Swine Flu

EastWallGirl

Not quite sure to post this but

That swine flu came out fo nowhere.

Flights are still leaving the country.

What effect would a flu pandemic have on the economy?

1. It would reduce unemployment all over the world

2. Those that survive are more likely to get work and in the way of those that survive will reproduce and consume (both could be seen as life affirming).

Do we need to decrease the population to kick start the economy?

Maybe this should be in conspiracy theories.

gerry28

Hi

I don't know much about this swine flu, its only one of many. But mother nature is not going to tolerate an ever increasing global population forever. Some form of correction will take place eventually.

The stats are frightening. In the last 50 years the global population has doubled to 6.77 billion. What will happen in 2 or 3 hundred years. Can the earth cope with 30 billion people or more.

Is their a politican answer? I doubt it...

EastWallGirl

Ah but Gerry this is where politics comes in. Was it a politcal / economic decision.

That being said the bubonic plague shifted the balance of power to the people so it could be a good thing.

Moriarty

Unless your sole professional ambition in life is as a manual labourer, a flu pandemic is not what you're looking for. A pandemic will obliterate the world economy and wider society.. it's not hard to imagine social order completely breaking down in many countries.

I'd say any skilled sector of the economy would be destroyed by the deaths of skilled labour and people in critical industries, even if society as a whole managed to keep it together. How many doctors can we lose before the health service collapses irrevocably? How many engineers can we lose before power and telecoms networks collapse? Small numbers of deaths, large impact. That's what we get for living in an increasingly complex and interdependant society.

gerry28

That being said the bubonic plague shifted the balance of power to the people so it could be a good thing

Roll on the bubonic plague then so

is_that_so

At best there is a very tenuous link to politics in this and one I really can't see. Biology and Medicine or even Economics, at a push, look like better homes for this. I was tempted to suggest CT.

mike65

I thought this might have been about the FF "massiv" coming down with something

Nodin

EastWallGirl wrote: »

Not quite sure to post this but

That swine flu came out fo nowhere..

Nope, Texas, then moving down to Mexico. Americans will rush to volunteer alternative states that would have qualified for "nowhere".

EastWallGirl wrote: »

Flights are still leaving the country.

What effect would a flu pandemic have on the economy?

1. It would reduce unemployment all over the world

2. Those that survive are more likely to get work and in the way of those that survive will reproduce and consume (both could be seen as life affirming)...

1 - How do you run the power station when the personell were -by stroke of bad luck - heavily hit by the disease? With no power, no factories run. Therefore unemployment increases.

Heisenberg.

This post has been deleted.

The Raven.

mike65 wrote: »

I thought this might have been about the FF "massiv" coming down with something

Gosh! How could you possibly associate Swine Flu with Fianna Fail :eek:!!
No! Definitely someone else's fault !!

Daithinski

Argentina declared a health alert, requiring anyone arriving on flights from Mexico to advise if they had flu-like symptoms. As far away as Hong Kong and Japan health officials stepped up checks of sickly travelers.

I wonder if Ireland is doing this?

Considering the stupidity and incompetence of the people who run this country I somehow doubt it.

No doubt when half the population is wiped out from swine flu, the government will set up a tribunal to investigate what happened.:p

mike65

Iodine tablets?

The Raven.

There are two confirmed cases in Scotland, one in Spain, and tests have been carried out on four suspected cases in Ireland. The symptoms are said to be similar to the normal flu, so how is one supposed to know if it is swine flu? There is a lot of flu about. We can’t all go running off to the doctor with a sore throat and a runny nose.

Ireland was very efficient in dealing with the Foot and Mouth crisis. I would say that we are well prepared for this situation if it happens.

Earlier today, the Department of Health said the State has stockpiled enough antiviral drugs to deal with the threat of swine flu.

Dr Tony Holohan, chief medical officer of the Department said the stocks of antivirals cover "almost 50 per cent of the population.”

There is enough Tamiflu, a drug taken orally, to treat 25 per cent of the population and enough Relenza, an inhaled medication, to treat 20 per cent of the population over the age of seven.

In a statement released this afternoon Dr Kevin Kelleher, head of health protection with the HSE said: ”We haven't seen any cases in Ireland as yet, but it is important to be prepared for any possible cases that may arise”.

“This is an evolving situation and it is likely that more countries will be affected over the coming days,” he added.

This morning Spain became the first country in Europe to confirm a case of the H1N1 virus when a man who returned from a trip to Mexico last week was found to be infected. Two people in Scotland were confirmed as testing positive for the virus tonight.

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2009/0427/breaking37.htm

Akrasia

The Raven. wrote: »

There are two confirmed cases in Scotland, one in Spain, and tests have been carried out on four suspected cases in Ireland. The symptoms are said to be similar to the normal flu, so how is one supposed to know if it is swine flu? There is a lot of flu about. We can’t all go running off to the doctor with a sore throat and a runny nose.

Ireland was very efficient in dealing with the Foot and Mouth crisis. I would say that we are well prepared for this situation if it happens.

The RTE news is reporting that we have "2 million doses" of antiviral drugs. http://www.rte.ie/news/2009/0428/swineflu.html

Now correct me if i'm wrong, but a dose is one tablet/injection and is pretty useless by itself, and a course of medication could involve dozens of doses.
2 million doses could be medication for 50 thousand people (how many members of fianna fail are there?)

hallelujajordan

Akrasia wrote: »

The RTE news is reporting that we have "2 million doses" of antiviral drugs. http://www.rte.ie/news/2009/0428/swineflu.html

Now correct me if i'm wrong, but a dose is one tablet/injection and is pretty useless by itself, and a course of medication could involve dozens of doses.
2 million doses could be medication for 50 thousand people (how many members of fianna fail are there?)

/me heads out to sign up for FF and get my free antivirals

Moriarty

Akrasia wrote: »

The RTE news is reporting that we have "2 million doses" of antiviral drugs. http://www.rte.ie/news/2009/0428/swineflu.html

Now correct me if i'm wrong, but a dose is one tablet/injection and is pretty useless by itself, and a course of medication could involve dozens of doses.
2 million doses could be medication for 50 thousand people (how many members of fianna fail are there?)

I think that's a clumsy error by whoever wrote the story. Afaik, there's 2 million courses of anti-viral medication in stores.

sneakyST

I would be concerned that if there was an outbreak - and doors had to be shut - 90% of SME's wouldnt have a business continuity plan. It would be a big nail in the coffin for our economy thats for sure

Thirdfox

I'm currently in the US (potentially bad) but in Atlanta, home of the CDC (centre for disease control) - one of only 2 places in the N. America where they can test for this (the other one in Canada)...so overall I'm good. I'm more worried about when I return to Ireland in a few days

jmayo

Moriarty wrote: »

Unless your sole professional ambition in life is as a manual labourer, a flu pandemic is not what you're looking for. A pandemic will obliterate the world economy and wider society.. it's not hard to imagine social order completely breaking down in many countries.

I'd say any skilled sector of the economy would be destroyed by the deaths of skilled labour and people in critical industries, even if society as a whole managed to keep it together. How many doctors can we lose before the health service collapses irrevocably? How many engineers can we lose before power and telecoms networks collapse? Small numbers of deaths, large impact. That's what we get for living in an increasingly complex and interdependant society.

Did the world's socities all crumble in 1918/1920 when the last great flu pandemic "the Spanish flu" spread and killed approx. 40million people world wide ?
Granted a lot of the Western developed world was screwed anyway at the time and we were not as technologically electrically dependent in those days.
Then look at the the plus side we had a huge bubble afterwards in 1920s followed by another bust.

mike65 wrote: »

Iodine tablets?

Where is JOe Jacob when the country needs him ?

Akrasia wrote: »

The RTE news is reporting that we have "2 million doses" of antiviral drugs. http://www.rte.ie/news/2009/0428/swineflu.html

Knowing the HSE they probably have 2 million vials, but only 500,000 needles which are disposable :rolleyes:

Thirdfox wrote: »

I'm currently in the US (potentially bad) but in Atlanta, home of the CDC (centre for disease control) - one of only 2 places in the N. America where they can test for this (the other one in Canada)...so overall I'm good. I'm more worried about when I return to Ireland in a few days

If it starts going pear shaped, instead of coming back here go to some country with good healthcare system e.g Canada, France, NZ, Australia, Cuba, Finland etc, etc, .... Iraq, Afghanistan and then all else fails come home to Ireland

Drumpot

When you hear 36000 people die in the USA each year from the Flu, it sort of puts this into perspective.

Nothing to say that this will turn out to be disasterous, then again, the way the press promote fear in all levels of society, it appears nothing would make the media happier . .

BertrandMeyer

I lost the link, sorry, but this is kinda scary:

PYONGYANG (Reuters) - The Western world was in shock today as it emerged that the lethal swine flu pandemic was possibly started by North Korea.

It seems that Kim Jong-Il's missile development program was not intended to give Korea any sort of nuclear power, but to infect the US with swine flu. Mexico is believed to be the 'testing ground' for the disease before it spreads to the US, whether via Mexicans or by another biological missile. The swine flu virus (H1N1) is not actually the standard form that spreads around pigs, but a new strain that is easily transferrable to humans in body.

dresden8

BertrandMeyer wrote: »

I lost the link, sorry, but this is kinda scary:

At least the public sector wasn't blamed. We're at least a half notch above Kim Jong Il.

Woo Hoo!

Moriarty

jmayo wrote: »

Did the world's socities all crumble in 1918/1920 when the last great flu pandemic "the Spanish flu" spread and killed approx. 40million people world wide ?
Granted a lot of the Western developed world was screwed anyway at the time and we were not as technologically electrically dependent in those days.
Then look at the the plus side we had a huge bubble afterwards in 1920s followed by another bust.

How many people depended on food delivered over long distances in 1918? Over half of the world's population now live in cities, there isn't much opportunity to go back to growing veggies in the field out past the back garden these days. If enough haulage drivers get sick, supplies dry up. If enough ESB staff get sick, power outages result in not being able to pump petrol out of the petrol station's tanks, food goes off while there's no electricity to power refrigeration and communications networks fall apart.

It's not necessarily going to happen this time, but when a pandemic with a serious strain of flu hits it will cause far more problems than most people realise.

BertrandMeyer wrote: »

I lost the link, sorry, but this is kinda scary:

Lol, and where did you find that piece of comedy gold? It wasn't on reuters

flag123

gerry28 wrote: »

Hi

I don't know much about this swine flu, its only one of many. But mother nature is not going to tolerate an ever increasing global population forever. Some form of correction will take place eventually.

The stats are frightening. In the last 50 years the global population has doubled to 6.77 billion. What will happen in 2 or 3 hundred years. Can the earth cope with 30 billion people or more.

Is their a politican answer? I doubt it...

you are right, i agree, i think what china are doing now is great, one child per family..it may take awhile but it will be worth it later on...
Human population is far to big...there should be restrictions everywhere for amount of children..

If the WHO has raised the alert level for swine flu could they not just close the doors for awhile to prevent further spreading??...

conchubhar1

http://imgur.com/27K39.jpg

dont click the link if you dont like mild bad language, in humour

Drumpot

dresden8 wrote: »

At least the public sector wasn't blamed. We're at least a half notch above Kim Jong Il.

Woo Hoo!

Only a half now, dont get too excited . . . :P

oscarBravo

Doesn't look like becoming a Politics topic any time soon.