Thursday, July 16, 2009

More Panic from WHO

I know I'm not all that smart, but I just can't figure out this whole flu pandemic thing. How is it that the seasonal flu, which infects 10's of millions and kills up to a half-million people every year is just the normal seasonal flu, but a flu strain that has infected a couple hundred thousand and killed fewer than 500 is cause for a full-blown panic?

Anyone trying to explain this to me, please use small words.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I've been having trouble with that one as well. Of course, WHO needs to justify its existence and funding. Creating panics works.

Ric said...

I've been wondering if "contributions" to the WHO are supposed to increase during a pandemic. That alone is enough incentive. I also wonder what sort of extra-territorial powers WHO officials can exercise during a pandemic.