Writer William Sargent is the author of twenty-seven books about science and the environment. He talked about why he believes the spread of COVID-19 resulted from a laboratory error and how the horseshoe crab was instrumental in developing the vaccine for the virus. He suggested that COVID accidentally leaked from a lab in Wuhan, not unlike a purported leak at Plum Island Animal Research Institute, where microbes were injected into ticks. There is evidence, he added, that the Plum Island event led to the outbreak of ailments such as Lyme disease. COVID-19, he has concluded, was developed in "gain of function" experiments in Wuhan, injecting ferrets with viruses while trying to develop vaccines for other coronaviruses. This kind of research, he commented, should serve as a "cautionary tale" about disastrous unintended consequences.
Growing up on Cape Cod, he became familiar with the horseshoe crab, a marine creature that dates back some 450 million years. Curiously, the crab's copper-based cobalt blue blood became an essential ingredient in what's known as the lysate test. This test reveals whether anything that comes into contact with the human blood system (such as a syringe, a vaccine, or a pacemaker) is free from bacterial contamination (if bacteria is present, the blood coagulates into a blue blob). All the vials, swabs, and syringes used to make and administer the antibody tests, and vaccines for COVID were tested with the lysate procedure. So, it wouldn't be a stretch to say the horseshoe crab helped save millions of lives, he pointed out. Sargent reported that horseshoe crabs are currently in decline, and he is hopeful that a synthetic substitute under development will replace the need for the creatures.
------------------
In the latter half, independent journalist, author, and longtime UFO researcher, Keith Thompson talked about near-death experiences (NDEs), beginning with his own near-death-by-drowning when he was in his 20s in 1978. Since then, he has counseled individuals on how to integrate and assimilate NDEs. During his NDE, he went to a heavenly place and underwent a rapid panoramic review of his life. He saw "beings of light that were beyond description," communed with deceased loved ones, and observed a host of non-threatening creatures like elves and dwarves. "I had an interaction with a profound sense of presence that seems to have been with me all of my life," he added. The presence asked him, "what will you choose?" referring to whether he wanted to stay in this place of unspeakable beauty or return to the physical life he had chosen earlier.
"The near-death experience," he continued, "is like a giant information-rich file that you download on your computer...and it takes a long time for it to unpack or unzip." The NDE has been downloading ever since, he said, and the experience also left him with a kind of life calling or mission, which he has labeled a "spiritual subpoena." The near-death experience is a universal occurrence, and he is convinced that the theory of reduced oxygen in the brain during crisis cannot account for or explain the clearness and lucidity of people's encounters. We should do what philosophers have said-- 'live with death on our shoulder,' not in a morbid way, but to live our lives fully, and in as many dimensions as we can, Thompson remarked. For more on this topic, check out his article, "Embodiment."
News segment guests: Howard Bloom, Mish Shedlock