FACT CHECK: No, Forbes Did Not Report That Burning Man Had An Ebola Outbreak

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Horowitz: Fauci flip: In 2014, Fauci opposed quarantine of Ebola health care workers



Of all Dr. Fauci's insidious flip-flops, this is likely the most revealing of all. Before infectious diseases became a political weapon to destroy civilization and individual liberty, Fauci opposed mandatory quarantines even for a rare and deadly virus that, unlike COVID, is very quarantinable.

In many ways, Ebola is the antithesis of coronavirus. Given that it's rare but deadly, it is the quintessential disease for which quarantine is both necessary and effective. The infection fatality rate is up to 50%, but it only transmits through bodily fluid, so during an initial outbreak, the case count will be measured in single digits, not in tens of thousands like a pandemic flu. The origin, scope, and duration of the quarantine are very limited but necessary. The exact opposite is true of coronavirus, which has a fatality rate of well under 1%, but is also bound to spread to the entire population until it reaches the herd immunity threshold.

Nonetheless, when America experienced an Ebola outbreak in 2014 from people traveling from West Africa, Fauci vehemently opposed state governors who were placing mandatory quarantines on the few and specific individuals who traveled directly from the source of the outbreak.

My former colleague, investigative journalist Jordan Schachtel, uncovered this gem from Dr. Fauci opposing policies by New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie forcing health care workers who came in contact with Ebola patients to quarantine for 21 days.

"We appreciate the fears of the American people, but you don't want to have policy that would have negative unintended consequences. … The scientific evidence is what needs to drive us," Fauci said on ABC News in October 2014. "If you put everyone in one basket, even people who are clearly no threat, then we have the problem of the disincentive of people that we need," he added, while also referring to his colleagues who went overseas to treat Ebola patients as "heroes" who are "protecting America."

He added: "And we know that people who are without symptoms are not a threat to transmitting it. You don't get Ebola unless you come into direct contact with body fluid. So there are things that we have got to be careful."

Ebola is the exact sort of virus for which our laws allow quarantine. These were specific people who came directly into contact with a very deadly virus that, all things equal, was not destined to spread to the U.S. unless people brought it in from overseas. Yet Fauci spoke of the dignity of the human being and the need not to quarantine the individual without any evidence of symptoms.

Now, this same man is essentially telling us that for the rest of our lifetimes, we can lock down and forcibly mask all Americans within America who never traveled outside the country and who present no symptoms – all for a virus that is like a pandemic flu and is unavoidable. Even with roughly 35% of the country already having been infected, he still continues to forcibly mask every human being indefinitely, regardless of whether they have symptoms, already had the virus, or had a vaccine.

I often find myself using Ebola as the paradigm of what quarantine laws were designed for. Governors erroneously believe that the police power to quarantine applies to locking down the healthy with the sick. That is simply not true. It was designed for a very limited number of people, like those who have Ebola, which can be easily quarantined. Fauci didn't believe that those without symptoms, even if they directly traveled from a source country and actually treated a patient, should be quarantined. How can he now believe that quarantine should apply to the entire nation indefinitely for a flu-like virus whose transmission is unavoidable?

As Justice Alito said in a speech at the Federalist Society last November, the 1905 Jacobson v. Massachusetts opinion, which upheld the police powers of a state to combat an epidemic, was rooted in "a local measure that targeted a problem of limited scope." That was essentially what occurred in 2014 when a handful of people traveling back from West Africa landed at a few airports and there were no more than 11 cases in the United States.

What is happening now is not quarantine but a blockade on our rights until the end of time. As Alito said of the Jacobson decision, "It did not involve sweeping restrictions imposed across the country for an extended period. And it does not mean that whenever there is an emergency, executive officials have unlimited, unreviewable discretion."

Fauci opposed the effort to even temporarily suspend flights and travel from West Africa, noting that isolating those countries would cause "unrest." Remember, there is no right for foreigners or even Americans to travel back and forth from a particular country. Yet, to this very day, Fauci believes Americans can be placed under curfew, masks, and every restriction under the sun within their own communities.

Fauci's opinion in 2014 served the medical and "scientific" elite, just like his view today. In that sense, he is somewhat consistent, at least in his stubborn adherence to the two-tiered justice system of the elites.

Consider the physical, economic, emotional, psychological, and behavioral harms of lockdowns and mask-wearing in California for almost a full year. The governor did this to avoid the spread of a virus that the Los Angeles Times now admits is finally slowing down in L.A. because 35% of the people have likely gotten the virus.

While 12% of Americans have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, far more people — approximately 35%… https://t.co/btfMe7U50q
— Soumya (@Soumya)1613841836.0

Yet Fauci is still acting as if this is a quarantinable virus!

.@DanaBashCNN: "What does normal mean? Do you think Americans will still be wearing masks for example in 2022?"Dr… https://t.co/M5XuOAdTiE
— The Recount (@The Recount)1613917482.0

Even a broken clock is right twice a day. Fauci is never correct.

Guinea confirms Ebola resurgence after 3 die from deadly disease, declares new epidemic



Guinea health officials on Sunday confirmed that at least three people are dead following an Ebola outbreak, according to the Associated Press.

Four other people are confirmed to be infected with the extremely deadly virus.

The three cases are the first of their kind after the world's deadliest Ebola epidemic ended five years ago.

What are the details?

The country's ministry of health stated that all seven positive cases were traceable to a nurse's Feb. 1 funeral and has declared an epidemic following the diagnoses.

Minister of Health Remy Lamah told the AP, "I confirm it's Ebola. The results prove it."

The news organization also reported that the government has sent an emergency team to "support local teams in Goueke" and "accelerated the procurement of Ebola vaccines from the World Health Organization."

The outlet reported that the patients reported suffering such symptoms as diarrhea, vomiting, and bleeding.

The nation is already battling the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and is still recovering from the previous Ebola outbreak, which the AP reported killed at least 2,500 people. Overall, more than 11,300 people died during the previous Ebola epidemic, which spread to Liberia and Sierra Leone.

"Guinea's announcement comes one week after eastern Congo confirmed it also had cases," the AP noted. "The cases are not linked."

The origin of the infections remains unknown at the time of this reporting.

Anything else?

CNN on Monday reported that West African countries are on "high alert" following the epidemic's announcement.

"The Red Cross said in a statement that a network of more than 700 trained volunteers has been 'activated as part of a first wave of response and the government has called on people to respect hygiene and prevention measures and to report the signs of the disease to health authorities,'" CNN reported.

Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, the WHO's regional director for Africa, told the outlet, "It's a huge concern to see the resurgence of Ebola in Guinea, a country which has already suffered so much from the disease. However, banking on the expertise and experience built during the previous outbreak, health teams in Guinea are on the move to quickly trace the path of the virus and curb further infections."

Moeti added, "WHO is supporting the authorities to set up testing, contact tracing, and treatment structures to bring the overall response to full speed."

Time Magazine Naming Joe Biden ‘Person Of The Year’ Makes Total Sense For Today’s Boot-licking Media

The more than 6,400-word profile is beaming with admiration for the man who one might think is saving the nation from collapse.