Bird Flu

Last week a case of Bird Flu (Avian H5N1) was detected in a cat in Germany. This the latest case of the flu passing from one species to another. Rather than run down the street screaming that the flu is coming, it seems to me that it should be an idicator to stay focused on this problem.

As we saw with the Katrina affair in New Orleans, the government is smugly telling us that everything is being done and to "trust them" that they will protect us. That, my friends, is Bushit. They have begun stockpiling Tamiflu in case there is a pandemic. Tamiflu has been shown not to have much affect on the H5N1 strain of Avian flu. There now. Don't you feel better?

In fact, we are not safe at all. In fact, we don't even know how it is being spread. Some believe it is the migratory birds, and there is certainly some evidence to indicate that it is. However, there is also the possibility that the danger is being spread by chickens in the free market. People who are taking their chickens to market in the next town, or further afield, and spreading the disease that way.

All of the people who have contracted the disease thus far have been farmers who handle chickens. That would mean that only those who come into contact, and it would at this moment seem constant contact, would be vulnerable. However, we also know that the virus, being opportunistic, will mutate and may at sometime in the near future become spreadable from human to human.

Something else about this virus, so far. The seemingly strong, mid teens to mid thirties, have been attacked at a much higher rate than would be expected. In fact, the very young (0-12) and the very old are usually the ones to be most affected by influenza. But that may simply mean that those so far taken by the virus are the ones closest to it and may not tell us anything about how it will work if and when it makes the jump.

Man, do I feel safe. And, with the good job they've done so far, how could I not feel safe?