[trentearl]

Strange, I have the exact opposite experience. I have personally have felt ostracized multiple times for suggesting it was likely there was an unintentional lab leak. I often got criticized for suggesting it was a bio-weapon, while I never thought that and never even said those words. Sometime in the past 12 months this disappeared.

[jstarfish]

> Sometime in the past 12 months this disappeared.

We're trying to groom public appetite for war with China. Anything that paints them in the worst possible light is acceptable now.

After artificial chip shortages, the weather balloon incident, and TikTok, now it's suggested China was responsible for COVID. Expect more to follow.

[nradov]

What "weather balloon incident"? China intentionally sent a spy balloon into US airspace to gather intelligence and test our response. You can't seriously expect us to believe that it was for weather observations.

[jstarfish]

Yes, true. Based on what we're told about it, it does sound like a legit spy balloon.

What gives me pause is that our collective national security apparatus saw fit to let it traverse the entire fucking country before doing anything about it. And in the end, America even acknowledged that it was blown off course-- which is what the Chinese were saying from the start.

I don't trust the Chinese-- at all. I don't trust America either though. I remember the certainty with which they said there was evidence of WMDs in Iraq.

[mistermann]

In Canada, China "interfering with our democracy" is all the latest rage... At one point about a month ago, 11 out of the top 20 posts on /r/Canada had some negative reference to China (most being related to the democracy interference story, but a few others I can't remember the topic of).

[atlantic]

What I don't get is that people automatically equate a lab leak in China with a lab leak by China. It's uncontroversial that American funding was involved. The most likely intentional scenario would be a leak caused by the United States to harm the Chinese economy. If it hadn't spread beyond China's borders, the epidemic would have been a massive win for the US.

[Jochim]

What's not to get? Trump, Fox news, and a vanguard of the Republican party framed Coronavirus as a Chinese attack on the world in an attempt to boost their support.

Why some people are willing to believe the nonsense spouted by both I don't understand, but the fact that people do explains why so many view it as an intentional act by China.