The Swine Flu Returns
 Tuesday, April 28th, 2009 by Connie T.
Ah, fear-mongering...where would we be without it? Here is a clip of comedian Mark Day
attempting to "fight bacon with bacon"...how else to combat the swine flu epidemic? If nothing
else it's worth it to witness the faux Scottish accent (although it fooled us!) and the crown of
bacon protection. Though we don't recommend, of course, fashioning a similar helmet for yourself...spare
the piglets!
All joking aside, the swine flu frenzy - akin to ghosts of mass media's overboard past
such as the Avian bird flu, mad cow disease, E-coli, Y2K (see illustration) - is an influenza, but
though hospitals in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Spain, New Zealand and Israel have all reported
cases of the swine flu, its "outbreak" has caused only mild symptoms.
There have been only 64 cases
reported in the US (40 laboratory confirmed) according to the CDC, and primarily
in NYC: 10 were in
California, 2 in Kansas, 45 in New York City, 1 in Ohio, and 6 in Texas. That's pretty much nothing
compared to the regular flu, and since the symptoms here are mild, I might actually prefer it. Regardless, the
CDC advises checking alerts before traveling, covering your nose and mouth with a handkerchief when you sneeze or cough,
washing your hands well and often, and avoiding sick people.
|
RSS Feed
