November 29, 2021 — Omicron — the coronavirus variant with worrying mutations that was first detected in largely unvaccinated southern Africa — has made its way to the vaccine dose-rich West. Amid a global panic and fresh travel bans, confirmed cases have popped up from Britain to Australia. If omicron now rips through Western capitals as badly or worse than the delta variant before it, wealthy nations, scientists say, will be reaping what they sowed.