There are two huge ironies with this. The first is that this is not being done to prepare for the H1N1 Swine flu influenza, but the H5N1 Avian flu influenza.
That is, a “worst case scenario” for H1N1 is just three times the typical mortality for a flu season, 100,000 American dead instead of 39,000 dead that happens almost every year.
Compare that to H5N1, that could have projected mortality of as many as 30,000,000 Americans.
So the H1N1, even in a “worst case scenario” is just a “dry run”, but an important one. This is because the US is pulling out all the stops against H5N1. A close to “total war” emphasis on preventing millions of Americans from dying. Yet we know that the actual disease will be faster than our best efforts.
Our vaccine production used to be limited to just one or two companies, who once they got the “actual” strain of influenza, could produce only 30 million vaccinations in the following six months. While adequate for ordinary flu, this is intolerable when facing a killer disease the likes of which the world has never seen in humans.
So all the drug companies have been told to produce as much vaccine as possible, as fast as possible, and to distribute it as fast as possible. A huge undertaking. And one almost guaranteed to have problems. Which is why the H1N1 “dress rehearsal” is a godsend.
They aren’t going to be forcing people to be vaccinated, but they will *know* how much and how fast that probably unneccesary vaccine will get out to where it needs to be. Vital information.
The other huge irony of this is the efforts of the military. In truth, the Pentagon is utterly helpless, other than providing helping hands if major parts of the US economy are close to collapse.
That is, if for example, so many truckers are sick that they cannot transport food from the warehouses to the stores. Or to construct field hospitals for the sick, or help dispose of tens of thousands of human and animal bodies instead of them laying there and rotting.
I can say this with some confidence, because soldiers during an epidemic are either directed by doctors, or they are doing things that are ordinarily done by other people who are too sick to do them.
And likely a lot of soldiers will die while trying to help.
I always get the flu shot, but this swine flu vaccine I am going to stay away from. I have heard that there have been quite a few cases of one of the side effects being a nerve disorder that can eventually kill you.
good post ;-) (seriously)