Whatever happened to the Bird Flu? - Democratic Underground

Imalittleteapot

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Aug-30-06 09:52 PM
Original message

Whatever happened to the Bird Flu?

Haven't heard anything about it lately. Did it just go away? Was it just another hyped up issue to scare the bejeezus out of us?

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

Cleita

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Aug-30-06 09:57 PM
Response to Original message

1. We do have cases of West Nile flu in my county. Several

horses have contacted it and now one human. I dunno about the Avian flu but weren't they both hyped at the same time?

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

Newsjock

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Aug-30-06 09:57 PM
Response to Original message

2. It stopped testing highly in Karl Rove's focus groups

You think I'm kidding.

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

baldguy

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Aug-30-06 09:57 PM
Response to Original message

3. That little bit of fear mongering didn't do well in test marketing.

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

Horse with no Name

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Aug-30-06 09:59 PM
Response to Original message

4. Rummy must have sold his stock in Tamiflu

rendering it useless as a scare tactic.
Just wait til they figure out a bigger, better drug (that they have stock in) to fight it.
It will be back on the front pages.:)

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

kaygore

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Aug-30-06 10:03 PM
Response to Reply #4

11. My thoughts, exactly

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

savemefromdumbya

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Aug-30-06 09:59 PM
Response to Original message

5. Don't worry they have it on the back burner

ready to be used

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

sutz12

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Aug-30-06 09:59 PM
Response to Original message

6. That's scheduled for Columbus Day....

:evilgrin:

My god I hope I'm wrong. :scared:

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

TomInTib

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Aug-30-06 10:00 PM
Response to Original message

7. It was bs

I know a lot of folks in the poultry biz and they saw it as a laffer.

As weird as it sounds, I believe that it was a trial balloon trying to set the stage for a Universal Poultry Unit, courtesy of Monsanto and Pilgrim.

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

frylock

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Aug-30-06 10:16 PM
Response to Reply #7

13. nothing would surprise me at this point

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

TomInTib

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Aug-30-06 10:42 PM
Response to Reply #13

18. I have this theory..

Poultry is the universal foodstock.
Look at what they have already done with GM swine and the laws that have been passed supporting same.
But pork doesn't sell well in all too many demographics.
They were well on the way to demolishing poultry stocks in the 3rd World when the car ran out of gas.
The logistics of the wholesale slaughter was a huge obstacle, but they will figure that one out.

The Universal Chicken

It will be back next year.

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

Ilsa

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Aug-30-06 10:01 PM
Response to Original message

8. I heard a health report on preventing the spread of typical flu

strains on my local NPR this morning. It was good information and H5N1 was mentioned briefly. The doctor said that those who can take a flu shot should if at all possible. Preventing the flu in yourself may limit the ability of a flu strain to interact with an exposure to H5N1 and causing a mutation that would allow H5N1 to start infecting person to person. Seemed reasonable to me.

Aside from that, it was all about handwashing, staying home if ill, etc.

I haven't heard anything about transmission of H5N1 from person to person yet.

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

SPKrazy

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Aug-30-06 10:02 PM
Response to Original message

9. Flu Always Wanes In Summertime

The fear is not just hype, although the CMSM has hyped the fear when it is not really anything to fear YET

if this H5 N1 ever becomes human to human, be very sure it will be something to fear.

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

SaveElmer

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Aug-30-06 10:05 PM
Response to Reply #9

12. Nothing has changed really...

It recedes in summertime, it hasn't mutated into an easily transmittable form.

There have been a couple studies to indicate it may have more trouble mutating than was feared.

And there have been two successful vaccine tests at low dosage.

Indonesia is still the hotspot.

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

SPKrazy

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Thu Aug-31-06 04:41 PM
Response to Reply #12

20. Yes, You Are Right

nothing has changed

it could

but it might not ever

someday there will be a pandemic of some sort, statistical probability says it will happen.

just as there will be objects from space that hit the planet as there have been in the past.

and on and on.

we don't have to live in fear, but I for one want my government to be looking for ways to deal with possible threats

but I don't want them telling me to live in fear, or worse, making threats out to be more than they are

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

MercutioATC

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Aug-30-06 10:19 PM
Response to Reply #9

15. Exactly.

Unfortunately, the attention span of the average American makes H5N1 a non-issue in the summer.

We'll have to see what it does this fall.

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

OffWithTheirHeads

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Aug-30-06 10:03 PM
Response to Original message

10. The same thing that happened to the Anthrax investigation and

the Hunt for Osama, and the 911 comission where the heads of state would no testify under oath, same thing that happened to the "Downibg Street memo's" (are you detecting a pattern here?". I could go on and on and on, however, for a more direct answer to your question, I suggest you spend an evening waching V for Vendetta.

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

notadmblnd

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Aug-30-06 10:17 PM
Response to Original message

14. they packed that one up and put in back in their trunk of magic tricks

along with anthrax, Risen, Sarin and SARS.

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

walldude

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Aug-30-06 10:24 PM
Response to Original message

16. It mutated into a strain of the Ramsey/Kerr virus... should be

a whole new strain by tommorow....

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

Atman

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Aug-30-06 10:29 PM
Response to Original message

17. Going to Thailand, went to travel medicine specialist...she laughed at BF

I got shots for hepatitis, I have a stack of malaria scrips, I got all sorts of advice about how to avoid getting sick. She got to BIRD FLU on the list and just chuckled. "Some people are concerned about it, so we do like to mention it. You are not a bird, so you won't have any problems." That pretty much sums it up for me.

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

SoCalDem

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Aug-30-06 11:08 PM
Response to Original message

19. The pharmaceuticals made a bundle (Rummy's connected)

and overall, most people have too much to be afraid of already.. Bird flu never struck a chord.

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

HiFructosePronSyrup

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Thu Aug-31-06 04:44 PM
Response to Original message

21. It got eaten by sharks and murdered by Gary Condit.

Actually, it's still a real threat, but the hype's flown the coop.

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

pitohui

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Thu Aug-31-06 04:44 PM
Response to Original message

22. it mutated farther away

should have bookmarked the article but apparently it has now mutated into a form that is highly unlikely to mutate into a form easily transmitted human to human

it is a risk to the poultry industry, not to the rest of us

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

Avalux

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Thu Aug-31-06 04:44 PM
Response to Original message

23. Still there, still infecting birds and an occasional human.

I would never make light of it because the possibility of a pandemic in the next several years is still real. However I will say that yes, just like everything else, our government politicized avian flu and used it as a scare tactic.

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

warrens

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Thu Aug-31-06 04:47 PM
Response to Original message

24. So far, it is not as infective as feared

If it mutates, watch out. Right now, you pretty much have to sleep with a bunch of chickens 24/7 to get it to jump species. But if it mutates to easy human-to-human infection, it could still be disastrous. However, we now have better medications for it, so it is unlikely to be the global killer it would have been two years ago.

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

BelgianMadCow

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Thu Aug-31-06 04:53 PM
Response to Original message

25. I heard it flu away

summer migration of some sorts.

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

DU AdBot (1000+ posts)

Fri Apr 19th 2024, 07:18 PM
Response to Original message

Advertisements [?]

Top

Powered by DCForum+ Version 1.1 Copyright 1997-2002 DCScripts.com
Software has been extensively modified by the DU administrators

Important Notices: By participating on this discussion board, visitors agree to abide by the rules outlined on our Rules page. Messages posted on the Democratic Underground Discussion Forums are the opinions of the individuals who post them, and do not necessarily represent the opinions of Democratic Underground, LLC.