See that's the problem... I am not in possession of enough facts to know what it exactly is or how to fix it. But then again is anyone in possession
of the full facts? It seems this disaster is already going the same way as Katrina with many more sinister twists and turns to come I am afraid.
No-one wants to fix it, everyones already passing the buck, pointing the finger and flubbing the figures in the pathetic attempt to take themselves
out of the spotlight.
This is not a time for the egos of the world, this is the time for mankind to admit it is human, it does make mistakes and use those mistakes to grow
and learn.
Instead we have this clean hands problem. Everyones washing their hands that hard to get rid of all traces of Bird Flu. Instead of going ok, we have
it here, what are the possible senarios lets fix them now with all cards on the table. No too busy pointing the finger at the origin of the leaks. Who
cares, its not important the big picture is what is important. facts have to be exact, no false positive or false negatives. Everything must be in the
open.
Trouble is I really think we are playing a deadly game with some card cheats around the table. Many are holding their cards close to their chest, many
have aces up their sleeves and many are just downright poker faced liars.
I see nothng but issues upon issues if it contiunes in this state of consciousness. Countries are being warned to have national guard and military
guard Bird Flu stocks and the answer to that move is simple. Not enough medication to go around, not enough hospitals, not enough help or relief. But
the issue still stands.
We have Australia at the same time pushing urgently, super urgently, rushing it through in fact, the new ant terror laws. Well Bird Flu is a terror
threat if I ever saw one and these new laws will and can be used to control the people in the event of a pandemic. Shoot to kill, detention without
charges all of it fits onto this disaster and once the legislation is placed i am sure the wording will be that abiguous that it will be able to be
simply used for the Bird Flu pandemic.
Then we have the thought at the back of my mind. Ok they may and I say may cos I have no proof, but they may have deliberately caused 9/11 or allowed
it to happen, push whatever so what is the possibility that this Bird Flu panic is part of the same grand scheme of conspiracy. Do we believe what we
read. See until we start getting eyewitness accounts we do not know for sure.
Is it really the disaster being called for as a mass cull or population control? Is this all man made and designed to change the face of the earth
with humanity numbers?
Then there is other thoughts, what if it happens but not as bad as expected, what if it happens as xpected or what if it happens worse than expected.
What to do. Do you prepare and look stupid in the face of the pandemic not occuring. Do you smile and say at least I was prepared or do you go about
life trusting that it won't happen., or trust that if it does it won't touch you.
The whole issue is brain frying material.
========================================================
News Update = World Response
A few News Story Links To The UN Conference and other efforts to combat the problem.
N calls for more efforts against possible bird flu pandemic
news.xinhuanet.com...
OTTAWA, Oct. 24 (Xinhuanet) -- UN officials Monday told a gathering of health ministers and politicians from 30 countries that they should do more to
contain the outbreak of avian flu and curb the risk at source.
"Our first line of defense should be attacking the problem at the poultry level," Dr. Alejandro Thiermann, adviser to the director general of
the Office International Des Epizooties (OIE), told the opening session of the two-day gathering as the avian flucontinues to rage.
ASIA HIT BY NEW BIRDFLU FEARS
SBS Australia
Meanwhile in Denmark, a key WHO official said Europe was well placed to combat the deadly strain of the virus.
"Ground zero in the war against avian influenza is Asia, not Europe, and Europe has an excellent chance of containing the virus," doctor Gudjon
Magnusson from the WHO's Europe division said.
The highly pathogenic H5N1 strain of bird flu found in birds in South-East Asia has been identified in four countries in WHO's 52-member European
region: Britain, Romania, Russia and Turkey.
"Through adequate preparedness and action Europe can avoid the situation we see in Asia," Mr Magnusson said.
Health ministers focus on bird flu
Indy Star
Canada has one of the most enviable national pandemic plans in place, with stockpiles of the coveted antiviral drug Tamiflu and an action plan among
provincial and federal health officials. Having learned from the SARS epidemic, which claimed 44 lives in Toronto in 2003 and cost the city $1 billion
in lost tourism, Canada is ahead in such preparations.
But Prime Minister Paul Martin said developed nations have an obligation to poorer ones to share pandemic plans, influenza testing and any drugs that
might ward off a global tragedy caused by a mutant strain of H5N1 avian flu, which already has killed dozens of people in Asia.
World officials debate breaking Tamiflu patent
USA Today
Some officials at the opening Monday of a two-day conference on battling a potential flu pandemic discussed whether they might have to break
international patent regulations to produce generic versions of Tamiflu — one of the only drugs effective against the virus — if it came down to
saving their civilians.
"A suggestion that's being made by some countries is that there are countries that have the capacity to manufacture the vaccine, that we actually
need to assist them with technology transfers," Canada's Health Minister Ujjal Dosanjh told a news conference. He said technology transfers was "a
euphemism for loosening the patent laws."
Bird Flu Conferees Call for Openness in Disease Reporting, Greater Vaccine and Antiviral Capacity
VOA News
An international bird flu conference has ended in Ottawa, Canada with a commitment to step up work to prevent a possible human pandemic. Health
ministers stressed the need for early detection of outbreaks and openness by nations in reporting them.
Health ministers from 30 countries endorsed a broad plan to stop avian influenza at it source. The host for the two-day meeting, Canadian health
minister Ujjal Dosanjh declares it a successful session that builds upon the World Health Organization's strategic plan for pandemic preparedness and
the U.S. international partnership on avian and pandemic influenza.
Have You Got A Silver Bullet?
Washington Post
Have you got Tamiflu? I haven't, but a friend of mine has. He proudly told me he scored a prescription for his whole family. Another friend is also
trying to wangle a prescription, even though there's no guarantee that Tamiflu will work. "It saved 80 percent of the mice in the laboratory
study," he said.
In case you haven't heard, Tamiflu is the antiviral drug that might, or might not, provide some protection against avian flu, the bird epidemic that
might, or might not, mutate into a deadly disease that humans can catch from other humans. Already there are reports that the virus that causes avian
flu has mutated at least enough to become immune to Tamiflu. Nevertheless, I predict a run on Tamiflu in this country, if only because Americans are a
pragmatic people. They have observed what happened after Hurricane Katrina. They have heard the president talking about deploying the military during
a pandemic. And they have guessed that, whatever their government is doing to prepare for the arrival of bird flu, it isn't enough.
Finally, Americans and their leaders will have to get over their love affair with intelligent design . Polls show that most don't believe in
evolution. But it is actually impossible to talk logically about bird flu, or any other rapidly evolving and constantly changing virus, without using
the language of evolution -- specific words such as "mutant," "recombination," "genome" and "selection." Without that language, a sensible
popular or political discussion, let alone a scientific discussion, is impossible: We're stuck talking about the virus "jumping" from birds to
humans, as if it were a magic bug with a mind of its own. We're stuck thinking that a virus is a hex that can be lifted with a single lucky charm,
not something that will change over time.
We're also stuck with magic solutions: silver bullets, protective amulets, Tamiflu prescriptions. And until we are willing to elect the politicians,
pay the businessmen, and support the scientists and science educators who can come up with something better, that, I'm afraid, is all the flu
preparedness we'll ever have.
Drug SHortage
Business Week
DRUG SHORTAGE. Moreover, the EU plans to hold a two-day influenza pandemic preparedness exercise later this year. The simulation of human influenza
outbreak will focus on collecting and comparing surveillance information across 25 member states. EU Health Commissioner Markos Kyprianou also
proposed setting aside $1.2 billion to purchase antiviral drugs and vaccines in the event of a pandemic.
Despite all the attention and action, there are signs that Europe is still ill-prepared for a possible pandemic. The World Health Organization
recommends governments keep stocks of antiviral drugs and regular human flu vaccines to inoculate at least 25% of their populations. Yet Kyprianou
concedes that "more than half" of the 25 EU governments lack sufficient stocks of antiviral drugs. European officials say the 25 nations in the EU,
as well as Iceland, Norway, and Liechtenstein, have only 10 million doses of antivirals now for an area of almost 500 million people and will have
only 46 million doses by the end of 2007.
[edit on 26-10-2005 by Mayet]
[edit on 26-10-2005 by Mayet]
