Is the Swine Flu Epidemic a Scare Tactic to make $$ for Pharmaceutical Companies? CBS News claims Serious Overestimate of cases
Offline CBS News reports that H1N1 test results have been overwhelmingly negative. In fact, the CDC told the states in July to stop collecting data. CBS News just released the results of a 3 month investigation and find something entirely different than what the CDC claims.
See Here : CBS News Swine Flu Cases Overestimated.
See Also : CBS Reveals Swine Flu Cases Seriously Overestimated
Not that I would ever suspect collusion between the multi-billion dollar pharmaceutical industry and the CDC, but there appears to be cross purposes here and conflicts of interest. Not that it's the first time of course either.
Now we have Obama declaring a National Emergency for H1N1 Flu. See Here: Obama declares National Emergency
Since I have no love of pharmaceutical companies having fought with them for 18 years over the lies they spread about tanning and sun exposure (I used to own tanning salons) I have serious doubts about anything they do in the way of public awareness. If they have their way, every American and better yet every person on the planet would get a vaccination against H1N1 and seasonal Flu both.
And it's not like I'm against vaccinations as I have been vaccinated against smallpox, hepatitis A & B, polio, diphtheria, and tetanus. I have only had one flu shot ever and that was in the 1970s flu scare. I can't remember the last time I had the Flu, 25 years ago at least, if it even was. I used to get sick on occasion but once I stopped eating at the company cafeteria I never did again.
So, is this a case of the pharmaceutical companies scamming us all to make a profit out of fear? Or is it real? Questions need to be asked and answered.
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"I guess it's time to ask if you live under high voltage power transmission lines which have been shown to cause stimulation of the fantasy centers of the brain due to electromagnetic waves?" - Me
"God is omnipotent, omniscient, omnibenevolent, - it says so right here on the label. If you have a mind capable of believing all three of these divine attributes simultaneously, I have a wonderful bargain for you. No checks please. Cash and in small bills." - Robert A Heinlein.
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When compared to the daily carnage on the roads it's laughable that the flu epidemic is even rating a news story.
Still, when The One decides something is serious his sheep must be led by something, right?
The positive news is that BHO won't get a second term. So "Yay!"
How can not believing in something that is backed up with no empirical evidence be less scientific than believing in something that not only has no empirical evidence but actually goes against the laws of the universe and in many cases actually contradicts itself? - Ricky Gervais
What makes you think that? I'm not going to vote for crazy people.
If Obama continues the work he has done so far, he will get my vote again in '12.
Unless someone from the left decides to run, and I think they have a fighting chance. But the U.S. has almost no politics to the left.
Grayson is one of the few left Democrats for example. There aren't that many. Most are middle or middle right on the spectrum. The GOP is hard right, and mostly authoritarian.
Did you look at the candidates that ran in 2008?
I still find it hilarious that Bob Barr ran as a libertarian when his policies are almost completely contrary to libertarian principles.
Theism is why we can't have nice things.
Declaring it a national emergency helps the situation a lot. It allows hospitals to open up temporary facilities, as well as offsite ERs.
For example, it allows them to set up tent clinics. The idea is to keep people that become infected outside of normal emergency rooms as much as possible to help prevent rapid spread of the illness.
I consider his move not only a wise decision, but thoughtful one. It is better to be safe than sorry, and pre-emptively declaring a national emergency opens a lot of doors to help solve the issue before it can become bad.
I would of probably done the same thing.
Theism is why we can't have nice things.
I'd agree the daily death toll from highway accidents far exceeds what is expected from the H1N1 flu. Of course when an epidemic doesn't happen it will all be because of the vaccine, not that it was over exaggerated and over estimated.
My point in mentioning Obama called a national emergency was only to show the CDC is advising such rash behavior.
Obama so far has only done 2 or 3 things I haven't liked, Bush did that on a daily basis.
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"I guess it's time to ask if you live under high voltage power transmission lines which have been shown to cause stimulation of the fantasy centers of the brain due to electromagnetic waves?" - Me
"God is omnipotent, omniscient, omnibenevolent, - it says so right here on the label. If you have a mind capable of believing all three of these divine attributes simultaneously, I have a wonderful bargain for you. No checks please. Cash and in small bills." - Robert A Heinlein.
Signature ? How ?
I would say pre-emptively declaring a national emergency is heavily leaning towards the potential benefits over any potential downsides. It opens up more options for hospitals to deal with treatment.
I am in favor of the decision.
Theism is why we can't have nice things.
I really don't it was the right call.
First it pulls away resources from actual medical emergancies.
Second over-reacting isn't a really good trait for a politician.
I wouldn't go so far as to say the Obama doesn't deserve or isn't going to get a second term.
It also appears Harper is sharing Obama's setiments consider my city is getting the vaccine Monday.
What resources does it pull away? Please tell me.
Then please tell me how it is over-reacting.
In the US, declaring a state of emergency gives hospitals special rights they otherwise wouldn't have, like ability to setup off-site clinics without dealing with zoning codes...etc. It allows them to respond quickly, and to isolate a contagious illness from the rest of the hospital.
Basically, it opens options up so people can respond.
Theism is why we can't have nice things.
Well, off the top of my head, it could take priority away from, for example, smallpox, hepatitis A & B vaccines. The clinics that normally would administer them could now be administering H1N1 vaccines. The health centres will stack up on H1N1 vaccines instead of smallpox, hepatitis A & B etc...
Basically setting up a nation-wide panic would be considered over-reacting.
Also, according to the vid in the OP, they spent a Billion dollars on vaccines.
Nothing to do with declaring national emergency.
Theism is why we can't have nice things.
How does it take priority away exactly? The whole point is that it allows them to create off-site clinics so the rest of people don't get infected. Basically, it allows them to respond if things get out of hand. That is all his declaration does. There is a shortage of vaccines, that is why he did it so in case something bad happens they can..you know, do something.
I'm not sure why people would panic over a pre-emptive declaration. He stated the reasons why he did it, to give flexibility to hospitals to respond if there happens to be an outbreak.
Theism is why we can't have nice things.
If Obama continues on the same path,he will lose a lot of voters that put him in the white house .First off, he backed off the progressive promises that he made.He let the bankers run the house and the Big Pharm run our options in health care.Then you got the war escalating into Pakistan with more civilians killed everyday.You got Guantanamo still opened,but we have moved our torture techniques over to Afghanistan ,Bagram air base and we still use rendition flights and you also got to take into account the huge Pentagon budget that Obama has passed rebelreports.com/post/94406620/how-many-democrats-will-stand-up-to-obamas-bloated , I did vote for Obama,because I was hoping for a different type of politician,but instead we got the same (a shill for big business) what a shame. I should have voted for Nader or McKinney
Signature ? How ?
Everything to do with diverting resources from other health issues however, which you also asked.
The diversion of resources from other healthcare issues will slow many solutions in other areas, such as reraerch, drug development, and even care in general.
How many people do you know today that have verified H1N1? I know exactly one that may or may not have had it. The doctor assumed she had it, though no lab test was done. That's the point of the CBS investigation. Actual numbers claimed are suspect.
____________________________________________________________
"I guess it's time to ask if you live under high voltage power transmission lines which have been shown to cause stimulation of the fantasy centers of the brain due to electromagnetic waves?" - Me
"God is omnipotent, omniscient, omnibenevolent, - it says so right here on the label. If you have a mind capable of believing all three of these divine attributes simultaneously, I have a wonderful bargain for you. No checks please. Cash and in small bills." - Robert A Heinlein.
Where I am they're telling us to not get the vaccine unless we'd normally get a fly vaccine. The same goes with seeing a doctor. I don't trust the American medical companies for various reasons so for now I'm going by what my local (Canadian) authorities say.
I have never received a flu shot (except perhaps in my childhood), and I never will. My immune system is godly. I have no desire to deal with unnecessary side effects.
Enlightened Atheist, Gaming God.
Since it is the start of the fall flu season, there not only will be the ordinary flu, but also the H1N1 influenza strain, or the Swine Flu. Any vaccine carries risk of infection, but most likely it will protect you. The worst possible H1N1 vaccine risk is a possibility of developing GBS, or Guillain Barre Syndrome, an auto-immune condition which involves the break down of the lining of nerve cells. The odds in an H1N1 vaccine leading to GBS are about a million to one. However, the risk to already high risk patients is worth running – as the swine flu can kill. Children under 2, adults over 65, pregnant women, teenagers on an aspirin regimen, and adults that are already immunocompromised. It's worth getting emergency fund for an H1N1 vaccine.
I'd suggest that if anyone is capitalising on the frenzy, it's the perpetrators of it: the media.
Pharma companies need time before they can make money on drugs. They will eventually, but I doubt they are doing much profiteering at the moment.
The media doesn't need to wait for anything, as evidenced by the rising frequency of false reporting.
Enlightened Atheist, Gaming God.
When flu shots were first offered many years ago, I was in the Army. My entire company went to the dispensary for mandatory shots. As the company clerk, I (along with two other office helpers) had to sign each soldier's "shot card" as having received the vaccine. Along with my helpers, I avoided getting the shot and we each signed the other's cards. Of the 135 people in my company, guess which three didn't have some form of the flu within a week.
Ever since then I've avoided all government- and drug company-sponsored vaccination programs.
So far the numbers for "swine flu" (I'm sorry -- H1N! -- mustn't get the pork cartel angry) don't seem any worse than "ordinary flu". But the hype on TV is astounding. Every broadcast begins with at least five minutes of breathless reports abut the horrors of flu, coughing into your elbow, and using hand sanitizer (alcohol) religiously. Sort of like when Bush's guys warned us to have duct tape handy in case of nuclear war. Sure, there are good vaccines, like against polio, smallpox, mumps and several other illnesses. But this yearly flu shot program seems to be a money-maker for the drug companies, not something to protect the public.
TPaine
Something I thought I'd throw in here to open up the debate a little...
It's always been my understanding of this that the real cause for concern with swine flu/H1N1 wasn't the mortality rate, it was the rapidity of its spread across the globe. A virus of any kind is worrying if it shows a high infection rate. That's not to say that rapid contagion = a high mortality but the thing about something with a high mortality rate is that you don't know that until it's killed a lot of people. Once it's killed a lot of people someone always asks "what could we have done to stop it?".
The best approach to something appearing with a high infection rate is containment. The American government, IMHO, was as correct as many governments around the world in putting in place emergency measures such as the vaccine and a state of emergency. Better to be prepared for and contain the worst and be wrong, than not prepare at all and be wrong.
Also I think some of the arguments of "I've never had a vaccine and I've been fine so far" are a little weak
Forget Jesus, the stars died so that you could be here
- Lawrence Krauss
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