Gasundheit!

Are you prepared to die? Are all of your things in order? Because the odds are changing dramatically and rapidly, and yer chance of dieing before ya want to just went up; and it's climbing. I'm talking about the Bird Flu. It's in the media, just a small story here and there on the evening news, or a blurb in the paper or on the net. WHO meeting in Bucharest. Guess what?? It's gonna kill MILLIONS of people; in rather short order, actually.

In 1918 the world was slammed by a Pandemic Flu. It swept the globe and took between 20 and 40 million lives in the process (being the turn of the century, record keeping wasn't very comprehensive...go figure). This flu, an avian or bird flu, infected one-fifth of the global population, and 28% of the U.S. got sick. It killed 675,000 Americans, which is ten times the number of men killed in the War. And of the American men who died overseas during World War I, half of them died from the flu. It was prevalent in the healthiest demographic of the population, the majority of those infected being between 20-40 years old.

In a nutshell, these start off as a viral flu transmitted easily between birds. As the virus mutates, it becomes easier for the germs to travel from foul to human. On the same token, as it mutates in humans, it becomes easier to pass and easier to get, it's exponential. Sounds great, huh? The truth of the matter is we have minimal defense against it. It's coming, it's on it's way. It's not about if, it's about when.


These guys are hiring!

These nasty fuckers come around every few years, and reek havoc on our poor, wimpy little imune systems. Folks are going to be dropping dead by the tens of thousands right here in our own country.

I got this from the Center for Disease Control's website. A little background:

Influenza Pandemics during the 20th Century
During the 20th century, the emergence of several new influenza A virus subtypes caused three pandemics, all of which spread around the world within a year of being detected.

1918-19, "Spanish flu," [A (H1N1)], caused the highest number of known influenza deaths. (However, the actual influenza virus subtype was not detected in the 1918-19 pandemic). More than 500,000 people died in the United States , and up to 50 million people may have died worldwide. Many people died within the first few days after infection, and others died of secondary complications. Nearly half of those who died were young, healthy adults. Influenza A (H1N1) viruses still circulate today after being introduced again into the human population in 1977.
1957-58, "Asian flu," [A (H2N2)], caused about 70,000 deaths in the United States . First identified in China in late February 1957, the Asian flu spread to the United States by June 1957.
1968-69, " Hong Kong flu," [A (H3N2)], caused about 34,000 deaths in the United States . This virus was first detected in Hong Kong in early 1968 and spread to the United States later that year. Influenza A (H3N2) viruses still circulate today.
Both the 1957-58 and 1968-69 pandemics were caused by viruses containing a combination of genes from a human influenza virus and an avian influenza virus. The 1918-19 pandemic virus appears to have an avian origin.

Now...Add to that, global recession, depletion of the gross national product, weakened infrastructure, social and economic chaos, and lack of adequate resources and qualified personnel; and you have the makings of a disaster of epic proportions. It'll make New Orleans look like...well...Mardi Gras.

The Government knows about it, has known about it, but is fucked to do much about it, because if they really do tell everyone the straight poop, there's gonna be Pandemic Pandemonium. People are gonna freak-the-fuck-out, like the tiny brained, "Chicken Little's" that they are. So they, the gov, are giving us the info in measured doses. Little bits here and there. The internet blurb on a World Health Organization meeting. Something in the paper about Bush's new plan to fight the disease*.


Is it me, or does he ALWAYS look stupid??

A TSA announcement that travel restrictions to certain parts of the world may be imposed. Small, strategically placed nuggets of info. Hoping like hell that the population figures it out, and doesn't go ape-shit when it does.

It's called H5N1. Pay attention people. Do your homework. Tell your loved ones. Seriously.

*Bush has proposed spending 71 Billion Dollars to deal with the Pandemic, and experts are saying that's a drop in the bucket.


www.pandemicflu.gov