Which will more likely kill you---terrorism or this year's flu season???

[DemocracyInaction]

Ask them that on the stump, John. Particularly ask the older folks and the Mom's with young children. Both are Bush fuck-ups. I bet if presented with this, a lot of idiots are going to sober up real fast. If we get a mean flue season (and it's predicted we will), lot of those elderly are going to be parading to the cemetery long before an evil doer can wipe them out in Eastern Nowhere, Ohio or South Nobodyliveshere, Wisconsin!!! And security moms stand a much greater chance that a kid with the flu in school will spread it and bring it home to their toddler than bin Laden and the boys dropping a nuke in Neverheardofit, Iowa.

[RebelYell]

1. About the flu

I heard a doctor on a local radio program that the CDC lumps pneumonia deaths in with flu deaths. The actual death rate from the flu is around 3,000/year. 33,000/year pneumonia. He was a local doctor from one of the teaching hospitals here.

[trotsky]

3. I would guess that a whole lot of pneumonia cases come from the flu.

Pneumonia is kind of the thing that comes in and finishes the job when you've already been weakened by something else, or so I've understood it.

[Sparkly]

10. I got pneumonia twice last year!

And pleurisy once! But I'm in the DC area, so it's hard to say whether an attack, or anthrax, or a sniper, or the flu is the greatest danger. It's been a rough four years!

[DemocracyInaction]

4. that's what the consequences of the flu are to a lot of elderly, or

very young children. That's why a hell of a lot more people are going to die in this country this winter than any 9/11 because of the neglect of this administration. That's why it's a great issue for Kerry to start hitting even harder than he has.

[wishlist]

5. The pneumonia deaths wouldn't occur if they hadn't gotten the flu though

Everything else I have seen and heard indicates that experts consider the pneumonia deaths to be directly related to the flu. Those people would not have contracted pneumonia if they had not been laid up with the flu. Sound like a lot of people in government and public health are trying to calm down the public panic over the crisis by softpedaling the possible effects.

I know several people who have contracted pnuemonia even after taking the pneumonia shots too.

[RebelYell]

9. One small disagreement

Congestive heart failure causes pneumonia too. I think those deaths should be kept separate from the flu deaths. This doctor said all pneumonia deaths are counted with flu deaths.

[CAcyclist]

16. That doesn't sound right to me

Let me say this - I am not a medical doctor - I am a veterinarian - but congestive heart failure is a common problem I deal with in dogs.

Congestive heart failure causes pulmonary edema, which is not infectious.Pulmonary edema shouldn't be confused with pneumonia.

Congestive heart failure patients are more susceptible to the flu which then might lead to pneumonia or more commonly bronchitis.So, in that manner, it could be said that CHF "causes" pneumonia, but it's not a direct cause.

Any cardiologists on this board, set me straight if the above is not correct in humans.

[RebelYell]

17. I'm repeating what the infectious disease doctor

from MCO said on the radio. He said there were other causes of pneumonia than flu, and they shouldn't be counted in the flu deaths.

[CAcyclist]

12. They do it for a reason

Pneumonia can be a sequela to the flu. If the person didn't get the flu, they wouldn't have had a weakened immune system that then made them susceptible to getting pneumonia.

Most viruses don't kill most of their victims directly, they weaken the host enough so that secondary infections kill the host. The only viruses that I can think of that are hot enough to kill the host directly in a significant number are viruses like Ebola.

Think about it this way, if you get AIDS and then die of toxoplasmosis did you die of toxoplasmosis or did you die of complications of AIDS? A normal, healthy person who gets toxoplasmosis is not likely to die of it, but an AIDS patient is.

[Roland99]

2. A drunk driver...or maybe an asteroid.

[MsAnthropy]

6. With so many choices, I think I'll go run up my Visa bill! n/t

[wurzel]

7. Health care should be part of Homeland Security.

If we are constantly under the threat from WMDs you would think we would be building hospitals and clinics to cope with casualties. Are nurses and doctors getting training in WMD attack response? I don't see that happening. Either these threats are frauds, or we have a criminally negligent Administration. Take your pick.

[Skidmore]

8. I just saw a headline on one of the newpapers in the lobby

here which read something to effect that the flu is expected "to be milder this year".

[bigtree]

14. Read the article, USA Today

One source is cited and they go on to say that the hospitals expect to be overburdened with cases. Looks like an attempt to blunt Kerry's criticism. Pretty weak apologist attempt.

[Shadow30]

11. Well last years flu season was bad...

...I got sick 3 times but than I am only 30 so I figure I can pull threw without a flu shot,it'll just be a really crappy winter.I am more worried about my father he is 62 and I don't think he'll be able to get a flu shot this year.Also I don't think I am alone in saying I don't think we are any safer with Bush in the area of terrorism,nuclear plants unguarded,chemical plants unguarded,tons of cargo on ships goes unchecked.I am sick of the myth the Bush people are putting out regarding security it is not there strong suit....they don't have one!

[endnote]

13. Unemployment stress kills more than 9/11...

[RollergirlVT]

15. option three

the stress I've suffered under the **sh administration.

[DinahMoeHum]

18. The flu. No question. We've got a better chance of winning the lottery

than being killed by terrorists.

:kick: