The bird flu conspiracy
 

This bird flu thing is starting to really get to my nerves. Has the terrorist scare faded so much that something new and even scrarier was needed? It looks as if the govt. is planning for something that is totally hypothetical.
http://www.breitbart.com/news/2005/10/29/D8DHOP580.html
The H5N1 has not mutated yet. The deaths it has caused have occured in Asia, where the health system is not to western standards. This whole thing is overhyped, and the only consequence I can predict is that some drug companies (Sanofi, Avantis...) will make record profits. Also, after witnessing that the govt. was not able to deal with a hurricane, I doubt very much that it would be of any help in the very hypothetic case of a pandemic.
All I can see is a pattern of scaring the populace, and reaping the financial benefits of it. My vision, and correct me if I am wrong, is the the govt. is a puppet in the hands of weapons-oil-drug companies, the ones who financed the elections.
Scare the people with terrorism, and the defense industry does fantastic, scare them with gas shortage, and the oil companies post obscene record profits one month later. Scare them with bird flu, and the drug companies will do great. There is another thread on what stocks will be hot next year. I think drug company stocks will be a good bet.

Aurel

In the Pelican thread HERE I posted a link to a C-span broadcast. In that broadcast, one of the speakers called for people to avoid the flu shots because the shots all "contain microchips that allow the government to track people". He also alledges that the bird flu scare is just a tactic to get more people to accept the shots.

I don't know that this has anything to do with your post, but I did use the words "bird flu".

Re: The bird flu conspiracy
 

Do you know much about viruses? Or science for that matter?

I do, Nostatic. I think we have pretty much the same background too. PhD in chemistry. I am not a specialist in flu viruses, but I still remember a little bit of my biochem classes. And I supervise phD students. Does that qualify as `knowing science?`. Now, if I qualify to hear your enlighted opinion, I`d be happy to hear what you have to say on that matter.

Aurel

Its way over hyped.

Any flu pandemic is a threat. The 'regular' flu kills tens of thousands per year. But the attention the media is paying is absurd. Just the latest scary thing for them to bray about to pump up their ratings.

H5N1 has already jumped species (ie it *has* mutated, multiple times). It is an especially virulent strain, and mortalities from some of the studies I've heard will likely be across the board, not just the young, old and immune-impaired. If it manages to become easily human transmissible, have a nice life...and hope you're lucky because odds are it will also evade tamiflu.

I for one am glad that there is "hype" about this. It has been showed over and over that we as a nation are woefully underprepared for any disaster, and in fact have very little understanding of the dynamics involved in such events. Hurricane, earthquake, pandemic, terrorist attack. Take your pick. If citizens are *not* informed and *not* prepared, and likewise if government is similarly in the dark, the ***** will hit the fan. Katrina was merely a prelude. And that was a localized event. Imagine 25% of the US workforce out. Across the country. Our healthcare system is near collapse as it is right now on a good day.

I'm not going to go crawl in a cave or something, but I'm fairly prepared for whatever comes, and I'm going to keep my eyes wide open.

Aurel,
Your into nanoscale stuff, this should be right up you alley.

' H5N1 has already jumped species (ie it *has* mutated, multiple times). It is an especially virulent strain, and mortalities from some of the studies I've heard will likely be across the board, not just the young, old and immune-impaired. If it manages to become easily human transmissible, have a nice life...and hope you're lucky because odds are it will also evade tamiflu. '

I think Cal Tech just schooled Rutgers...

I floated a similar concept past my wife (med school) on whether the drug companies were pushing bird flu as a scare to sell the shot.

She said they've run out of whatever it is they use to make it (hey - I'm good with numbers, not science) so it is unlikely. She also said all the surgeons at the hospital in which she is being taught at the moment were having discussions about making sure they got their hands on some of the dwindling supply of the shot (they would pay for it).

Hypocratic oath (sp?) my ass...

Here's the deal. It takes some time to come up with a new vaccine. It isn't as simple as cooking up a new flu shot such as is available each year. This is a new strain and there is no current vaccine. Even with the stepped up efforts it likely will take a year or more to come up with and test a viable vaccine. Then you have to produce it...we are talking millions and millions of doses that need to be produced. Given all this, I don't think it's unreasonable to start thinking about this now because if you wait until there are widespread human cases...it's too late.

I believe that the vaccine producers have to wait until the strain mutates to a human-to-human communicable form before they can develop a vaccine. Vaccines derived from the current form would probably not work well, if at all. That means that the virus will be a danger to humans before we can even start to develop the vaccine.

The End of History and the Last man is upon us. Prepare for the end of days!

That reminds me, I should look to see what I have to do to the suspension on the Targa. She could use a lil tight'n up...

I just lowered mine and put some new bushings in. With the new shocks, she should drive like a dream. Looking forward to a few days of motoring before I am killed by this bird flu thing.

no *****. I want to tight'n my clutch cable and try some new tranny oil in her before my ears begin to bleed and my rectum bursts into flames.

Cool. A flame-shooting exhaust?

Lube -

Sounds like you've been eating way too much chili.