Covid Powers Forever By James Reed

Well blow me over and call me a monkey’s uncle, whatever that old phrase means, Australia has extended the Covid freak-out powers for another three months, I am not sure when this started, but there is no beginning and no end in the Covid New World Order, the social equivalent of entering a black hole and at the event horizon, having time do weird things, like for eternity in a relativistic sense. Science is not my strong point.

But why not three years, or better yet, three thousand years? Hey, what do you think Australia will look like in three thousand years? There are wells still in existence where Alexander the Great and his men got water. Will anything of Australia still exist in three thousand years’ time? My guess is that we will be pushing to make three more years, at least as anything vaguely resembling a liberal democracy.

What do American blogs think about the Australian situation?

https://www.naturalnews.com/2021-09-03-australia-extends-covid-powers-for-three-months.html

“Australia’s Governor-General David Hurley on Thursday extended the country’s human biosecurity emergency period a further three months. The emergency period, which has been in place since March 18, 2020 to protect Australians during the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, will continue until Dec. 17.

This extends four existing emergency measures, including mandatory pre-departure testing and mask-wearing for international flights, restrictions on the entry of cruise vessels within Australian waters, restrictions on outbound international travel for Australians and restrictions on the trade of retail outlets at international airports.

Thursday’s announcement follows advice from the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee (AHPPC) and Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly that the international COVID-19 situation still poses an “unacceptable risk” to public health, according to Health Minister Greg Hunt.

However, Hurley said the federal government will continue to consult with state authorities, territories and the maritime industry on options for the resumption of cruise trips once it’s ruled safe to do so. The existing emergency measures can also be amended or repealed at any time.

Draconian policies are ineffective.

Under the Biosecurity Act 2015, the emergency powers allow the federal government to take the necessary measures to control the spread of COVID-19. They were initially due to expire on Friday, Sept. 17.

Those emergency powers are critical to the country’s National Plan to change its response to the pandemic from suppression to the prevention of serious illness and death due to COVID-19.

The country’s prime minister and state and territory authorities form the National Cabinet, and they’ve all agreed to the plan. Currently, at Phase A, the plan requires that state leaders implement measures to “accelerate vaccination rates.”

Phase B is unlocked when 70 percent of the population is vaccinated. Authorities may also ease restrictions for the fully vaccinated at this phase. Meanwhile, Phase C is unlocked when 80 percent of the population is vaccinated. This phase may include the opening of international borders for travel.

However, it doesn’t look like Australia will be hitting those numbers soon. The country has been seeing record-high numbers of cases recently despite vaccination efforts, prompting authorities to reimplement mask mandates and extend draconian lockdowns.

Last month, Australian authorities extended the lockdown in Sydney until the end of September. Additionally, they introduced a curfew in the city’s worst-affected suburbs. Meanwhile, New South Wales (NSW) Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced that Sydney’s five million residents should wear a mask when going out except when exercising, which has also been limited to an hour every day.

Berejiklian said the tough restrictions were due to rising COVID-19 cases and people flouting lockdown orders. She also gave police officers sweeping new powers to ensure compliance with lockdowns across the city, which have been in place since June 26. According to the state’s police commissioner, Mick Fuller, residents who enter a local government area of concern without excuse will be fined and forced to self-isolate for 14 days.

Queensland won’t open borders until children are vaccinated.

In Queensland, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk signaled a shift from the National Plan after she said she might not open her state’s border to neighboring NSW until all Queensland children under the age of 12 are vaccinated.

“Unless there is an answer on how these young people are going to be vaccinated, you are putting this most vulnerable population at risk,” said Palaszczuk. There is no COVID-19 vaccine approved for children under the age of 12, who are unlikely to be hospitalized or die when infected.

Federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg blasted Palaszczuk for refusing to stick to the original plan, noting that she was desperately denying the reality that COVID-19 in children is less severe than in adults. “No country has eliminated [COVID-19], and that’s why it’s so important that we stick to the plan and open up accordingly,” said Frydenberg.

Palaszczuk has come under fire early this year for extending the emergency powers of the state’s chief health officer, Jeannette Young, who will become Queensland’s governor in November. The state government had granted Young emergency powers to combat the pandemic in March 2020, something that has been already formally scrutinized by a parliamentary committee.

Young, who will retain her powers for another eight months, can put cities under lockdowns, enforce border closures, restrict gatherings, direct people to quarantine and collect confidential information for contact tracing. In January, lawmakers said Queenslanders did not elect Young to make such far-reaching decisions.”

Such is life in the Covid state. Just imagine what will happen when a really serious pandemic, one which is caused by Nature and not Dr Frankensteins, hits. The system can’t cope with what there is now.

https://www.france24.com/en/health/20210901-new-coronavirus-variant-mu-under-close-scrutiny-by-who

“The World Health Organization has said it is monitoring a new coronavirus variant known as "Mu", which was first identified in Colombia in January 2021.

Mu, known scientifically as B.1.621, has been classified as a "variant of interest", the global health body said Tuesday in its weekly pandemic bulletin.

The WHO said the variant has mutations that indicate a risk of resistance to vaccines and stressed that further studies were needed to better understand it.

"The Mu variant has a constellation of mutations that indicate potential properties of immune escape," the bulletin said.

There is widespread concern over the emergence of new virus mutations as infection rates are ticking up globally again, with the highly transmissible Delta variant taking hold – especially among the unvaccinated – and in regions where anti-virus measures have been relaxed.

All viruses, including SARS-CoV-2 that causes Covid-19, mutate over time and most mutations have little or no effect on the properties of the virus.

But certain mutations can impact the properties of a virus and influence how easily it spreads, the severity of the disease it causes, and its resistance to vaccines, drugs and other countermeasures.

The WHO currently identifies four Covid-19 variants of concern, including Alpha, which is present in 193 countries, and Delta, present in 170 countries.

Five variants, including Mu, are to be monitored.

After being detected in Colombia, Mu has since been reported in other South American countries and in Europe.

The WHO said its global prevalence has declined to below 0.1 percent among sequenced cases. In Colombia, however, it is at 39 percent.”