|
?:reviewBody
|
-
Many theories have been advanced to explain the origins of the novel COVID-19 coronavirus that emerged in Wuhan, China, in late 2019, ranging from the prosaic finding that it was merely a natural mutation to the conspiratorial claim that it was a bioweapon created in a Chinese laboratory. One much-discussed possibility was that the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus originated in bats and made the jump from bats to humans through an intermediate species. One of the more far-fetched conspiratorial takes on the coronavirus' origins held that the issuance of a new U.S. quarter in 2020 picturing bats on its reverse was a clue indicating that COVID-19 was government made as part of a plot to kill the masses and start a new world: The coin in question is part of the America the Beautiful Quarters® Program. Authorized by Congress in 2008, the series features 56 quarters released in batches of five per year from 2010 through 2020 (with one additional release at the beginning of 2021), each depicting a national park or other national site in a U.S. state or territory: The design of the reverse of the America the Beautiful Quarter representing American Samoa was announced in 2019, and the coin itself was issued in 2020. That design represents the National Park of American Samoa and depicts a Samoan fruit bat mother hanging in a tree with her pup: As far as this conspiracy theory goes, we would point out that the notion the novel coronavirus originated in bats is just one possible theory and remains unproven. And even if that were the case, it is exceedingly unlikely the virus started out in the Samoan fruit bat (Pteropus samoensis), which is found only in the Samoan archipelago and Fiji — far from the virus' apparent origin point in China. We also note the improbability that a government engaged in the furtive mass eradication of citizens would plan years in advance to plant subtle clues warning the public of the plot.
(en)
|
![[This page as RDF]](http://data.gesis.org/claimskg/static/rdf-icon.gif){kind=icon}