I'm not whinging - just having a laugh,
it's a FLU. It is not, and has not, killed everybody in sight like people were afraid of. It's a new strain of a disease that millions of peolpe get every year.
(Poppet some assembly required., Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:16, 2 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

Ha!
Tell that to Birmingham!
( Cawl, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:18, Reply)

/lost
why would I tell that to Birmingham? I'm not even sure where that is in the UK.
(Poppet some assembly required., Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:19, Reply)

Nobody knows for sure
We just know it's out there
( whenanimalsattackhumans clad in global hypercolour, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:20, Reply)

Birmingham...
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/west_midlands/8105787.stm
"Health officials in Birmingham say the spread of swine flu in the city can no longer be contained."
( Cawl, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:22, Reply)

okay, they've had 567 cases,
and how many deaths?
From the looks of that article, it looks like a big fat Zero to me. If there were deaths from swine flu, they'd be screaming at the top of their lungs and Madagascar would have closed their borders already!
(Poppet some assembly required., Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:24, Reply)

Oh ffs
*facepalms so hard it hurts*
(Bazongaloid, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:25, Reply)

love you too, grumpy guts
:)
(Poppet some assembly required., Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:29, Reply)

No, you are whinging.
Your OP was a whinge about the doctor having the audacity to question whether or not you have potentially been in contact with someone with a new and virulent strain of influenza. It isn't killing everyone in sight, but if people take a lax attitude to it then it may become extrmemely serious. I'm all for being over cautious if it saves lives.

I'm also all for non whinging on the internet.
(Bazongaloid, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:24, Reply)

Clearly I need to work on making my laughter more obvious for you Al.
I was having a laugh. It's a flu - I get it - it's a really bad flu.
But all the same, it's STILL a flu.

Avian Flu had 262 deaths according to the WHO, Swine flu barely has half that. It's *just* over 100 deaths now.
(Poppet some assembly required., Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:28, Reply)

So that means it's less bad, does it?
I agree with you on one point - it hasn't reached epic levels of badness - yet. But it could - the WHO doesn't upgrade to pandemic status lightly, and I'd suggest they know more about it than any of us.

Just because Swine Flu hasn't killed a load of people yet, it doesn't define it as 'not serious'. Bird flu has a vaccine, swine flu doesn't. Bird flu tends to ony kill people who are frail, swine flu is most likely to kill people aged 18-54. So, returning to your OP, the doctor was doing his job.

And your point about it STILL being a 'flu? Flu kills millions of people around the world every year. Just thought you'd like to know, as you seem to judge something's seriousness by how many deaths it causes.
(Slip Digby is a meat puppet, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:37, Reply)

well yeah I do actually - for some diseases yes.
For diseases such as MS and Cystic Fibrosis - no. They're horrible in their own way.

A flu can be, for the most part, thrown off. We live in a priviledged era where we CAN cope with diseases - we're not in the 1920's or the 1800's. We know about containment and we know about letting diseases run their courses when they should. We have so much technology and as far as the flu goes, while it makes you feel horrible and like you're about to die, it generally doesn't kill everybody it touches. We're not living in an era where doctors are helpless - we have technology on our side and we can and are finding ways to treat it.

So no - while I agree that it is undoubtedly a virulent disease which is making a lot of people very unwell, I am not hugely worried about it.
(Poppet some assembly required., Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:41, Reply)

There. Is. No. Vaccine. For. Swine. Flu.
You can't compare MS and Cystic Fibrosis as they are genetic and not viral.

The year that we are in also has nothing to do with it. I tell you what, the plague was stopped by the great fire of London, so shall we set the world on fire?

No-one said that the disease will kill everyone it touches - but it does have the potential to kill a lot of people. There were 3 major pandemics in the 20th Century, responsible for millions of deaths - each of those pandemics caused by a new strain of the virus in humans. Which is what is happening now. Once again, we are not running around in a state of panic, but we also have to be aware of what can happen. This is not seasonal flu.
(Slip Digby is a meat puppet, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:55, Reply)

Urban myth
The plague had already run its course and was effectively over well before the Great Fire.
( The Light in Chains don't touch the Pope's boner, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:15, Reply)

I take the point on the urban myth
PUT OUT THAT FIRE!!!

Everyhting else I mean, though.
(Slip Digby is a meat puppet, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 13:30, Reply)

"Went to the doctors today because I've been feeling utterly ratshit for the last two or three days, headaches, sore throat, coughing a lot, runny nose. No up-chucking, runny bums or joint pain reminiscent of arthritis.
First thing the doctor asks me, after having me tell him my symptoms was, "have you been in contact with anybody with swine flu or travelled up to melbourne recently?"
"no"
"Are you sure?"
"yes."
"So you've not had ANY contact with ANYBODY who MIGHT have been infected with Swine flu, and you HAVEN'T travelled up to Melbourne at all?"
"I just said that?!"
"Oh okay - have you got a sore throat?"
*rolls eyes*

45 minute wait feeling like my head was about to explode for a 2 minute consultation with a script for penicillin left me feeling like there is no hope for our rural health systems."

There is nothing in that post that indicates you are doing anything other than whinging about a qualified mediacal professional doing his job properly.
(Bazongaloid, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:39, Reply)

Also
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_flu

That was JUST a flu as well.
(Bazongaloid, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:40, Reply)

Dammit,
I was just about to post that!
( Cawl, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:41, Reply)

yes, in the 1920's!
when doctor's and scientists had far less ideas on how to treat it and how to cope.
(Poppet some assembly required., Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:42, Reply)

There was no "cure" for it then,
And there isn't a "cure" for Swine 'Flu.

I'm not running around screaming in panic, but I'm acutely aware of the potential for trouble.
( Cawl, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:45, Reply)

yes but again - look at how far we've come,
not only technology wise, but hygiene wise too! Hygiene standards are far higher then they were back then AND hospitals are scrupulous in throwing away/deep cleaning used or damaged equipment.
(Poppet some assembly required., Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:47, Reply)

Come on...
You know about basic Biology.
What's the main difference between a virus and a bacteria outside of the host?
( Cawl, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:49, Reply)

I know, I know
but I wonder if he/she does
(Buckminsterfuller Bring out yer meat puppets, it's time for some fun, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:49, Reply)

viruses can live longer and have no cellular bodies because they are, in effect, a protein coat around DNA which locks onto a cell wall ...
then releases the DNA into the Cell. It effectively commandeers the cell, whereas a bacteria is a cellular organism.

But just because it commandeers a cell doesn't automatically make it undefeatable. There are antivirals out there and I'm pretty darn sure they'll be able to come up with one for the swine flu.
(Poppet some assembly required., Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:00, Reply)

Excellent copying out of a textbook, here.

(Slip Digby is a meat puppet, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:15, Reply)

golly is it really so hard for you to believe I do actually have some intelligence?
I don't need a text book to remember the difference between virii and bacteria.
(Poppet some assembly required., Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:53, Reply)

And yet, it still manages to spread itself.
The only reason there's not more cases in the UK is because it's summer, apparently.
(Slip Digby is a meat puppet, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:50, Reply)

yes - because, shock horror, it's a new strain, oh my fricken god.
Bugs spread. That's a plain and simple fact. Colds spread. Ebola spreas. The Flu, every single variation of it, spreads. All diseases spread in some way or another. They have to in order to survive.
(Poppet some assembly required., Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:56, Reply)

But you just intimated that it won't have a huge effect because our standards of hygiene are better these days.

(Slip Digby is a meat puppet, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:59, Reply)

Hygiene will simply make it harder for the virus to spread,
I never said it would stop it completely. But still - if you look at hygiene standards from the 1920's and compare them to now - you'll see a marked difference.
(Poppet some assembly required., Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:01, Reply)

There were many fewer people in the 1920s too
and they didn't travel as much either.

So there is a far, far greater chance for diseases to be spread more rapidly than they can be isolated and cured. That is why it is potentially so very serious.
(Bazongaloid, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:03, Reply)

Yeah.
The standards then may well have been better. In hospitals, at least.

/Momentary Daily Heil blog.
(Slip Digby is a meat puppet, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:10, Reply)

You pick up on this one as it's contradiction?
You've missed plenty
(Buckminsterfuller Bring out yer meat puppets, it's time for some fun, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:01, Reply)

I just prefer to keep it simple...
Then maybe, maybe, she'll get the point.
(Slip Digby is a meat puppet, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:08, Reply)

Dont bank on it
she's on a losing streak, but is failing to heed that.
(Buckminsterfuller Bring out yer meat puppets, it's time for some fun, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:13, Reply)

So you can therefore be certain that you don't have anything more serious than an infection then.
Because you live in a hermetically sealed bubble where bugs can't get you and strains of viruses bounce off you like rubber on glue.
(Buckminsterfuller Bring out yer meat puppets, it's time for some fun, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:01, Reply)

My lovely, please go back and read over what I said,
I never said that at all. But as an interesting fact, did you know that's exactly what your skin does? it's like a massive external shield against bugs and viruses can't get through! Amazing!
(Poppet some assembly required., Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:03, Reply)

Apart from those holes where you breathe, look, shit and piss

(Bazongaloid, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:04, Reply)

*awaits hilarious "they're all in your face" comeback*

(Bazongaloid, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:04, Reply)

ahah you're so not funny Al.
We have Cillia and Mucus in our nasal and tracheal passages to trap microbes and pathogens. Our tearducts only open one way. Same for our Urethras. Vaginas and Rectums aren't anywhere near as clean and you *can* get infection through those areas. But generally, our skin does a pretty good job of keeping out the nasties. :)
(Poppet some assembly required., Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:07, Reply)

So really, 'does a pretty good job'
isn't quite the same as a shield.

Can you please pick a standpoint and stick to it
(Buckminsterfuller Bring out yer meat puppets, it's time for some fun, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:10, Reply)

it acts, for want of a better description, as a shield.
Please note that while I am at least attempting to put forth a coherent argument, I've yet to see you do the same. Please try, it's no fun when you don't.
(Poppet some assembly required., Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:13, Reply)

I would do, but having done so in the past
and been faced with an argument that has more holes than logic in it, I prefer to use this tact instead now.
(Buckminsterfuller Bring out yer meat puppets, it's time for some fun, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:18, Reply)

Except you are ill at the moment, so your bodies defences didnt work did they?

So what the hell are you talking about?
(Bazongaloid, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:11, Reply)

with a bug my body obviously hasn't seen before.
I'm sure you get ill as well Al. Everybody does. The human body is not immortal and immune to everything.
(Poppet some assembly required., Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:14, Reply)

*facepalms*
That's my first one, ever. Well done.
(Slip Digby is a meat puppet, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:16, Reply)

Er...
We're straying from the topic here slightly.
But what you're saying is that under normal circumstances, the body is pretty much a fortress again pathogens?

I disagree. If that was the case, how would your symbiotic gut flora get in? Is all food you eat, and all liquid you drink completely sterile?
You know that the human mouth has a hell of a lot more bacteria present than the human anus?
It's actually "cleaner" for you to eat a nugget of shit than to kiss someone.

So no, the human body is an open houseparty with free booze.
( Cawl, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:13, Reply)

But say we had no skin, kaol.
If we had no skin, we'd be leaving our bodies open to infection and pathogens like a cheap whores legs to cock.
(Poppet some assembly required., Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:16, Reply)

That's a totally pointless statement.
Say we had no hearts. We'd be dead, so unable to catch diseases?
...
( Cawl, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:17, Reply)

it's not pointless at all.
I said earlier our skins acted as a major part of our immune system. It's true - without them - we'd be fucked.
(Poppet some assembly required., Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:21, Reply)

If we didn't have skin we'd be dead.
Not due to infection either.
Due to dessication and blood-loss.
And lack of homeostatic function.

So it's a pointless statement.
( Cawl, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:25, Reply)

I know you're a bit inexperienced
but people don't have sex with whore's legs. They ususally use their vaginas or mouths.

*insert hilarious "you would know" comback*
(Bazongaloid, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:19, Reply)

Nah you wouldn't in all likelihood,
probably too stingy to pay.
(Poppet some assembly required., Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:22, Reply)

^ this
Edit: You forgot sweat glands
(Buckminsterfuller Bring out yer meat puppets, it's time for some fun, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:05, Reply)

You know that the human body is
Technically a tube?
The "hole down the middle" is, in theory "the outside".
( Cawl, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 11:07, Reply)

Thank fuck for you, Kaol.
This is exactly what I was saying, just succinct and better.
(Slip Digby is a meat puppet, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:48, Reply)

Yeah?
I'm just awesome, I know.
Science for the win.
( Cawl, Thu 18 Jun 2009, 10:57, Reply)