Let’s say your house is on fire.

An insane arsonist put a lit match to some oily rags in your basement, and the blaze spread so slowly that you didn’t even notice at first. This malevolent criminal also cut your phone lines so you couldn’t call for help. (There are no cellphones in this scenario, just bear with me. It’s set in the ’70s, okay?) Once you finally realized you were in trouble, you shouted for help and your neighbors called the fire department. Your local fire chief might not be the best one your town has ever had, so it takes him a while to get it together and make his way to you. But once he does, he and his team throw everything they have into saving your house. Now you’re standing there in your pajamas, huddled in a blanket and uncertain of what’s next, as you watch them do their best to help you.

Then, the insane arsonist goes to your local newspaper (again, this is the ’70s) and coerces them into running front-page stories about how the fire chief is the one responsible for the blaze. The big lie they push is that if the chief had gotten to the house faster, if he’d handled this or that differently, there never would’ve been a problem at all. The hugely destructive house fire — which, remember, the insane arsonist set himself — wouldn’t have happened in the first place. It’s the fire chief’s fault, according to the press that has been manipulated into printing it. So now the whole town blames the chief, and the insane arsonist gets away with his crime against you.

Are you getting the picture? Do I really need to explain who the insane arsonist is?

Hate Donald Trump all you want. I’m not a fan either. There are a lot of legitimate criticisms of his response to this crisis, but he did not create it. The ruling Chinese Communist Party is directly, indisputably responsible for this pandemic. No matter how this virus originated, they’re the ones who set it loose on us. They covered up the initial outbreak, they lied to the world about how contagious the virus is, they allowed travel in and out of Wuhan, they silenced all the doctors and scientists who tried to warn the world, and now they’re trying to blame the United States for their own incompetence and dishonesty and sheer malignant evil.

China did this.

It’s not racist to say so. Telling the truth doesn’t make you responsible for the actions of racists. Thinking so, saying so, only helps the people who did this to you.

But some Americans would rather die, literally, than admit that there’s someone in the world who’s even worse than the guy who lost the popular vote in 2016. Trump broke their hearts and destroyed their minds, and now they’re going down coughing.

China has made an enemy of the entire world. If you try to cover for them, you can’t be trusted. You may not realize you’re only helping the tyrants who did this to us all, but you are. You’ve fallen for a massive, insidious, lavishly funded propaganda campaign. The Chinese government is appealing to Americans’ fear of being called racist, in order to manipulate us into remaining silent about our own killers.

How did that work out for Italy?

I stand with the United States of America, no matter who’s president. We did not do this. Every scrap of evidence points to the government of China. I will not say otherwise, no matter how anyone lies to me and tries to manipulate my emotions. You can’t shame me, because I’m not ashamed of the truth. You can’t gaslight me, because my powers of reason are stronger than your desire to destroy them.

Put the blame where it belongs. #ChinaLiedPeopleDied.