Over the last 36 hours or so, the coronavirus spread has now been confirmed in a slew of new countries, including Germany, Switzerland, Croatia, Iraq, Spain, Algeria and Austria. Cases are already confirmed in Belgium, Lebanon, Finland, Sweden, Egypt, Sri Lanka, Israel, Cambodia, Nepal, Afghanistan, Russia and many other countries.

An infection is now suspected in Brazil, which would make it the first South American nation to confirm a coronavirus infection, bringing the virus to a whole new continent. According to Brazil’s Health Ministry, one test of a local patient has reportedly come back positive. A second confirmation test is necessary to make the diagnosis “official.”

These are irrefutable facts, yet we still have naysayers throughout the media and across the cultural landscape who claim none of this is happening, that the coronavirus bioweapon system is “just another flu,” or that it’s a grand hoax being perpetrated by all these countries as some elaborate staged event to commit economic suicide for some unknown reason.

Pandemic denialism is essentially the “Flat Earth” version of epidemiology. According to the denialists, all the nations listed above are faking it, sacrificing their national economics to carry out some sort of elaborate hoax for some unimaginable reason.

Rush Limbaugh, meanwhile, still insists the coronavirus is just “the flu.” It’s a reminder why highly influential people should stick to their areas of expertise and not wander into areas where they very quickly demonstrate their shocking technical ignorance and lack of knowledge.

Coronavirus cases explode in Italy by 45% overnight

Coronavirus infections exploded overnight in Italy, rising to 322 confirmed cases, an increase of 100 from the previous day.

To try to stop the spread of the virus, Italy is running armed road blocks surrounding 12 towns, prohibiting road travel.

According to The Epoch Times, no one in Italy even knows the source of the outbreak, completely obliterating any argument from WHO officials that this is “contained” or “not a pandemic.” Via TET:

Italian health officials haven’t yet identified the source of the outbreak. Angelo Borrelli, the head of the Italian civil protection department, said the case count grew from 222 to 322, representing a 45% increase, in a 24-hour period from Monday evening to Tuesday evening.

According to the pandemic denialists, of course, Italy must be faking it for some reason. Yes, it’s an insane idea, but that’s what is now being promoted by the left-wing media and even some conservative journalists.

Notably, the very bureaucrat in Iran who told everybody the virus was no big deal is now infected himself. Also via TET:

Only a day earlier, a coughing and heavily sweating Iraj Harirchi said at a televised news conference in Tehran that “the situation is almost stable in the country.”

Health Ministry spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour confirmed Harirchi had the virus. Harirchi himself posted an online video saying he had it and that he had quarantined himself at home. He promised that authorities would bring the virus under control.

That’s reassuring, huh? The very government bureaucrat sitting in quarantine after accidentally getting infected is telling us all the government has it under control. The irony is almost pure comedy, if it weren’t so tragic.

San Franciso declares state of emergency while media tells us there’s no emergency at all

San Francisco, meanwhile, has just declared a state of emergency over the coronavirus, even when CDC officials claim there are essentially zero confirmed cases in San Francisco.

According to the SF Chronicle, Mayor London Breed said more resources need to be allocated, “to make sure we are prepared,” even while the entire media establishment in America claims there’s nothing to be prepared for in the first place.

So why did San Fran just declare an emergency, then?

The CDC’s insane policy of “Don’t Test, Don’t Tell” is keeping America in the dark while the epidemic explodes across U.S. cities.

Hear all my coronavirus podcasts at Pandemic.news