A day after the first American case of CONVID 19 was announced on January 21, Joe Kernen of CNBC asked US President Donald Trump,“Are there worries about a pandemic at this point?” Trump’s response was short and sweet- “No. Not at all. And we have it totally under control. It’s one person coming in from China, and we have it under control. It’s going to be just fine.” But just 56 days down the line, Trump did a volte face and told reporters that“This is a pandemic. I felt it was a pandemic long before it was called a pandemic.” So, now that even the world’s most illustrious epitome of unbridled conceit and obduracy has accepted the reality, it’s time for us lesser mortals do likewise.
But, doing so won’t be easy a there seems to be a ‘Trump’ hidden in almost every person’s psyche- concealedsomewhere in the cerebrum, it (to use Trump’s words), tells us “I like this stuff. I really get it. People are surprised that I understand it. Every one of these doctors said, ‘How do you know so much about this?’ Maybe I have a natural ability. Maybe I should have done that instead of running for President.” This explains why almost all of us continue to acceptconspiracy theories, or trust bizarre remedies conjured by unknown social media addicts and even start believing charlatans with dubious antecedents who dish out unconvincing religious explanations for this pandemic and alsoprovide highly unscientific (and at times equally obnoxious) cures.

Conspiracists

There are people who are naturallygifted with or have acquired a fertile imagination, but for a host of reasons haven’t been able to accomplish their dreams of being recognised as the modern-day incarnation of Sherlock Holmes or Agatha Christie- and let me assure you, they’re plenty of them. Initially it was claimed that COVID 19 virus had spread through consumption of bats or some other exotic breed of animals like the pangolin. But when this theory was challenged on the grounds that Chinese had traditionally been consuming these foods for centuries without ever having experienced such a pandemic, conspiracists had a field day to fill the information ‘vacuum’ with juicy renditions!
Resultantly, we have conspiracies galore; of how this virus accidently leaked out whileChinese scientists were experimenting onways to reduce its virulence to the extent that it only causes influenza that could be treated, so that it could be used to quell the Hong Kong protests. One also hears ofCIA’s plan to secretly acquire samples of this mutated virus for America’s own biological warfare programme bybribing a Chinese scientist working at the Wuhan facility; of how the crowded Wuhan market was selected as the rendezvous where this virus sample would be handed over and how its contents were accidently released into the air when the delinquent scientist was caught in the act and was being restrained by the Chinese authorities!
But besides conspiracies that indict the Chinese, there are other accounts that squarely blame America. One version talks about how COVID-19 virus had actually leaked out from a US Biological Warfare facility at Fort Detrick in August 2019 infecting US Army soldiers. Some of those effected were part of the 280 strong US Army contingent that participated in the Military World Games held in Wuhan during October and these participants infected the Chinese by visiting Wuhan market. To give this version greater authenticity, its proponents have even claimed that the Americans didn’t even win a single medal at these games because they were suffering from COVID-19 and that empty bioweapon drums were recovered from US Consulate premises at Wuhan after it was vacated.
Godmen, preachers and their ‘divine’ expositions
Since time immemorial, humans have always associated natural calamities as the physical manifestation of the wrath of the Gods and despite rapid advances in science that gives a logical explanation for the same, the persistent strain of superstition deeply embedded in the human mind makes us vulnerable to hearsay, especially when it’s couched in religious rhetoric. This is largely because in every religion there is mention about the Almighty collectively punishing humans for having deviated from the prescribed path of righteousness, not as retribution but only to get them back on the right track. Although such belief tends to make one fatalistic, it nevertheless pacifies people as they ungrudgingly accept the prevailing crisis as being the wish of their creator.But the flip side is that such a mindset also gives godmen and opportunists an excellent chance of exploiting human vulnerabilities to pursue their own motivated agendas.

Are the Gods angry?

Tunisian cleric Bechir Ben Hassen holds that “The (COVID) virus is a soldier in Allah’s army. Today, it’s toppling people as if they were insects. The Chinese authorities imposed a siege on one million Uighur Muslims, and now 50 million Chinese are besieged because of the virus, and they can’t find a cure for it because this is God’s will.” Rabbi Meir Mazuzhas a different explanation- he believes that this pandemic is nature’s way of punishing nations that allow LGBTQ parades. Another Rabbi named Shlomo Aviner tells us that since “man thinks he is God, that he is the master and can decide what is good and bad,” the COVID-19 virus has been sent by our creator with the implied message that“let us see you fight the smallest of God’s creations. This creation is called corona, a crown.”
Muslim Cleric Ilyas Sharafuddin from India says, “Remember how they (Chinese authorities) have threatened the Muslims and tried to destroy lives of 20 million Muslims. Muslims were forced to drink alcohol; their mosques were destroyed and their Holy Book was burned. They (the Chinese) thought that no one can challenge them, but Allah the most powerful punished them.”This view is endorsed by at least three clerics from the Middle East. But Syrian cleric Abd Al-Razzaq Al-Mahdi goes a step ahead by tweeting, “God gave them a soldier (virus). And many of God’s soldiers said, Glory be to Him … O God, increase their (the Chinese) suffering and affliction until they stop fighting your religion and worshipers.” (To Be Continued)
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