Special Pages

Wednesday, October 8, 2014

Things Are Turning Nasty in Texas

The death of Liberian Ebola victim and border crasher Thomas Duncan isn't the nasty turn - that was pretty much expected with a disease that has death rates as high as Ebola does - the nasty turn is that Sheriff's Deputy Michael Monnig is being hospitalized with symptoms consistent with Ebola.

As soon as I heard the story of how Duncan was treated in the ER - being sent home and going back days later when he was bleeding out - I started doing the multiplication in my head.  Everyone in the ER when he was admitted is at risk.  Everyone in the ambulance that carried him to the hospital.  Everyone who rode in that ambulance with that crew or any other crew is at risk.  Add to those all the people who went through the ER or the public areas of his apartment building until (if?) they fumigated with chlorine.  Those family members under armed quarantine?  Chances are they're dead already, they just don't know it.  Deputy Monnig was there for a short time.  The family was in close contact for days, before being evacuated to the luxury place they're staying.  From there, the chances are harder to figure.  What about people who were in contact with people who were in the ambulance?  It's hard to know

It appears that this virus is transmitting faster and easier than the authorities are saying it will/should/ordinarily does.  No one quite knows how they get a virus, after all, but the spread in Spain is perplexing the experts.   Deputy Monnig's son said, “He was in the apartment for 30 minutes, which we were told is no chance to contact the virus”.  Reports out of Spain are saying people who were around the first nurse, Teresa Romero Ramos, are now showing symptoms.

In response to my light hearted cartoon post Monday, an anonymous commenter left this (minor edits, so errors are mine):
Here is the imminent threat: Ebola or some other disease will spread. It will get to Mexico and the rest of Central America. Their health care is inadequate for the challenge and the disease will be certain death if you catch it. They will choose the only logical choice and head North where health care is exceptional and "free". As such they will be considered "refugees" and our laws are so mucked up that we will be forced to allow them in. Our once outstanding and capable healthcare system will be over run and become ineffective. Millions may die. [make that will die - SiG]

A few months ago this would seem unlikely. Today it is more likely then not. Consider how our government choose to respond to Ebola and people coming here from West Africa. The system doesn't work. They will only take the correct steps to save Americans AFTER a lot of Americans die and after the disease is established here. They tell you "we got this".  Our health care system is second to none.  But think about it.  How many health care workers does it take to manage one Ebola patient 24 hours a day 7 days a week? That number is 108. How many total beds in the entire U.S. are their for level 4 quarantine patients? less then 30. It will take less then 30 Ebola patients to overwhelm our system. After that you will be sent home and your friends and family must care for you. Then everyone who touches you or anything contaminated by you becomes sick. The progression is exponential. Does it sound unbelievable to you? Fair enough that is the nature of human nature. On Sept 10 2001 flying passenger jets into the WTC sounded unbelievable too. Sadly by the time you and the CDC and the president "believe" it then it will be too late and we will be subject to the reality of a fast spreading disease. Will it happen this time with Ebola? I don't know but it could and if we get lucky and it doesn't, what next?
Ebola burns out quickly.  If you're exposed to it, you're either dead within 30 days or you're recovering from the fight of your life.  Because of that, quarantine is possible.  It's a shame our CDC is doing exactly what Anonymous said, and is just telling us "we got this".   But in a nearly 100% incompetent administration, what would you expect?
Dr.  Gil Mobley did a one man demonstration at Atlanta Hartsfield Airport last week.

10 comments:

  1. A US Ebola epidemic would be a very convenient way for the powers that be to slip the noose for how they have destroyed the US economically. Like Duncan on his Brussels Airlines flight from Monrovia to Belgium - it's already dead.

    - They could exert unprecedented control over the people during such an emergency, which would protect them, and most people would go along in hopes of living

    - A complete economic collapse could be blamed on the effects of the epidemic, vs. governance since LBJ

    - "Never waste an emergency" - time for our "global village to up outdated notions such as national sovereignty and national currencies."

    - The White majority of the US would be no more, a long standing goal of some groups. Ask Barbara Lerner Spectre.

    I called the CDC last week and spoke to one of their Ebola spokespeople. (background: I have a MS in biology)

    1. I asked what medical studies/virology journal articles the CDC used to develop the guidance that Ebola patients are only contagious when becoming symptomatic. She searched their digital database for ~5 minutes and could find no sources.

    2. I noted that the CDC's webpage masthead says "CDC 24/7, protecting people, saving lives". I asked if those people and lives were Americans or everyone on earth. She initially refused to answer, finally claiming - "It's both".

    3. Now that CDC and the Obama administration had allowed Ebola onto our shores, I asked what steps the CDC had taken to keep Ebola from becoming resident in US wildlife, and if it did what steps to eradicate it they had drawn up. She said it had not been discussed.

    Feel safe? A sane nation would stop any travelers and flights from West Africa. But then they would have to secure the southern border as well, and displacing the "bitter clingers" (Whites) and creating a giant "California" where dems never lose is priority one.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Speculation.....but who knows....

    This version of Ebola is a weaponized version created at Rest on VA. Or some similar lab. There IS a vaccine they won't admit to. The troops sent to Liberia etc. have been vaccinated and this is a real world test of that vaccine. If effective and it probably is then the pandemic will be allowed to spread by basically doing NOTHING to stop it as in open borders, no quarantine of Africa, no meaningful screening of airline passengers etc.

    Select people who embrace the liberal agenda will be vaccinate soon, the rest of us.....tough shiite.

    Once the pandemic is in full swing martial law is declared the lame duck period between midterm elections and the seating of the new congress that might actually do something about Obama and the liberal agenda will see the liberals going for broke to cement their grip on power.....after all Obama isn't facing reelection but might be facing impeachment if he and his handlers don't act decisively.

    The Ebola pandemic gives the current regime two things they desperately want.....a huge drop in the population for the good of "mother earth".... With the " right" people immune to the disease and it gives them an excuse to impose martial law and ridmthemselves of opposition once and for all. Any political oppo ends who don't get Ebola will be given Ebola.....problems solved and no body had to be shot.

    ReplyDelete
  3. In fewer than 30 days a substantial portion of the US population will voluntarily visit "cross contamination hubs" - polling places.

    In these hubs many will touch surfaces - electronic voting machines - touched by all. Perhaps not concidentally, many of these hub visitors will be those in opposition to the current administration.

    It's quite possible we'll have a crisis before November 4; after that date it may become a probability. Politically, the period between November 4 and January 3 will be interesting.

    I'm wondering about both the timing of this event, and the very deliberate fecklessness about it by those in power. While not a conspiracy fan, I'll agree that a worst case scenario would be border storming by South Americans trying to get away from Ebola and as a result bringing more of it here. As you point out, an extremely small uptick in cases will overwhelm our capacity to deal with it.

    Could the administration use Ebola fears to cancel the election? Possible, but if that were the case they'd be doing more fear mongering, not telling us "it'll be OK."

    Could self-generated fears keep people away from polling places? Possible, but in most places it's easy to request absentee ballots or vote early.

    Since the administration is run by people who believe crisis offers advantage, it certainly bears close scrutiny. Which makes me wonder what the other hand is doing.....

    ReplyDelete
  4. Paranoid speculations; There is no EVEDENCE that anyone other than Mr.Duncan has contracted Ebola in the US. There is NO EVEDENCE that Ebola has become airborne. At best this and the comments are fear based speculation. Rumor and panicked unfounded speculation only make this situation more dangerous. I am far more concerned with the governments non-action at the airports , than I am with the infection control in Texas.---Ray

    ReplyDelete
  5. Ray, the word is spelled EVIdence. My view for the rest of your comment is you need to take the red pill and quit looking down the rabbit hole. The facts disagree with you.

    http://healthmap.org/site/diseasedaily/article/pigs-monkeys-ebola-goes-airborne-112112

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zb41sCOqPw

    http://www.kwtx.com/home/headlines/Sheriffs-Deputy-Who-Entered-Ebola-Victims-Apartment-Hospitalized-278581331.html

    SG, I read yesterday that there were 5 people from the Sheriff's office in Duncan's apartment, but I can't find that story now.

    Which is curious in itself. ;)

    Anyway, if this is true, your multiplication would be exponetially worse. The 30 day time frame is the only "benefit" that is available, and that's small comfort with the better-than-even odds that this is airborne now.

    ReplyDelete
  6. SG, found the link.

    http://battlefieldusa.wordpress.com/2014/10/03/perfect-ebola-sense/

    ReplyDelete
  7. Anon 8:12
    I understand your point and based on our recent history of disease in America what you are saying is "reasonable". You are also correct that my original comments were "fear based speculation". Honestly what I expect is that our medical system does get a handleon this Ebola outbreak and it never becomes pandemic except of course in Western Africa. But my point is 100% valid. That is if something goes wrong and people leaving Western Africa to seek medical help in the 1st world end up in Mexico then the disease will get out of control. The Mexicans and others from Central America could not be blamed if they thought that their only chance of living though it would be to travel to America. If they do this we would accept them. So far no scare mongering in my scenario, right? Once here we would have no choice but to give them the best care possible after al without it the disease goes pandemic in our country. So how many would come across the border in such a scary situation? A couple million maybe? And considering the poor sanitation and practices in Mexico how many might have been exposed to the disease? 50%, 25%, 100%? This would overwhelm our heath care system and we are totally both politically and medically able to deal with it. Now here is the nugget: In the early days it would look exactly like what we are seeing today. In the early days of a pandemic the officials are calling for calm, they are lying to you or at least not telling you everything and they plan on something small, perhaps a dozen or so who get sick and die. After a couple of weeks, maybe longer the facts on the ground have changed. Now there are a couple hundred, maybe a couple thousand people sick, maybe a couple hundred who died. There is tons of contaminated material, hundreds of contaminated sites and vehicals and a couple thousand people who had contact with newly identified sick people. Now the CDC official looks haggard when he appears on TV and can only look down and shake his head when asked pointed questions. He is still asking everyone to remain calm but you can tell by the look on his face he is terrified about what he knows and he cannot tells us what he knows. Meanwhile people are still coming across the unprotected border being welcomed by what used to be called "boarder patrol" and this is because the administration is in such disarray that they haven't thought to put soldiers on the border and stop the flood of sick people.
    That in a nutshell is the problem. To put it simply a pandemic doesn't look like a pandemic until it is out of control. And a bureaucracy doesn't react quickly enough to fix fast moving problems. And last; what we will have to do ultimately to stop the people coming into the country is "unthinkable" until the problem is SO BAD that even doing the unthnkable is too little too late. I don't know about you but I am scared.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Grog, Thanks for being the spelling troll, but you really should thank auto-correct, as it did the spelling its way. As of 19:50 EDST Fox news reports that NO ONE in Texas has tested positive for Ebola. The cop has a common head cold. No runs , No fever, no vomit. EVERYTHING ELSE is a rumor.---Ray

    ReplyDelete
  9. As long as Ebola is active in Africa and people are allowed to travel by air the odds of more people arriving in the US carrying the disease is a virtual certainty. And that is not counting the excellent chance that ISIS/AQ etc.will deliberately infect themselves and then seek to infect Americans. Until a 30 day period WORLDWIDE passes with NO new Ebola cases the danger is real, proximate and widespread.

    Ebola can be and has been shown to be transferred via air alone in multiple lab tests. It is not quite as easy to spread as other upper respiratory viruses but certainly not difficult to catch ... and this is predicated on the virus being the naturally occurring one. If this is a test of a "weaponized" version it is either an abject failure or just getting started....only time will tell.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Considering it took 70 people to deal with Liberian out health system will prove inadequate as soon as multiple cases appear in a single hospital.

    ReplyDelete