"Mid October" - you mean right now?

The purpose of ever bureaucracy is self-increasing.
As of lately all sorts of government bureaucracy found that their grip on our collective throat was tight enough to pump our money into itself at double to ten-fold rate.
People used to revolt at medieval times over much smaller abuses. How low do the modern people have to fall before they do something?

At a gathering in my house last week, two of my friends said they were getting sick of the ‘pandemic' training they had to take part in at their workplace.

Ever since a Canadian bureaucracy was set up in the wake of SARS, they've had to justify their existence in an international context.

Tragically, like much of today's fear-charged atmosphere, the Chicken Littles of the world have ascended, thanks to nothing more than ‘we care.'

The Chicken Littles rarely see their worst-case scenarios come true. Rather than admitting their fears are unfounded, they spew platitudes like ‘it's better to be safe than sorry.'

Pandemics. Global warming. Both are products of the same mentality ... identify the worst-case scenario and prepare for it through bureaucratic means.

But the priests are never wrong! They have a direct connection to the source. Who are we, mere plebes, to question those wise and learned the very ones who wear the white lab coats?

Ah the religion of science, gotta love it!

I rate H1N1 right up there with West Nile Virus, SARS, and Mad Cow Disease. These are all diseases which were pumped up by politicians and the State Run Media without justification. They were important health matters to be sure, but should not have warranted the massive attention and, frankly, false hype.

Aaron has it pegged, I think. These issues are deliberately blown out of proportion to justify continued and new budgets for bureaucracy-building.

One more fact brought out at the gathering.

H1N1 is a virus.

I'm no expert and please fact-check me if I'm wrong, but vaccinations are largely ineffective against viruses.

Bacteria, yes, but not viruses.

Here's what Snopes has to say about the H1N1 virus:

http://www.snopes.com/medical/disease/swinefluinfo.asp

Forget H1N1 - isn't today the last day that we have to act on climate change before we all die? I forget - didn't write it down.

SYF - vaccines do work against viruses, and having had influenza with a superimposed bacterial pneumonia that would have killed me without antibiotics - I get my flu shot every year now. I'm sure you've heard of the controversy regarding Gardasil, a vaccine for young women to prevent HPV (human papilloma virus) -> cervical cancer.

These people are dangerous. When an actual pandemic comes along, who is going to believe these guys when they make the call.

The best bet is to simply discuss health matters with your doctor, not take cues from your workmates or the news. It's called common sense.

set you free at October 19, 2009 1:28 PM:

It is antibiotics that are usually effective against bacteria, but not against viruses.

The earliest vaccinations actually were targeted against viruses.

Is this just the WHO which is guilty of hyteria - or is their hysteria well calculated and they are pimping for big Pharma which sells billions of doses of useless vaccine to governments?

It has been a slow and steady decline to this point. ER's are filled with people who are paranoid and think only the government(health care) can save them.Now where would they get that idea?

The H!N! scam is one of many.

syf...it's anti-biotics that are ineffective against viruses.

And BTW...when you get a chance read the label on the Tamiflu box, and the next time someone tells you to take it 'just in case'...think for our self.

Waiting for our resident MD's to comment here.

set you free said; "I'm no expert and please fact-check me if I'm wrong, but vaccinations are largely ineffective against viruses."

I'm not an expert either, but I think you are thinking about viruses not being affected by anti-biotics.

Thanks, guys, you have jogged my failing memory.

Right. It's antibiotics that are ineffective against viruses.

No, vaccinations are ineffective against global warming. That's why we MUST ACT NOW!

Global warming is one of the biggest scam foisted on the people of the western societies.

That would be biggest socialist scams.

All this caring from the folks who want population reduction ... I don't get it!

Bwahahahahahaha....told the better half 4 months ago this was just a piece of sh1t and a fear mongering tactic. I suggest everybody tell their DR to take the h1n1 flu shot and shove it up their own rectum.If you want the NORMAL seasonal shot,go for it.As has been suggested here,follow the bucks.

I believe that the first known vaccination (the word was derived from the Latin word 'vacca' (cow), since it used the virus of a milder form called 'cow pox'), was against smallpox, which is caused by a virus.

Government agencies covering their (and the politicians') behinds = boy who cried wolf = turned off public that won't pay attention when and if we really do get a pandemic.

I've taken to referring to the most recent 'pandemic' as Monkey-Avian-Swine-Sars Hysteria. It seems to have opened a few minds at work.

the pioneer of crisis creation is John Snobelen, the dropout appointed edjukashun minister under mike harris, the CONSERVATIVE premier of ontario.

any of you remember that news item? some sort of pep rally thing. it was all over the news. just need to (quoting now) "create a crisis" in order to shake up (or was it shake down?) the teacher's federation, school boards, the whole shebang.

The current campaign to 'teach' the public how to curtail the spread of whatever flu is going around is missing a couple of important points, which it would probably be politically incorrect to state.
First, something should be done about the filthy habit so common in our society of spitting on the sidewalk, not only because of the real possibility of spreading flu, but also because of the more dangerous possibility of spreading the newer, more virulent strains of tuberculosis.
Second, people should avoid using public transportation during the flu season for obvious reasons.

Calling it a "pandemic" is misleading, too. There are different levels of meaning to the word. On one level it simply means an epidemic that occurs across a broad geographic area, which given our modern day interconnectedness with air travel around the globe, etc., means it would apply to almost any outbreak of a communicable disease. On another level, and I think this is what most folks believe, the word can mean a massive outbreak of the disease. Just because it occurs all over the world doesn't mean that massive numbers of people are gonna die, though. This isn't 1919. They seem to be able to develop vaccines on demand in the 21st century.

re. set you free @1:24 - A prof I know is having to submit plans to the University concerning what he'll do in the event of a swine flu outbreak; apparently it's never occurred to anybody before that some student might get, you know, sick, and need to re-write an exam. Yeesh.

(Now if it were me, I'd be demanding that everyone be issued Hazmat suits. I fear I will never work in Acedemia.)

Wake me up when it's Ebola.

One would wonder how Obama's socialized medicine is related to SARS, H1N1 'bird' flu and H1N1 'swine' flu scams.

Do you see? All these scams were run before his election.

The dude has been given scenario and told 'you live as long as you read from it'.

Then election was manufactured (remember those electors, who are under no obligation to vote in any certain way, but have families and bills?)

This thing is bigger and is going on behind the scene, and everybody on all sides of political spectre is buying this BS for a real thing.

$20 says that one person makes decisions in the world, the same one who owns everything. Now you can sling poo at me, I don't care.

See? I can't even spell Academia.

You mean never miss an opportunity to prepare for a potential crisis, right? Because if health authorities had done nothing you'd all be whining and complaining how 'scientists' obviously didn't see this coming.

Sigh

Mark, you call this preparation?

Here's an experiment for you. Call your fire department, and ask them how many biohazard suits they have.

Hamilton fire department has five (5) one-shot biohazard full coverage suits. Use-once-then-burn variety. I asked.

So far, the preparations consist of preparing to -let you die-, Mark. Although the cops have been doing some trial runs for quelling riots at hospitals and such.

As to actual swine flu occurrences, my hospital spy network reveals that there -are- more cases of pneumonia than "usual" in the hospital, and they are younger than usual. So yes, you could get pretty sick. Some people are.

But, this is not reaching epic proportions. So most likely you won't get that sick.

Also in answer to Set You Free's question above, vaccinations are the -only- treatment available for viruses at this time, other than Tamiflu which doesn't seem to do much in a lot of cases.

Antibiotics target bacteria, as others have mentioned. Pretty much nothing targets viruses except the human body's own defense mechanisms. The vaccine gives your immunity a head start on the virus.

Full disclosure, The Phantom is NOT a doctor, nor do I play one on TV. I just know a bunch of doctors, and they tell me things. Things like "drink plenty of water, wash your hands, and don't lick the handle of the shopping cart."

Am 66 years old....have never had a flu shot............and never will......hard to believe the hysteria out there in some quarters but then again maybe not. So few people take the opportunity to educate themselves about a topic that has potentially serious health implications.

Gee I'm starting to get the feeling someone is trying to scare me.

Bio-hazard suits? Are you serious? There is a large difference between getting people vaccinated as well as pushing public health campaigns to increase awareness of reducing viral transmission of the flu - and freaking biohazard suits. This is swine flu, not hemorrhagic fever. yeesh.

Also: Anti-viral drugs
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antiviral_drug

Cheers,
Mark (M.D.)

A number of years ago when flu shots were being introduced a local radio personality made much ado about getting his flu shot while on the air. The next several days he was not on the air. He was home, sick, with the flu.

His little experiment worked for me. I've never had a flu shot nor do I foresee having a flu shot in the future.

As many have noted, it is not just that this pandemic has fizzled into nothing. It is that it joins a constant stream of potential and imminent disasters that have failed to appear.

Sure, the powers-that-be should inform and prepare for emergencies but not this over-the-top fearmongering. When reading the comments in the flood of "prepare to die" MSM articles, you observed people so afraid of H1N1 that they were willing to entertain all sorts of ideas - mandatory vaccination, school closings, travel bans, even criminal charges and refusal of medical treatment for non-compliance. There was a notable absence of calm, mature voices coming from the media, opposition parties or government agencies to counter these irrational fears.

It's sad to see that there is no longer any stoic voices of reason to prevent mass hysteria in the event of a real threat.

Remembering 1976 ... why not re-use the ads?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3YCTnbRgm8

I'm so afraid........not!

"Bio-hazard suits? Are you serious? There is a large difference between getting people vaccinated as well as pushing public health campaigns to increase awareness of reducing viral transmission of the flu - and freaking biohazard suits. This is swine flu, not hemorrhagic fever. yeesh."

You must be joking..right? Don't you understand millions are going to die! Maybe even gazillions! Or more than likely, not as many who will die this year from complications from acute nasopharyngitis!

It's interesting to contrast the things to be afraid of about which we were warned, vs things we should have been afraid of about which we weren't warned, read collapse of the US financial sector in late 2008

"Wake me up when it's Ebola."

Hey, I saw that movie... I think.

I remember getting my swine flu shot the first time it came around back in the 70's. It worked... almost everyone got it. This was back in the cold war days and everyone on base was herded into a hangar and inoculated with a glorified air gun. We were all told to keep quiet lest the red horde get wind of it and launch a preemptive strike. Only thing new is that now Russia has even faster missiles.

"Pandemic" does not by definition mean "severe", it means "very, very widespread".

I recall seeing WHO reports on the coming flu season that made that very point, which other people promptly ignored.

Never let a crisis go to waste as one of Obama,s cronies say. If there is nothing create it.

Got the flu shot today but was told I have to get the H1N1 also. We have a disabled g/son who has 24/7 care. Head honcho of firm supply the workers said, if a client does not get the H1N1 shot, no workers will be allowed to work with said client. All the workers must also get the shot. If we don't get it, will not be allowed to associate with g/son.
To get this shot we will have to travel at least 2 hrs one way, wait for shot then travel back home.
No clinic to be held in our town. Over 700 people, many seniors who don't drive, no bus service, taxi service, or any public transportation. How are they to get there.
I think it is all another hoax, like global warming, mad cow, and Y2K.

As several have noted the parrellels with AGW/Y2K/sars/avian flu/swine flu and failed to note the WHO/IPCC/OIL FOR FOOD agencies.
WHO banned DDT to justify it's existance and continue funding.
IPCC was setup to examine AGW---no AGW---no funding----DUHHHH
Connect the dots---follow the money----

Erik

End of the world today? I'm out; time for "end of the world sex" with the closest chick to me;)

Homez, awesome, I'm signing out too then!

I work in the healthcare system, and I am extremely tired of all of the hysteria involving all of these communicable diseases. If all of the info I am receiving is correct, bio hazard suits should be a concern. One of the questions on one of the community perparedness questionaires was: Does your community have temporary morgue space available and temporary foster care available for orphaned children? That doesn't sound like someone trying to scare someone, does it?

You've got the money and we'll create a problem we can throw it at to protect you from this imagined problem.

The way of bureaucracy.

Hey Mamba, how YOU doin? It's the end of the world and...

We should all be paying attention to Maryt. Since 'rights' is a big issue with lefty governments, why does Mary not have the right to spend time with her grandson? Why is there no 'right' to refuse the flu vaccine, especially in light of the fact that it has not reached the severity that WHO was 'warning' us about?
Too much government control over our bodies, folks!
Health care workers are not allowed to work in some hospitals in Ontario if they choose to not have the vaccine. There is not enough evidence to support using it, and we have no info on the long term affects of annual doses.In fact it is time to gather info on the people that got sick after having the flu vaccine. I have seen it, but due to patient confidentiality I cannot repeat my observations.
Wake up people.And backoff government!

My father survived the Spanish flu in 1919 as a child. 'Twas the time long before antibiotics and all they had for a "cure" was to drink gin and go to bed and sweat it out. He always claimed it was a hell of a way to go...drunk in bed.
No flu shots for me. Been there done that once and I was sick for a month.

Does this help?

1889-H2N2
1900-H3N8
1918-H1N1
1957-H2N2
1968-H3N2
1977-H1N1

Who manufactures the vaccines? Someone is making good coin supplying government world over.
Whatever said company it is ,the CEO probably is or was head of WHO and probably is a loyal Democrat.
Point being its an incestous situation at these levels.

1947-1956 H1N1 similar to the 1977 H1N1 after 27 years of replicating???

set you free at October 19, 2009 1:28 PM
vaccination: viruses
innoculation: bacteria

And influenza vaccinations DO NOT make people sick.

From the Tulip Mania, South Sea Bubble to Y2K to Y2KyotoAGW to Swine Flu Elbowla to ?

The Germs are coming, the Germs are coming, the Germs are ......

Kate Xmas says, just in time for Yule.
"Many have suggested people bump elbows rather than shake hands to cut down on the transfer of germs."
...-

"Canadians Pass up Handshakes
Kate Yule

A new poll suggests a number of Canadians are skipping handshakes and hugs because of concerns over the H1N1 flu.

The Canadian Press-Harris Decima poll found that 60 per cent of the people surveyed have declined to touch others over fears of catching the virus.

It also found that one-third of those polled said they would be less inclined to shake hands. A vast majority also said they would not be offended if someone refused a handshake or a hug. Just over 1,000 Canadians were surveyed for the poll.

People around the world have been urged to cut down on their contact with others. Many have suggested people bump elbows rather than shake hands to cut down on the transfer of germs."
http://www.cfra.com/?cat=3&nid=68729

Mark said: "Bio-hazard suits? Are you serious?"

What, did you miss the uproar when Indian reservations up north were shipped large amounts of alcohol based hand cleaner and a large supply of BODY BAGS?

This is supposed to be 1917 all over again Mark. 30,000 to 90,000 deaths by mid October, right? (That's -now- Mark.) And yet, no heavy duty protective gear for hospital staff, cops, firemen, ambulance crews, etc. Not even paper paint suits and latex gloves.

Uptick in hospital funding for opening more beds even? Nuh uh. Strictly business as usual.

So no Mark, I'm not kidding. If this thing was actually worth worrying about, the plan is to let the lowly peasants die. That'd be us.

Good thing its a tempest in a teapot, eh?

news flush

"""1947-1956 H1N1 similar to the 1977 H1N1 after 27 years of replicating???"""""

1956 was when I was sicker'n a dog, thusly I should have lots of natural protection this time around:-)))))

Indy @7:59 - so, just to be clear, we're talking literally the end of the World, right?...

And you would call me in the morning?

And you will be bringing the fedora, right?

Sorry. Honestly, I think we're basically too rich and healthy and well-fed and intra-structured as a society to all die of the flu. I always assumed that the post WWI epidemic had to do with how... well... scr*wed up Europe was at the time; but I'm certainly willing to defer to the knowledgeable. Anyone know different?

infra.

I tend to ignore anything emanating from the World Hysteria Organization and most doctors that I know have a similar opinion of WHO. I'm no more worried about H1N1 than I am about any other strain of influenza that has been around recently.

The situation with influenza vaccine this year is quite bizarre. The regular vaccine for the predicted strains is already out but we've been told to only vaccinate people over 65 and to not give the vaccine to ourselves. We're supposed to wait for the H1N1 vaccine which might be out in November. Usually I give myself an influenza vaccination every year because:
(1) influenza is no fun to have and
(2) losing 2 weeks of income is a huge financial loss especially as I have to keep on paying my office overhead while I'm off sick.

This year I haven't decided and have ordered a few courses of Relenza which I'll use if I suspect I'm coming down with influenza. Antivirals for influenza are very effective but the key is to start them as soon as possible once one has influenza symptoms. People that get treated less than 24 hours after developing symptoms have a very good chance of terminating the infection. The last time I had influenza I awoke at 04:00 with chills and severe myalgias and found my oral temperature to be 104 F. I managed to get myself to my office and grab some relenza samples and felt perfectly normal when I woke up the next day. Thinking it might have been a weird dream I held off on the next dose and was rewarded with more chills and myalgias and finished up the 5 day course of the antiviral. In my case I started the antiviral within about 1.5 hours of developing symptoms and totally avoided an unpleasant 1-2 weeks of influenza. I have no personal experience with Tamiflu and think that Relenza is theoretically more effective since it is an inhaled antiviral and the lungs are the initial location of influenza virus replication; there's nothing like targetting the place with the highest viral concentrations.

The other key to avoiding influenza seems to be keeping ones Vitamin D levels up. Most influenza epidemics strike when population vitamin D levels are minimal and since I read this paper a few months ago I've been prophylactically taking 5000 IU of D3 daily. For anyone who plans on taking this dose, get your 25 hydroxy Vitamin D levels checked 2-3 months after starting this level of D3. It is safe in 99% of people but there are always a few who develop far higher Vit D levels than one would expect on this dose.

Based on Vit D levels, I'd expect Vancouver to be hard hit by influenza this year as not only is there little sunlight, but the majority of people there have been brainwashed to use sunscreen when they do go out and the level of vitamin D deficiency there is enormous. People who will do the best are the long term residents of the BC interior who haven't yet been exposed to sunscreen and whose vitamin D levels are orders of magnitude higher than in Vancouver since they spend a lot of time outdoors during the summer.

Thus far I've seen one case of influenza and 2-3 possibles. Doctors in BC have been told to NOT do viral swabs for cultures anymore whereas we were supposed to send samples from anyone we suspected of having influenza this summer. I'm sure the numbers will pick up in the next 2 months like they always do.

If people don't get the influenza vaccine they should be prepared to take one of the antivirals immediately on developing influenza like symptoms. That only applies to the self-employed; for those who work for the government, influenza is a 2 week paid holiday.

Mom: Brian you need a flu shot!

Moi: Why? Wife (now ex) and kids already had it.

Mom: Because you could get the flu and make them sick too!!

Moi: If I get one of the flu types that are rolled into the 'flu shot' vaccine (this year) then they won't get it anyway. If I get type not covered in the flu shot then none of us are covered. We all may get sick.

Mom: You should get it anyway!!!!

Moi: Yes mom. (no thanks doc)

loki, not really a 2 week paid holiday. I work in health care. A co-worker has been off sick since mid-August, and will be off another couple of weeks at least, until starting a back-to-work. Viral pneumonia, (H1N1 perhaps), taking a severe toll on an otherwise healthy individual.

1956 was when I was sicker'n a dog, thusly I should have lots of natural protection this time around:-)))))

Posted by: GYM at October 19, 2009 10:06 PM

Gum

The vaccinated in 1977 you missed........

"And influenza vaccinations DO NOT make people sick."
Certainly we can't get the flu from the vaccine, however, since the vaccine is acting on our immune
system, is it possible that a compromised immune system lowers our body's effectiveness to fight off the other micro-organisms that we are exposed to?
In our department of 9 hospital employees, 5 were very ill with flu-like symptoms within 2 weeks for minimum 3 days after getting the vaccine last year.
Kinda defeated the purpose which BTW it is to save the hospital paying out sick days.
And one employee who had a mild allergic reaction to the vaccine in the past became extremely ill post vaccine, this after being interviewed by an MoH beurocrat who informed him he was not allergic, and must be vaccinated.

I refused, was told I couldn't work because there were 2 cases of known flu in our hospital.
I could keep working only if I took Tamiflu before the shift.It made me ill.
So I stopped taking it.

I am a part-time employee loki...no work, no pay.

And I did not get the flu.

Loki, what are you recommending for pregnant women, due in early February?

Some have been told to absolutely get the H1N1 shot. Some are being told to take it especially if they are in the early stages, but, that it might not be so essential in the later stages.

Thanks.

Ich bin ein flu shot.

MSM pumps up the mass hysteria haox/fraud/scam.

Calling up the reserves: "and Cape Breton, N.S., has padded its health ranks with more nurses."

McFlu: Billions Served.
...-

"Sense of urgency rises over flu vaccination

>>> A woman receives a flu vaccination in the German city of Mainz on October 7, 2009. AFP/Getty Images

Mass flu-shot clinics being set up across the country

Canada is preparing for its largest vaccination campaign ever by setting up mass H1N1 clinics across the country: At least 300 will be set up in Toronto; schools and community centres on Vancouver Island are on standby for extra space; and Cape Breton, N.S., has padded its health ranks with more nurses."
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/sense-of-urgency-rises-over-flu-vaccination/article1330067/

Currently about 7 people in my ICU on ventilators with confirmed H1N1-probably been 12 so far this fall on vents, but this is a regional hospital. Almost all of them are in their 30's. I think something like 200 students here at the college have tested positive for H1N1 but none on vents so far-most of them in their early 20s or late teens. Funny...not what you'd expect.

A window into the left-liberal world.

WHO pays for this?

Liberalism is a mental disorder.
...-

"BC's top medical health officer calls for crack-inhaling rooms
Globe and Mail"

And just think, if Obama had closed the US/Mexico Border for just 3 weeks we could have avoided this catastrophe.
,

Maz2 noted "BC's top medical health officer calls for crack-inhaling rooms"
The supposed purpose being to reduce the (very high)AIDS infection rate amongst crack addicts.
They freely admit they have no idea why it's so much higher than the normal rate of infection.

Mmm... how about sex with infected individuals and using infected needles, for other drugs? No, they're pretty sure it's from passing around contaminated crack pipes...

loki :
You brought up an Interesting point. If Dr.s loath the hype so much, which I concur. Who are the people behind all the chicken little act? I have yet to see a real Dr on TV act in panic over this flu.In fact all the ones Ive listened to said no more people are dying than is usual from influenza. The only difference here is it hits young babies harder. We had it before. So there must be some innate immunity, since most died from it in the early 20th century did not live to breed. As for new strains that happens to all flus. Frankly I will listen to Physicians not politicians. Who always have a hound in the race, or one ready to run.
Just rubbing palms together to make more money or power from a runaway problem.
JMO

Currently about 7 people in my ICU on ventilators with confirmed H1N1

Posted by: asweepay at October 20, 2009 9:06 AM

Good to see your watching your patients and not blogging.

News Flash...you are using the computer at work, 'cuz mom won't buy you one at home?

a lot of people I hear talking confuse colds with the flu.

as in 'I had the 24 hour flu on the weekend'.

uh, nooooo you didn't, influenza is 20 times worse than a simple cold from what I hear elsewhere.

that being the case I cannot say if I have ever had the flu. the *real* one. there are some years I don't even get a head cold. THAT I can attest to.

my immune system must be one tough s.o.b. plus if I feel a tickle in my throat I do the following:
- brush teeth lots.
- lots of mouthwash.
- plenty of fluids.
- lots of sleep and quiet activity.

I take 500 mg vit C every day year 'round.

I once read a book 'The Mighty Atom' about a turn-of-the-century strong man who sold health remedies in his old age and who fiercely advised against consuming meat loaded with preservatives, and sugar laden foods since it was food for the germs already in your body.

werks fer me !!!