In Search of Spanish Flu

We have all heard about Spanish Flu. What we don't know is how we can use the lessons learned from the 1918 pandemic and use them to draw conclusions as to how our lives will be affected by the latest pandemic. Manufactered or natural, the human population is in for a bumpy ride. Those countries used to personal freedoms will soon be living under the yoke of tyranny - all in the name of a virus.

Origins
Where the Spanish Flu came from is not precisely known. It was called the Spanish flu because it was erroneously thought have orginated in Spain (due ot the high number of deaths there).
Some speculate that it originated in China.
Once source claims:

"The Spanish Flu actually originated in Tibet in 1917. As the armies of various nations moved across the continents the flu spread with them. Before long cases were showing up in Europe. When it hit France, it changed its character, becoming malignant as it was contracted by African soldiers who had been recruited into the French army.

After establishing a stronghold in France, the flu moved into Spain. Spain was a neutral player in the First World War. For that reason it had no need to censor the illness from its people in order to keep them focused on the war effort. The Spanish press, then, fully documented the illness, along with its terrible life taking effects on the human body."

www.essortment.com...

What is known is that in the early Spring of 1918, a mysterious and deadly flu made it's appearance in Kansas and in military camps.

First Wave
The first wave lost momentum during the Spring 1918, so many soldiers were dying and people suffering from the Great War the flu was largely ignored.

Second Wave
The second wave arrived in Boston in late autumn, early winter of 1918, soldiers were returning home and huge groups of people congregated to celebrate Armistice Day.

It was like a nightmare:

"The pandemic affected everyone. With one-quarter of the US and one-fifth of the world infected with the influenza, it was impossible to escape from the illness. Even President Woodrow Wilson suffered from the flu in early 1919 while negotiating the crucial treaty of Versailles to end the World War (Tice). Those who were lucky enough to avoid infection had to deal with the public health ordinances to restrain the spread of the disease. The public health departments distributed gauze masks to be worn in public. Stores could not hold sales, funerals were limited to 15 minutes. Some towns required a signed certificate to enter and railroads would not accept passengers without them. Those who ignored the flu ordinances had to pay steep fines enforced by extra officers (Deseret News). Bodies pilled up as the massive deaths of the epidemic ensued. Besides the lack of health care workers and medical supplies, there was a shortage of coffins, morticians and gravediggers (Knox). The conditions in 1918 were not so far removed from the Black Death in the era of the bubonic plague of the Middle Ages."

www.stanford.edu...

Aftermath
The death toll is estimated between 20 and 25 million people.

The most important paragraph you will ever read:

"In 1918-19 this deadly influenza pandemic erupted during the final stages of World War I. Nations were already attempting to deal with the effects and costs of the war. Propaganda campaigns and war restrictions and rations had been implemented by governments. Nationalism pervaded as people accepted government authority. This allowed the public health departments to easily step in and implement their restrictive measures."

www.stanford.edu...

Swine flu will be the catalyst for restrictions on your freedom. You will not be allowed to resist. Your neighbours, friends and family will turn against you if you do not take the vaccine. You will be branded a dissident and will be marked.

"San Diego, California city officials imposed the precaution that everyone had to wear gauze masks when within the city of San Diego. Masks of four-ply surgical gauze which were tied around the mouth and nose were given out to all residents of the city. Not surprisingly, the law was less than popular with the local citizenry. Holes would be cut in the masks to enable people to smoke. Women would wear the masks as a veil, letting them hang loose around their necks. Civil libertarians fought the law on the grounds that it was unconstitutional. The penalty for disregarding the law was a fine of one hundred dollars and thirty days in jail."

www.essortment.com...

What to Expect
Restriction on personal travel - at first it will be country to country, soon town to town, and finally house to house.
www.bangkokpost.com...
Schools and workplaces closed.
www.reuters.com...
news.cnet.com...
Food restrictions and shortages - nobody working means shops will be empty and/or closed.
Some animals are being destroyed.
www.foodmanufacturing.com...

Mob violence and breakdown of society as we know it.

I am not worried about H1N1 ... I am worried about my child's future and the loss of his freedom when he has to struggle to live under the new laws that will be passed during and after this pandemic.


[edit on 22/7/2009 by deltaalphanovember]

Makes for a worrying read really doesn't it?

How much can we learn from looking back at the 1918 Flu?We can see,looking back,the effects on the social and economic structure on which we are forced to rely....we know we're in for a very rough ride and it appears there's nowhere to run to.
It's all utter pants really isn't it?We're not even being given a fighting chance.....we're drowning in legislation,greed and a large jot of apathy.

I wonder if anything was learnt about the actual virus from victims of the 1918 strain who were exhumed in 2004 and 2007

I hate to think what i've brought my children into

Wow, some awesome researching and information there, thank you! If any of this comes to pass, we are gonna be in for some really horrifying times. As much as I'd like to believe things wouldn't reach that point, when our governments are already talking about closing schools and not allowing suspected flu sufferers on planes, theres every chance this could snowball to the extreme. I certainly want to be prepared for any eventuality, even if some people would label me as paranoid for that.

(Will S+F when I get home, my work internet limits what I can do!)

reply to post by TheLily


Seeing as H1N1 appears to contain elements of the original Spanish Flu, it seems our scientists learned TOO much and have created a Frankenstein monster.
There is, however, the possibility that the current flu is merely an evolution of the original Spanish flu:

The virus responsible for the Spanish flu in 1918 created a ‘viral legacy’ that continues to this day, according to a study published recently in the New England Journal of Medicine.

www.nhs.uk...

reply to post by JennyJen


Thank you Jenny, I sometimes wonder how we can prepare ourselves properly ... will we be allowed to stockpile food etc.?

I have heard of laws in the US, Zimbabwe and Cuba that prohibit stockpiling under certain circumstances. Does anyone have more info on this?

Why? Why would the US prohibit stockpiling? Does the UK have any such laws?

reply to post by deltaalphanovember


I know that supermarkets can limit the quantity of a product that a consumer is purchasing.Not sure if there is a blanket restriction in special circumstances?Will let you know if i find anything out,hopefully someone will have some answers here.

I personally always have a back-up stock of stuff because 'you never know'(which i dreamt about burying the other night...weird!)and i've taken certain other 'sensible' precautions ........(well,i'm hoping i never have to experience how sensible i was/should've been)
Once a girl guide,always a girl guide!

I knew that supermarkets tend to limit how many items you can get that are on offer, but limiting stockpiling totally? That's some scary stuff. I guess all we can do is get an early start, before they implement these measures and make an independant life near impossible. Doesn't hurt to have the provisions to become self sufficient if the worst were to happen.

Another thing that concerns me, is that there are relatively few of us on ATS that are concerned about which way the swine flu could turn. With the amount of people on this forum, and the popularity of other boards, (such as the UFO one), I'm surprised that more people aren't looking into this abit more. Could it be that we are looking into this too much and blowing things out of proportion or is it just a matter of time before other people 'wake up' to it?

[edit on 22-7-2009 by JennyJen]

reply to post by JennyJen


As I see it, there are two views:
1. H1N1 is actually more serious than being reported and their will be a second more deadly wave during the Northern Hemisphere winter.
2. H1N1 is merely a fast spreading mild flu - in which case, why are governments spending billions on vaccines - money which could be better used to recover their economies?

ATS does tend to cultivate a certain amount of paranoia ... but as far as I see it, we only have to start really worrying about H1N1 when the reported death toll starts exceeding 1% of cases.
Or when everyone who took the vaccine starts feeling the side-effects. That's another thread entirely.

Originally posted by deltaalphanovember
why are governments spending billions on vaccines - money which could be better used to recover their economies?

That's an aspect I haven't really thought of before but that does ring major alarm bells. It works in nobodies favour (aside from pharmaceutical companies) for this to be blown out of proportion, like some think it has. If anything, the Government should be downplaying it so that they don't have to pay out these billions on a vaccine. Which begs the question, why are they 'playing along' if there is no threat? This is a major point that everyone in the world should be asking. There has to be an ulterior motive for all of this than is officially presented.

reply to post by JennyJen


Jenny, I tried to follow the money ... a trail that led to some rather interesting results. For example Baxter ... one of it's major shareholders is Goldman Sachs.

Goldman Sachs was bailed out by US government and is now making record profits. Goldman Sachs is also said to:

"Goldman has its alumni pushing its views from the pulpit of the U.S. Treasury, the NYSE, the World Bank, and numerous other important posts; it also has former players fronting major TV shows. They have the ear of the president if they want it."

ATS Link

Obama owned stock in Baxter. Baxter was involved in the following:

What has Baxter done? During Feburary 2009, it was discovered that a Baxter sub-sub-contractor in the Czech Republic called 'Biotest' had experienced a contamination of the bird flu (H5N1). It was subsequently discovered that this contamination included co-contamination with human flu (H3N2). The infected material was provided by Baxter. THIS SHOULD NOT BE POSSIBLE if Baxter is following BSL3 (Biosafety Level 3) procedures. This mere fact alone is grounds for immediate criminal charges and indictments against Baxter executives for criminal negligence. Furthermore Baxter claimed 'trade secrets' and refused to comment! Now: a 'coinfection' of H5N1 ('bird flu') and H3N2 ('human flu') in animals or people is extremely dangerous.