The COVID-19 Enigma: Mysteries and Epiphany of A New Coronavirus

By Terry Nettle

This book considers the enigma of the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 and explores the mysteries surrounding this new coronavirus.

 

Firstly, it considers the issue of race and COVID-19. It looks at how the questions of whether COVID-19 is a racially-targeted biological weapon and whether the pandemic can be blamed on a specific racial group or country or organization have become a great controversy in the USA and other countries around the world. The differences its infection and mortality rates around the world were examined in this context.

 

The mystery of Vietnam's low infection rate was discussed, in relation to the possibility of the Vietnamese having a unique resistance to COVID-19.

 

The mystery of China's success was then considered as well as the relative success of South Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong in their fights against the virus. These seem to point at least to some sort of pre-existing immunity, in addition to their effective suppression and mitigation measures.

 

It is noted that Cambodia, Thailand and Kazakhstan had low infection rates and death tolls.

 

India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, ASEAN, Japan, Saudi, Africa, and Middle Eastern countries also had fairly low figures. On the other hand, USA, Canada and Europe fared worst. Also notably, Australia and New Zealand fared better, probably due to their earlier lockdown and lower population density.

 

The issue of the possible origin of the virus as related to a wildlife wet market was discussed. This was then expanded into the issue of large-scale animal farms and factory farming which are just as repugnant.

 

Further issues discussed include the modern obsession with physical fitness and exercise culture, the over-the-top entertainment industry, the travel and tourism Industry, and the hospitality industry, as they relate to the epiphany of COVID-19, how our politics and lifestyle should change, and the need for a new lifestyle in the post-COVID-19 world.

 

 

 

 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Terry Nettle
• Release date: Apr 30, 2020
• ISBN: 9781393174172

Book preview

Chapter 1. Mystery of Race and COVID-19

Race has always been an issue that comes readily to the fore in any conflict or controversy. It is always the scapegoat in any dispute or disaster. The pandemic of COVID-19 is no exception.

The questions of whether COVID-19 is a racially-targeted biological weapon and whether it can be blamed on a specific racial group or country or organisation has become a great controversy in the USA and other countries around the world. This is clearly a highly racially-charged issue and a great mystery of the century.

Chapter 2. Mystery of Ethnicity and COVID-19

By the end of April 2020, COVID-19 has infected over a million people in the USA with a death toll of over 60,000.

A US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report of late April 2020 stated that: New York identified death rates among Black/African American persons (92.3 deaths per 100,000 population) and Hispanic/Latino persons (74.3) that were substantially higher than that of white (45.2) or Asian (34.5) persons.

Based on that report, it would seem that whites may indeed have a higher risk of death from COVID-19 compared to Asians of 45.2 vs 34.5, or about 30% higher. This is if the social-economic and health status of these two ethnic communities are deemed to be similar. On the other hand, the much higher relative numbers of the other ethnic groups may be more affected by such differences.

Chapter 3. The Scourge