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[Catholic Caucus] Viganò: “For Fear of a Seasonal Flue”The last months were “one of the darkest moments in the history of mankind,” Archbishop Viganò writes in a meditation published on AldoMariaValli.it (December 15),For the first time since Christ’s birth, the Holy Keys were used to close churches and restrict the celebration of the Sacraments, “almost anticipating the abolition of the Daily Sacrifice prophesied by Daniel, which will take place during the reign of the Antichrist."Our bishops and priests, barricaded themselves in their palaces and presbyteries “for fear of a seasonal flu” and surrendered to an absurd “pseudo-pandemic,” Viganò explains.With “cynical...

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the government's top infectious diseases expert, emphasized the dangers of Covid-19 on Tuesday, contradicting President Donald Trump's false claim that the coronavirus was only as deadly as the flu. People infected with Covid-19 do display "flu-like" symptoms, Fauci said Tuesday in an interview with NBC News' Kate Snow. But the damage the coronavirus can do "is very much different from influenza."

The swine flu pandemic didn't turn out to be the scourge international health agencies predicted. On Jan. 29 the World Health Organization declared that even though the H1N1 virus is still spreading in parts of Europe, Africa, and Asia, the number of confirmed cases worldwide is declining. About 14,000 deaths from swine flu have been reported. That's a tragic loss, but it's a small number considering that the run-of-the-mill seasonal flu kills up to 500,000 people each year, according to the WHO.

Vaccination is central to the government’s plan for preventing deaths from swine flu. The CDC has recommended that some 159 million adults and children receive either a swine flu shot or a dose of MedImmune’s nasal vaccine this year. Shots are offered in doctors’ offices, hospitals, airports, pharmacies, schools, polling places, shopping malls, and big-box stores like Wal-Mart. In August, New York state required all health-care workers to get both seasonal and swine flu shots. To further protect the populace, the federal government has spent upwards of $3billion stockpiling millions of doses of antiviral drugs like Tamiflu—which are being used...

A top Russian virologist's charge that health authorities are drastically understating the number of cases of swine flu -- a claim that senior health officials fiercely rejected -- has raised questions about Russia's claims to be relatively unaffected by the pandemic. The controversy started late Sunday, when state television carried an interview with Dmitry Lvov, head of the government's Institute of Virology, who reported what he said was Russia's first death from H1N1 influenza, saying his institute had tested a sample from the victim. Dr. Lvov, one of the country's most prominent health specialists, also said there were "tens of...

The swine flu pandemic could kill millions and cause anarchy in the world's poorest nations unless £900m can be raised from rich countries to pay for vaccines and antiviral medicines, says a UN report leaked to the Observer. The disclosure will provoke concerns that health officials will not be able to stem the growth of the worldwide H1N1 pandemic in developing countries

Like the coach said, it’s déjà vu all over again. We are charging full speed off the panic cliff one more time. There’s another round of something called swine flu (this time, AH1N1), just like in the mid 1970s. And just like 33 years ago, there’s a huge government rush to whip out a vaccine and a full-court media frenzy to get everyone and his dog immunized. Let’s all take a breather and recall some history. The first mass U.S. vaccination in 1976 was a total fiasco. Some 40 million took shots against a pandemic that never materialized. At least...

Rochester, NY (OBBeC) - Researchers have reported new revelations on how the body responds to flu. According to the report, scientists at the University of Rochester Medical Center have for the first time -- with the use of a computer simulation -- successfully tested a major portion of the body's immune reaction to influenza type A, with implications for treatment design and preparation ahead of future pandemics. The work has been accepted for publication, and posted online, by the Journal of Virology. The new "global" flu model is built out of preexisting, smaller-scale models that capture in mathematical equations millions...

This document was developed by the CDC in February of 2007 to outline what non-pharmaceutical measures the government would take at the various levels of a pandemic outbreak. Non-pharmaceutical measures include things like quarantine and school and business closures. The term used for these measures is "Social Distancing". Here is how the purpose of this paper is defined.This document provides interim planning guidance for State, territorial, tribal, and local communities that focuses on several measures other than vaccination and drug treatment that might be useful during an influenza pandemic to reduce its harm. Communities, individuals and families, employers, schools, and...

The money paragraph to which Drudge links (Bloomberg): "The first case was seen in Mexico on April 13. The outbreak coincided with the President Barack Obama’s trip to Mexico City on April 16. Obama was received at Mexico’s anthropology museum in Mexico City by Felipe Solis, a distinguished archeologist who died the following day from symptoms similar to flu, Reforma newspaper reported. The newspaper didn’t confirm if Solis had swine flu or not."

Sumeyya Mamuk considered the chickens in her backyard to be beloved pets. The 8-year-old girl fed them, petted them and took care of them. When they started to get sick and die, she hugged them and tenderly kissed them goodbye. The next morning, her face and eyes were swollen and she had a high fever. Her father took her to a hospital, and five days later she was confirmed to have the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu

Bush Outlines $7.1B Flu-Fighting Strategy By LAURAN NEERGAARD, AP Medical Writer 32 minutes ago President Bush outlined a $7.1 billion strategy Tuesday to prepare for the danger of a pandemic influenza outbreak, saying he wanted to stockpile enough vaccine to protect 20 million Americans against the current strain of bird flu.The president also said the United States must approve liability protection for the makers of lifesaving vaccines. He said the number of American vaccine manufacturers has plummeted because the industry has been hit with a flood of lawsuits. Bush said no one knows when or where a deadly strain...

Deadly Flu Outbreak: Is History Repeating Itself?An out-of-control outbreak of influenza which has killed as many as 700 people and felled almost 23,000 victims is ravaging Madagascar and health authorities fear that if the disease is not confined to the huge island it could spread around the world. Madagascar which is larger than France and has a population of 16 million people is located off southeast Africa. World Health Organization (WHO) officials have said that samples taken from victims of the illness have shown it to be Type A influenza, a strain of flu believed to have devastated the world...