World Health Organization director Margaret Chan said the current pandemic alert level will remain at the highest possible — phase 6. Chan said the WHO may revisit the decision in July.
Why does this woman still have this job and why are we listening to her?
For Kindle and with free ePub version. Only $9.49 Great reading.
Here is what Gary Shapiro CEO of the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) said: Dvorak's writing sings with insight and clarity. Whether or not you agree with John's views, he will get you thinking and is never boring. These essays are worth the read!
Subscribe to Main Blog feed here:
Subscribe to Comments too (below):
Bad Behavior has blocked 4472 access attempts in the last 7 days.
There never was a pandemic. It actually was slightly less lethal than some strains in recent years. Just another in a string of Obie failures.
I’m not really sure how bad H1N1 can be. I got my vaccine last year because flu and diabetes don’t mix well.
That said and just to play devil’s advocate, the first wave of the “Spanish Flu” of 1918 did not seem more virulent than normal influenza. It was only when it returned a year later that it became devastating.
http://tinyurl.com/mzwyvy
So, have we seen H1N1 come and go? Or, have we only seen the first wave?
I’m not qualified to say and don’t want to attempt to make the case. I just want to remind people that flu does mutate quickly, hence the need for a new flu shot every year when other vaccines last much longer.
“That said and just to play devil’s advocate, the first wave of the “Spanish Flu” of 1918 did not seem more virulent than normal influenza. ”
Untrue. The 1st recognized wave was in Kansas spring 1918. It started as a killer. The mortality rate didn’t increase over the next year and a half.
As I stated, H1N1 isn’t a more deadly than the “average” flu. In fact it is less so, by far.
“From the start, most confirmed cases of H1N1 influenza were mild, and the death toll of 13,000 never approached the 36,000 Americans who die during a typical “regular” flu season.”
HUGE scam.
“Why does this woman still have this job and why are we listening to her?” – JCD
Because she is doing exactly what she is told to do, you listen because the main stream media controls what you hear if you are a sheeple.
Anon==how can you tell the difference between a scam and a real and present threat that simply does not materialize? “If” vaccines could be developed and made available in 6 hours, there would be no need for a threat level warning, but such is not the case. Lead time for effective vaccinations is 3-6 months.
YOU calling the start of this pandemic a scam is overstated without your supporting evidence/thinking.
bobbo asked, “Anon==how can you tell the difference between a scam and a real and present threat that simply does not materialize?”
By carefully studying the medical reports and forensics coming out of the 1st countries that were “hit”. Something any literate person was able to do at the time… I don’t exist to do your thinking and researching for you.
All I know is that one whole freaking elementary school was hit with the flu and was shut down. What are the odds of the whole school having to shut down because there were so many kids sick with the same illness?
And what about the number of people that die from it. Sure, it’s nothing like 100 or 1000 but a life is a life. And if that life was lost to H1N1 then shouldn’t you be concern? What if that was your child? Would you rather wait until death tolls are higher to react?
Sure maybe the level may have been too high, but maybe just maybe it was because people acted when they needed to.
As usual, the flu activity moves to the southern hemisphere for the winter season there.
Something that non- science nincompoops would never notice.
Anyone expect parochial patent leather skeptics would read scientific reports? Absurd.
#8 Exactly. Most listen to the news then dutifully run around in circles screaming. Did anyone here notice that during the height of the scare, Obie I hadn’t even had his children vaccinated? Probably not…
#8. What about all the “scientists” who called bullshit…are they just dismissed? Let’s just see how disastrous this becomes down south, and you can report back.
Anon–my recollection is that the first countries to be hit were Mexico rapidly followed by USA. That Mexican hog farm town had a number of these new cases that were feared to be under reported and the same flu was turning up in several places in the USA. It was a new form of flu not the seasonal variety.
From your careful study of these early facts what tipped you off that a concern of a new virus spreading was a scam?
Booboo asked, “…what tipped you off that a concern of a new virus spreading was a scam?”
I never stated that. I’ll continue the dialog once you have convinced me that you are literate. So far, the evidence is against that proposition being true.
Anon–so at the end of your post #3–what were you referring to as “HUGE scam?” I thought it was the subject of this thread and the general tenor of your comments that “There never was a pandemic.”
Heh, heh.
So many blowhards, nothing real to say. Sad.
Anon==perhaps its the medium you have chosen? The crucible of give and take, the WRITTEN record right there as a touch stone?
Perhaps you look better on twitter?
Recognizing that the media are like sheep running in a flock and repeating what each other say while trying to add to the hyperbole I did an on line search looking for hard numbers while the disease was still largely limited to Mexico.
The numbers and data coming our of Mexico suggested that a lot of people were getting sick but the only people dying where already at high risk for some reason and didn’t seek medical help in a timely manner. The percentage of deaths was way lower than the hype suggested.
Further checking of the lit suggested that older citizens, especially those who had been getting annual flue shots for a long time, weren’t at much risk if they were otherwise in good health.
If you did start to run a fever with H1N1 seek medical attention immediately otherwise treat it like seasonal flue and stay home and do the usual.
As for a school or school system closing due to flue that isn’t major news and has happened more than once with seasonal flue.
If too many students and teachers get sick at the same time you shut the system down for an extended week end and open back up when more teachers will be available and the subs can carry the extra workload with enough students present to make keeping the system open more than a waste of money.
That doesn’t mean anybody working at or attending the school system died. It means a lot of people got sick at the same time.
#15 Exactly.
deowll–thanks for supporting the definition of pandemic: a lot of people getting sick. Yes, its only a certain type of sub-intellect that will call “HUGE scam!” after the event is over and the stats are in. My memory is that the older folks actually had a partial immunity and it was the younger healthier types that were dying from the first wave.
Well, given Anon’s miserable track record, I’m almost ashamed to still wonder if the popular rumor at the time that “the Spanish flu came back much stronger in its second year” was true or not. Given Anon says it is not true, it probably is? And that gives credence to the WHO wanting to keep the Status Light Lit in the rest of the world.
hahahahahahaha.
Anybody got a tissue?
Having worked in the Hong Kong health sector for over a decade, Margaret Chan was always regarded as a joke.
She never had an original thought, but simply stuck to the party line, repeating whatever she got told to say.
Many clinicians still blame her ostrich approach as one of the main reasons why SARS got such a serious foothold in the territory, before it was taken seriously.
The WHO of course helped cover this up in its official record of events, which is perhaps why she is now working for them.
So we were all very happy to see her shipped off to the WHO, but never dreamt that she would be given such a prominent post.
The old adage about the cr@p floating to the surface, was certainly true in her case…
Isn’t it now flu season in the southern hemisphere?
#3 Anon,
I gave a link to my source. Where’s your link?
# 3 Anon said, “…the death toll of 13,000 never approached the 36,000 Americans who die during a typical “regular” flu season.”
Even more pertinent when you remember that most of those 13,000 dead were simply ‘attributed’ to H1N1. Very few were actually tested for this particular strain of the virus. I suspect many (most?) may have died from complications of the plain old seasonal flu.
# 19 alanlee said, “Having worked in the Hong Kong health sector for over a decade, Margaret Chan was always regarded as a joke.”
I have an old friend who is a leading epidemiologist with the WHO. I wish I could share with you an email he sent me when she was appointed to this position. He is usually a very calm and studied academic but this message was so filled with vitriol not only at her lack of ability but the many eminently qualified people who were passed over to hire Cho. Including my friend although he never considered himself a serious contender as he was planning to retire.
WAIT!!!!!! H2N3 is right around the corner and will infect everybody if we don’t have an emergency crash program to halt the certain pandemic!!!!!
Remember you heard it here first!!!
#23–Animby==hah. that reminds me of earlier times when I was with a group of 4-5 “Admin Assistants” all performing at low wage looking for recognition for good work and advancement into junior management. We all made fun of “Chickenlips” who “we knew” had falsified his resume via puffery mainly but consistent with that was usually wrong and shortsighted in his long range planning but never in doubt. His key attribute: never disagreed with upper management and looked good in a suit. Three of six got selected for promotion and Chickenlips became VP two years later. Yes, the Peter Principle was on full display while the rest of us commiserated: “Why can’t we just tell the Board what they want to hear?”
So I wondered if Margaret Chan looked good in a suit? Not the same way Chickenlips does but she does appear to be willing to say anything that is asked of her.
Nice connection here where she advocates for Global Warming as a serious health threat:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=NaPxgp-l-Uk
Nothing changes as our spiraling descent into the abyss continues.
# 26 bobbo, “Nothing changes as our spiraling descent into the abyss continues.”
Oh, Bobbo – how much I enjoy disagreeing with you. Can’t do it here, though. So, I’ll disagree with Howard, instead.
# 25 Howard Beal said, “…Influenza pandemic of 1918–20? 50 million dead! probably more…”
Probably less, Howard. Most people who die of influenza do so because of secondary bacterial pneumonia. In 1918 we didn’t have penicillin.
WHAT???? Animby–you “disagree” with me? That can only mean you think things are even worse? THATS not a real disagreement.
But yes I also enjoy our disagreements. I look forward to when you do have the time. Anon could learn from it: reasonable, factual, polite. Good thing you have a lot of fur given that you lead the pack.
They are warehousing the excess Swine Flu product in former Katrina trailers. The ones that had the AC option. Soon those air conditioning units will be powered by recycled oil skimmed from the Gulf.
By Halliburton.
I’m in shock, awe and disgust with you people. When this whole thing was happening I seemed like the only person that was against it and purely from the point of making sure it’s tested and safe. And I was pretty harsh.
Now, it appears everyone is against it and NO one is for it and yet I find myself defending it because I happen to believe that one life is just as important as many lives.
You people sicken me more than this whole ordeal. Period.
Animby #28
# 25 Howard Beal said, “…Influenza pandemic of 1918–20? 50 million dead! probably more…”
Probably less, Howard. Most people who die of influenza do so because of secondary bacterial pneumonia. In 1918 we didn’t have penicillin.
So maybe less, the next time the virus might be worse and take people out before secondary infections and we are seeing more penicillin resistant bacterial every day my point is still sound.