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News & ArtsThursday, April 30, 2009
News Six Possible Cases of Swine Flu Found in Washington
Posted by Jonah Spangenthal-Lee on Thu, Apr 30, 2009 at 7:29 AM
So it looks like at least six of those forty possible swine flu cases the state health department's been investigating may be the real thing.
State health officials have announced they've found six probable cases of swine flu in Washington—three in King County two in Snohomish and one in Spokane County. The samples are on their way to the CDC.
Seattle Public Schools has closed Madrona K-8 until May 7th after a student became ill from a suspected case of swine flu last Friday.
In the last week, almost 100 cases of swine flu have been reported in 12 states, but only one death has been attributed to the virus.
Oh, and Joe Biden (maybe) doesn't want you to fly or ride the subway.
Vice President Joe Biden said Thursday that he would not recommend taking any commercial flight or riding in a subway car “at this point” because swine flu virus can spread “in confined places.” A little more than one hour later, Biden rushed out a statement backing off.
1
Oh, and to get this in, Yeah, yeah, it's all the meat eaters fault. (All this talk of pork is making me very hungry!)
If you're going to wear a mask, do it in style.
http://gizmodo.com/5234125/protect-yours…
If you're going to wear a mask, do it in style.
http://gizmodo.com/5234125/protect-yours…
3
We have no idea yet how lethal this virus is or isn't. With the kid in TX he was in the hospital for over two weeks before he died. We won't know the extent of the threat here for a couple of weeks, at least. In the mean time, it's best to air on the side of caution, and avoid contact with strangers. Bars and buses are a bad idea at the moment.
Hopefully in a week or two we will laugh this off as much ado over nothing. That would be nice.
Hopefully in a week or two we will laugh this off as much ado over nothing. That would be nice.
4
I will tell my boss I can't come in till mid-May at the earliest, because buses are a bad idea right now.
Cool.
Cool.
5
It's public transportation riders' fault. When will people learn not to use public transport? They should call it bus or subway flu!!!
6
i've been driving to work, and i'm definitely rockin a mask til this shit clears up.
starting....now.
starting....now.
7
How come no official has elaborated on ‘washing your hands’?
It isn’t a quick swish under running water – its at least 10-15 seconds of hard rubbing action with soap and hot water. Oh, and my mom says to always wash your hands after you get back home.
It isn’t a quick swish under running water – its at least 10-15 seconds of hard rubbing action with soap and hot water. Oh, and my mom says to always wash your hands after you get back home.
8
Two reasons not to worry.
1) This virus's replication genes aren't avian, so it's not likely to be very virulent.
2) It's not flu season here, so viral loads are likely to be very low.
Since virulence is proportional to load and replication rate, it's unlikely that this virus is going to be a big deal here at this point.
If it's still around by next flu season or if it mutates or is reassorted in host into something even more avian - then there's something to worry about.
1) This virus's replication genes aren't avian, so it's not likely to be very virulent.
2) It's not flu season here, so viral loads are likely to be very low.
Since virulence is proportional to load and replication rate, it's unlikely that this virus is going to be a big deal here at this point.
If it's still around by next flu season or if it mutates or is reassorted in host into something even more avian - then there's something to worry about.
9
If you're desperate for quotes from scientists talking about all the reasons they have to suspect that compared to an ordinary annual flu season, this swine flu may be less lethal and sicken fewer people, the LA Times has something this morning you would enjoy reading:
http://www.latimes.com/features/health/l…
http://www.latimes.com/features/health/l…
10
If the city's reaction to the Snopocalypse is any indication of how we operate under pressure, I think we'll be in for a real treat!
11
In other news, the perpetrators who engineered this deadly costly pandemic have been found -- Baconcat and Rob in Baltimore (among others), whose stubborn conservative refusal to stop consuming dangerous pig and bird carcasses threatens us all and will likely kill some of our loved ones.
Why are some people so resistant to stop the traditional redneck eating habits of their ancestors? Their insanity will cost some of us everything.
Why are some people so resistant to stop the traditional redneck eating habits of their ancestors? Their insanity will cost some of us everything.
13
Maybe we should start protesting lions for killing gazelle? It's good to be at the top of the food chain!
15
@11: I like to imagine you as Morrissey. You're pompous, whiny, and prone to slinging insults, with a shaky grasp of history. Plus, the image of Morrissey hanging out on blogs posting angry comments seriously amuses me.
16
Well, it was a good run. I m just going to walk into oncoming traffic to save myself the trouble of dealing with the flu. Sayonara!
18
Sing "The Alphabet Song" or "Happy Birthday" as you wash your hands, and time will go by like that! Plus, you'll cheer right up!
19
Abby #11, I won't deny being pompous, whiny, insulting, or an incredibly gifted singer-songwriter, but how is my grasp of the facts "shaky"? I am very interested to hear how you think I might be wrong.
20
what sucks is that it seems that most public bathrooms for men - restaurants, movie theaters, bars, radio stations, churches, alternative weeklies, etc. only have cold running water for mens to wash they hands in. for some time now i've suspected that most mens don't wash they hands after they do they business because the water is usually so damn cold. so mens, and the other peoples that love to do they business in mens bathrooms do us a favor and add alcohol based hand sanitizer to that regimen. and do like miss catalina says. sing ' the alphabet song' or 'happy birfday' while you do it. make the world a happier and safer place.
thank you
thank you
21
Hunting and meat consumption developed human intelligence.
http://www.oup.com/us/catalog/general/su…
You seem to make my case #11
http://www.oup.com/us/catalog/general/su…
You seem to make my case #11
22
#21, Our species evolved doing many, many immoral things -- rape, infanticide, slavery, murder, pillaging, pointless wars for dominance, etc. We are not a slave to our origins.
Are you actually suggesting we eschew all modern medicine, science, and culture to behave like our ancestors did millions of years ago? I don't believe in doing things just for the sake of being conservative and traditional.
Are you actually suggesting we eschew all modern medicine, science, and culture to behave like our ancestors did millions of years ago? I don't believe in doing things just for the sake of being conservative and traditional.
23
@19: how is it going to work, then? If we all, immediately, stop eating meat, what will happen? Where will the animals go? They'll still be there, and they'll still have diseases. Not to mention all the diseases that don't come from domesticated animals- we'll still have issues with TB, malaria, etc. As long as there are many organisms on this planet, we (and they) will have problems with diseases. Plus, you act like a flu outbreak is something new and novel, and that we as a species has never struggled with epidemics before. This will be costly in money and lives, but probably much less than it's been in the previous years of human history. And I've yet to see a viable solution from you other than "stop."
But I'm no scientist. I'm not even a scholar any more. I'm just easily annoyed.
But I'm no scientist. I'm not even a scholar any more. I'm just easily annoyed.
24
Abby #23, Animals bred for their carcasses are bred at abnormal rates and the population is artificially inflated. These animals don't live long, and they are bred in numbers matching the market demand for corpses.
TB, malaria, and other diseases are a separate issue, and their prevention mostly has to do with money. Bird and pig flu cannot be prevented no matter how much money is thrown at the problem. People will die from bird and swine flu unless social conservatives like those on this blog stop eating animal carcasses.
Unfortunately, it is very likely that the longer people wait, the more viruses will mutate and the more deadly they will be.
It is not very difficult to change people's eating habits. The food people eat in America today bears very little resemblance to any food people ate even a couple of generations ago. People just need to be informed that they are killing themselves and others, and that it is very important for them to stop eating corpses.
TB, malaria, and other diseases are a separate issue, and their prevention mostly has to do with money. Bird and pig flu cannot be prevented no matter how much money is thrown at the problem. People will die from bird and swine flu unless social conservatives like those on this blog stop eating animal carcasses.
Unfortunately, it is very likely that the longer people wait, the more viruses will mutate and the more deadly they will be.
It is not very difficult to change people's eating habits. The food people eat in America today bears very little resemblance to any food people ate even a couple of generations ago. People just need to be informed that they are killing themselves and others, and that it is very important for them to stop eating corpses.
25
22, It's not as if animals will stop existing if we don't eat them. Nor will people stop getting sick. Your arguments are just silly. I'm beginning to think that you are doing satire here, and are actually making fun of hard core vegans. Nobody could be as naive as you.
26
#25, Wild animals rarely if ever cause influenza outbreaks. Harvesting animals for food carcasses causing influenza to mutate and transmit to humans because of the methods necessary for this practice.
Yes, animals bred for corpse harvesting will "stop existing" if everyone stop eating carcasses. The animals that people kill for food next year don't exist yet -- they are intentionally bred to meet projected demand.
Yes, animals bred for corpse harvesting will "stop existing" if everyone stop eating carcasses. The animals that people kill for food next year don't exist yet -- they are intentionally bred to meet projected demand.
28
26, Animals in the wild do get sick, and they have passed it to people. Plague anyone?
Again, if you start protesting public transportation, I'll start taking you more seriously. Lets face it, you'd think eating meat was wrong no matter what the circumstances. For you, this flu outbreak is just an opportunity for you to push your out of touch animals are better than humans agenda. I'm a part of the food chain, just like lions, and sharks. It's good to be at the top of the food chain.
Again, if you start protesting public transportation, I'll start taking you more seriously. Lets face it, you'd think eating meat was wrong no matter what the circumstances. For you, this flu outbreak is just an opportunity for you to push your out of touch animals are better than humans agenda. I'm a part of the food chain, just like lions, and sharks. It's good to be at the top of the food chain.
29
#28, We are not discussing bubonic plague or malaria, which are caused by poor sanitation and easily cured and prevented for people with modern medical care.
We are discussing pig and bird flus, which are caused by people who eat animal corpses and support the harvesting of animal corpses.
Get over public transportation, please. I agree with you about public transportation during an outbreak. When light rail flu or bus flu mutates from the harvesting of cushy padded seats, we can talk about the origins of that.
We are discussing pig and bird flus, which are caused by people who eat animal corpses and support the harvesting of animal corpses.
Get over public transportation, please. I agree with you about public transportation during an outbreak. When light rail flu or bus flu mutates from the harvesting of cushy padded seats, we can talk about the origins of that.
30
29, People will get sick whether or not we eat meat or not. Vegetarians will be weaker, and less able to fight off infections.
31
Rob, you are being absolutely ridiculous. It is VERY WELL DOCUMENTED that people who don't eat animal corpses have stronger immune systems than carcass-eaters. It is partially why carcass-eaters die significantly sooner and have many more chronic diseases on average than people on a healthy diet.
http://stanford.wellsphere.com/vitamins-…
http://stanford.wellsphere.com/vitamins-…
32
@31: My family subsisted primarily on buffalo and lived to their 70s and 80s in the late 1800s and in the present day, living off mostly meat, live into their 90s and over 100. I have one relative over 100 who eats no vegetables except for two glasses of V8 a day, and my great-grandmother, who at 98 only eats zucchini and corn with her multiple portions of meat a day.
So you're full of crap.
So you're full of crap.
33
I can't wait for dinner tonight. I think I'll take a pork loin and stuff it with chrorizo, and truss it together with bacon. Maybe I'll put the whole thing in a tripe tortilla!
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