[Thebaddog]

Are we looking at Bird Flu hitting our shores in July or August of this year, or is it a multi-year issue? As in Bird-Flu hitting us in 07 or 08.

[presidio9]

I'm guessing SARS will probably hit us first.

[NYorkerInHouston]

Odds are bird flu will hit the US this year, resulting in poultry kills and people running away from eating chicken. It would probably be a multiyear issue.

As for when and where the it will develop easy transmissibility between people is anyone's guess and of course it may never accomplish that.

[Termite_Commander]

Probably this year, from what Health and Human Services Secretary Leavitt has said.

It might already be in the Bahamas. There were some dead birds discovered there last week, but authorities conveniently found that the birds were probably too badly decomposed to be tested, so they concluded that they died from trauma.

If it is H5N1 down there, the virus should sporadically be in the US in short order. But we're not going to know whether that was H5N1 unless we see more bird deaths soon, and those birds get tested.

[MrLee]

I'm selling my KFC stock ASAP. I'd rather eat turkey anyway....