The Bird Flu is Comming! The Bird Flu is Comming!

[scaeagles]

Y2k Computer bug.

Ebola.

SARS.

I honestly believe all of this crap (of which I also consider the bird flu scare to be) is because of a bored and overexposed media. This is true in a few areas.

Scary news gets better ratings.

There are too many media outlets with nothing to report, so it makes for a good story...."what could happen if every nuclear reactor in the US melted down at the same time? Join our MSNBC team report tonight at 9:00."

Each news outlet is afraid that if they ignore something that could become big then they will look like idiots and can't claim to have "had the story first".

So....that's a rather long explanation of why, um....no. I will not be stocking up on everything.

[AllyOops!]

I can't believe I forgot SARS! I think I have that, too. And the Hanta virus. I just know it!

I don't like being freaked out.

[Disneyphile]

Originally Posted by scaeagles

Scary news gets better ratings.

You're precisely right. "If it bleeds, it leads." is not just a joke, it's seriously how news operates.

One time at the TV station where I used to work, it was a "slow" news night, so the producer asked me to help her call fire and police stations to ask for any fires or fatalities. And, no office had anything. She actually threw her hands up in the air and said, "I swear!! I wish someone would just die or something, so we have something good to broadcast tonight!"

I refuse to stockpile for a "news scare". However, I was raised to be prepared at home with a week's supply of food and water, just in case anything would ever go wrong - earthquake, personal illness, etc. That's more than sufficient to me.

My favorite "scare" of all time - the stockpile craze of plastic sheeting and duct tape. I so wanted to make a "portable safety system" version of it and sell the "kits" on eBay. It'd consist of a small clear plastic bag and a small roll of tape with the instructions: "Place bag over head. Secure tightly around neck with tape. Enjoy the safety from all airborne pathogens." Then, I would have saved the list of people who purchased them and submit it as potential recipients of the Darwin Awards.

[BarTopDancer]

Originally Posted by Disneyphile

I refuse to stockpile for a "news scare". However, I was raised to be prepared at home with a week's supply of food and water, just in case anything would ever go wrong - earthquake, personal illness, etc. That's more than sufficient to me.

That's what I do. But after Katrina showed we cannot count on FEMA I'm slowly stocking up for a month. That just means I have food in my emergency kit and extra dry goods in my pantry. If there was a really bad earthquake I'd pack my backpack and start making my way to my parents house where there would be enough food for a few months (just the way they shop).

Originally Posted by Prudence

I'm too busy worrying about the new albuterol shortage. Bird flu won't mean squat if I die from the common cold first.

What abuterol shortage?

[Prudence]

Originally Posted by BarTopDancer

What abuterol shortage?

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/...hcenter27.html

[BarTopDancer]

Originally Posted by Prudence

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/...hcenter27.html

That article doesn't seem like it's a reason to panic...

Albuterol may not be available on a day-to-day basis all month long at your usual pharmacy, for example, but another might have it. When it's tight, patients get only one container at a time and refill more frequently.

[Prudence]

Originally Posted by BarTopDancer

That article doesn't seem like it's a reason to panic...

Oh, I'm not in a panic. I'm just more panicked about that then bird flu. Not that it really matters to me, since I'm down to using my inhaler a couple times a year. Actually, my albuterol concern is more for the long-term. If I do get sick, I sometimes *need* an inhaler or I can spend my evenings in urgent care with the nebulizer thingy. I'm more concerned about a couple years from now when my current stock is no longer good.

(Although if it's anything like the way they handle flu shots around here, it's not at all like they say. If "your" pharmacy or medical center is out, you can't go to another one. Not even if you want to pay cash and forgo insurance. The pharmacies will only serve existing customers.)