September 19, 2022

The aggressive posturing by the USA government against China is mostly just that at the moment: posturing. The USA cannot afford to engage China in a war as it is engaging Russia right now.

That's not to say that the USA cannot ramp-up production if it beats its war drum louder. It will be difficult to see where the USA's real foreign policy will land until after the mid-term elections in November.

For now, we have to hope that the China has more economic issues to deal with that are not directly in conflict to USA imperialism and war electioneering. Wars in Asia do not go well for the world and the USA.

Biden says the pandemic is "over".

“The pandemic is over,” Biden said. “We still have a problem with Covid. We’re still doing a lot of work on it. It’s … but the pandemic is over,” he said, observing that few people at the auto show were wearing masks.

That's nice for the USA. Too bad it isn't over everywhere else, which is what makes it a pandemic:

The WHO is trying to develop its own COVID vaccine for use around the world. Moderna, in a strange attempt to undermine a global public vaccine, has provided the WHO with its recipe to Afrigen Biologics and Vaccines for licensed production.

Pfizer would not even engage in the process. Mostly because it is interested in "treating" covid as opposed to stopping infection in the first place.

Moderna and the partnership of Pfizer and BioNTech SE have come under increased pressure to allow factories in poorer countries to produce their vaccines after the world’s richest nations raced to inoculate their populations while barely any vaccines were available in large parts of Africa. Pfizer’s shot is the most commonly used Covid-19 vaccine in South Africa while Moderna’s inoculation has barely been used on the continent.(BN)

The dragging-out of the production process comes as the pandemic transitions into a global health issue as opposed to emergency. There is plenty of drug money to be made still, but a more sophisticated approach by the pharma companies to COVID is emerging.

There are several vaccines out there for COVID-19 developed by public pharma companies not hell-bent on profit maximization. Unfortunately, it seems as though the UN/WHO is determined to sustain the Pharma Giants' monopoly on life saving.

Still, Afrigen may need further assistance from Moderna or Pfizer, including allowing the use of vaccine for comparative human trials that are expected to start by May. That request is expected in coming weeks, Kieny said.