News ESA not bothered by swine flu

http://www.bit-tech.net/news/gaming/2009/04/30/esa-not-bothered-by-swine-flu/1

The ESA has announced that it will not be delaying the next E3 in any way because of swine flu and that the event will go ahead as planned.

 

Excellent news - I for one see no reason why a flu 'pandemic' scare should affect E3. More people die from normal flu every year...

 

Tell that to the 50 million who died of the spanish flu pandemic.

What we're seeing now has the potential to get a lot worse. I very much doubt it could get as bad as the spanish flu pandemic, but this isn't the full extent of what it could turn into.

 

Indeed, but a lot of people seem to be thinking that it already is a pandemic. For now the best course of action is to investigate existing cases, find the best cure and stock up - then if sh*t hits the fan, we can act accordingly, with little panic.

Anywho, back on the topic of E3, what are we expecting to see there this year - I'm a bit out of touch with the latest gaming news.

 

Anyone not taking this flu outbreak seriously is not only putting themselves at risk but everyone else they come in contact with.

How many people who goto E3 might have it and not realise, then pass it on to who knows how many at the event?

It was on the BBC news website today that it is nto a case of whether people will die or not - just how many. I see no reasonable reason to take flamboyant risks by attending these sorts of events. I could get it and pass it on to my family friends or work collegues. No thanks.

One guy where I work is back from Mexico today and has been put into "quarantine" for 2 weeks.

 

Think of the poor booth girls in their skimpy outfits, surely the show should be cancelled to protect them!

 

I'll admit I had that opinion yesterday. My grandfather called me last night and changed my mind though - he used to be an epidemiologist for the NHS and WHO and he clarified a few things for me quite excellently. It's not a case of panic, just altering daily routine to prevent pointless risks. Avoiding a large public event which will definitely have international visitors from major cities isn't an over-reaction; it's a sensible precaution. I'm thankful we never had plans to go.

 

Ahhh fair enough. Maybe I've been sitting in the serious discussion thread for too long...

 

The problem is people seem to think if it's not worth panicking over then they don't have to give a crap about it, which is how we've got into a lot of messes.

 

Are you between the ages of 9 and 65? If so then swine flu shouldn't concern you. When healthy adults and youth start dropping dead in the street then you should probably start panicking. Right now its just a bad case of the Fox News if you know what I mean.

 

Just a few questions:
-Why is it that these "flus" are all avoidable by the same vaccine?
-Why didn't the pigs get the "flu" when the chickens got the "flu" if its, theoretically, the same viral string?
-Didn't they sell enough vaccines last time?
-Why are all specialists "government officials"?

 

think pigs are like tanks.. you wouldn't know if they had the flu.. heard other day egypt killed off it's pig herds

 

Even if that were entirely true then it wouldn't remove the fact that most people have family or friends who are either very young or very old.

 

Short answer - they're not.

 

It's just like SARS. About 200 people got it, 4 died (because they weren't treated at all) and news corporations milked it for months. All the "flu" idiocy is caused by Fox News and BBC not having any new wars to talk about, so they milk any topic that comes by.

 

well the BBC and ITV are both saying its nothing to worry about :/

 

the reason this is serious is that it is killing people from 25-45. im not paniced or even worried yet, but thats because i have faith in people not to do stupid things to spread it(ie an international trade show) btw its h1n1 now, as the pork industry didnt like the name because you cant catch it from pork

 

Ah I think it's good in a way as I do like the trade shows and love to see what's going on - in some industries apparently they are dying off now like the car industry and so it's good to see them keeping going.

As for the flu I think as others have said the best thing atm is calm caution and just seeing what's happening. I agree it has the potential to get bad. It might also go away and we'll laugh at all the fuss. However I don't think anyone has a crystal ball and so nobody knows for sure whether it will be really bad or not bad at all and so we shouldn't be taking flippant risks like flying to mexico city when we don't need to and we should be taking measured caution like washing hands etc. (we should do that all the time, but go figure )

 

Being a RN that normally works in a busy emergency room I would have to say that it really isn't worth talking about. Take some sensible precautions and the whole problem goes away. I get a flu vaccine every year and sometimes it works and sometime it doesn't. Wash your hands frequently and you eliminate a major infection vector. You would be amazed at how much soap and paper towels are used at a nursing convention.

 

Forgot to mention that there are worse things floating around than swine flu...