Waiting for the Inevitable Coronavirus Attack

Troops waiting for the inevitable attack! Just like us waiting for the inevitable coronavirus attack

We are in a war with an invisible enemy  - French graves in Belgium (my photo)

WARNING - GRAPHIC IMAGES AND DISTURBING FACTS

The world is in lock down. The world is also in the grip of a devastating global pandemic caused by a virus which spread to man because of the disgusting eating habits of the Chinese. At times like this, the individual human rights have to give way to the rights of the global population. The Chinese do not have the right to eat anything that moves!

Pangolin in a live food market. It is about time that nature hits back!

This needs to stop!

Truly shocking images from the market in Wuhan

The sale and slaughter of wild animals around the world needs to be stopped, not only in China, but all around the world. The current Coronavirus pandemic is all over the news and we are all acutely aware of the origin of this virus from a live food market in Wuhan, China. We have all but forgotten that Ebola virus also came from people eating bats! Ebola has a mortality rate which makes Coronavirus look like a baby. The only thing that saved mankind from Ebola was the fact that people who were infected could not spread the virus until they were showing clinical signs, so the temperature monitoring at airports and other such activities could stop the spread of that virus. This is not the case with Covid-19! We cannot stop the spread.  Mankind was lucky with Ebola, but we are not going to be so lucky this time around!

How sad!

In fact all consumption of animal products should be stopped. The 1918 influenza pandemic started off when an animal virus (from pigs) and human virus mixed!We should also not forget Human Immunodeficiency virus (HIV) which is widely believed to have spread to humans as a result of the consumption of Chimpanzee meat! The combination of HIV and Covid-19 is going to take a dramatic toll on human life in sub Saharan Africa.

This gave the world HIV! Now time to pay the price.

Mankind's insatiable appetite for animal products is going to kill us one way or another. If it is not a devastating virus like the Coronavirus, Ebola, HIV, Influenza H1N1 or something else, it will be from the negative health issues related to eating animal products. The American "SAD" diet (Standard American diet) is a perfect example of how bad the consumption of animal products can be. If the virus does not get us, obesity, high cholesterol and diabetes will!  Very depressing.

Bush mean market

While we are on this depressing state, let me carry on with my non-travel related blog.

Being in lock down reminds me of an interesting and sad movie I watched some time ago. There are a lot of similarities to the current situation many people around the world are finding themselves in.

The movie was called "Journey's end". It was set in the trenches on the Western Front. Yes - I am back with my obsession with World War One. I guess that this is my blog and I can write what I want!

Officers in a bunker

Back to the movie. Just a bit of history on the war.  The Allied (British and commonwealth troops and French) trenches were facing the German trenches which were, in many cases, only a couple of hundred meters apart. Very soon into the start of the First World War, the war became static. Both armies dug in and no-one was moving anywhere. In most fronts of the war, the dug-in opposing armies faced each other for 4 years. One army would attack and gain a few hundred meters, then the opposing army would counter attack and get the ground back and maybe gain a few meters on the other side. This went on and on for four years. Each attack and counter attack  cost many thousands of lives on both sides until the death toll became overwhelming massive.

Allied graves from the 3rd Battle of Ypres. There are South Africans berried there as well (my photo).

The same soldiers did not man the front line for four years! Each regiment spent some time at the front line often only for about a week at a time, and then they were replaced. The new regiment took  their stand in the front lines and the troops that were replaced moved back to a quieter area to get some rest and recover for the next stay at the front.

Shells exploding on the front line near Ypres

So the movie starts of with the swap-over of regiments in the front line. Most of the movie was in the officer's bunker, where every effort was made to maintain "normal" living standards under very difficult conditions. The officer's batman was trying everything possible to produce "quality" meals with what was available. Pretty much reminds you of lock-down. Yes, they were also in lock down. They could not go forward - because that was the German lines. They could not go back, until they were replaced. So there they were. Stuck in the trenches. During the movie, it became obvious that there was a massive German attack planned. The Allied high command not only knew the day of the attack, but also the time. The front line soldiers also knew exactly when the attack was coming. They were waiting for the inevitable. They were the unlucky ones to be manning the front line at that point in time!

The inevitable is coming

What was very touching in the movie was how everyone (in a lock-down situation) faced and coped with the inevitability of the coming attack. The British "stiff upper lip" in the face of diversity. We will all need this in the coming weeks! This brings me back to the current situation we are in. Much of the world is in lock-down. In many parts of the world, the battle is full-on already. Places like the USA, Italy and Spain are feeling the full force of the attack of the virus. China has managed to survive the first wave of attack, and they should now be preparing to face the second round of attack - which is very likely to come. If anyone thinks the virus is done with China, I am afraid that I think differently. There will most likely be another attack in China, but I hope that I am wrong!

The grave yards that scatter the Western Front (my photo).

In South Africa, we are facing a new front. The enemy (the virus) is busy getting ready for an all out attack. We are all hunkered down in out bunkers  (homes)- some in much better conditions than others, waiting for the full force of the attack, much like the British soldiers in the movie. Many in South Africa are not taking the lock-down seriously. They are just strengthening the coming attack of the virus!

The end of the movie - only the last few mins - shows the full force of the German attack with the shells landing and exploding in the trench lines among the waiting British soldiers. The movie ends with German boots looking down into the trench and dugout where most of the movie was filmed! The end of the journey for the British soldiers who were manning the trench. Hence the title of the movie.

Aftermath of the battle. Time to bury the dead.

The Germans won that battle, but they did not win the war! We (mankind) will have many battles with this invisible enemy. We are going to loose some battles and the casualties will be many, but we will win the war. Mankind is searching for new weapons to beat this virus. There are scientists around the world that can make a contribution and a difference. With some research support, even a small research group such as my  Veterinary Biotechnology Research Group,  could make a difference. We have been working on vaccine development, diagnostic test kit development and even the production of antibody fragments for the control of virus diseases in poultry production for many years. We have the technology, just not the support we need. This work has been severely hamstrung by lack of funding. Maybe now, it is time for the government to realise you cannot have a strong scientific community if you cut the throats of the grey headed white academics in the country by giving them no research funding.

But is in now too late - we are in a war! The fight of our lives.