Are you scared of the new strain of swine flu?  

The Stand is one of the few movie adaptations that didn't disappoint me! That was a great movie, and I've read the book twice. Yes, it's possible that's what is going on and it is eerily similar, isn't it? Have you read "Cell", also by Stephen King? A signal through cell phones turns people into zombies with all the ensuing intrigue and mysterious plots. I remember thinking all through the book how possible it would be!

A lot of people would think you and I were crazy but I think your idea is valid. How else could 3 strains of flu join up like this, especially 3 who affect different species?

Well,it real did happen .They pick a town in the east and they try out some of their germ war fair out on them.How else do the know its works.I read all of kings books.

Oh--just had to chime in here....LOL I have to admit I'm not a real big Stephen King fan but did read his "Cell" which creeped me out. Something like that in real life could be all too easy to happen in reality...just get the right frequencies of waves and transmit them via the cell phone system and bingo..instant zombies. One real reality is that countries like China and Russia are tapping in our electric grid system

I know our care is better here--it's good in Mexico, but only if you have the money to get it. I don't see how these three strains that affect 3 different species could combine so conveniently but I know stranger things have happened. It's just that we have a new prez and our borders are like sieves and it's just too convenient for it to be chance. However, I hope you are right!

Be careful about over protecting yourself, Gerty. If your body has nothing to fight, your immune system won't be up to it when you finally do get sick. It's tough when you're caring for others and don't want to take a chance of infecting them, but I really think we're generally too phobic about germs.

Thanks for making a couple of very good points!

I wonder why the search feature told me there was nothing found on the flu--they really should improve that dumb thing!

I never find anything when I search for a discussion. I did not add that I am pretty resistant because I live in a dirty house. I have always been pretty healthy, unless I get very stressed. I walked in to work Monday morning and four of my nine clients were ill.A lot of it seems to stem from sinus and spring time allergies. It just weakens them then they get sick. I have been to the doctors offices and pharmacies quite a bit this week.

Janet's not going to close the borders. She wouldn't fix them when she was governor of Arizona (I lived there) and she won't close them now. She likes them as they are--swiss cheese!

Janets ast.....I can not stand her almost as bad as I can not stand Nancy. These friggen Democrates are killing us. I am so gad I am 60 bcause if I was 40 I would really be worried alot more.

You're right about our immune systems being compromised, it's because of all the antibiotics and our general phobia of germs--everyone is manic to protect themselves against everything.

It might be a scare. Yes, the media likes to keep us scared because that gets them viewers and that means advertising money. If it bleeds, it leads and if it frightens they'll enlighten! It's all about money.

I've never had a flu shot, never will. That's a whole 'nother subject but I'm almost paranoid about them.

The early flu shots did tend to make people sick, but the newer ones do not.I remember that mess with the first swine flu. The mutations between specie oriented viruses remind me of cousins marrying each other. The offspring either will have lots of defects or they will be geniuses, you never can tell. They even have a nasal spray that is effective. I had a pharmacist tell me once that taking zinc will inhibit the mutation of viruses in your body, it will block the dna receptors in your cells that tend to make you catch the flu. He said he would never become wealthy as a pharmacist because he told people the truth about vitamins, they help as well or better than prescriptions and cost less. Viruses are not affected at all by antibiotics, but the excess antibiotics allow the bacteria to attack us once the viruses have done their damage. I still would rather have a bacterial infection than a viral, because we can treat them with lots of things.

There was a really nasty flu bug going around last year. I had gotten a flu shot, but my son, who works at WalMart and is around people all the time, did not. He got the flu. Not only did he get it, but I had to take him to the hospital ER because he was so dehydrated from things flying out both ends that he could barely move! He was in the hospital maybe 10 hours while they rehydrated him intravenously. Not getting that flu shot cost him $850.00!

I've never had a bad reaction to any flu shot I've received. Only once did I get a slight headache that lasted a couple of days after the shot. Other than that, I felt perfectly fine with them and have never had the flu since I started getting the shots (assuming I get them early enough).

I did hear that Tami-Flu works on it. The thing is, it's affecting young healthy people more than anything and that is really strange. The WHO has mobilized a committee to study the effects and they say it's possible it could turn into a pandemic. I'm not worried except for my sons, who are going to college in Arizona which is a border state overflowing with illegals from Mexico.

"it's affecting young healthy people more than anything and that is really strange"

That's exactly what I mean. Healthy people's bodies react vigorously to the virus, and that's what causes trouble. It was the same with the 1918 bird flu that killed so many.

But it's yet to be seen whether this will be as serious as the media makes it out to be. They always have to have something to scare people with.

But which government? I can't discount that it may be occurring naturally but it was so sudden and spread so fast that I'm suspicious--I just don't know who to direct my suspicions to!

Swine flu is passed back and forth between pigs all year and it doesn't have much effect on them. Their "owners" catch it, though, and up till now the only way to get the swine flu was from direct exposure to the pigs. Now it's combined with the bird and human flu and humans are spreading it. Very strange.

You don't sound uppity when you say you don't eat swine. Lots of people don't. The Old Testament directed the Jews to avoid cloven-hoofed beasts and there was a good reason for that--pork doesn't keep well and if it sits out even a short time you can get diseases that will kill you, especially back then.

You don't get it from eating pork. It is passed from pigs to their human keepers and not by the meat or other humans. But this strain has combined with bird flu and human so that people infect one another. You can get it by walking down the street. That is what is so strange about it.

So you were around pigs back then? Up till now humans could only get it from pigs. Now that it's combined with bird and human flu, we're passing it around from person to person and the pigs aren't needed to spread it.

Humans get it from live pigs, not from eating pork-at least not from what I've read. Humans couldn't spread it until now, only pigs could, but that has changed. There are cases in New York state now. Tami-Flu will work in the first 48 hours.

Sorry about your daughter's allergies, I know it is miserable. If not for that I'd tell you to quit avoiding all germs and let your body's immune system get strong. People who avoid all contaminations compromise their immune systems and weaken it since it has nothing to fight. But with your daughter's allergies, I can understand your caution.

Since reading your post, I'm seeing all kinds of news on the swine flu now!!I had no idea..I've just read gov't officials are preparing for this as if it were a serious hurricane. This is alarming..I've got to do some more digging on this..