Editor's note: Keith Lamb is a University of Oxford graduate with an MSc degree in Contemporary Chinese Studies. His primary research interests are China's international relations and "socialism with Chinese characteristics." The article reflects the author's opinions and not necessarily the views of CGTN.

I often say conspiracy fact is at the heart of the Western system. For example, we have a free media but it's monopolized by a handful of oligarchs. Then we defend our freedoms at home by attacking others on the far side of the world.

Similarly, when it comes to COVID-19 there is no lack of conspiracy, albeit conspiracy theories. For instance, former U.S. President Donald Trump blamed China but then conversely seemed to suggest the virus was not so serious. At least not serious enough to warrant the sort of "repressive" measures that were taken in China.

These "repressive" measures included locking down huge populations and monitoring the movement of those who tested positive. This repressive narrative has been the predominant one peddled by the Western media controlled by the aforementioned oligarchs.

However, during the lockdown, I was in China in a number of locations. In fact, organized, spirited, united and responsible are more suitable adjectives to describe conditions in China in early 2020.

Since the China blame hysteria has hushed down, the mood for some in the West has gone from blaming the foreign "bogeyman" to showing distrust at home. For example, there have been sustained anti-lockdown protests across European capitals with protesters refusing to wear masks.

Some protesters believe COVID-19 is a crisis Western elites will not let go to waste. Thus, the pandemic, or what is being termed by some as the "plandemic," provides an excuse to bring in sweeping changes to society that would otherwise take years to implement.

These include transforming consumption habits to increase online shopping which boosts profits for the oligarch class. Working and schooling from home will eventually lead to greater economic efficiency. Then COVID-19 provides an excuse to discipline rebellious Western populations who distrust their governments.

In fairness, considering the systemic contradictions mentioned in the first paragraph, this skepticism is understandable. Furthermore, if the oligarchical-controlled media is full of distortion then people inevitably turn to rumors and alternative media sources.

In my own case, I've had a couple of things that don't tally well. A great aunt who passed away after an operation was declared dead from COVID-19. However, both her COVID-19 tests were negative. Then a neighbor who is a nurse revealed that the hospitals are running normally which doesn't fit a narrative of crisis.

Of course, these are just personal experiences so how much can be made of them? Furthermore, making too much of them would lead to the ignoble label of being called a "conspiracy theorist."

However, I wouldn't be alone with this label. Some will not take the COVID-19 vaccine because they believe these vaccines have been microchipped or possibly have other malevolent objectives that will cause harm.

This sounds preposterous but the argument for why this would be the case bottles down to distrust in capitalist systems. Here humans are simply an adjunct of capital accumulation. That is to say society is not people-centered.

Consequently, those seen as surplus to profit accumulation are better dead or at least controlled. In addition, as already mentioned, trust between citizens and governments (controlled by capital), in part due to media distortions, has broken down.

I say preposterous, and most in the West who don't read alternative media would agree too. However, the same upright citizens who follow mainstream media simultaneously believe sincerely that China is committing a "genocide" in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, using chemical means, and is engaged in the enslavement of Uygurs.

In fact, notwithstanding the lunacy fringe, if the allegations from the Christian Daily are credible then there is indeed good reason to be cautious before taking the COVID-19 vaccine. A paramedic whistleblower working in a German nursing home has recently released a secret video footage of elderly residents getting the Pfizer vaccine.

The footage shows terrified residents, some veterans from World War II, being forcibly vaccinated by a medical team comprised in part of soldiers. From the 31 who got the first shot, seven died in pain straight after the vaccine and another is on the verge of death. Out of the 21 who got the second jab, the paramedic says 11 have had a constant change in their character and non-stop sluggishness.

Alarmingly, the whistleblower says these deaths are not an isolated case but are happening in other nursing homes too. The Christian Daily report also states that 46 elderly people died in a nursing home in Spain following vaccination.

These are serious claims, nevertheless, the mainstream Western press that feeds on scandal is staying mute about this homegrown leak. As such, there is a conspiracy at least of silence and possibly an even worse conspiracy at hand.

If these claims and the video are authentic (and I always keep an open mind) then, at worst, there could be tens of thousands of deaths in care homes which would count as genocide against old people through either incompetence or design.

These deaths and the lack of reporting on them only further feeds into the narrative that humans in capitalist societies are merely adjuncts to the profit accumulation of an elite class who also controls mainstream media. With employment figures rising and forthcoming technology about to make many professions redundant this ideology is unsettling to say the least.

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