Remember H5N1 (Avian Flu) or SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) or how about even MRSA (Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus)?
What do all three of those diseases have in common? Well they were all over-hyped by the media and subsequently dropped when the bigger, better story came along.
Currently there are no confirmed cases of H1N1 (Swine Influenza) in Georgia, but think about the repercussions an over-hyped story could play on a small town.
Now not to discredit the intelligence or ability to discern truth from fiction of a smaller city, but Hart County is home to a large older population—one of the groups most at risk for suffering complications from influenza.
The 2007-2008 Flu Season
These are the facts. There have been deaths associated with the swine flu. No one in the United States has died from swine influenza. In fact, most of the people in the US who have had confirmed cases of the influenza recovered without severe complications or hospitalization.
There are confirmed cases in Canada and there have been deaths in Mexico, where the coverage first started. At last count there were 6 confirmed cases in Canada.
The United States has reported 68 cases. How has this number jumped from 20 to 68? Because doctors are looking for it.
Swine influenza does not present symptoms atypical of any other influenza strain. Swine flu is being treated like Paris Hilton all of the coverage none of the depth.
How do journalists decide what’s newsworthy, and what can be made newsworthy? I don’t feel that swine flu is a newsworthy story. It’s not Mad Cow disease.
Swine flu is the natural progression of influenza. With several strains floating around globally at any given time always mutating and always affecting people, I don’t understand why this strain is getting the headlines.
People die from influenza every year. In 2004 when the US was short on vaccines the nation went into a mad panic. The year we had more than enough vaccines, the flu got no more than a blip on the radar.
I remember an old saying, “And this too shall pass.” Video on my opinion of H1N1 on CNN iReport
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You make good points here. Although we now have confirmed a swine-flu related death in the U.S., the 23-month-old child who passed away was Mexican and seeking treatment in the U.S. Swine flu can be serious for some people, but one thing you almost never hear is that lots of people who have contracted the illness in the U.S. are recovering without medical treatment.
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