Swine Flu - General Discussion and how it affects Disney

[praline3001]

I would suggest that anyone reading that article spend a few minutes poking around other parts of that site and decide for yourself how credible you feel the source to be.

Also, take that comment for what it is - a parent concerned about a child who is exhibiting symptoms that do NOT fit the pattern of this particular flu.

I agree

 

[praline3001]

Something else I found on my news website ~ thought I would give you a heads up!

Scams, Businesses Feed Off Swine Flu Fears
FBI Warns Of Computer Viruses Masked In H1N1 Information

POSTED: 5:07 pm CDT May 1, 2009
UPDATED: 6:00 pm CDT May 1, 2009
[NEWSVINE: Scams, Businesses Feed Off Swine Flu Fears] [DELICIOUS: Scams, Businesses Feed Off Swine Flu Fears] [DIGG: Scams, Businesses Feed Off Swine Flu Fears] [FACEBOOK: Scams, Businesses Feed Off Swine Flu Fears] [REDDIT: Scams, Businesses Feed Off Swine Flu Fears] [RSS] [PRINT: Scams, Businesses Feed Off Swine Flu Fears] [EMAIL: Scams, Businesses Feed Off Swine Flu Fears]
NEW ORLEANS -- The H1N1 virus, or the swine flu, may not be at epidemic proportions, but it has spawned an epidemic of fraud on the Internet.

The pictures of people wearing face masks and growing concern about being infected with the swine flu have created a potential bonanza for scammers feeding off the fear.

Consumer Web sites now warn of e-mail scams related to the outbreak. They arrive on your computer via an unsolicited e-mail message and can wreak havoc in your computer.

"Sometimes just by viewing the e-mail, you can actually download or cause to download a malicious code like a Trojan Horse or virus," said William Hatcher with the FBI in New Orleans. "Usually they require you to click on a link or attachment. We advise no one click on a link in an e-mail that is unsolicited."

And the Better Business Bureau said there are also businesses about which to worry. Web sites have been popping up everywhere offering so-called swine flu personal protection kits at rather piggish prices.

For example, one site sells a 5-gallon plastic bucket called an "extended swine flu protection kit" containing personal hygiene products and masks, now discounted to only $125 plus shipping.

"The main thing is going to be the inflated price of these so-called kits and what they are offering," said Dick Mitchell with the BBB. "And if you go out on the marketplace and shop these things, for example go to a Wal-Mart or go to any medical supply house, and you can find these same items they are offering at these prices much, much cheaper."

The FBI said that since the onset of swine flu, they have noted a tremendous jump in the registration of Web sites with the words "swine" or "swine flu" in them, which they say is usually an indication of fraudulent activity.

The United States Emergency Readiness team released these tips for consumers: Filter spam, don't trust unsolicited e-mail and be cautious of attachments.

 

[eeyoresnr]

every news site I have been to this evening states that Doctors and experts and saying this flu is less potent than feared and is most likely not any worse that any seasonal flu ...


we leave for Disney in 8 days

 

[66Tink]

We flew out of JFK international airport this morning to Vero Beach and we did not see anyone wearing masks at the airport or on the plane or bathing in santizer gel. Now granted this does not mean that people are not showing signs of illness (I think I read that you can be contagious 1 or 2 days before symptoms begin), but my honest opinion is that people are not panicking as much as they were in the last couple of days.

 

[MentalVacation]

ditto that. my mother is a little nervous about the plane ride (but she would be anyway) we are just using good common sense handwashing, etc...but my OB's office was unconcerned when I asked them about our upcoming trip. The flu (any kind) is certainly not what I'd want, pregnant or otherwise, but I'm not going to change the plans we have been counting down to for months and months when my son has woken up for the last month...every day........do we fly to Mickey's House today??????

If my health care professionals or the CDC were making other recommendations, we would obviously reconsider (and disappoint ourselves and our son) but as it stands, I'm hoping everyone else stays home.

 

[laceemouse]

I think each of my 4 kids has gotten sick on at least one of our WDW trips, the usual stuff like colds, flu symptoms, stomach bugs, ect. That's just life. Things like that happen every day all over the place (not just at WDW.) Just take the proper precautions and don't worry about it.

 

[MellyBeans]

I admit, I have been pretty freaked out by this virus all week long, to the point where I wasn't even excited about going to Disney later this month. I even posed the idea of canceling to my boyfriend, who thinks I'm being completely ridiculous and paranoid about the whole thing.

Anyway, I'm starting to calm down. I talked to my Grandma today, who was a young girl in Poland during World War II. I asked her about Swine Flu and told her I wanted to Cancel my trip. Her response was "Oi! Melissa, I survived Nazi Germany. This is a bunch of bolony. Go and have fun."

I guess we Americans really do have the luxury of freaking out over every little thing.

 

[appleorchard]

We're at Disney right now. No one is wearing masks; no one is talking about the flu. And it was far from empty today at the MK--a recommended park for today.

 

[loonytoony]

Media has way overblown this. Use common sense and you will be fine.

 

[WeLoveLilo05]

We're at Disney right now. No one is wearing masks; no one is talking about the flu. And it was far from empty today at the MK--a recommended park for today.

Do you think it was an 8/9 today?

 

[deckster]

i dont want to be down there and see people with masks It would freak me out.

 

[MellyBeans]

And another thought....

I know we aren't out of the woods just yet, and the Piggy Flu could still take a turn for the worse and be awful and all that, BUT, if it does blow over, don't you think the media will end up being like the boy who cried wolf?

I've heard that it is only a matter of time until there is a real pandemic. Avian Flu, for example, has the potential to be VERY lethal, and from what I have read, researchers think it could mutate to adapt to human-to-human transmission any flu season now, and be quite deadly.

Can we really take a media seriously if they freak out over EVERY. LITTLE. THING???? I already think many people aren't taking the current situation seriously because of the way the media freaked out over SARS, bird flu (before it even is able to go person-to-person), the terrorist threat levels, etc. I know outside of this message board in my real life, I have come in contact with very few people who give a flying crap about this virus. Most everyone I know roles their eyes at me and calls me a hypochondriac for even talking about it (they may be right, I know I am)

NBC, CNN, FOX, MSNBC, ABC, all of these organizations have a responsibility to the public. Major media hype for a situation that fizzles out, will only make an apathetic public if something truly sinister really does go down.

 

[Dippy the Goof]

I would advise any parent planning on taking their children to WDW in the near future to read the posts below the news story in the link below. The one I just read at the top was quite disturbing. It is as follows:

"I'm sitting in our hotel room right now in Orlando. My 4 year old has a rash, has been vomitting all night, and has a 100 temp. We've been at Disney for the past 4 days."

http://www.naturalnews.com/026152.html

Uhmmm, people did get sick before this strain of the flu. It's a fact of life. I understand your concern but if you let every case of someone get sick keep you from living, you might as well go get in a bubble.

 

[disneyroach33]

Just to let EVERYONE know.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/med_swine_flu

Please read! Here's a hint at the title of the article: "Swine flu may be less potent than first feared". Ta da! Enjoy for your reading pleasure.

 

[CarolA]

I would advise any parent planning on taking their children to WDW in the near future to read the posts below the news story in the link below. The one I just read at the top was quite disturbing. It is as follows:

"I'm sitting in our hotel room right now in Orlando. My 4 year old has a rash, has been vomitting all night, and has a 100 temp. We've been at Disney for the past 4 days."

http://www.naturalnews.com/026152.html

I would advise any parent planning to take thier children to use reputable news service to make INFORMED decisions. The National Enquire doesn't think you should go to Disney either. Aliens will be landing anyday to take over and you don't want to be there.

I would also advise that just because this person's 4 year old is sick it is probably NOT Swine Flu. (I have seen NOTHING about rashes) While one can't diagnosis from this it's possible this child has some type of heat related condition. (Rash) But in any case perhpas mom should get off "natural news" and to a doctor?

 

[livndisney]

I would advise any parent planning to take thier children to use reputable news service to make INFORMED decisions. The National Enquire doesn't think you should go to Disney either. Aliens will be landing anyday to take over and you don't want to be there.

I would also advise that just because this person's 4 year old is sick it is probably NOT Swine Flu. (I have seen NOTHING about rashes) While one can't diagnosis from this it's possible this child has some type of heat related condition. (Rash) But in any case perhpas mom should get off "natural news" and to a doctor?

Aliens DID land......... Disney put them to work. Stitch appears in MK, AK, the Poly and they gave him his own attraction. For awhile Stitch had even taken over the Monorail, but he seems to have lost that battle lately. Never fear though-Disney did park him in a "bad" neighborhood (perhaps to convince to leave the planet), Monsters have set up right across the street. Just around the corner Zurg is always planning another attack.

 

[luvthemouse71]

And another thought....

I know we aren't out of the woods just yet, and the Piggy Flu could still take a turn for the worse and be awful and all that, BUT, if it does blow over, don't you think the media will end up being like the boy who cried wolf?

I've heard that it is only a matter of time until there is a real pandemic. Avian Flu, for example, has the potential to be VERY lethal, and from what I have read, researchers think it could mutate to adapt to human-to-human transmission any flu season now, and be quite deadly.

Can we really take a media seriously if they freak out over EVERY. LITTLE. THING???? I already think many people aren't taking the current situation seriously because of the way the media freaked out over SARS, bird flu (before it even is able to go person-to-person), the terrorist threat levels, etc. I know outside of this message board in my real life, I have come in contact with very few people who give a flying crap about this virus. Most everyone I know roles their eyes at me and calls me a hypochondriac for even talking about it (they may be right, I know I am)

NBC, CNN, FOX, MSNBC, ABC, all of these organizations have a responsibility to the public. Major media hype for a situation that fizzles out, will only make an apathetic public if something truly sinister really does go down.

I think the media is in a hard place too, though. If they didn't keep people in the loop, and it turned out to be very bad, then there'd be people complaining that they weren't told.

There are media outlets that are being way overdramatic, but they do that with any crisis..it's kind of the nature of the beast. I think the public has responsibilities too-everyone should take it upon themselves to learn all they can so they can make informed decisions and realize when they're being manipulated. And there are way too many people out there who are content to just sit back and let others tell them what to think..So I think it goes both ways. Look at the popularity of tabloid news shows, newspapers, talk shows. There's a good chunk of the populace that LIKES sensationalism. If nobody watched or read these things, they'd go away.

 

[landshark]

As much of a hypochondriac I can be, I finally gave up caring about this. Early on it sounded scary, but start reading anything on the net and you start to notice facts were skewed and things just didn't really always add up. Between the dizzying amount of info and my own fears/stress, it just wore me out.

I can understand the panic at first as it is a new strain, but maybe people should've kept quiet until they found out what we now know a few days later--it's not the Spanish flu and it's likely no more potent than the annual strains that change every year, possibly even weaker. As it was, it's apparently been going on since the beginning of April and we didn't hear a peep until the very end. If anything, I do hope it starts an awareness in people that they need to be more vigilant about protecting themselves and others from contagious diseases. For example, while common in Asian countries to wear masks when sick as a common courtesy to others, forget it over here. Washing your hands frequently and sneezing/coughing into an elbow should be common sense, but it's somehow not.

 

[Zippa D Doodah]

And another thought....

I know we aren't out of the woods just yet, and the Piggy Flu could still take a turn for the worse and be awful and all that, BUT, if it does blow over, don't you think the media will end up being like the boy who cried wolf?

I've heard that it is only a matter of time until there is a real pandemic. Avian Flu, for example, has the potential to be VERY lethal, and from what I have read, researchers think it could mutate to adapt to human-to-human transmission any flu season now, and be quite deadly.

Can we really take a media seriously if they freak out over EVERY. LITTLE. THING???? I already think many people aren't taking the current situation seriously because of the way the media freaked out over SARS, bird flu (before it even is able to go person-to-person), the terrorist threat levels, etc. I know outside of this message board in my real life, I have come in contact with very few people who give a flying crap about this virus. Most everyone I know roles their eyes at me and calls me a hypochondriac for even talking about it (they may be right, I know I am)

NBC, CNN, FOX, MSNBC, ABC, all of these organizations have a responsibility to the public. Major media hype for a situation that fizzles out, will only make an apathetic public if something truly sinister really does go down.

That ship has already sailed. The media have lost all credibility. They are utterly incapable of reporting a story from a neutral perspective. The media have become nothing but a hype machine for whatever administration they are swooning over at any given moment. For them it's all about ratings and kowtowing to whichever way the wind blows at the moment.

 

[Uncleromulus]

They see their job as to scare you-assuming if you are scared, you'll watch. And mostly (judging from what I've seen so far) they are right.
And if this thing does fizzle, they will all quickly absolve themselves, with a straight face telling us how they were only looking out for our well being.
And then go on with whatever hype comes next--.