Thread by @Ayjchan

The 3 traps distracting from a proper look at the lab leak hypothesis - laid bare by @danengber in @TheAtlantic
H/t @TheSeeker268

theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/…

To address each of the 3 traps:

1. There is an incredible and growing amount of circumstantial evidence pointing to a possible lab-based origin of SARS-CoV-2 / Covid-19.

But nothing definitive.

https://twitter.com/danengber/status/1402966734521475077

2. Gain-of-function research may have possibly been involved in the emergence of SARS-CoV-2, e.g., insertion of a furin cleavage site.

It is unclear if we will ever get evidence of that.

But it is clear that lab leaks have not required and do not require GoF to happen.

https://twitter.com/danengber/status/1402966736027201538

3. I understand why a lot of people, scientists and non-scientists, are determined to call out people who suppressed or obfuscated a public discussion of lab origins.

But the priority should be to actually have an international, credible investigation into #OriginsOfCovid

https://twitter.com/danengber/status/1402966737734311945

If the goal is to prevent pandemics, then we

1. Should not rush to rule out or dismiss circumstantial evidence for plausible hypotheses.

2. Should address the full range of lab risks, GoF or not.

3. Should focus on productive ways forward to get an investigation we can trust.

I think I better clarify about the State Dept meeting on Jan 7, 2021.

The meeting has been described to have been arranged by a small group in State Dept to "present the strongest-possible case for the lab-leak theory, and then to probe it for holes."

That wasn't in my invite.

I actually initially suspected that these emails from State Dept were a prank and had ignored the first bunch of them.

Eventually I responded.

All of the emails just asked about my preprints and if I could comment on other papers.

These State Dept meeting summaries/emails revealed by @VanityFair @KatherineEban show what happened during the meeting.

downloads.vanityfair.com/lab-leak-theor…

More here:
"The panel was convened to conduct a peer level review of draft studies by two scientists... panelists were never briefed on any AVC assessment or working hypothesis nor were they made aware of internal USG deliberations."
downloads.vanityfair.com/lab-leak-theor…