptoms and possibly a “new positive viral test after having tested negative” within two to eight days of finishing a five-day course of Paxlovid.

Rebound

Complacency Waves

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Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla warned Wednesday of “constant waves” of COVID-19 caused by complacency around the virus, politicization of the pandemic, and waning immunity.

Cases are rising in the U.S., and the rate at which people are getting vaccinated is falling. In the week that ended May 22, 2022, the US reported 790,000 new cases, more than three times as many as were reported in the last week of March. Of course these numbers are a fraction of how many are becoming infected since testing sites are closed and people test at home if at all.

People are also growing tired of COVID-19 safety regulations, said Bourla, who was speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where world leaders and members of the business elite are gathered for an annual summit.

“What worries me is the complacency,” Bourla said in Davos, adding that fewer people were wearing masks and that even people who have already been vaccinated were less likely to get booster shots. The consequences will likely be seen in three to six months, he said.

Bourla said Pfizer believed that antiviral drugs would replace vaccines as the key weapon in fighting the coronavirus, at least until shots providing a longer period of immunity are developed. Pfizer is “doubling down” on producing its antiviral pill Paxlovid, he added.