"Trauma is not just the result of major disasters. It does not happen to only some people. An undercurrent of trauma runs through ordinary life, shot through as it is with poignancy of impermanence. I like to say that if we are not suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, we are suffering from pre-traumatic stress disorder. There is no way to be alive without being conscious of the potential for disaster. One way or another, death (and it's cousins; old age, illness, accidents, separation and loss) hangs over all of us. Nobody is immune. Our world is unstable and unpredictable,and operates, to a great degree and despite incredible scientific advancement, outside our ability to control it."
Mark Epstein
New York Times
They never seem to get around to mentioning the real pandemic, one which has struck ninety-nine percent of the population - stupidity.
Not necessarily true for all strains.
Read THE HOT ZONE by Richard Preston.
Read it online for free here:
http://learn.flvs.net/educator/common/EnglishIIv10/TheHotZone.pdf
“We’re terribly disappointed that the Ebola virus has proved to be rather un-pandemic. We are certain, however, that the next virus we report on as pandemic will have much higher death tolls.”
Practically speaking, there is only one virus that has a truly immense plague potential, and that is influenza.
In the US, in an ordinary flu season, it kills about 30,000 Americans. Only if you have a routine mortality baseline this large or larger is there any real possibility of a worldwide pandemic that can kill upwards of a billion people.
With perspective, if a disease killed 1 million people a day, it would still take it about 2-3/4ths years to kill one billion people. And there are about 7.2 billion people on Earth.
And, to date, only one type of influenza, H5N1 has shown the potential for a 1 billion infectious rate, with perhaps 600 million dying. And the vast majority of them in 3rd and 4th world nations.
Importantly, this is directly killing. This virus could also wipe out vast numbers of cattle, sheep, chickens, goats, horses, etc., which could cause worldwide starvation with perhaps equal mortality to the disease itself.
So; a guy from the Old Gray Whore actually gets it?
Life is a continual battle; toughen up, gird you loins and prepare to fight for your Life, Liberty and Freedom.
Nothing in life is free or without struggle; always be polite, always be professional, always be prepared to kill everything with a pulse.
AIDS?
I don't think so.
Smallpox killed 300-500 million people in the 20th century alone. To say nothing of malaria.
Islam is the next pandemic.
Epidemiologists believe we’re statistically overdue for a global viral outbreak, which occurs every generation or so.
http://www.patburt.com/ Maybe make that the “last generation.”