THE COMING WAVE (An interview with Mother Abigail)

Original Work | 7-6-09 | James Oscar

[James Oscar]

THE COMING WAVE

(An Interview With Mother Abigail)

I came in from the wilderness, a creature void of form.
"Come in," she said, "I'll give you…”

Bob Dylan

2006

While researching the New Media, I became fascinated with the development of the “Flu Blog”. It seemed to represent – not only the direction – but the form and structure of the changing media in the Internet Age.

My original thesis was to write a series of articles detailing, as thoroughly as possible, the creation of the “Flu Blog” – from inception to mainstream assimilation.

However, as often happens in war and creativity, events overtook the plan.

My derailment occurred in the following manor:

By December of 2006 I had researched, compiled and databased every conceivable factoid relating to the early years of flu blogging. I felt ready to publish my first article and on the second day of 2007 I started writing and soliciting feedback on a website called CurrentEvents.

I was very pleased with the finished product believing that both technically and factually I had established the main point of my thesis – control of the media was being altered forever and that the evolution was being driven from the bottom up.

Here is that article:

--------------------------------------------

2007

EXPLORING THE NEW MEDIA'S EVOLUTIONARY PATH
-THE BIRTH OF THE FLU BLOG -

Every beginning is a consequence - every beginning ends some thing

(Paul Valery)

In February of 2003 newspapers, cable news and radio were the interface between the American public and breaking news. It had long been such.

No one set out to destroy the relevancy of these institutions.

Like so much change it just happened. Passion and thirst mixed with a witches blend of electronic gadgetry created a new paradigm.

A paradigm where power was snatched from the media elite and taken by the citizenry - and no one has ever looked back.

Until now.

MARCH 2003

The world was on the eve of war. Not the televised war of the First Gulf War, but the first internet war.

Many homes and offices were now wired to the net and the Internet was to become the CB of the 21st century. Far across the immense spectrum of the Internet - discussion nodes filled with speculation and rumor.

A very strange vibe was brewing.

A strange vibe indeed. This was March of 2003 - this was to be the time of change.

It began as little more than a few whispers among the cacophony of war talk. A post on the 13th here, a post on the 14th here.

The earliest and most followed post was placed on the 13th. Within three days, this thread had received a couple of hundred comments, as the severity of the situation became apparent.

It was now the Ides of March, and this story unfolds - for the transformation is about to begin.

In the strangest place.

THE OLD PARADIGM

As the concept of the "Discussion Forum" caught on across the growing Internet, a couple of standard formulas became the norm.

The first was a single poster copying and pasting a news article from the Main Stream Media and then adding comments. This early Blog form still exists today.

The second formula developed largely during the "Clinton Scandals".

Liberals and conservatives separated and started their own discussion forums where they would post an article from the Drudge Report or the New York Times and then proceed to beat it to death with comments.

There were a few science centered Blogs, but they also followed these same two formats. And they were out in the periphery - with few members and very few visitors.

No it was the mega sites where the action was - a huge group of diverse members, lots of visitor traffic and a stable infrastructure.

The elements were now all in place for the perfect storm.

THE TRANSFORMATION

This is the way the world ends Not with a bang, but a whimper

T. S. Eliot

It was the Ides of March, late in the night - on the hottest conservative forum on the Internet - that she appeared.

In an obscure section of that web site she posted a cryptically titled thread, made a comment about Ebola, a comment about God and then posted an advisory about a "worldwide health threat."

In a section that had seen only seven threads in the past seven days, she wove a strange, exotic and haunting thread for two days.

Then on the 17th of March she posted the first of 20 highly technical medical threads:

1. Precognition

2. Hong Kong Health Secretary calls for calm as SARS cases double, (83 up from 42 on Sunday)

3. LATEST SARS UPDATE - DETAILED MEDICAL INFORMATION

4. BREAKING BIG: POSSIBLE PATHOGEN DETECTED IN SARS CASE

5. Killer Virus (SARS) Identified

6. Seven victims of mystery pneumonia stayed on same floor of Hong Kong hotel

7. Guangdong doctor linked to SARS outbreak

8. President of the American Society of Microbiology on SARS - "Everything says it is airborne."

9. SARS REACHES HONG KONG SCHOOLS - 32 NEW CASES (IS THE BUG OUT OF THE BOX?)

10. CDC increases SARS cases to 22 in U.S.

11. CHINA CONFIRMS CASES AND DEATHS (SARS) - HONG KONG SITUATION DETERIORATING - 22 CASES IN US

12. Causative agent of SARS virus isolated from lung tissue - test is reliably identifying cases

13. SARS cases on the rise in Canada, may be spreading even further, 12 people showing symptoms

14. VIETNAM NEW SARS HOT ZONE, U.S. Warns Citizens in Vietnam To leave

15. SARS cases on the rise in Canada, may be spreading even further, 12 people showing symptoms

16. Singapore - 740 people quarantined, 14 new cases on Monday, Hospitals close, SARS spreads

17. 37 In United States May Have SARS

18. SARS epidemic spreads in Taiwan, three other CDC officials have become ill.

19. WHAT IS THE CAUSE OF SARS? ONE VIRUS, TWO VIRUSES WORKING IN CONCERT, OR A DETERMINANT UNKNOWN

20. Killer-flu a 'white terror': Expert, "It is the worst medical disaster I have ever seen.

21. Preliminary Clinical Description of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome

- and over the next eleven days guided both lay and professionals, transformed the web site, crushed the paradigm and changed the way we interface with breaking news forever.

Oh, and there is that strange aspect of her name.

Every literate person on the Web new and understood, not only what it meant, but the endless nuances that lay associated with that name, in this context.

She signed on as Mother Abigail.

THE NEW PARADIGM

Among the hundreds of posters and thousands of viewers on the Mother Abigail threads were; Doctors, Lawyers, Nurses, Pharmacists, Veterinarians and Health Care workers of every stripe.

It became apparent quite early that this was not to be the normal flu talk. This is an early post:

"Doug had an interesting observation in picking a Morbillivirus as a likely agent. Hendra and Nipah are both zoonotic and it might well be a mutant of the Paramyxoviridae family.

Symptoms are right.

"Just because I have had tooooo much coffee, I will mention that both Hendra and Nipah have been given their own genus (Henipavirus).

Henipavirus becomes the fourth genus within the Paramyxovirinae subfamily of the Paramyxoviridae family. The other genera within the subfamily are Rubulavirus, Morbillivirus and Respirovirus."

52 posted on 03/17/2003 10:49:23 PM PST by Mother Abigail"

And so it began.

Why was this different? Because local MD's discovered ProMed, because an army of netizens began searching every corner of our world for information, because citizens of other countries began translating information that would normally be missed - because the whole was larger than the sum of the parts.

One poster who tried to write about Mother Abigail soon after the incident, and was quickly banned, called it SARS Central.

Sounds right to me.

She hijacked a web site, created a forum for the "in depth" discussion of Virology, Taxonomy and Microbiology. But interactive.

And it is that interactivity that opened the flood gates. Now it was possible to monitor breaking news in a far off land, have experts opine on that news, react to their opinions and post information of your own.

NBC Nightly News was never going to be the same.

The "Flu Blog" was born.

DENOUEMENT

Eleven days. From March the 15th to March the 26 she posted, wrote and guided. Then with the same grace and dignity that marked every word she ever wrote - she said goodby.

"It appears I have worked myself out of a job.

Many of you are now posting threads on SARS, and the information seems to be flowing in an accurate and timely manner.

So I will take this opportunity to thank all the posters for their hard work and diligence.

NOTE: I have tried to answer all the e-mails, except of course, the many that asked for personal information. Hope I was of some help

Stay Strong, Come and see me and - bring all your nice friends.......

20 posted on 03/26/2003 8:12:57 PM PST by Mother Abigail"

Some help indeed....

Mother Abigail had become, in the wink of an eye, the focal point for much praise and some derision. Then she was gone.

A year or so later she began posting, from time to time, on various web sites - always modest - never speaking of those days again.

She continues to this day.

-------------------------------------------------

MORE....

I anticipated a flood of emails either disputing my research or my thesis. Ever confident in my work I eagerly prepared for the debate. For the next few months my yahoo mailbox was smoking – but the questions were not what I had envisioned. In fact, I could not have been more wrong.

The e-mails all asked the same questions and they were all about Mother Abigail. Did I know her? Who did she work for? Had I met her? Basically the same e-mail over and over again.

This pretty much let all the wind out of my sails for quite a while. Because the truth is that I knew nothing of her – had exchange a couple of brief “web-based” e-mails and although I had read every word she had ever written on the subject, my knowledge of the person was ZIP.

The only consistent trait of my personality, as several of my ex-wives will tell you, is that I have no great fidelity to any concept. So I fell back and reviewed my goals.

After a season of Tanqueray and tonic I decided to change my focus.

2008

Via e-mail I asked MA if she would be willing to allow me to interview her and write an article about her. My operating paradigm at that time was that this lady was a seminal pioneer of the New Media and a scientist of serious reputation.

How naïve I was.

In the late summer of 2008 I was invited to visit her at her home on Lake Tahoe. It was a visit that would change my life.

DISCLAIMER

The following is a summary of conversations that occurred from August 2008 until June of 2009. All the words are mine and mine alone. When I asked MA if she would like to edit my work or review it for errors – she declined. Prior to the final draft I asked MA for a quote and she declined but requested that I include her favorite poem – “While the Rain Is Easy” – which I did.

"While the Rain Is Easy" is from a collection of Tokuisei Verse called "My River". It is used with permission from the Author.

[James Oscar]

I apologize for taking so long to lead to that but it is critically important to lay a little groundwork - in order for you to understand her position.

We are now moving into that area.

Again, sorry if the intro is tedious.

[Judith Anne]

Please type faster. LOL!

[Oorang]

Not tedious at all, I just didn’t understand. I remember the original threads well and appreciate you taking the time to do all this.

[James Oscar]

You have correctly identified my problem. LOL

It takes so long to format each web-site, I am posting on two different sites simultaneously.

It is a real pain.

[blam]

"Please type faster."

LOL. (bump)

[Judith Anne]

As you can see, you likely have more than a few eager to read each post. Thank you so much for going to all this effort for us, it is greatly appreciated. Now, pretty please make it snappy! /just kidding.

[James Oscar]

July 2009

So as the sign says on the map “You are Here”. I have set the scene as best I can. I have tried to lay a foundation of the wonderful and complex thought processes that help shape the opinions of MA - but I cannot tell you about the feeling you get when speaking with her.

Perhaps I am just emotionally needy and easily swayed but I believe she sees it clearly. And I have come to believe what she sees is true.

[Judith Anne]

While she was posting here and at another site, she really taught us a lot. Amazing, amazing woman. I thoroughly enjoyed the few exchanges I had with her.

[Liberty Valance]

*

[Palladin]

Bookmarking for later...

[null and void]

and it was not the night air that sent the chill up my spine

"She signed on as Mother Abigail".

Yeah.

[James Oscar]

Real life has interfered with our drama. I have to take the girls out to dinner and then we will begin again.

It is so good

[null and void]

Dinner? Get enough for all of us...

[James Oscar]

TRANSITIONAL ORIENTATION

All species are subject to cycles of sustained growth and sudden calamity. It is a rhythm as old as life.

Ma would tell you the following:

Yes children it is our time. Everything has an age, everything has a cycle and the age of explosive human growth is ending.

But you know that. As much as you would like certitude, it would just be so much fluff.

You are counting the dead chickens in the back yards of villagers in far off lands. Why? Because you know.

All of you know. I understand that it is not easy to speak the truth about things that you know for certain will happen - yet all your life you have been aware.

There are many kinds of people - some are very aware of their surroundings and the flow of time and some are not. And there is every shade of differentiation between the two.

But you are watching here for a reason.

Why is there such a visceral reaction (by some) to the King novel "THE STAND". Is it because it is such a marvelous and revolutionary work of art? BS

The truth is, and once again I am telling you things you have known for a long time, is that there is an element of Prophesy in that book.

Prophesy is not that hard. It is mostly genetic. To put a fine point on the matter - it is an element of cognitive skill. Best described as fourth-dimensional perception but you might remember it being called "abstract reasoning" on your early school evaluation tests.

Take this design and fold it in your mind and it will look like A. etc.

Take this chain of words and predict the next word. etc.

Your ability to weigh events of the past, evaluate elements of the present and predict future outcomes is not that hard to explain.

There are those who God touches and gives knowledge beyond any explanation - it has always been so.

But there are many who are sensitive, who are aware - who have the ability to lead where others may not.

You know what time it is - and I don't have the time for needless chatter. Perhaps we can speak of more important things.

[null and void]

Aye. I know the hour and the day...

[James Oscar]

Cont’d

We as a people have settled the earth, tilled the land and powered the Industrial Revolution.

We were frutful and we multiplied. A massive labor force was required for these things to happen and we obliged.

But these are different times. This is PLANET DOWNSIZE.

Automation has enabled the technological revolution to occur and advance with a small highly skilled workforce.

The rare minerals necessary for advanced electronics, spaceflight etc. have been found and mined. The era of mass production has gone.

There is no crueler dictum in all of nature than that of “Use it or Loose it”. You might look down at the toenail on your small toe, if you have either, for a quick illustration.

It is also true of population size. No species can grow unchecked forever. It is impossible. When resources become scarce, or population densities become unhealthy things always change.

All species. It does not mean that God hates the herd when he thins it - it is just the way of this creation. We are not immune to all the many mechanisms that God designed to keep nature in balance - we are of the creation and subject to it as well.

And it is our time....

[investigateworld]

And?

[James Oscar]

SEPT 6, 2008

I drove up to the Lake listening to Pink Floyd - don’t know why, just seemed right. I had a tape recorder, a legal pad full of questions and a good attitude.

I have a deep distrust of TV preachers, doomsayers and end of the worlders. But MA was none of that. More a teacher than anything else. It seems to me (now) that she was guiding me step by step to be able to see the answer to a very complex question, but never overloading my ability.

But still she had, in no uncertain terms, described to me on my last visit a vision of our near future that stood in stark contrast to the endless traffic of the Lake in the summer.

I needed to resolve those strange conflicting emotions. And one thing I know best - is how to research a problem.

We spent the entire day on the porch. Lunch was an Ahi salad to die for and we had iced tea in large glasses. She spoke about the evolutionary track that we were all on. My science background allowed me to follow most aspects and certainly the general theme.

It is still strange how she sees evolution as part of Gods creation. Kind of like a tool or art instrument - working the clay, guiding the work. I have never heard anyone in my entire life speak of such a belief system.

I know plenty of Christians who believe God created the earth in 7 days and plenty of Scientists who view such people as cretins. But I had never met anyone who sees the world like MA.

So I asked her “did God create the world in 7 days?”

You know that look you give a kid when he asks a question that reveals that he is, after all, only a child and has no real concept of how life works - a look that has a special kindness with just a touch of humor. I got the look.

She replied, “God is creating the world. The dynamic system is always in play and life is an ongoing creation - ever changing, ever moving to the next goal.”

I asked “And what would that next goal be?” She replied, “Well it is different for every species and different for most populations within those species.”

And for humans? “Our legends, our religious prophesies and our science fiction/fantasies are overwhelmingly about leaving earth. Our science is moving us ever closer to smaller scale rocket projects and you may in your lifetime see a very wealthy person leave.”

Well we have always been the pioneers. “It is hard-wired in us, it is part of what we are - we will move to dead planets and become a type of God ourselves - bringing life and change with us. All the Industrial Revolution and the Technological Revolution will come to climax (like helicopter seeds in the wind) with our leaving. We are the seed of life and light and our destiny is in the stars.”

Do you believe in life on other planets? “No, not at this time.”

Do you believe in Evil? “Yes, of course.”

[investigateworld]

Thanks (another Pink Floyd fan here)

[James Oscar]

Her thoughts on what some are calling the Second or Coming Wave are quite clear. This is one of only two posts she contributed during the current outbreak.

May 3rd, 2009, 08:29 PM
Mother Abigail
Registered User Join Date: Apr 2009
Posts: 2

Re: Swine Flu 'Hitting Mostly Young People' In US

----------------------------------------------------------

Quote:
Originally Posted by Florida1
The median age in the U.S. of the confirmed cases is 17. Young.

If I might offer a brief cautionary note to this discussion:

Remember that this bug was spread in the bars and night clubs of Mexico on Spring Break.

Please consider that the US citizens who have this virus (in the large part) are returning from Mexico. Visualize who these subjects are. That the demographics are skewed to the young and sexually active is of very little surprise.

You might even want to visualize a scenario where a young person from the US visits Mexico earlier this year and brings with them an undeclared traveler.

MA

She goes on to explain that it is not only the young but the breeding population as a whole. Pregnant women and young sexually active healthy people are disproportionately affected - and of course the weak and sick.

USE IT OR LOOSE IT

When children are wanted/needed and cherished then nature is in balance. When a population is stressed one of the natural reactions is a diminution of reproductive activity.

It can range from failure to breed up to infanticide - depending on the severity of the population stress.

At present there are approximately 41.6 million abortions per year worldwide in the human species. One of every five pregnancy ends in abortion.

It is a startling set of numbers. When you consider the added data on child abuse and early childhood mortality - it paints a bleak picture.

One of the primary indicators of a species in crisis is disease. (Along with increased aggression, reproductive dysfunction etc.)

Is there a point where the human population becomes so dense and so stressed that they are ripe for a deadly pathogen to inflict sever damage? Of course there is.

And what is a prudent response to that danger? MA insists that medicine is doing everything possible to stay ahead of the emerging virus threats - however her view of the end result is unchanging.

You cannot stop the tide that is flowing our way, she explains.

When the coming waves have ran their course what will remain is a very mature population. Nature will reestablish the value of children and preciousness of life.

The herd will thin.

Like a neutron bomb kills people and leaves property, these pandemics will leave the knowledge base of an entire species. However the ability to procreate on a mass scale will be lost for an era.

It is the young who will pay such a dear price. Those past reproductive age will, perversely enough, be the beneficiaries of decades of exposure to viral challenges.

It is coming she tells me time and again...