Are You Scared Yet?

Scared yet? Bush yesterday proposed using the military to enforce quarantines in case of an outbreak of Avian Flu.

Here is what he said:

Bush stated, "If we had an outbreak somewhere in the United States, do we not then quarantine that part of the country, and how do you then enforce a quarantine? When -- it's one thing to shut down airplanes; it's another thing to prevent people from coming in to get exposed to the avian flu. And who best to be able to effect a quarantine? One option is the use of a military that's able to plan and move."

The following story imparts the bad news epidemiologists were fearing:

Bird flu jumps transmission barrier in humans

By Tom Clifford, Assistant Editor

Published: 1/10/2005, 07:48 (UAE)

DUBAI - Bird flu has broken the transmission barrier and jumped from human to human, according to the World Health Organisation.

Most cases have been bird to human but transmission between people increases fears of a global pandemic.

The acknowledgement came on a day when the organisation had to backtrack on the number of potential deaths forecast from a bird flu pandemic created by widespread human-to-human infection.

Dr David Nabarro said on Thursday, less than one day into his new role as the UN coordinator for global readiness against an outbreak, that measures taken by the world today would determine whether bird flu ended up killing five million or as many as 150 million people.

The figure of 150 million deaths was quickly played down by the WHO yesterday.
"There is obvious confusion, and I think that has to be straightened out. I don't think you will hear Dr Nabarro say the same sort of thing again," WHO influenza spokesman Dick Thompson told a news briefing.

The UN health agency said it has warned countries to prepare for a death toll of up to 7.4 million.

The 1918-19 'Spanish flu' outbreak, the most lethal flu pandemic so far recorded, claimed 50 million lives, far more than the 15 million killed in the First World War.

But the flu has jumped the barrier of human-to-human transmission.

What would such a quarantine do the already precarious economy if goods and people were prevented from moving in and out of large regions?

Remember when Bush’s people claimed that one of the books he would pretend to read during his vacation was a book on the 1918 flu epidemic? Were they trying to tell us something? How about all those mysterious deaths of microbiologists?

Earthquakes and volcanoes are on the rise. Storms are getting more severe and some even think that hurricane landfalls can trigger large earthquakes. Meteorites are starting to fall like rain. Could it be that we are entering a period of cyclical catastrophe? Could it be that people in power know this? Could that be why they have put massive control systems in place and have been steadily preparing people to accept it with the phony terrorism scare the government-sponsored anthrax mailings, the planting of peak oil stories, etc.?

How about this story?

Deadly bacteria detected in US capital during anti-war march

AFPSun Oct 2,12:54 PM ET

A deadly bacteria listed among bioterrorism agents was detected in the US capital last month during a mass protest against the Iraq war, a top health official said.

District of Columbia Health Director Doctor Gregg Pane told WTOP Radio late Saturday that biological agent monitors on the National Mall, an esplanade in downtown Washington, gave positive readings for a small amount of tularemia on September 24 and 25.

The sensors are operated by the Department of Homeland Security, but officials were not notified of the potential hazard until Friday, according to Pane.

"We've stepped up our surveillance and have notified doctors in the area about what to look for," Pane told the radio station.
...The Washington Post reported Sunday that national security officials believe the bacteria was probably not intentionally spread.

"There is no known nexus to terror or criminal behavior. We believe this to be environmental," the paper quoted Russ Knocke, spokesman for the Department of Homeland Security, as saying.

But federal health officials remain on alert for outbreaks of the disease far away from Washington because of the numbers of visitors to the capital last weekend.

Thousands of opponents of the war in Iraq from all around the country converged on the National Mall on September 24.

Organizers put the number of participants at more than 300,000, while police said, unofficially, the protesters probably numbered a little over 100,000.

How about the strange stories of mass deaths of birds and strange smells coming out of the ground and lakes? Is this something to worry about?

If you are interested in these types of things and want a one-stop site, updated daily where you can follow such stories, I recommend the Signs of the Times page. It’s more than fear-mongering, you can find constructive suggestions on what to DO about it all as well. Sure, your friends may call you paranoid, but wouldn’t you rather be prepared for what is to come than be taken completely by surprise? Ignorance is not bliss and knowledge protects!