Nov. 8, 2023 - Epoch Times
07:29
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| Time | Text |
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| Yesterday, without much or any media fanfare, the CDC quietly released a statement announcing the expansion of what they call a traveler-based genomic surveillance program. | |
| And in case you've never heard of it before, here's specifically how the CDC defines a traveler-based genomic surveillance program. | |
| Quote, Traveler-Based Genomic Surveillance Program, or TGS for short, is a public-private partnership that plays an important role in U.S. national biosecurity through its two major goals, early detection of new SARS-CoV-2 variants and other pathogens, and filling in gaps in global biosurveillance. | |
| And while this particular program was first introduced during the pandemic, specifically to screen for COVID, this announcement from the CDC made just yesterday informs us that they are now expanding the program to test for other viruses as well. | |
| The expansion of the traveler-based genomic surveillance program to the flu, RSV, and other pathogens is essential as we head into the fall respiratory season. | |
| The TGS program, which began during the COVID-19 pandemic, acted as an early warning system to detect new and rare variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and will do the same for other respiratory viruses going forward. | |
| In total, this program has now been expanded to screen for over 30 different pathogens outside of COVID. Now, according to the CDC, the way that this program will be implemented in practice in airports across the whole country will be threefold. | |
| For one, it will involve taking nasal swabs of arriving passengers. | |
| Secondly, it will involve testing the aircraft wastewater. | |
| And thirdly, it will also involve testing samples of the wastewater in several different major airports. | |
| Meaning that if you thought that the TSA was already invading your privacy with their pad-downs, well, they're about to go in with the nasal swabs. | |
| Although that is, of course, just a joke, as it's not actually going to be the TSA which is doing this. | |
| Instead, the CDC has partnered with two private companies that are going to be implementing this pilot program. | |
| Ginkgo Bioworks, as well as ExpressCheck. | |
| And Ginkgo Bioworks, they published their own addendum statement, in addition to the one that was put out by the CDC, outlining how this will be done. | |
| Quote, Ginkgo Bioworks, which is building the leading platform for cell programming and biosecurity, is expanding their work with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, meaning the CDC's Traveler-Based Genomic Surveillance Program, or TGS, to test for more than 30 additional priority pathogens in addition to SARS-CoV-2. | |
| The program expansion will launch at four of the program's seven major international airports, specifically New York JFK, San Francisco, Boston, as well as Washington, D.C. The expansion will enhance the program's ability to monitor and change focus as needed to identify priority pathogens. | |
| The TGS program can augment global surveillance systems, especially as testing and sequencing information becomes limited as COVID-19 monitoring wanes. | |
| However, it is worth noting here that, at least at this very moment, this particular program can only give things like insights and general trends over to the CDC. It cannot isolate a specific individual and say that he or she has a specific virus. | |
| That's because this program is designed for monitoring the macro conditions rather than individuals. | |
| And so by testing the wastewater in airplanes and airports, they're able to determine, generally, which viruses are coming into the country and from where. | |
| Furthermore, the nasal swabs, at least according to the CDC, are currently anonymous. | |
| The CDC's program has enrolled more than 360,000 air travelers since it was implemented in late 2021, and it is both voluntary and anonymous. | |
| It covers flights from more than 135 countries around the world, meaning in practical terms that the CDC will be able to tell which virus is coming from where, but not which specific individual is carrying that virus. | |
| That is, at least if you believe what they're putting out. | |
| Regardless, in terms of which airports, the CDC released this map right here, showing us that the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, San Francisco International, LAX, Boston Logan International, JFK, Newark, as well as the airport over in Washington, D.C., all have some forms of this program now implemented. | |
| However, interestingly enough, if you look at that map closely, you'll notice that there is no mention of any biometric surveillance being conducted at the U.S. southern border, where, at this very moment, you have at least 3 million illegal aliens coming through every single year. | |
| And those are, by the way, just the ones we know about. | |
| Furthermore, this genomic surveillance program is being sold to the public right now as a temporary pilot program to keep biometric surveillance on the pathogens entering the country, which sounds great. | |
| It sounds like a great advancement in terms of keeping the country safe. | |
| However, do keep in mind the very famous quote by economist Milton Friedman, quote, Nothing is so permanent as a temporary government program. | |
| And so, while right now this program has only been rolled out to several airports across the whole country to track both COVID as well as 30 other pathogens using anonymized nasal swabs, which sounds great on paper, but it's a real question of how long it takes before this temporary program expands to all airports and then becomes a prerequisite for even getting on the plane in the first place. | |
| I mean, don't forget, taking off your shoes was once seen as a temporary solution to 9-11. | |
| But 22 years later, well, here we still are. | |
| Regardless, if you'd like to learn more about this CDC's genomic surveillance program, I'll throw my research notes for today's episode. | |
| They'll be down in the description box below this video for you to peruse at your own leisure. | |
| And I will mention that it's that very same description box right below those like and subscribe buttons, both of which I hope you take a super quick moment to smash. | |
| And now I'd like to take a super quick moment myself to introduce today's sponsor. | |
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| And now lastly, speaking generally about biometric surveillance states, three days ago, my team and I were down in Mar-a-Lago covering the world premiere of a new film called Police State. | |
| That movie, by the way, is really phenomenal, and I would highly recommend you check it out. | |
| I'll throw a link to it, it'll be down in the description box below. | |
| However, at the world premiere, which took place over in Mar-a-Lago, there were a ton of people who came out, dressed to the nines, And we were able to camp out on the red carpet and grab a lot of great interviews with them. | |
| If you'd like to check out those red carpet interviews, I'll also throw that link down into the description box below this video as well. | |
| Basically, what I'm trying to say is that anything you're looking for is right there in the description box below. | |
| I hope you check out all those links. | |
| And then, until next time, I'm your host, Roman from the Epoch Times. | |
| Stay informed. |
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