Monkeypox Gets Canceled: WHO Says Name is Racist, Changes It to ‘Mpox’

In what seems to be another foray into left wing “logic,” the World Health Organization (WHO) announced on Monday that they would no longer use the term “monkeypox” because of “racist and stigmatizing language” over usage of the term.

WHO released a statement which read in part, “Following a series of consultations with global experts, WHO will begin using a new preferred term ‘mpox’ as a synonym for monkeypox. Both names will be used simultaneously for one year while ‘monkeypox’ is phased out.”

The trend of renaming diseases is not a new one. Political correctness was front and center for WHO as far back as 2015 when they released “Best Practices for the Naming of New Human Diseases.” 

At the time, WHO stated that new disease names should be assigned, “with the aim to minimize unnecessary negative impact of disease names on trade, travel, tourism or animal welfare, and avoid causing offense to any cultural, social, national, regional, professional or ethnic groups.”

An earlier announcement was made in June after approximately thirty scientists declared there was, “urgent need for a non-discriminatory and non-stigmatizing nomenclature for the monkeypox virus.”

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What is Monkeypox er….’Mpox’?

The Biden administration, in their never ending search for perfect political correctness compliance, had already privately urged a name change, arguing that calling it monkeypox could be hampering vaccination efforts.

According to the Cleveland Clinic website, monkey pox is rare and presents with flu-like symptoms and a rash. Traditionally, it has been mainly confined to Africa. But as people began to travel more post-COVID pandemic, it began to spread a bit more to other places like Europe, Australia, and both North and South America.

In the United States, there have been as many as 400 cases a day reported at its height in May alone. Currently, it is less than 15 cases per day. Since May, there have only been approximately 29,000 cases across the nation.

The Cleveland Clinic reports that the disease is mainly spread through close personal contact. However, recent research has shown that the primary method of transmission has been through men having sex with other men.   

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COVID 2.0

Initially, it appeared that the Biden administration would handle a U.S. outbreak of monkeypox much like COVID. In August, President Joe Biden appointed Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) official Robert Fenton as White House National Monkeypox Response Coordinator, and Dr. Demetre Daskalakis as Deputy Coordinator.

At the time, California, New York, and Illinois had all declared statewide emergencies due to the rising number of cases. The Biden administration also made 1.1 million doses of the vaccine available to control any outbreaks. A few days later, the administration declared a ‘National Public Health Emergency.’ The declaration would allow for quicker distribution of vaccines and tests. 

At the end of August, Senate Democrats asked for $21 billion, on top of the already $4.3 trillion spent on COVID. Democrats said the money would be used for COVID, “and prepare for other emerging outbreaks, including potentially monkeypox, hoping to boost tests, treatments and vaccines in response to growing public health threats.”

According to the Washington Post, $16 billion would go to the Department of Health and Human Services for “tests, vaccines, medical supplies, and research into existing and future strains” of COVID. The other $5 billion would go to other nations to help combat COVID.

However, in the age of acute and chronic political correctness, one has to wonder which is more important, fighting the actual disease, or calling it by the “proper” name.