A little common sense injection on the swin flu issue from the good doctor..
By xfahctor
@xfahctor (14118)
Lancaster, New Hampshire
April 28, 2009 7:00am CST
I have held off doing any commenting on this whole swine flu panic, I wanted to first try and get a sense of what was happening first. I remember the fiasco of the first "outbreak" back in the 70's, I was a kid but still old enough to remember it, and nothing came of it accept a disasterous vaccination effort that killed 25 or so people and parylized over 500. The flu itself, killed one person.
I have had issues from day one with the department of homeland security being involved in this, accept at the border. I think this is an issue the surgeon general should be adressing in absence of a health and human services secretary (and even that has issues in itself), Bush, somehow managed to tag this reponsability to the department of homeland security durring is authoritarian craze a few years ago and Obama has not reversed it yet.
But on to the hype surrounding this. I think we are way over reacting both in government and society. Swine flu is NOT a deadly serious flu, no more than any other flu, which lills thousands every year, but it seems since it has a fancy name attatched to it, it gets special attention and is being seen as an oportunity by our government who is taking advantage of this panic and goddess only knows what ends they will take that to, I shudder to think about it.
Congressman Ron Paul, who is also a veteran physician, released a statement on it and in this statement, injects his usual cmoon sense and pragmatic aproach to the issue. Here is the video, I would suggest everyone take a moment and listen to him, he makes a good effort to bring us back to our senses.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TB5-Y08qbjo&feature=player_embedded
5 people like this
14 responses
@sid556 (30960)
• United States
29 Apr 09
Ron Paul makes all the sense in the world. Now that you mention it...I do remember this panic back in the 70's but I was real young and really didn't buy into it back then ....in fact...I thought this was a familiar flu but I had actually forgot about all the panic surrounding it. I think the difference between now and then is that the media is more prone to hype and people buy into it. I have fox on as I type this and it is unbelievable. it is clear to see where the hype comes from. I don't know...maybe it is my age but to me the "flu" has always just meant being sick for a couple of days and then back to normal.
2 people like this
@AngryKittyMSV (4317)
• United States
29 Apr 09
If you have a decent immune system, that's ALL it will be, sick for a few days and then fine. That's all it will be for swine flu, bird flu, even the much hyped and over-reacted to SARS! Just like the regular flu, it is only REALLY dangerous if you have a compromised immune system. MOST people will be FINE and not even know they had it!
@gypsywoman344 (214)
• United States
29 Apr 09
Thanks Doc. I agree we are over reacting. Getting vacs in place is a good thing but; Don't strip ourselves befor it is needed. Especially when the vac could become useless when the virus mutates.
2 people like this
@AngryKittyMSV (4317)
• United States
29 Apr 09
"Especially when the vac could become useless when the virus mutates."
EXCELLENT point!
@SteveSlaton (552)
• United States
29 Apr 09
Read Michael Crichton's book, "State of Fear." While the story is about "Global Warming" as a state of fear, as was the Cold War between the USSR and the USA, his story reveals that states of fear has become (THE Standard for population control by big gov. is creating States of Fear, said a minor elderly scholar to the reluctant hero in the middle of the book. A old "character" like me.) State of fear is a good read.
Y'all are correct that the pig and bird flus are distracting us. There is a BIG reason for this...
Anyone out there know the name of biggest pandemic in human history? that has been running for decades, and is not news?
What do you think?
Steve Slaton
@lilwonders456 (8214)
• United States
28 Apr 09
I agree. Much is being made of nothing. Yes we should have homeland secuirty monitoring the border for it. But lest be honest....that is only going to stop the ones coming in legally. All the illegals coming in will not be monitored, so they could stil bring it in.
None of the cases here have been deadly. Very mild infact. I am wondering if that is due to the better medical care or just to the fact that in America we are healthier and live more hygene lives. Cleaniness of person and house does count for something.
I think common sense not panic is in order here. How would protect yourself from the common cold or the common flu? Wash your hands often, don't shake hands, eat healthy and get plenty of rest. Keep areas that are touched often clean and disenfected(door knobs, remotes, phones, keyboards etc.)
2 people like this
@wisconsin26 (3859)
• United States
29 Apr 09
I believe that is the main reason why we aren't getting extremely sick with this Flu.. The US and many other countries are alot cleaner than Mexico.. Plus our doctors do give us medication if there is something wrong with us.. Medical attention is what we get but these people i don't believe got any and it just got worse and worse and they ended up dying because they weren't getting the things to make them better.. I am sure they had no idea what was even wrong with them. I feel bad for them but yet at the same time awful knowing they aren't getting the help they really need, Very heart breaking knowing these people could of been saved by a dose of medication!
@cobra1368 (702)
• United States
28 Apr 09
Thanks for this post! I agree completely - I think that medical decisions should be left to those who have the medical knowledge to make those decisions! And I also believe the media is great at making mountains out of molehills. Look at the pit bull stories. They make all pit bulls sound like monsters. They, in fact, are far from it. It just makes for "good news." Disgusting.
2 people like this
@abigailsavan1976 (79)
• United States
29 Apr 09
Thank you so much for posting this dicussion. You helped me understand things better and also it has calmed me down some. I have been watching the news non stop since this started. You have eased some of my fears. I am going to still keep an eye on things, but I won't be as stressed out. Thank You.
2 people like this
@xfahctor (14118)
• Lancaster, New Hampshire
29 Apr 09
glad to help. I think we all should just take a step back and put this in to perspective, it is nothing more than a glorified cold, like every other flu. I feel the adminsitration is using it to look like they are trying to take charge of a "crisis". It's disgusting and shamefull, it is fear mongering to persuade us to accept policy and people we might not accept otherwise, Bush used the same tactics with terrorism to accept the patriot act and with the economy to accept T.A.R.P.
1 person likes this
@us2owls (1681)
• United States
28 Apr 09
Here in the UK the papers are full of it - front page news in most of them. I will be returning to the USA in 4 weeks - it is a big enough hassle going through security and I am wondering what this flu episode will have added to it by the time I get home. My husband is going to see th Dr. tomorrow about a routine thing - we are going to ask him if there are any pills that he can bring with him to the USA to stave off anything cnnected to this flu virus. I think at this point in time the best thing they can do for us is heavily monitor the borders with Mexico and keep Mexicans in there and US citizens out until this virus has petered out.
@miamilady (4910)
• United States
29 Apr 09
Thanks for the info. I can't watch youtube, but I appreciate what you've posted here.
@II2aTee (2559)
• United States
28 Apr 09
Well done X. I find it interesting that the government hypes the swine flu over the same weekend that Barak Obama and numerous other world leaders vote to donate mega trillions of dollars to the World Bank. America will be donating something like, what 13 trillion dollars? (I could be wrong here, but I do know its in the trillions) to the World Bank.
I was watching the news and there was a short 3 min blurb about the vote, stressing how much it will help developing nations. Sounds peachy, huh? And also a breif mention of the rioters outside the World Bank who had to be subdued with pepper spray and police officers in riot gear... some were hospitolized. They mentioned it in passing as if it were a county fair. The anchorwoman said the protesters were mad because they felt the money being donated to the world bank actually hurts the poor in America. Oh really? Why do I feel as though we missed the bigger story this weekend?
*scratches head*
The rest of the news cast was dedicated to the swine flu. A good 45 mins if not more.
After that, I stopped watching the news all weekend.
1 person likes this
@jonesy123 (3948)
• United States
28 Apr 09
This flu does seem to be a welcome distraction from other ongoing political business. People's focus shifted. Maybe that's why the government stresses it so much. Distraction, distraction, distraction;)
2 people like this
@irishidid (8687)
• United States
28 Apr 09
I was 19 at the time and vaguely recall it between the thoughts of other teenage points of importance such as dating and hanging with my friends. Looking back, I have to wonder about what was going through my mother's head. My brother was one of the unfortunate victims of the bad polio vaccines and I'm sure that had to cross her mind during this time.
Just a little extra precaution is all that's necessary. I've never gotten a flu shot, but I'm not so young anymore and I do have health concerns, so I might consider it.
2 people like this
@mikeysmom (2088)
• United States
29 Apr 09
i think we just have to take the regular precautions we take with any other flu/virus outbreaks. wash hands frequently, sneeze and cough into the crook of the arm instead of the hands, and stay away from people who are obviously sick. panic does not help anyone or anything. common sense should prevail.
1 person likes this
@DarthJustice (2014)
• United States
28 Apr 09
Can someone give me what Ron Paul says? I have no sound whatsoever on my computer so watching videos are out of the question for me.
1 person likes this
@keithmharris2005 (268)
• United States
29 Apr 09
I appreciate your post. Although, I must say this has definately killed more than one person this time around. That to me says that it is a deadlier disease than before. I would've thought that if this came around in the 70's and went over with no major issues, that we would have a good vaccine now, 30 years later. I also feel that considering it has been 30 years or so since the incident before, I would hope that our medical research has improved. Heck, for that matter no one should of even been sick this time around. With advances in medicine, if this was not a big issue in the 70's, then why is it killing people today? Have we not surpassed the intellect of this virus? Did it mutate. I would have to believe it did because, why would it be affecting us so much more harshly now than it did then? So no, with all due respect, I don not think anyone is overreacting. If nothing else, perhaps they are not doing enough.
@keithmharris2005 (268)
• United States
29 Apr 09
Ah, yes, but you are not taking into account that the US is not the only Country in the world. What if this thing spreads to third world countries? We have a vaccine for the regular flu. This is a mutant strain. No vaccine. Now take the regular flu that killed what 30,000 people last year. Combine that with not having a vaccine at all. What would be the change? That is the difference. How many will die in the 4 or 5 months it takes to develop a vaccine?
@jayrene (2708)
• Philippines
28 Apr 09
is there a written topic on what Ron Paul said, i am hearing impaired so videos dont work for me.
this is something new, as i have seen so much swine flu news these days... even here, they are putting a little panic in the minds of the people. but hospital people says they are ready if ever the swine flu reached here... which i hope will not.
1 person likes this
@jayrene (2708)
• Philippines
29 Apr 09
its ok...
thanks for writing it down here, kind of interpreting for me. thank you.
could he be right?
and i think that it's a little bit exaggerated of the govt to use the security and terrorists task force. i mean people should be informed and informed and informed... non-stop, use the media, how to deal with this, what to do, how not to catch it, right?
but if the news is saying many are dying, people have the right to panic.
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