Fear, anger and fatalism over swine flu in Mexico

AP ^ | 04/25/09 | ALEXANDRA OLSON

[TigerLikesRooster]

societal collapse that’ll probably end up delivering a 50 to 75% death rate.

Sounds like old China under a dying dynasty.

[muawiyah]

The death rates associated with flu of any kind come in three varieties ~ (1) the death rate associated with age (this time it's the 18 to 45 group at risk), (2) the death rate associated with general background health (which would include prior immunizations, meat to bone ratio, possession of other diseases), and (3) the death rate associated with treatment of the ill.

No doubt folks who have no access to medicine who live in barrios without modern medical care, and who already have a bunch of other diseases, and are in the critical age zone are gonna' die at a higher rate than everybody else.

It is entirely possible that specific racial/ethnic groups may be at higher risk due to genetic factors.

In the end Mexicans who live in the United States may survive at far higher rates than their brothers and sisters in Mexico proper. Or, vice versa.

[txhurl]

Mexican Indians are essentially genetically Chinese/Mongolian...

[muawiyah]

Actually it sounds like the East Coast Indian tribes from 1646 to 1648. They started the period still in full command of the landmass and resources. At the end they were but 5% of their previous numbers and most became professional game hunters for the black and white immigrants.

Some of them didn't figure out that "things had changed" until 1675-78, a period that saw a war with the Cherokee in the South (which the Cherokee lost) and a war with a variety of tribes in the North called King Philip's War (which the tribes lost).

It has been convenient to blame these deaths on Spaniards with modern weapons, but the reality is that after/during a period of cooler, dryer weather you get your grass, you get your rats, you get your rodent and fowl borne diseases, and you get your vast, killing pandemics.

We are in such a period and the viruses are on the march.

[CAluvdubya]

OMG that's terrible! Pryers for your neighbor.

Several of my coworkers in a San Diego school came down with a terrible flu just about a month ago. Both ended up in the ER getting and IV due to dehydration but no pneumonia, thank goodness. I'm thinking it was a different strain and not deadly.

[muawiyah]

Not really. Your majority population in Mexico is pretty much of European and Middle-Eastern/North African ancestry. There's just enough Indian in there to get some religious groups excited, but they aren't in charge.

During the days of the Spanish Empire Mexico saw some serious immigration from the Philippines and other parts of East Asia controlled by Spain.

Someday somebody will work up a total average genome for Mexicans, but at the moment that's not available.

[TigerLikesRooster]

Right, this could turn into a serious demographic correction.

[PGalt]

Thread BUMP!

[thinking]

“We’ll know in a couple of days.”

You and I will know when a family member or a neighbor is sick....but until that point, the media will say very little, and governments even less....

[jersey117]

That was the big leading story on the local news here last night.

[Glenn]

the media will say very little, and governments even less....

The Internet, on the other hand, will keep the coverage on the front page.

[truthandlife]

It is just the opposite. The media is taking advantage of this. The media feeds on fear and they know that is how they sell airtime and newspapers. What is the coverage of the media during a hurricane.

Sometimes I think people on FR want to create fear just so they can get on here and be fearful of something.

[rabidralph]

Oh great! Yesterday, I bought a set of those yellow work lamps with halogen bulbs. As I unpacked the box, I noticed a bird feather under the plastic wrap and sitting on top of one of the lamps. Of course my tinfoil hat went on my head. I double-bagged the feather in Zip-locs and threw it away. The lamps are “made” by Plymouth Trading Co. in Minneapolis by way of China.

[HereInTheHeartland]

Can the flu agent (bug) survive on produce that may come from Mexico?
Or is a human contact thing?

[bergmeid]

If this thing gets out of hand, Republicans and pro-lifers in particular will get blamed for this since they have loudly objected to Sebelius becoming Health Secretary. The Department of Health has only an Acting Secretary right now. Look to the loony left to somehow blame the right. Can’t waste a good crisis, doncha know.

[more equal then others]

Just another reason to never go to the sewer known as Mexico.

[TigerLikesRooster]

I don't know that far.:-)

[Longdriver]

“have all the earmarx of coming from some entity engaged in bioterrorism,”

************

Wow, 20 posts before someone mentioned the elephant-in-the-room of ‘bioterrorism’.

This strain appears to combine an Avian strain with influenza A and influenza B and TWO Swine flu variants?! And “researchers have never seen it before!” Gee, I wonder why?

It’s clearly a bioweapon. Wonder who decided to test it on Mexico City? There aren’t many players who could pull off the development of such a weapon. It reeks of a “population control” bomb.

Watch closely and be prepared!

[jersey117]

Just another reason to never go to the sewer known as Mexico.

Wasn't Obama in Mexico recently? Gee, I hope he doesn't catch it.

[TigerLikesRooster]

If you are working on bio-terrorism angle, pay attention to those countries far away from Mexico, with capability to manufacture such a virus.