Human to human. It appears to be much more transmissible than bird flu, but a lot less deadly.
You are mistaken, tell that to the families of young *healthy* adults in Mexico city that have died, more everyday (from complications, pneumonia). Much more transmissible? Umm, a lot of birds were killed in Asia...entire chicken population in Hong Kong area, IIRC, millions upon millions slaughtered, and plenty of people in Asia died from SARS too. All well and good to be glib Merc, until someone you know becomes the 1st to die in the USA, *then* you start paying attention.
Hey, AIDS ain't my problem, those gay people get it from unprotected sex...sure, not your problem, great line of thinking. You pay for medical insurance? Then it *is* your problem...unless of course you are wealthy enough that you don't care. As pointed out in some of the articles, if huge numbers of people get sick (don't need to die) it could further strain and already teetering health care system of every increasing costs, potentially slowing down any recovery from the recession. Does that then not effect most of you?
Right now, it's an unknown by the experts, they cannot give you definitive answers. Supposedly, if it makes it to pandemic stage, not much can be done until a vaccine is produced, perhaps 6 months from now at the earliest.
And some of you won't take a flu virus vaccine shot anyway, just ask jtr.
My father doesn't take flu shots, due to coming down with Guillain-Barré syndrome as a complication of a nasty cold virus he got from attending a professional business/political interests conference in Sacramento. IIRC he was on a ventilator machine in the hospital for a week @the peak of that illness, could have died. Now he's a risk to my mother, lol because he has no protection from contracting a flu virus. If he catches the swine flu, in his weakened elderly state, he just might die from it too. No skin off Merc's back of course, he's relatively healthy/stronger.
Guillain-Barré Syn
http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/gbs/gbs.htm
I got my pneumonia shot & flu shot last Fall, early; because I was training my mother to pass the mandatory drive test, and did not want to end up killing her (elderly and in very weak/frail state) by transferring some germs I pickup while shopping, then transferring to the steering wheel.
I always use the wipes at the supermarket; if you saw how filthy some people are--- along with their children, you'd likely do the same to avoid getting their sicknesses. Sick people should stay home *always*, and employers show encourage that!
