UPDATED: Monkeypox: haven't we seen this movie before?

Readers of a certain age [Not you, Jimmy. You're too young. Ed.] will remember HIV/AIDS, the Great Plague sent by God to punish us for the promiscuity and perversions which had become "normal" in the hippy-dippy 60s. The loathsome disease originated in central Africa, and is similar to a simian virus found in chimpanzees. 

The earliest known infection of an identified human being dates back to 1959, found in a plasma sample taken from an adult male living in the Belgian Congo (later Zaire and now the Democratic Republic of the Congo). It was widely assumed that it was transmitteed by that person, or someone he knew intimately, having sex with a chimp.

In fairness, it's equally possible that transmission occurred when that person ate a chimp, or "bush meat" as it is known in Africa. Or it may have occurred when chimps were used in developing a polio vaccine for humans.

In any case, an African passed on the disease to Gaëtan Dugas, a Canadian flight attendant, who was once regarded as "Patient Zero". M Dugas, who died in 1984 from kidney failure caused by an AIDS-related infection, was very open-minded when it comes to race, and evidently a very active homosexual [A gay flight attendant? Really? Ed.], and was found to payed a role role in a cluster of 40 cases in wait for it... New York and San Francisco. The rest is history.

Fast forward six decades to this spring, when we were alerted by the World Health Organization [WHO? Ed.] to a sudden and dramatic rise in the incidence of monkeypox, a viral disease endemic in central and west Africa. The name comes from the initial discovery of the virus in monkeys in a Danish laboratory in 1958. The first human case was identified in a child in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (again!) in 1970.

According to the United Nations Aids agency (UNAIDS), "a significant proportion" of recent monkeypox cases have been identified among "gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men". But how did it spread to Europe and America so quickly? More than 100 cases of monkeypox have now been reported across Europe, with a handful (so far) in New York and, through an illegal border crossing at Roxham Road QC, to Montréal.

The UK Health Security Agency has said a notable proportion of recent cases in Britain and Europe have been found in gay and bisexual men. Where did they get it? Probably at the Maspalomas Pride Festival held in the Canary Islands between the 5th and 15th of May. The queerfest attracted some 80,000 visitors from Europe and Africa, including many who have since tested positive for the monekypox virus.

Meanwhile, the usual suspects have told the media to STFU about any links between the monkeypox cases and the LGBTQ2S+++ celebrations, warning that "racist, homophobic and irresponsible language is undermining the response to the outbreak, by "reinforce homophobic and racist stereotypes and exacerbating stigma."

Experience shows (the same people are telling us) that Èstigmatising rhetoric can quickly disable evidence-based response by stoking cycles of fear, driving people away from health services, impeding efforts to identify cases and encouraging ineffective, punitive measures." So forget you read this, and stop talking about it, OK?!

Footnote: Smallpox vaccine is said to be 85% effective against monkeypox, so, if you're 60 or under and were never vaccinated against smallpox, book your appointment now. Although, if you're straight, white, and avoid sexual contact with monkeys and other at-risk groups, you'll probably be OK, even without the jab. 

UPDATE ADDED 27/5/22: Canada's Global News reports that monkeypox cases in Canada are suspected to have originated at G.I. Joe's, a Montréal sauna frequented by members of the fudge-packing community. The country's first two cases were reported by Québec public health officials on May 19th. 

Officials say the majority of confirmed cases in the province are tied to men aged between 20 and 30 years, who have had sexual relations with other men. There has been one case in a person under 18.Until now, government officials have steered clear of confirming the origin of the loathesome disease due to "concerns of privacy and stigmatization."