Subject: Re: OT: Formerly heavily discussed here
Just a follow-up on something in 2020/21 heavily and with rage discussed here: The origin of Covid. (Wuhan) Lab theory versus Zoonose (Wuhan animal market).

I think it's important to realize that there are actually three narratives there. Two shades of grey in your first choice, if you will.

(a) natural crossover, dominated by but not exclusive to the wet market (the "horse" theory)
(b) lab escape of a naturally occurring virus that they were studying (the "zebra" theory)
(c) lab escape of a virus they created, often characterized as a bioweapon (the "pegasus" theory)

I have in the past expressed the opinion that (c) leans towards the conspiracy theory end of things, which I stand by. Option (a) has always sounded pretty reasonable. But, given the number of lab leaks that occur every few years, nobody would call (b) impossible. It's really depressing how often it happens, and not just in China, I wouldn't rule it out on first principles.

The hard thing is distinguishing between (b) "the Chinese government destroyed a lot of evidence and kept things secret so nobody would insult China by suggesting they were in any way at fault", versus (b) "the Chinese government destroyed a lot of evidence and kept things secret so nobody could show that Chinese researchers were in fact at fault". It's quite possible the people burning the notes don't even know which it was. Never risk making your boss look bad.

Jim