US Army Handbook From 2011 Confirms Airborne Ebola Cases

https://www.scribd.com/doc/243228798/US-Army-Medical-Management-Of-Biological-Casualties-Handbook-USAMRIID-BlueBook-7th-Edition-Sep-2011-1

“CIDRAP concludes that the commentary is based on sound science and believes it is an important consideration in the safety of healthcare workers who provide care to Ebola patients.”

And that means what, exactly? The original piece that was widely misconstrued to constitute "scientific proof" that Ebola is airborne did not say any such thing, nor did any of the papers it cited. It was meant to convey the authors' opinion that a PAPR would be better PPE than the head covers, face shield or goggles, and N-95 mask that is the normal PPE for treating Ebola patients--because a PAPR can be reused, and it is a single unit that would do the job of several separate pieces. That point is debatable, but that is what CIDRAP was referring to when they said "the commentary is based on sound science."

I do not know a single scientist who thinks that Ebola is airborne (like influenza, chickenpox, or measles), and I have never read a single scientific research paper that documents evidence of natural aerosol transmission of Ebola.

This is just one political statement by Friedan, pulled off the top of the pile:

“In the 30 years I’ve been working in public health, the only thing like this has been AIDS”

And what seems like the most political statement I’ve ever seen in my life:

“Right now we know who’s coming in,” Frieden said at the hearing. “If we try to eliminate travel… we won’t be able to check them for fever when they leave, we won’t be able to check them for fever when they arrive, we won’t be able—as we do currently—to see a detailed history to see if they’ve been exposed.”

I challenge you to show me just one statement by Friedan that isn’t political.

“In the 30 years I’ve been working in public health, the only thing like this has been AIDS”
“Right now we know who’s coming in,” Frieden said at the hearing. “If we try to eliminate travel… we won’t be able to check them for fever when they leave, we won’t be able to check them for fever when they arrive, we won’t be able—as we do currently—to see a detailed history to see if they’ve been exposed.”

I do not see the politics in those statements. What I see are statements on public health. People who work in public health (as I do) constantly study the dynamics of disease transmission and refine the protocols so as to minimize disease spread.

The statement on AIDS is probably over-the-top. AIDS currently affects around 35 million, and causes one million deaths annually. AIDS keeps spreading because a asymptomatic person can spread the virus for years. Ebola is never going to come close to that, since it is only contagious when a person has symptoms, and once a person recovers from Ebola, the virus is eliminated from their body within weeks or months.

The statement on travel is correct, too, from the public health perspective. If you restrict the legal movement of people, where they are funneled through the ports where they can be screened, then they start pouring through the borders. When they are pushed underground, what chance is there of finding the sick before they infect other people? However, when they travel legally, the people who are sick can be stopped from flying, without punishing the majority of travelers who are not sick.

The fact is, exotic diseases do make it into the US every so often. Unless you are a public health professional, and you read the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report regularly, you probably have no idea that it happens. Most of our hospitals are, in fact, able to handle the occasional exotic disease. One of my public health friends tells me that, to be accredited, hospitals are supposed to train on proper infection control, and to have plans in place; the fact that the Dallas hospital couldn't handle a single exotic disease until the CDC showed up is incredibly disturbing.

If you really want to stay awake worrying at night, you should try going to some of the conferences I attend. The American Society for Microbiology has some really frightening ones--risks to public health lurk everywhere, and many people die. The work that goes on outside of the public eye to prevent even more people from dying of pathogens is really incredible.

I guess there is absolutely no possibility that anyone who speaks as if they are knowledgeable about Ebola actually knows anything, is that it?

Credibility is a funny thing...hard to earn but easy to lose.

The so-called experts have lost theirs...the closer to the government they are, the less credibility they have.

I addressed in a prior post to you the lack of credibility on the part of experts...an appeal to authority doesn't carry the weight it once does. No reason to take it personally, is there?

Credibility is a funny thing...hard to earn but easy to lose.
The so-called experts have lost theirs...the closer to the government they are, the less credibility they have.
I addressed in a prior post to you the lack of credibility on the part of experts...an appeal to authority doesn't carry the weight it once does. No reason to take it personally, is there?

Considering that the CDC and every other expert who talks about Ebola is informed by the people who actually do the research and who have experience treating patients in past outbreaks, I take it that you believe the people with actual hands-on experience with Ebola are lying to the CDC? And when they publish scientific papers, they are falsifying the data?

I have yet to see an expert provide information about Ebola that is not solidly grounded in the scientific literature. Since I've read the pertinent literature, I can tell pretty quickly if they say something inaccurate.

And, sorry, but dismissing the expert opinion as "appeal to authority" doesn't hold any water with me. Scientists study their respective fields for years until they know that stuff forwards and backwards, and they read every new research article that pertains to their field--that's how they become authorities.

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