Note to all, but especially to vaccine and flu threat critics: hope this helps clarify the issues at hand. H1N1 is here and it is significantly more dangerous than the typical seasonal flu.

22 million have caught it and estimated 4,000 deaths. That means less than 1 death per thousand sick. Doesn't sound more dangerous to me.

Math correction - 22 million have caught it and estimated 4,000 deaths. That means less than 2 deaths per thousand sick. Doesn't sound more dangerous to me.

Wash your hands, gargle with salt water or listerine twice day, wash your hands, stay away from sick people and places where sick people gather (ie, doctors office, hospitals, etc), wash your hands, stay home if you have flu-like symptoms. Oh, and wash your hands.

So simple wash your hands with soap, cover your face with an elbow when you cough, that should be second nature by the time your old enough to write your name.

If you think you have the flu, go to Wal-Mart, get a pager, and go wander around the produce section while you wait to see a doctor.

Best thing to do is panic.....

Run around like a chicken with its head cut off yelling the end is coming...

Paragraph 10: The agency was devoting more time to battling the pandemic than to counting it, and earlier figures were based on laboratory-confirmed cases even as doctors largely quit using flu tests months ago.

Paragraph 15: Seasonal influenza doesn’t usually start circulating until November while swine flu began a big climb in September, leading to what CDC called unprecedented high levels of illness so early in a season — and no way to know when the flu will peak.

If they stopped testing months ago for the H1N1 virus, then how do they know that H1N1 is actual flu that all these folks are getting? THEY DON'T!!

Take the time to listen to this video by CBC... it explains everything! They are "guesstimating" the numbers rather than "calculating" them.

http://www.theflucase.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1360%3Acdc-guesstimated-h1n1-cases-and-refused-cbs-freedom-of-information-act-reques&catid=41%3Ahighlighted-news&Itemid=105?=en

In the video I posted above, pay particular attention to: 6:35 They will give statistics... of how many actually have had swine flu. Pathetic!!

Tele you haven't heard the news yet?? The world will be coming to an end in 2012, FYI so you and mom can make plans.....

Mom's had it with you and Duckwa, she bought a new shot gun.....

It sounds as though you people are disappointed that there are not more deaths?? Could it be possible that the current low death rate is due to information that people have been given...stay home, wash you hands, get the vaccine if appropriate....I am getting over the swine flu, regular flu...doesn't really matter what type of flu...it has been miserable!!

My body became immune to this flu back when it was a piglet.

I'm going to buy some pork chops today to build up my immunity to it...

I will let you know how it goes.

I love a mom who can handle a shotgun....I'll advise duckwa.....by the was her name (mom's) isn't Doris is it and does she live in Princeton? I love Freaky Fridays and remember it is Friday the 13th also....Crazy!!

Those people who act like this outbreak is nothing out of the ordinary needs to take a look at the data from the previous ten years. There hasn't been a widespread outbreak of any flu throughout the entire country at this time of year at all in the last decade. This is week 43 (for reported data)...and you can compare the data from previous years for the same week.

http://www.cdc.gov/flu/weekly/fluactivity.htm

Centaurmyst: With all due respect, given the number of people I know who stay in bed when they have flu symptoms rather than go to the doctor, I think it's extremely difficult to accurately quantify what is "ordinary."

I absolutely do think this flu should be taken seriously, but I would rather see people who have underlying medical conditions be the first in line for vaccine. Perhaps there were plenty of children at the free clinics that did indeed have underlying medical conditions - of course, we really have no way of knowing that for sure - but I do know parents that were panicking and leaving work to stand in line for over 4 hours for vaccination.

Quote from above: The first Mainer to die of swine flu was a York County man in his 50s in August. Then last week, state officials reported the death of a young Penobscot County man, said to be between 18 and 25. Both also were reported to have had serious underlying medical conditions. No other details about the victims, including what their prior medical problems were, have been released. Unquote

I keep hearing the phrase "serious underlying medical conditions" when looking at deaths. Naturally there are those cases of seemingly healthy people dying from it, but more often then not, those who died had some sort of preexisting health condition.

Quote:“We don’t think things have changed from last week to this week,” Schuchat stressed, explaining the importance of looking beyond those lab counts. It’s “a better estimate for the big picture of what’s out there.” Unquote

Estimate.

Quote: At one point the school had a 25 percent to 30 percent absenteeism rate, he said. There was just one confirmed case of H1N1 influenza, but many sick students are no longer being tested for the virus.

“They might have had it,” Crowley said. Unquote

They are no longer being tested so we can't with 100% assurance say that it is H1N1 or Influenza A or B. - or for that matter, a simple cold. I have a relative who thought he had it. The symptoms were identical. It turns out that it was pneumonia.

The reason the data is showing no signs of "widespread outbreak" is because #1 they weren't herding people into doctors offices and ER's to test for flu's and were only reporting those who were going in because they were exceptionally ill.

I'm going to post my comments from the previous article... Everyone should listen to the video from CBS for the show "Washington Unplugged".

Gopher 9:20 AM~ Actually, I am very susceptible to this virus.

I have a severely weakened immune system

due to damage in my immune system along with several

other medical issues.

My ANA test (Antinuclear Antibody test), is off the charts...

and has been since

I received several vaccines in 1990 in a military setting.

As you know,

I was not the only one to suffer the consequences of such

an ordeal.

What are the odds of so many people coming down

with the same s

ymptoms after receiving the same vaccines?

Due to my medical status, I was getting flu shots every year.

However, several years ago,

I did not receive the vaccine and didn't get the flu... so

I've gone vaccine free since that time.

I've had flu viruses but they have been very mild compared

to the past flu viruses

that I had when I was getting the flu shot.

.

After my experience, I began researching vaccines and took

note of the

fact that I was not alone in my personal experience.

.

I also was really good about having my kitties vaccinated every year,

but about 4 years ago,

they missed getting their vaccines too. I took note of the fact that

their stomach issues had decreased.

I had had them on a particular brand of of food for their stomach issues

a few years prior to not

vaccinating them. I thought perhaps it was coincidence, so I took two

of them back to the

vet and got them vaccinated. After they had their vaccines, their

stomach issues

once again reared their ugly heads. So, I have opted not to have

the other two vaccinated

and they continue to do very well.

.

I've stated my stance several times Gopher... for some, this vaccine is NEEDED...

and I understand that.

For others, it's doing damage to their immune system and can be deadly.

For still others,

it's causing irreversible neurological damage, which is sometimes noted

shortly after getting vaccines

and for others, the neurological damage is being noted as happening

later in life.

We need to test people before giving them ANY vaccine to see if their body

reacts differently to the ingredients

that are being put in these vaccines. Think about the fact that not all medications

can be taken by every

individual because some folks react differently than others. Some can take

penicillin while others

are very allergic to it. The same goes for sulfa drugs. Does that mean that

when one has an infection

we should give everyone penicillin to cure their infection and forget about

those who will suffer the consequences?

No, of course not, we have found other drugs for them, that will work and

will not kill them or disable them in any way,

and we should do the same with vaccines, because it's the responsible thing to do.

When we have kids that

are allergic to peanuts, we are very cautious about not giving them foods

that have peanut related

ingredients in them... even if there are only 2 kids in a school

setting who

are allergic to peanuts, some schools do not allow peanut

butter to be given

to ANY of the students during lunch. Why are we ignoring the people

who react differently to vaccines?

.

The pharmaceutical companies and our government need to be much more

responsible about

handing out vaccines like candy and not taking responsibility for the

consequences of those

who become disabled, desperately ill or die from these vaccines.

.

I have worked in the medical field and know first hand how little

doctors actually

know about vaccines and why. They simply follow the protocol

and standards that

the government sets for them, and very few questions are asked.

.

In my humble opinion, I feel that we are vaccinating now and asking

questions when it's too late.

.

Like I stated in an earlier post... those who want to look at the information

I've posted.. fine...

those who don't want to, that's fine too. I feel that by sharing my experience

and knowledge,

it may help someone who has had similar issues or perhaps even someone

who has questions.

They can look at the information and then decide for themselves what they want to do.

.

As far as the H1N1 statistics... They are very flawed and here is my reasoning:

1. They have not been testing for H1N1 for months. So how do they know these folks who currently have flu "symptoms" actually have H1N1? They don't, they are "assuming". Most have not had the H1N1 virus... they've had other types of flu and perhaps other issues going on that have all been "assumed" to be the H1N1 flu virus.

.

2. They have grouped the month of August and September into their statistics for October through April, when they don't normally do that. It would be best to do a month by month statistic specifically for H1N1 to show the true statistics. Doing the statistics this way, one would be able to see the difference between this virus, vs the regular flu virus for this season as well as previous seasons.

.

3. Statistics should never be based on "probabilities and assumptions" and in the H1N1 case, they shouldn't be grouping H1N1 in with other flu viruses, especially when their focus is specifically on H1N1.

.

4. In previous years, they have not generally tested people for flu viruses. However, this year, they have a specific H1N1 test, so of course, the numbers are going to be higher for H1N1.

I've worked with statistics for a number of years... theirs are severely flawed given the circumstances.

.

Statistics are suppose to have "factual" information.

.

Please watch the following CBS video: Washington Unplugged There have been some very relevant facts brought up due to a 3 month investigation concerning this particular flu.

http://www.theflucase.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1360%3Acdc-guesstimated-h1n1-cases-and-refused-cbs-freedom-of-information-act-reques&catid=41%3Ahighlighted-news&Itemid=105%E3%80%88=en

sassyfrazz...the people in Maine who have died had underlying conditions. Most likely they were respiratory issues. The young guy probably had asthma.

In other parts of the country perfectly healthy pregnant women have died. That doesn't normally happen. As of October 1 there had been 100 pregnant women hospitalized for H1N1 and of those 100 women 28 of them died. That is pretty darn scary. Flu season does not usually even kick in until November. These deaths were from April until October...which is outside of the typical flu season.

Vaccinating school kids is a good idea because that is the most common way flu is spread and the kids bring it home to the at risk people in their families. They need to get the pregnant women vaccinated first and then all other high risk adults of all ages.

http://www.drugs.com/news/28-pregnant-women-have-died-swine-flu-cdc-20157.html

What's good for the goose is good for the gander.

Everyone just take the vaccines, didn't your Congressman, doctor, teacher, brother, sister...tell you it's safe and not to worry? Didn't the gov't agencies/pharmaceutical companies say that you don't have to think about it anymore because they've "researched it"?

French woman get CRIPPLING illness after H1N1 vaccine: www.infowars.com/french-woman-gets-crippling-illness-after-h1n1-vaccine/ Hey, wait a minute wasn't there that Washington Redskins cheerleader.....

And Telefunkinu47, why are you giving out such good stuff for free? Demand that BDN compensates you or at least gives you your own column.

Is Swine Flu a dishonorable death to a Muslim?

The number of H1N1 deaths in Maine is now up to 5...and normally at this time of year we are only seeing a few cases of the regular flu just beginning to pop up. I honestly don't care if people choose not to get the vaccine but if they aren't going to get it they need to be wearing rubber gloves and masks whenever they leave their house so they don't catch H1N1 and then go spreading their sick germs all over public doorknobs, grocery store produce and any place that my family and children will be near. It's selfish, inconsiderate and potentially dangerous to others to not get vaccinated.

My pork diet seems to be doing the trick.......

Having some turkey tonight to fight off the bird flu.....

I completely agree with those who are in a high risk category having the option to get first dibbs on the vaccine. The only problem is reality dictates that people are showing up in droves at the ER's and further spreading the plague long before there is a chance for the vaccine to hold, and public clinics were flooded with what common sense dictates was a group of healthy kids who have panicky parents, mixed in with kids that have serious medical issues and should have been put at the front of the line.

Personally, I'd rather go in and work for a coworker then to have him or her spreading disease from one end of the place to the other. When I am ill, I call in and adjust the budget accordingly. To me, it's even more selfish and inconsiderate to drag my infected sorry rear in and make 3 people sick instead of staying home until I'm well.