2004 Flu vaccine shortage - "it was the British who let us down"

2005 Katrina disaster - "nobody told us it would be that big or hit New Orleans!"

200? The Great Bird Flu Epidemic - "we didn't have enough warning"

The reality is there was plenty of notice in each of these cases. Of course the Bird Flu Epidemic hasn't hit the USA yet, but with global trade and travel its only a matter of time before avian flu does reach us. Then its only a matter of time before a strain appears that affects humans. If the last global flu epidemic was anything to go by it wont be pretty.

But will America be ready? Of course not, we're too busy fighting a futile war in a foreign country who's impact on American safety is and always was, infinitesimal compared to a flu epdiemic. Meanwhile our Homeland Security guys are out to lunch trying to bolt the doors against terrorists while the real great threats to human life in this country are all around us, every day - the air we breath.

Just think of the economic impact of a couple of cows with mad disease - hundreds of millions, if not billions in lost beef sales. And how about the impact of SARS on the airline industry just a few years ago? Now think of the impact when everyone is too afraid to go outside, to shop, work or play, for fear of getting bird flu from their neighbors? Better start stockpiling those 3M face masks and hand sanitizers!

If we get any response from the government when the shit hits the fan I'm betting it'll be something like Tom Ridge's "duct tape and plastic sheeting" defence against terrorists. Whatever way it goes, I guess 3M will make a fortune...

1 Comments:

Hi ! Been a long time since I last commented, it's not that I've stopped reading you, far from that, I had a few problems with The Powers That Be for thought crime, so I've been kinda busy defending myself and getting a little paranoid, too, I'm far from safe yet, but nevermind.
They're _always_ warned, but preventing is not considered useful, because if prevention works and nothing catastrophic happens thanks to it, they say "There was nbothing to prevent ! So, let's cut the prevention budget and spend it on something useful, like bigger limousines !", gah...
Overrentability is death, they're so eager to get profit because they know it's gonna end soon, and they don't realise their own greed is the cause of said end. I wish we could preach something else than the choir someday. I look forward, I know where the future is. I think everyone has children hoping they will rectify the errors of their fathers and contemporaries, too bad we don't have any. I'd like to give you food for thought, because I think today's quite lost, so we'd better think about tomorrow. You might know some of it already, but what deserves being read deserves being read twice :) http://www.cantrip.org/gatto.html
http://www.intertext.com/magazine/v2n3/hate.html
http://ranprieur.com/essays/%70%65%64%6F%73.html
That's the kind of thing I told you I spend most of my time thinking about, and it's worth thinking, I guess, because most people don't do it, so others have to compensate. I hope you will, too, and can't wait to see what you'll think about these sensitive subjects in the TLDTTOTS soon, Cya !

By Charlster, at 10/13/2005 11:11 PM  

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