Sars ...is it bio-terrorism ?

[panda]

I recently heard that "sars" could be a form of bio-terror . Has anyone else heard the same or similar ??

[tparrent]

It's "media terrorism".

 

I've said it before, this thing is not as serious as the attnetion it has received. Common strains of flu are far more prevalent and have much higher death rates.

 

When we were in Thailand, the Bangkok Post repeatedly reported that both the open air markets and shopping malls were "ghost towns" because no foreigners were visitng and Bangkok residents were afraid to go out.

 

Total hogwash.

 

We went to the largest open air market as well as a huge shopping mall. They were absolutely packed with people. The airport was busy as well. The reporting was completely false. I have not been in Hong Kong in the last month but I wonder if the "empty streets" are as empty as the reports indicate. I doubt it.

 

Media scares can have huge effects and irresponsible reporting is, I believe, doing far more damage than the virus. When you add up the economic losses due to dramatically reduced travel schedules you will see that very real harm is occurring. Will the people who lose their jobs due to the scare be able to afford health care or even basic necessities? How will that affect their health regardless of SARS? Economic depression sickens and kills people just as surely as a virus.

 

New diseases are terrible. They have the potential to go global and wreak havoc. I'm not downplaying that but the reaction of both the media and WHO has been completely out of proportion to the risk.

 

That's just my opinion but remember that on average 100 people die every day in America from influenza. Even more die from auto accidents. More than four times as many die from cancer. Perspective is important.

[JonInDenver]

i agree... media over-reporting is probably the bigger problem. only 3.5% of the people who get SARS die from it.

 

 

remember all the hullabaloo over "mad cow disease" in the UK? last i knew only 11 people had died from it. sure, that's 11 too many, but hardly worth constant reporting.

[Myles]

Aloha from Hawaii,

It is correct that a virus is not a good weapon because it is unpredictable in

it's spread and it does mutate. It is not the choice of a sane person. How about

an insane person with lots of money. A person who believes that only the unbelievers

will be infected.

On the bright side mutations are weaker than the original virus. A virus that

kills the host will not spread very far. A weaker virus will have a host that will

live longer and the virus will also live longer.

Myles aka Annakuen'GG

[tonado]

SARS is not a bio-terror.

 

I talked to my relative in HK and SARS is definitely affecting people's life. Half of people are wearing masks and people are not shopping or dining out. In China, people are not concerned about the virus since the government said it is under-control.

 

I don't think the media is causing the panic since WHO and other health/medical professionals are warning people. They should know since they are the experts in that field. Even the doctor (who discovered SARS) from WHO died from the virus.

[tparrent]

Sorry to beat a dead horse but I have to disagree tt. Smoking is far more deadly and that is a fact backed up by experts worldwide and has been for 35 years.

 

The difference with SARS is that the media has blown it out of proportion.

 

I repeat: 36,000 people died last year in America from common influenza.

[Jatuke]

It's just a tug-of-war in the global economy. The US is trying to get back to the same economic level as the Asian economic markets. Look how much the dollar has dropped.

 

Now with this media "outbreak", the Asian market has dropped steeply.

 

We've experienced mad cow disease, bird flu, foot and mouth disease, etc. Now it's SARS. Yes SARS is a new deadly virus, but over exaggerated IMO. But this is just natural evolution, "survival of the fittest."

 

This is not a political forum, so I'll leave it at that. If it was, I'll be going off on different tangents.

[Myles]

Aloha from Hawaii,

The problem is not the deadly effect of SARS but the lack of trust in the Chinese

government. Because of the under reporting the actual death rate is unknown.

The supression of information made it spread faster. The fact that it spread rapidly

to health care workers, who practice avoidance on infection, puts everyone at risk.

The government is not doing enough to contain the problem and you are on your own.

You have to protect yourself.

Myles aka Annakuen'GG

[tparrent]

"The government is not doing enough to contain the problem and you are on your own. You have to protect yourself."

 

That is always the case. Here, China, everywhere.

 

I think the Chinese were pretty shortsighted in their dealings with WHO. After all, we knew about the illness here back in November when it was widely reported in Guangzhou. Remember the runs on vinegar and traditional Chinese medicines after six people died in GZ? People knew something was happening so there wasn't total suppresion of the news. Not allowing WHO personnel into GZ during March was just downright stupid although I can imagine that happening in places other than China too.