April 27, 2009

What if anything are you doing to prepare for the Mexican Swine Bird Flu outbreak?


Have you thought through the repercussions, no matter how this plays out?


40 CASES IN UNITED STATES...
EU: Don't travel to USA and Mexico...
*US calls EU travel warning unwarranted...
**Russia to check all planes from Americas...
JANET: NO TESTING OF INCOMING PLANE PASSENGERS...
STATE DEPT TO ISSUE TRAVEL WARNING TO MEXICO...
Every passenger arriving in Britain from Mexico screened...
UK INVESTIGATING 17 POSSIBLE CASES...
**2 CONFIRMED...
Has globalization made us more catastrophe-prone?
'NO EVIDENCE' OF BIO-TERROR...
PIG SICK: NYC...
BLOOMBERG: 28 cases from 1 school...
Could mutate to 'more dangerous' strain...
Flu could boost gov't intervention further...
CDC: No vaccine prevents this virus...
Mexico flu scare empties streets, churches, bars...
Spreads to Europe, markets edgy...

70 comments:

Anonymous said...

did not know that the flu of 1918 killed 15 percent of the worlds population, yet the roaring twentys made no mention of that? could they have forgotten the grief ?

M said...

Already stacked up on gold, ammo and canned goods - no change here

Anonymous said...

I think it is over reaction at least in Europe and US. If it spreads to South Asia / China then you can be assured of big numbers.

South Asia especially is poor, ill hygienic and densly populated (they produce one Japan every 3 years)

Even during the last Pandemic in 1918 Indian Sub continent bore the brunt (50 per 1000 deaths). This time around things will be more severe as population has increased manifold and hygienic conditions are horrible.

Anonymous said...

15%? Don't make things up Anonymous. Estimstes are that about 500M of the worlds 1.5B people were infected. Of those 500M, about 50M to 100M people died.

So, 100M/1.5B about 6%.

The US had about 500K deaths.

My great uncle (who lived to be 104!) died last summer. I asked him about WWI and also the 1918 pandemic and he had so many stories to tell. Basically, if you lived on a farm so you had local food and water, then you were good to go.

Anonymous said...

This has the potential to be the "Black Swan" like Taleb says.

Anonymous said...

We could use a good pandemic, perhaps it will solve the global warming problem. Perhaps with socialized medicine, we can go the way of mexico, leaving patients untreated with no medicine left to die.

Small Hat

vanilla ice said...

eating more swine.

too much rope said...

After today, I will be able to work at home for the rest of the week, and may consider keeping my children at home. Anyone else notice that they only chose to test 9 kids from Queens, but new reports say over 100 kids were showing symptoms? Seems like the numbers are getting intentionally mishandled. After the last decade, it is very hard to trust the gov - they will say anything to protect their f***ing economy.

Anonymous said...

Ignoring it. It is summer time. Epidemics tend to spread during cold weather.

Bukko Boomeranger said...

I'm manning up in my mind for what might come. In an epidemic, hospital workers are the second group of people to get whatever disease it is, right after the initial target population. That's because the first people to get sick come to the hospital to get care, and then they cough/vomit/bleed/shit it onto us.

I work on the respiratory ward of the state's largest public hospital, so we'll be first in line to get whatever flu patients are admitted. It's better than working in the casualty ward (emergency room in Yank-speak), though. Those poor bastards don't know what they're dealing with when someone comes in. At least by the time a patient gets to me, they've been diagnosed. Although who's to say how things will work if the system gets overwhelmed?

But that's life! In a way, being in the medical profession is like being in the military. I have to do my job, and sometimes it's dangerous duty. I take precautions -- I have a small stash of N-95 masks, which vanished during the last bird flu scare and were slow to get re-stocked -- and I'm careful with isolation patients already. Plus I'm the type of person who never gets sick. I reckon I'm immune to almost everything, because I've been exposed to so much.

OTOH, that could be a bad thing. I've read that people with strong immune systems are most susceptible to "cytokine storm." If I get it, I get it. I'm not going to get chicken when there might be people who need my help. I've got 354 hours of sick leave I haven't used. And if I die, what the hell? I've had a damn good life.

Anonymous said...

Arming myself to defend against the onslaught of pig zombies. Obviously.

nonsense said...

"did not know that the flu of 1918 killed 15 percent of the worlds population, yet the roaring twentys made no mention of that? could they have forgotten the grief ?"

----------------

Thats because it didnt cause 15% of the worlds pop to expire. Thats just scare mongering nonsense.

The global mortality rate from the 1918/1919 pandemic is not known, but is estimated at 2.5 to 5% of the human population.

Look it up!

nonsense said...

"did not know that the flu of 1918 killed 15 percent of the worlds population, yet the roaring twentys made no mention of that? could they have forgotten the grief ?"

----------------

Thats because it didnt cause 15% of the worlds pop to expire. Thats just scare mongering nonsense.

The global mortality rate from the 1918/1919 pandemic is not known, but is estimated at 2.5 to 5% of the human population.

Look it up!

Russ DoGG said...

What! you posted a pic of my mother in law!

Anonymous said...

Pfizer and Johnson and Johnson stock.

Anonymous said...

Avoiding restaurants are numero uno(hint) on my list! I'm just now getting over a nasty cold after eating at a popular place, but also known to have suspicious looking burger-flippers(a.k.a., "chefs" with disease).

Also, throwing-out the pork-chops I bought on sale last week. America the beautiful, getting trashier every day!

Anonymous said...

I got up Sunday morning to prepare my household incase we have to stay home for 20-30 days. I picked up 2 boxes of 25 count surgical masks, 100lb of rice, diapers for the little one, 4 gallons of bleach and other essentials. My wife thinks I'm nuts and a little panicky. The way I look at it, so what if the Swine flu issue is a non event were we live. But if it is...

Not only that, when the Gov. interrupts the airwaves I feel like they know more than they are letting on. Like when the helicopter man uses the word "contained" in a sentence.


RayNLA

k.w. - Southern Ca. said...

Well, perhaps it will target the *swines* here ... Polosi, Paulson, Mozillo, Frank, Summers.

This catastrophe we are now witnessing is truly growing in biblical proportions.

Anonymous said...

I think the roaring 20's were a reaction to the death of WW1 and the flu. Much of history is lost because daily life keeps us busy.

Wikipedia has a good (!) article on the pandemic flu of 1918.

I have a list today of things to get, look for: more sanitizer, and a gallon of bleach to put aside. Plastic gloves at dollar store [100 for $1], going to make more soap...face masks.

Next few weeks: pet food, storable food for us, some water, good supply of caffeine, toilet paper, soap for clothes, anything we might need if have to stay in.
Garbage bags. Cat litter.

Use 1 tiny dollop of bleach in your kitchen sink with little bit of dish soap and wash down everything this week. Thereafter all doorknobs, toilet handles, sink handles, drainboards, every day if it gets bad, otherwise every other day. Keep clothes washed and dried, even if you have to use a smaller part of your wardrobe. Just be tidier, the more junk you have laying around the more stuff won't get wiped down, covered by towels, clothes, etc. Wipe everything a hand ouches.[No, I'm not a neat freak.]

From what I've read this weekend in 1918 the flu began in Mar and April, waned, reappeared in July and August and on into fall and winter. Unusual because it began when regular season was over. So is this one. That was an H1N1 and so is this, with some differences, which they are still examining I guess.

As I've said before, I've dreamed a lot of what's going on now, and this may be leading into the first guidance dream I ever had at age of 3. Soap, soap, soap.

Chicken bouillon cubes and garlic and hot spices: curry, red pepper flakes, black pepper, good to make a broth if you get congested.

Grandma PKK

Angry Leprechaun said...

Using this as an excuse to further my argument to my wife why we need to move away from the southern border to the northern border.

Further we have people in our business that cross the border, legally, everyday to work. I am staying as far away from them as possible.

Ross said...

Laughing A LOT!

jim said...

I am panicking.

Anonymous said...

Where did you get the rare picture of Feinstein-Pelosi and Boxer in one place?

Must have been feeding time down at the Senate...

Anonymous said...

Ready to put soldiers on the Mexican Border.

No Papers? Bang, you're DEAD.

Problem Solved.

You're Welcome.

Devestment said...

Preparation for pandemic
Black Swan #1

1) Avoid the sick. Remember how selfish and stupid people are. Listen for comments like "It's not contagious".

2) Work at home.

3) Wash hands frequently, evacuate when someone sneezes. Condemn sick people in public while escaping.

4) Take special care to wash fruits and vegetables from the market.

5) Stay away from Mexican markets and restaurants.

6) Gargle with peroxide. Clean with bleach.

7) Suspend buying activity, prepare for further falling asset prices.

Anonymous said...

i broke out the plastic sheeting and duct tape left over from 9/11 and have sealed off a portion of my house.

rin tin tin said...

Specious
Worldwide
Influenza
News
Event

For
Legislative
Use

Anonymous said...

there are some really good bargains on flights to mexico.

Anonymous said...

There could be two strains, a killer and a mild one.

Anonymous said...

Just glad to be young, healthy, and fit. Having a good health plan and cash to boot is also good.

Randy said...

Keefer,

No clue what you're talking about.

What flu?

Guberville Smack said...

Just bought 10 rolls of duct tape.

DOPES!!!

Anonymous said...

The time to prepare is before anything happens. Katrina showed us that you can't count on the gov't, you have to be ready to fend for yourself. Everyone should have the supplies to survive at least two weeks without outside help from anyone.

What do you think will happen to the supermarkets if quarantines are imposed? Be responsible for yourself or end up depending on the gov't for your own survival. Your choice - your consequence.

Lady Di said...

There's nothing like a cold dose of reality from Mother Nature to remind us all who's really in charge.

greg s. said...

Getting F@cked up and screwing a lot.

Anonymous said...

When pigs fly?

Anton Chiguhr

gutless and lazy said...

Nothing. But maybe I should short pork commodities?

Anyway, strike another nail in the globalism coffin. If lots of Americans get sick and/or die from a flu outbreak that came from Mexico, I would hazzard a guess that the appetite for mexican truckers on U.S. roads, Bush guest workers in restaurants and 'cleaning' services and et al, and tollerance in general for illegals and continued open borders - after 9/11 and a pandemic will go to ZERO, NIL, ZIP, NADA before you can blink an eye!!

If Americans get sick and die in numbers, expect marches on Washington to effectively close down the border. Maybe that's what it will take to wake up the sheeple, a huge body count. Tens of thousands....

Dr. Welby said...

I am doing nothing.

I may even travel to Mexico City for some cheap deals on pork and ham. Memorial Day weekend is on the horizon and it may be a good time for stock up for future cookouts.

To sum up: This is an over reaction. I predict that this virus will soon be known as the Y2K virus--i.e. an overblown problem which fizzles out to nothing.

Anonymous said...

Send that Swine flu to the TALIBAN and ALQAida.

They will probably die... and from a pig source infestation.!!!

( NO 72 vrigins I guess)

Anonymous said...

All set, just back from Afghanistan with, Cipro, IV's,
Bullets, and food. Bring it on!!
There's nothing new under the sun....

Anonymous said...

This could end up being like one of those classes in college when the professor tell everyone to look their right and their left. When final exam is given, one or more of you won't be here.

Anonymous said...

Just to refresh your memories:

CNN April 22, 2009 -- Army: 3 vials of virus samples missing from Maryland facility

Missing vials of a potentially dangerous virus have prompted an Army investigation into the disappearance from a lab in Maryland.

The Army's Criminal Investigation Command agents have been visiting Fort Detrick in Frederick, Maryland, to investigate the disappearance of the vials. Christopher Grey, spokesman for the command, said this latest investigation has found "no evidence of criminal activity."

The vials contained samples of Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis, a virus that sickens horses and can be spread to humans by mosquitoes. In 97 percent of cases, humans with the virus suffer flu-like symptoms, but it can be deadly in about 1 out of 100 cases, according to Caree Vander Linden, a spokeswoman for the Army's Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases. There is an effective vaccine for the disease and there hasn't been an outbreak in the United States since 1971.

The vials had been at the research institute's facility at Fort Detrick, home of the Army's top biological research facility, for more than a decade.

This investigation comes two months after all research at the research institute facility at Fort Detrick was halted for a complete computer-based inventory of all disease samples at the fort.
As you see by the date of the article, weird news about Flu have been popping for months now.

Anonymous said...

Mail -- Obama's swine flu scare after shaking hands with archaeologist who died 24 hours later

A man who shook Barack Obama's hand in Mexico died the next day from symptoms similar to those of swine flu.

The White House insisted the President's health was not in any danger, but he was said to be taking the threat of an epidemic 'very seriously'.

Mr Solis had taken Mr Obama on a tour of the museum on April 16, a week before his death.
http://tinyurl.com/dgafba

Anonymous said...

.


From the USA's playbook: To stop a Mexican revolution from happening due to violence, poverty, and corruption, just spread a weaponized Flu, developed at military bases, to control the populace and divert attention. Perfect timing and place for this unusual event to happen, don't ya think? Oh yeah, it's a coincidence. What's on Idol and what Bo, the White House dog is doin' today, Anderson Cooper?


.

cramer said...

How can we make mad money out of this swine Flu? What's the angle here?

Anonymous said...

It's simple, switching from sugar cured bacon to smoked bacon. The smoke kills the flu!!! Also switching from ham to pastrami...

Anonymous said...

We've told you to stockpile on food and ammo just for events like this. Good luck going to the market during martial law or when the pandemic is in full force.

But noooo, we're tin-foil who should be mocked. Enjoy your Flu without any way to buy food.

F*ck you, then.

Anonymous said...

Later, the White House press office issued follow-up statements on both the death of the Mexican tour guide and on Air Force One.

In the case of Mr. Solis, the press office cited a statement from Ricardo Alday, the spokesman for the Mexican Embassy, that the director of Mexico’s National Anthropology Museum had died a week after Obama’s visit of “complications of a preexisting condition and not of the swine flu.”

-----------------------------------

problem is that catching the flu leaves you susceptible to other common ailments that would not normally kill you.

for example, you might catch the flu but die from pneumonia. so, technically, the flu did not kill you, the pneumonia bacteria did... which I think is what the tour guide died from.....

Anonymous said...

Regular flu kills 36,000 Americans each year. This pig flu has killed only ~150 so far, and all in Mexico. People are panicking for no reason. Someone should start a blog called "Flu Panic" to spread the truth.

Micawber said...

AP reports:

JERUSALEM (AP) — The outbreak of swine flu should be renamed "Mexican" influenza in deference to Muslim and Jewish sensitivities over pork, said an Israeli health official Monday.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5ieHZRubAS3lyjn2GBiCPkXkHrXwwD97QROAG0

Out at the peak said...

I ate bacon today and on Saturday, so I'm not behaving. I haven't had any flu symptoms for two years and I feel like my immune system is rock hard.

I have a coworker who has had a terrible cough for the last two weeks (was out of work for many days). It's possible he had the swine flu, but it could be a coincidence.

yoski said...

Got chicken soup?

Ali Blahblahblah said...

Waiting for Fox News to tie the swine flu to the Arabs because they don't eat swine.

Roccman said...

enjoy the die off!

David said...

It's interesting that the US government has made estimates of the potential magnitude of an influenza pandemic, should the virus prove capable of spreading widely. However, the estimates appear to be straightforward extrapolations of 20th century experience, like the 1918, 1956, and 1968 flu pandemics. For example, Health and Human Services published a plan saying that around 30% of the population could be sick to some degree and maybe 0.9 to 9.9 million hospitalized in the US. It isn't even clear that the meliorating effects of better treatments today were accounted for. Nevertheless, it is really prudent to we ready for a really bad outcome. Just look at what happened when the financial industry, regulators, etc. ignored proper risk management and we got a worst-case outcome. The National Strategy for Pandemic Influenza warns that if the higher estimates pertain, the pandemic “will ultimately threaten all critical infrastructure by removing essential personnel from the workplace for weeks or months”. Those who stay informed and make appropriate precautions for their families, businesses, and communities have the right idea.

Living said...

I am getting ready for my SIL she is coming up from Mexico City, because the kids are bored and she is sick of staying inside all day.

Brian Miller said...

Just a load of overhyped bullshit, like "terrorism hysteria" of 2001. I am amazed how people fall for this, over and over and over and over and over and over.

BE AFRAID!

Ugh.

Anonymous said...

yeah begacause it's just like 1918 today.

idiot.

Anonymous said...

bought a bunch of on sale pork chops last week also..

Anonymous said...

boil a whole chicken more than covered in water with a half onion and cloves of garlic add noodles and when chicken is soft and falling off bones eat for about a week..............

Anonymous said...

safety litigation warning.....watch out for bones.......

les said...

before spending 1.5 Billion, try closing the border and cancelling all flights to and from Mexico.

Anonymous said...

The solution, according to Bernanke and BO, is to print trillions of dollars to increase swine production.

Anonymous said...

enjoy the die off!LOL I missed that, Roccman.

Anonymous said...

.


THANK GOD MEXICO IS A "RELIABLE" SOURCE OF SOLID INFORMATION. SO WHEN THEY SAY THAT ONLY 200 DIED, WE ALL SHOULD BELIEVE IT. AND THAT GOES TO ECONOMIC DATA COMING FROM CHINA AND BRAZIL, TOO. ALL RELIABLE!!!

.

Anonymous said...

On that note, airline and hotel stocks skyrocket!

Look look up there, a killer meteor is coming down fast to screw the earth...DOW SKYROCKETS TO 15,000 AND AAPL STOCK JUMPS TO $300.

IT'S ALL RIGGED!

And the Madoffs are after your money, waiting for you to jump back in the market to fleece you again and again and again...

Anonymous said...

.



HEY MEXICO, GET YOUR SH!T TOGETHER ALREADY, WOULD YOU? WHY CAN'T YOU BE CANADA?


.

Anonymous said...

This is not a pandemic, it's a form of extortion.

The ransom has been submitted to CONgress to the tune of $1.5 billion.

Big Pharma also got a *timely* jump in their share prices in conjunction with depression-like earnings reports.

WTF...we live in a friggin kleptocracy!

PIRATES!

Anonymous said...

Did this flu virus come from the same military research facility that supplied the anthrax?

Anonymous said...

Maybe I should to slaughter my mother in law.

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