George Carlin never got to be as old as I am now, dying at 71 on June 22, 2007, in Santa Monica.  His twisted, if amazingly logical, humor shaped much of my youthful thinking.  I never expected that wisdom to be enduring, but much of what he talked about rings true today.  During COVID, especially, I found comfort and guidance in “Professor Carlin’s lectures”.  This in a time when anyone speaking common sense was branded a radical.  I especially like his take on “germs”(1).  One of my most fascinating course in grad school was “Host-parasite relationships”, taught by Rolf Freter (2).  There, I  began to learn the many ways microorganisms interacted with their hosts, often to the benefit of the host, all to be lost if somehow the microorganisms were eliminated.  The concept arose later with recognition that our approach to hygiene may be harming our immune systems.  Lacking targets to “practice” on, our immune system turns “sideways”, resulting in allergies and autoimmunity.  This “Hygiene Hypothesis” (3) was largely forgotten by the framers of our COVID response.  What happens when you douse your hands with alcohol at every turn, restrict with that mask entry into your lungs of most organisms (if not SARS-CoV-2), avoid human contact, and hole up in your house?  That innate immune system gets no practice and thus isn’t prepared for onslaught of a real pathogen.

I first posted this lesson from Prof. Carlin over 5 years ago (1).  Just today, I got an e-mail from Dr. Robert Malone (inventor of the mRNA technology which he’s railed against since the get go) with his Sunday cartoons (4). Towards the end was a black and white panel with a stark Mr. Carlin, written over it “George Carlin’s views on the Coronavirus”.  Intrigued, I saw it and it is mainly a black and white video of Prof. Carlin’s “Germs” lecture. (5).

Isn’t COVID done for?  Why are we still talking about this?  Well, with many injured by the vaccine and/or suffering with lingering “long COVID” effects, it’s not over yet.  The taste for sledgehammer measures to “protect” us has not been lost by our powers that be, looking for the next chance while failing to relinquish the few ridiculous measures still in place.  The powers that be sought to increase the number in the former category (the vaxxed) by urging still more mRNA “vaccinations”.  Then, seeking to ramp up anxiety and fear over all these viral infections out there to kill us, talk is of a “quad epidemic” from the combined assault from influenza, COVID, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and norovirus (6).  How convenient that for the first three, there is an established vaccine, with work in earnest proceeding with norovirus, a single-stranded non-enveloped RNA virus that’s the main cause of gastroenteritis (nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea).  It’s as if they pulled some innocent stragglers off the street and marshalled them into a quartet of menacing soldiers.  Even though there’s no evidence that any of these are having a significant public health effect, it hasn’t stopped governors and other institutions in blue states from using this risk as justification for things like reinstitutions of mask mandates (7).  I guess since the mosquitos are back, we need to throw up those chain-link fences.

Viruses wreak stretches of minor misery in our lives, untreatable but self-limited.  Our main barrier is our innate immunity.  This is not a system that can be focused with a specific vaccine but can be bolstered by exposure to microorganisms in our environment.  So, if your friendly doctor offers up a boatload of vaccines to “protect” you this winter, tell him/her “thanks, but no thanks”, then go out and roll in the dirt.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

References

1. Ike B.  Prof. Carlin YouTube 12/22/20.  https://theviewfromharbal.com/2020/12/10/prof-carlin/
2. Rolf Freter Obituary.  https://obits.mlive.com/us/obituaries/annarbor/name/rolf-freter-obituary?id=23684973
3. Bloomfield SF, Stanwell-Smith R, Crevel RW, Pickup J. Too clean, or not too clean: the hygiene hypothesis and home hygiene. Clin Exp Allergy. 2006 Apr;36(4):402-25. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2222.2006.02463.x. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC1448690/
4. Malone RW.  Sunday Strip: Watch out for Grandma!  Substack 12/22/24.https://www.malone.news/p/sunday-strip-watch-out-for-grandma?utm_source=substack&publication_id=583200&post_id=153488502&utm_medium=email&utm_content=share&utm_campaign=email-share&triggerShare=true&isFreemail=true&r=xihj0&triedRedirect=true
5. Tarcea M.  George Carlin’s thoughts on the… CORONAVIRUS.  YouTube https://youtu.be/XIzXWllZWt0?si=HHKaV3r0wWQvC3yu
6. Leake L.  Public health experts are warning of a ‘quad-demic’ this winter. Here’s where flu, COVID, RSV, and norovirus are spreading.  FortuneWELL 12/18/24. https://fortune.com/well/article/winter-quad-demic-flu-covid-rsv-norovirus/
7. Swanson M.  Blue States Bring Back Mask Mandates Ahead of ‘Quad-demic’.Newsmax 12/19/24.  https://www.newsmax.com/politics/mask-mandates-blue-states/2024/12/19/id/1192276/

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