Seems that scientists have managed to alter the avian flu’s (H5N1) gene structure in such a manner as to make it catchable by mammals, us be in the mammal in question. The avian flu, you may or may not know, is extremely pathogenic and in the rare cases where humans have caught it, is 60% fatal!

So, now not only has a highly transmissible form  been developed, but these geniuses also want to publish a paper telling the world how they did it! Hamas are you taking notes?

If you want to read more on this breaking story, please click here.

A scary movie to be sure, but what if there is some truth to such a scenario?

Right now, out in the world at large, there are two forms of influenza that have viral scientists really concerned; Swine flu and the so-called Bird flu. Known in scientific circles as H1N1 and H5N1, both have properties that make them very scary indeed. The Swine flu, because it has shown itself to be extremely contagious; able to leap continents in single bounds. After first appearing in late 2009, it quickly spread to almost every corner of the planet infecting as many as two billion in the process. And that was in just one year! Thankfully for us, it was not very virulent, only killing less than a tenth of a percent of the people who caught it. (Yet, even at such a small percentage, that still equated to a large number dead)!

Contrast that form of influenza with the Type A H5N1 ‘Bird’ flu; a bug that does not easily spread from person to person, but which is extraordinarily virulent, killing close to 60% of those who catch it. By comparison, the infamous 1918 Flu that killed up to 50 million worldwide was only about 2% fatal.

Imagine then, what would happen if both the Swine and the Bird flu happen to infect the same person or pig at the same time and then ”mix genes’ to produce a new strain! One that is easy to catch and that kills most of the people who catch it! A combination that could set the stage for mass fatalities on a scale unimagined by humankind and which would make this movie version look like a walk in the park!

As of this writing, no such strain yet exists. However, WHO authorities have been quoted as saying that the next pandemic, ‘is not a question of if, but one of when.’

With most of the national attention focused on job creation and the economy these days, it’s easy to see why not much press is being devoted to other issues. Among these would be the potential effects resulting from a virulent outbreak of pandemic flu!

In the scenario I’ll cover here, the Avian flu makes a successful gene re-assortment in Hong Kong that enables it to freely move from bird to bird and human to human. Avian flu is a type A subtype (H5N1) strain that is already a proven killer with over 60% of human infections ending in death. The only restraint on this endemic strain, thus far, had been the rarity of transmission from infected poultry directly to humans. (So far, only 300 cases have been reported since it first appeared in 2003). But in this scenario, it has mutated and is now free to move with lightening speed among the population.

Within just a week or two of the first human to human transmission, the virus could easily be spreading within many countries in the world. A world, where a pandemic such as this, could easily cause severe shocks to the social and economic fabric living in countries already tottering on the brink of collapse.

In the United States, first word of a problem would arrive at the World Health Organization and Centers for Disease Control headquarters after laboratory testing revealed the true nature of the virus. Within days, a massive effort would be initiated to develop an effective vaccine. Unfortunately, this is a process that could easily take months to make happen. By that time the Avian, or Super Flu as it was now being called, would likely already be raging in many parts of the US. Hundreds of suddenly very sick patients would be showing up at big city hospitals, quickly overwhelming the staff. Not long after this, the media would pick up the story and then the real enemy would shows its face; panic! As almost always happens whenever a national disaster occurs, the first reaction of the public would be to flock to grocery stores to load up on food.

Most stores these days, only carry about three days of inventory. Quickly, then, the shelves would be stripped. Next hit would be gas stations and pharmacy’s. Gas stations would close further augmenting the public fears. Citizens would sequester themselves at home in front of the TV, while the media did what it does best; scare the living wits out of everyone far and wide. Meanwhile the flu would keep on spreading, leaving a trail of sick and dying people in its wake.

Within a week or two, as the virus spread unabated over the land, people might well decide to stop going to work or public places. While that may seem to be a good thing, the absenteeism would also apply to critical public services like electrical power stations, fire houses and water distribution stations. Then, it becomes just a matter of time before needed services begin failing in one location after the next. News comes in from Europe that some countries are collapsing. Here at home the president promises prompt action. He tells everyone the worst is over. And the bodies keep piling up.

Then one evening shortly thereafter, you’re at home with your family watching the grim events unfolding on the TV when the power suddenly goes out and stays out. A little later the water stops flowing! You look outside to see a fire that has broken out out one block over and yet no one responds. In short, a nightmare is in the making and you’re powerless to stop it.

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Could this kind of horror story ever happen? I hope not. It could easily be that the worst case scenario might only result in a short interruption of services or maybe none at all. Perhaps a vaccine could be produced and distributed with unheard of speed, nipping the problem in the bud. You never know. But, then again, survival favors the prepared mind, if I may paraphrase.

Next post: Simple preparations you can do to be prepared in case disaster strikes!

‘Know your enemy’, a saying derived from Sun Tzu’s The art of War, aptly describes what could be described as a war between infectious viruses and men. In the case of the virus that causes the flu, what you don’t know can make you very sick or even end in death! [more]

With the official start of the Flu season now just weeks away (October 15) here in the United States., reports by the CDC hint that something a little strange may be afoot. It seems the H1N1 virus that caused over fifteen thousand deaths in the States last season is nowhere to be found.  Only sporadic cases continue to crop up here and there. Typically, scientists would expect to see another wave of the so-called Swine Flu this winter. Instead, early reports are hinting at the re-emergence of an older strain known as H3N2. A strain of flu that has been around for some time and which was all but edged out of the way by the H1N1 variant. This could be relatively good news as this older strain is known to affect older people whereas the Swine Flu seemed to target the young, including teenagers.

While it is way to early to say that things may be ‘returning to normal’, this is still better news than what everyone had going into the 2009 season. The big question concerning many are exactly where has the H1N1 bad guy gone and will he stay there?

On any given year, the US produces over 300 million tons of animal waste in it numerous CAFO or Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations. One of the larger sites may house over 800,000 pigs at any one time. CAFO’s are known for their cramped conditions where animals are forced to live shoulder to shoulder for the bulk of their lives. Confinement at ‘high stocking density’ is one part of a systematic effort to produce the highest output at the lowest cost by relying on economies of scale, modern machinery, biotechnology, and global trade. Confinement at high stocking density also requires antibiotics and pesticides to mitigate the spread of disease and pestilence exacerbated by these crowded living conditions. So, have you ever wondered where all that crap goes?

In agricultural locales, some of the waste is emulsified and sprayed on crops which have a nasty habit of taking up the antibiotic residues. This was seen in an experiment done by scientists in Minnesota when they discovered that CAFO waste which was contaminated with antibiotic residues was used as a fertilizer had been taken up into the leaves of lettuce and the flesh of potatoes and corn.

In other operations, where there are no crops to spray, the feces from swine CAFO operations are collected in large holding areas referred to in the industry as lagoons. The holding capacity of some of these can be enormous. In 1995 a lagoon overflow released 20 million gallons of hog waste into the New River in North Carolina. This situation was so bad North Carolina became the first state in the nation to ban the construction or expansion of lagoons and spray fields on swine farms when it passed the Swine Farm Environmental Performance Standards Act. Yet, in other parts of the country thousands of holding pits contain a venomous mix of feces, intestinal microbes and blood. It is increasingly apparent, from several studies that swine flu is a consequence of the health and environmental conditions prevailing in the industrialized hog farms. The Mexican outbreak may have originated in a hog farm located near La Gloria, Veracruz. If this proves to be true then it is further evidence that lagoons may be acting as giant Petri dish experiments where nutrients, pathogenic bacteria and the flu are brought into close proximity.

As humanity proceeds ever onward into the 21^st Century, the number of such animal intensive operations is growing by leaps and bounds. You might even say that we may soon find ourselves in deep shit.

GMCH Dean S D Dalvi told UNI that Padmanath Pankade (40) a resident of Gangapur who had been tested positive for swine flu died yesterday, while Zakhir Khan Suleman Khan (50) hailing from Sillod was in critical condition. Both were tested positive for swine flu by the National Institute of Virology.

The district had been under grip of Swine flu in July and August last year (2009) with more than 100 people losing their lives. However, the intensity of the decease was reduced after February this year, Dr Dalvi said.

Meanwhile, the state health department provided anti-swine flu vaccines to GMCH and other primary health centers in the entire district. The vaccines were provided to the doctors treating the swine flu.

This information was from newKerala.com.

In North America, the flu season is generally considered to be most active between the months of October to May during which time the virus sees a tenfold increase. It is actually active all year long, but right now, in mid July, levels are thankfully very low even in places like Australia which is just now entering its peak season. An emergency committee of 15 scientists headed by Australian infectious diseases expert John Mackenzie was cautiously optimistic concerning the A(H1N1) flu virus and may call an official end to the pandemic alert sometime in august.

This could bode well for the United States at a time when almost everyone could use a break or two.

I’ve noticed that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services launched a new ad campaign Monday to encourage Americans to get vaccinated against Swine Flu. The campaign, titled “Together We Can All Fight the Flu,” features television, radio, online and outdoor banner public service announcements that target specific at-risk groups, such as pregnant women and young people, as well as the general public. HHS will also release Spanish-language versions of several ads.

So what gives? I thought the flu deal was on the wane! Is this another case where I need to read between the lines? There have been hints and rumors of a deadly form of bird flu occurring in some regions of China. Also some new reports of a deadly form of dog flu called H2N8! One report even had it that doctors feared a coming together of the current swine flu with a form of MRSA or methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus that is responsible for many deaths in hospitals (see Docs Fear Deadly Combo of Flu, MRSA). This could be very disturbing news as we are yet to get into the meat of the flu season in America and already ten thousand are dead! I am, however, very impressed with the way in the the Chinese have proven resistant to the Swine Flu. While America has suffered about ten thousand deaths out of a population of 304 million citizens, China has only had 125 of its citizens die out of a population of 1.3 billion! What do they know we don’t? Could it be they are lying? Naw!

MiFi 2200 Wireless Internet a Good Bargain

Originally developed by Novatel Wireless and released in May 2009. The Intelligent Mobile Hotspot or MiFi 2200 was made available to me recently from a Verizon supplier to check out. The little black device is intended to create a ‘mobile cloud of communication’ ability for those on the run. It will connect up to five Wi-Fi devices together to enable a laptop, for instance, to communicate to other Wifi enabled devices like printers and cameras. The unit also can allow the users to surf the internet by communicating over nearby cell towers. The actual performance is access speeds that are comparable to DSL (Digital Subscriber Line) connections that many people use. (This speed is good for casual surfing of the internet and allows the user to upload or download documents and pictures for storage or printing but lags behind if you try to manage particularly large file sizes like Hi-Def video for instance). Still, for some people who literally work out of their autos, this is a very cool device to own as they can access to the internet cheaply and while they are onsite. Real Estate agents, for instance, would find it very nice to be able to transmit legal documents back and forth to their home office and to customers. For anyone living in the Forsyth Missouri area, I would encourage them to pay a visit to the Verizon office in town. Ask for the agent named Kelly as she treated me very professionally and was able to answer all my questions.

Let’s Hope Those Obama Dollars Keep On a Coming!

At a time in our nation’s history when so much seems to happening all at one time. I am ever so thankful that we have installed, as our leader, a man with such deep pockets. I am referring to, of course, the apparently limitless money he is able to throw at all sorts of problems currently faced by the America people. Just recently the amount borrowed by the General Fund stands at  $12,193,059,906,592 (that’s 12 trillion) and it’s increasing at the rate of about half a million every ten seconds! Yes, sir, it will take some mighty deep pockets to get us out of this mess.

US, UK and France Ready to Seek New Sanctions Against Iran

Now here is a real surprise. Iran has done just about every thing it could possibly do to alienate the rest of the civilized world in its protracted, constant and intentional deceptions concerning the goal of nuclear weapon capability. Nothing coming out of the leadership bears any resemblance to the truth as they really don’t understand the difference between telling the truth and lying their asses off. I’m sorry, but everyone I think suspects what the eventual outcome on this issue will be. I do not have to speak it or write about it, but let me make myself clear. I would not trust an Iranian official with the cleaning of a cesspool much less the governing of a people. It’s very sad to me that the citizens Iran are forced to put up with nut jobs year after year.

The Real Solution to Global Warming

After listening now to politicians, scientists and other so-called experts like Al Gore, I have come to a conclusion sort of. When you clear away all the claims that we need to reduce this or clean up that, the principal cause of the world’s problem not only is not addressed but gets worst ever day. I’m speaking of the out of control growth of human beings on a planet that, at some point will reach critical level no matter what else might be done. The world population stands at somewhere close to 7 billion! No one really knows for sure and it is growing at close to 2% per year. Now I am no scientist but it seems to me that at some point we will have just too many people competing for too few resources. At that point, I would guess a mass die off the likes of which this world has never seen will occur. Like a California fire in a forest with centuries of accumulated brush, once a ‘viral fire’ gets really going it will be very hard to stop. Then, with millions upon millions of dead and dying there will occur additional not so great to think about consequences. Water supplies will become tainted. New forms of disease will become prevalent and those who exist in the midst of choas will essentially stampede to new locations. Like a macabre Romper Room run amok!

What I have not heard from anyone of note are the plans for doing something about slowing the population growth especially in those countries that already are stressed to the limit. While here in America we do consume a disproportionate amount of resources per captia, part of that reason is the fact that we have kept our numbers relatively low on a square mile per human basis. (In America we have a population density of something like 85 people per square mile while places like India are standing elbow to elbow with 851 per square mile and and even china with all its land mass is at choaked at 352). Just imagine 851 hungry and needy standing in a single square mile section of land! How do you properyl feed and care for such a mass of humanity? Now imagine that number skyrocketing to over a thousand in just ten years which it will at a 2% rate of growth! My feeling is at the end of the day, it will not matter how much money developed nations throw their way, the end result will be the same. So next time someone is on their soapbox spewing the need to this or that, ask them what the population of earth will be in another 20 years?

Story by Svitlana Dorosh
BBC Ukrainian Service, Kiev

Officials in Ukraine have closed schools for three weeks, imposed travel restrictions and are limiting public events as the country battles to stop the spread of swine flu.

More than 60 people are believed to have died of respiratory problems in the past week, and the measures are among the toughest to be implemented in Europe to tackle the virus.

It’s still not clear whether all the deaths were caused by swine flu, but the news has sparked panic, and people have started wearing masks across the country.

Appeal for calm

The Ukrainian health minister Vasyl Knyazevych has asked the media only to report the comments of medical experts following a series of misleading reports which fueled public anxiety.

On national television, he said Ukraine had the same problems as the rest of the world.

He also called on fellow politicians to give people ‘a week of silence,’ and said there was no need for panic.

However, his calls may already be too late.

255,000 cases of flu and acute respiratory problems have been registered among the 46m population. 15,000 have been hospitalized.

The World Health Organization says there is no evidence to suggest that Ukraine had a bad outbreak of swine flu, but it has agreed to send a team there to help the country cope.

President Viktor Yushchenko has also appealed for international help.

Government response

The government has faced growing criticism of its handling of the outbreak.

Some opposition politicians have been particularly critical of the health minister who they not only want to be sacked, but jailed.

Opposition politicians from the Party of the Regions say the first reported cases were at the beginning of October, but by middle of the month there had already been confirmed deaths.

They say the authorities should have provided accurate information about the outbreak so that Ukrainians could seek appropriate medical help.

Instead, the opposition says, many people have resorted to self-treatment.

Experts say Ukraine was unprepared for the swine flu outbreak, and the hunt for political scapegoats is likely to continue.

The opposition leader, Viktor Yanukovych, has called on parliament to scrutinize the government’s actions.

Investigation calls

The influential National Security and Defense Council has called on the judiciary to investigate why Ukraine was unable to prevent the outbreak.

President Viktor Yushchenko has even asked the country’s security service to look at whether pharmacies are guilty of price-fixing anti-flu medications. Critics have also rounded on Ukrainian television channels which they say have wall-to-wall coverage of Ukraine’s leading politicians, but not leading medical specialists.

This, they say, is exacerbating public concern rather than allaying popular fears.

Some analysts say swine flu is being used by the President and his arch rival the Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko to score political points ahead of presidential elections in January.

Supporters of Prime Minister Tymoshenko, who remains at bitter loggerheads with the President, say he is trying to blame her government for the situation.

Playing politics

Aware of the electoral sensitivities, she assured the Ukrainian public that she stood with them, and took “every responsibility for the government’s handling of swine flu on herself.”

“The world has given us not one, but two great trials – first, the financial crisis and now this horrible flu.”

Ukraine’s leading political analysts say the handling of swine flu has become one of the key electoral issues.

According to them, rival candidates are seeking to take the initiative in battling the spread of the virus.

“The swine flu outbreak has overshadowed all the other negative campaigning we were seeing, especially around Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko,” says Vitaly Kulyk, a political scientist at Kiev’s Centre for Civil Society.

“The main players are using the flu in their propaganda war,” he adds.

Appeals for help

Opposition leader Viktor Yanukovych, whose party is backed by Ukraine’s most powerful oligarch, has called on Ukrainians to donate to a special fund which was set up by his party.

He said he wanted to hold a TV marathon to raise funds to fight the epidemic.

The first aircraft to arrive in Ukraine from Switzerland carrying emergency medical supplies, was met by the country’s leadership.

They demonstrated how to put face masks on in front of cameras.

Many Ukrainians however, are asking why their government did not act sooner.

It was evident in May or June that swine flu was spreading around the world, they say, yet Ukraine failed to stockpile sufficient supplies of medication.

Only now, when Ukraine faces an epidemic of swine flu, has the government started to act.