Bill Maher defends calling coronavirus 'Chinese virus,' blames China

[dutch508]

ansible (890 posts)
https://www.democraticunderground.com/100213267957

Bill Maher defends calling coronavirus 'Chinese virus,' blames China

HBO's Bill Maher on Friday defended calling the novel coronavirus the "Chinese virus," arguing that "pretty liberal" scientists have been "naming diseases after the places they came from for a very long time."

The remarks from the "Real Time" host come after President Trump had repeatedly referred to COVID-19 as the "Chinese virus," but stopped doing so late last month.

“Scientists, who are generally pretty liberal, have been naming diseases after the places they came from for a very long time,” Maher said Friday night while broadcasting his weekly show from his home in California.

“Zika is from the Zika Forest. Ebola from the Ebola River. Hantavirus, the Hantan River. There’s the West Nile Virus and Guinea worm and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, and of course the Spanish flu.”

“MERS stands for Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome,” the host continued. “It’s plastered all over airports and no one blogs about it. So, why should China get a pass?

Maher proceeded to respond to a tweet by Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.), who criticized Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) for calling coronavirus "the Wuhan virus" on March 8.

“No, that would be way stupider because it didn’t come from Milan,” said Maher. “And if it did, I guarantee we’d be calling it the Milan Virus. Jesus f---ing Christ. Can’t we even have a pandemic without getting offended? When they named Lyme disease after a town in Connecticut the locals didn’t get all ticked off?”

“This is about facts. It’s about life and death. We’re barely four months into this pandemic and the wet markets in China — the ones where exotic animals are sold and consumed — are already starting to reopen," he later added.

"Sorry Americans, we're going to have to ask you to keep two ideas in your head at the same time: This has nothing to do with Asian Americans and it has everything to do with China," Maher concluded. "We can't afford the luxury anymore of non-judginess towards a country with habits that kill millions of people everywhere. Because this isn't the first time. SARS came from China. And the bird flu. And the Hong Kong flu. The Asian flu. Viruses come from China just like shortstops come from the Dominican Republic. If they were selling nuclear suitcases at these wet markets, would we be so non-judgmental?"

https://thehill.com/homenews/media/492340-bill-maher-defends-calling-coronavirus-chinese-virus-mocks-ted-lieu

 

Star Member underpants (148,915 posts)

1. Saw this. He has a point about the name

But it should be the Wuhan flu or the Wuhan Terrible Flu (WTF).

The naming convention is precedent

Blues Heron (1,978 posts)

7. It's already been named and that's not the name they deliberatlely didn't go with a place name because of stigma. I don't see what's so hard about using the name it already has rather than jump through hoops to justify racist impulses, othering, blame etc.

 

Star Member Laffy Kat (11,565 posts)

26. Yes, well people from Lyme aren't getting the shit kicked out of them because of their ethnicity.

I imagine they can walk down the street without fear. You know, there's that.

Blues Heron (1,978 posts)

32. That old policy is over get with the program or risk getting called a racist.

Star Member LakeArenal (10,858 posts)

2. "Can't we even have a pandemic without getting offended?"

Geez Bill, chill. Don’t be so offended!!!

It’s Trumpsvirus, anyway.

You’re such a efhead.

Star Member malaise (205,590 posts)

3. I stopped watching him years ago after his comments on Muslims

**** him

dalton99a (47,223 posts)

11. "Islam is the only religion that acts like the mafia." - Bill Maher

Never forget

Loki Liesmith (3,714 posts)

4. Eh the Chinese government effed up

More than any other government on earth. That’s true.

Blues Heron (1,978 posts)

10. bizzare comment

we have 1/4 the population and about 5 times the deaths. But they ****ed up. right

 

ansible (890 posts)

14. You're assuming the chinese government is even telling the truth

They're bragging about having less than 100k cases.

https://i.insider.com/5e713cb7c48540280e694787?width=1100&format=jpeg&auto=webp

Blues Heron (1,978 posts)

19. their hospitals are empty

You really think they're hiding hundreds of thousands of sick people? Don't let your prejudice cloud your better judgement. Let's hear all the details of your "hidden sick people" conspiracy: where are they? You must have solid info or links right?

 

forthemiddle (779 posts)

39. The vast majority of hospitals in the USA are empty too

Does that disprove New York’s numbers?

Do you realize that the overwhelming majority of hospitals in the United States are furloughing employees because there are no patients in the beds?

China has not been honest about the numbers, and has no reflection what so ever about how busy the hospitals are.

Blues Heron (1,978 posts)

43. cool story bro

 

Thomas Hurt (5,765 posts)

6. While it is true that it originated in China, it is not why the amoral pig was using the term.

He is using it as racist newspeak to shift blame.

Star Member Hoyt (42,803 posts)

16. Like Maher, but difference is when someone like trump says "Chinese virus," he's throwing red meat

to his racist/bigoted supporters. That ain't right.

dalton99a (47,223 posts)

18. "A country with habits that kill millions of people everywhere"

A country?

Condemn specific practices in an industry, not an entire country or culture. The vast majority of Chinese citizens had nothing to do with the wildlife in the videos.

 

cabot (617 posts)

22. I get his point..

You have German measles, Marburg Virus, Lyme Disease, Ebola, etc...but we all know why dipshit insists on calling it the China virus.

If they re-open the wet markets, as it seems they are, then China should have to pay a penalty. I don't know..like, let's allow Taiwan to join the UN and every country can cancel its outstanding debt to China in order to recoup costs of treating the pandemic.

I blame Xi, not the Chinese people. They're just as much victims as everyone else. Xi's got to go.

 

sop (1,591 posts)

29. Problem is Trump himself blamed China for the virus, purposely stoking anti-China hysteria from

the WH podium on a daily basis. Trump also saw this as a convenient way to deflect responsibility for his own bungling of the US response, and as further justification for his disastrous ongoing China trade war.

Republican Senator Tom Cotton (and others in the GOP) then suggested the Chinese government was behind the outbreak of the virus, implying it was a military plot to destroy the American economy. Predictably, many of Trump's followers in the right-wing media picked up and ran with this conspiracy theory, resulting in Chinese-Americans being harassed and attacked.

Note to Bill Maher: Many on the left have taken exception to Trump's shameless politicization of the virus, and the anti-Chinese hysteria created by right-wing conspiracy theorists, not the naming of the virus.

Eyeball_Kid (4,475 posts)

34. A very recent news release asserted that the CV-19 virus that

infected the US CAME FROM EUROPE. It was determined through research on contact tracing.

AND HOW DID IT GET TO EUROPE FROM CHINA, ****HEAD?

hardluck (300 posts)

44. That was New York specific

Many of the strains found in New York were traced to Europe, while some were traced to the West Coast and Asia. Doesn’t change the fact that the outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 started in China.

As to Maher, he an attention seeking ass, and he’s getting what he wants here. Same as always.

Star Member Paladin (20,670 posts)

42. **** you dead, Bill Maher.

He didn't say one ****ing word about how using "Chinese virus" would set off trump scum violence against U.S. citizens with Asian backgrounds, did he? (Somebody confirm that---I stopped watching Maher a long time ago.) What the hell is wrong with the "COVID-19" designation?

Dem4Life1102 (1,737 posts)

60. So Bill Maher is a bigot

Why is anyone surprised? He has been one for decades. It’s not new news. What is disgusting is the Maher sycophants who will defend him just because he doesn’t like Trump.

[ADsOutburst]

Conspiracy theories exist in this case because the Chinese government is so secretive. Duh. That's also why people tend to doubt the numbers they give.

Also, their insistence that people not call it the China virus is odd. It's as if they think people wouldn't make that association if only we call it COVID-19 instead.

[Ptarmigan]

Sometimes a broken clock gets it right.

[DLR Pyro]

It’s Trumpsvirus, anyway.

Please explain.   Show your work to receive full credit

[landofconfusion80]

I thought kung-flu was the professional term

[DUmpDiver]

Trump is an anti-Chinese racist?

Since before taking office, when discussing lopsided trade with China, he always makes it clear that the Chinese are great people and he doesn't blame them. According to Trump it is the fault people on our side who were dumb enough to let the Chinese take advantage of us.

[SVPete]

Trump is an anti-Chinese racist?
...

Star Member Paladin (20,670 posts)

42. **** you dead, Bill Maher.

He didn't say one ****ing word about how using "Chinese virus" would set off trump scum violence against U.S. citizens with Asian backgrounds, did he?

That dog didn't bark because it doesn't exist. Then there's Trump's Secretary of Transportation:

[Ptarmigan]

Thomas Hurt (5,765 posts)

6. While it is true that it originated in China, it is not why the amoral pig was using the term.

He is using it as racist newspeak to shift blame.

Chinese is a nationality, not race, ethnicity or language. The people there called themselves Han. China has many ethnic groups and languages.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_China

Star Member Paladin (20,670 posts)

42. **** you dead, Bill Maher.

He didn't say one ****ing word about how using "Chinese virus" would set off trump scum violence against U.S. citizens with Asian backgrounds, did he?

Most anti-Asian violence have occurred in liberal cities like San Francisco, Los Angeles, and New York City.

Verbal Abuse, Assault, Shunning: Coronavirus 'Hate' Tracker Now Includes More Than 1,400 Reports of Anti-Asian Racism
https://laist.com/2020/04/09/coronavirus-tracker-anti-asian-racism.php

At a Trader Joe's in Culver City last month, Jeff Yang stood in the checkout line six feet apart from the other customers, lost in his phone. That's when an F-bomb came flying in his direction.

He glanced up to see another customer pass by, pull down her mask and cough towards him — the only Asian in line.

"I was shocked," said Yang, a journalist and author. "She was sending me a message along the lines of 'You're the one who caused this.'"

Days earlier in Eagle Rock, Paola Mardo was leaving a Filipino grocery with a mask on her face when she heard a woman say "China brought this virus here."

Website Launches to Document Anti-Asian Hate Crimes in Wake of COVID-19
https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/coronavirus/website-launches-to-document-anti-asian-hate-crimes-in-wake-of-covid-19/2258297/

On a busy San Francisco street in the broad light of day, Yuanyuan Zhu was harassed and spit on by a stranger simply for being Asian in the midst of a global pandemic caused by what the president of the United Stats calls the "Chinese virus."

Zhu had just been dropped off near the corner of Van Ness Avenue and Geary Boulevard when a man walking past her on the sidewalk shouted "f*** China" while staring directly at her.

She immediately thought to get away from him by crossing the street, but there were too many cars and the light was against her.

Coronavirus News: Anti-Asian bias crimes increasing in NYC amid COVID-19 pandemic
https://abc7ny.com/coronavirus-bias-crimes-anti-asian-hate-brooklyn-crime/6085402/

BRONX, New York (WABC) -- There is another growing group of victims amid the coronavirus pandemic: Asian Americans who are being attacked and accused of causing the virus.

Sunday night in Dyker Heights, police say a 51-year-old resident was simply taking out her garbage when a man doused her with some kind of chemical which burned her face, neck, shoulders and back.

The Asian victim was rushed to the hospital while the man took off.

There is a lot of racism in China.

African nationals 'mistreated, evicted' in China over coronavirus
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/04/african-students-mistreated-evicted-china-coronavirus-200412100315200.html

African students and expatriates in China are reportedly being evicted from their homes and mistreated over fears they could spread the novel coronavirus.

African ambassadors in China have written to the country's foreign minister over what they call discrimination against Africans as the country seeks to prevent a resurgence of the coronavirus, which originated in the central Chinese city of Wuhan last December.