Tag Archives: swine flu

CHINA: New Swine Flu Strain Has “Pandemic Potential”

Agence France-Presse reports: Researchers in China have discovered a new type of swine flu that is capable of triggering a pandemic, according to a study published Monday in the US science journal PNAS. Named G4, it is genetically descended from the H1N1 strain that caused a pandemic in 2009. It possesses “all the essential hallmarks of being highly adapted to …

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1 Of 6 Americans Have Had Swine Flu

New numbers out today from the CDC indicate that 50 million Americans, or about 1 in 6, have already had H1N1. There have been about 10,000 deaths. The new estimates suggest that the flu, also known as H1N1, has spread through 15% of the U.S. population since it was first identified in April. As of Nov. 17, 200,000 people have …

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Limbaugh: AIDS Is Hyped In Africa

Somehow making a connection to swine flu, Rush Limbaugh claims (without citing any evidence) that African nations are overstating the number of AIDS cases in order to receive more foreign aid.

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Wingnuts Want Obama Kids Vaccinated For Swine Flu On Live Television

To prove that the shot isn’t deadly. Or something.

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Quote Of The Day – Louis Farrakhan

“The Earth can’t take 6.5 billion people. We just can’t feed that many. So what are you going to do? Kill as many as you can. We have to develop a science that kills them and makes it look as though they died from some disease.” – Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, saying that the swine flu vaccine was …

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Poll: One-Third Of Parents Oppose Swine Flu Vaccine For Their Kids

A new poll by the Associated Press reveals that over one-third of the nation’s parents don’t want their kids immunized against the swine flu, despite reassurances from the government that the vaccine is safe. Some parents say they are concerned about side effects from the new vaccine — even though nothing serious has turned up in tests so far — …

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The Swine Flu Snap

NPR shares some really silly ways to say hello without shaking hands, in order to protect against swine flu. A foot smack?

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Pozzers Told To Get Swine Flu Vaccine

The San Francisco Department of Public Health is advising that HIV-positive folks get the swine flu vaccine when it becomes widely available later this fall. San Francisco health officials stress there is no evidence to suggest that people living with HIV are any more susceptible to the swine flu than they would be for the seasonal flu. “They should think …

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Swine Flu Rap

New York-based Dr. John Clark is a finalist in the “US Department of Health & Human Services 2009 Flu Prevention PSA Contest.” I guess “face” rhymes with “safe”, sort of.

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Train Surfing

I was cracking up yesterday watching the contortions New Yorkers were going through trying not to put their hands on anything on the 6 train. One woman wrapped her leg around the center pole, another used her scarf to hang on to the hand rail. Others tried the surfboard method, riding with legs wide apart, hands flailing for balance. If …

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Rachel Maddow: I Had Swine Flu

Last night on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon, Rachel Maddow revealed that her weeklong absence from her show was due to the swine flu. Maddow: “I went and I got diagnosed and I got the special swine flu drugs. I’m better. I had it. It’s over. It’s done. It’s the predominant strain of flu now. First my girlfriend got it …

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Possible 90,000 U.S Swine Flu Deaths Forecast For Coming Season

A new report forecasts that up to 90,000 Americans could die of H1N1 virus during the coming flu season. But keep in mind that 36,000 die of the regular flu every year.

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Castro Bar Owner Dies Of Swine Flu

Doug Murphy, 41, the owner of the venerable Castro gay bar Moby Dick, died of the H1N1 (swine flu) virus while visiting Palm Springs on Friday. Last month Murphy and his business partner opened another Castro bar, the Blackbird, to positive reviews.

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Malaysia: Gay Sex Leads To Swine Flu

Breaking news: Malaysia’s state-run news agency is urging its readers to avoid homosexual sex and masturbation if they want to remain free of swine flu. An article published Sunday by Bernama, the Malaysian government news agency, singles out homosexual sex as an activity that can cause people to contract swine flu, while also emphasizing that “normal sexual union between members …

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No Purell For Devout Muslims

In the UK, where an estimated 100,000 cases of swine flu are being diagnosed each week, some Muslim health care workers are refusing to use hand sanitizers due to their alcohol content. Some of those employed by St Albans Council in Hertfordshire have complained about the antibacterial lotion, which is considered a key strategy in containing the virus. Officials were …

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Influenza A (H1N1)

New from WHO: The World Health Organisation (WHO), bowing to pressure from meat industry producers and concerned governments, said on Thursday it would refer to a deadly new virus strain as influenza A (H1N1), not swine flu. “From today, WHO will refer to the new influenza virus as ‘influenza A (H1N1)’,” it said on its site. The new strain has …

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Israel: Let’s Call It “Mexican Flu” Because “Swine” Is Religiously Offensive

Israel wants to rename swine flu to “Mexican flu” because pork is offensive to Jews and Muslims. Deputy Health Minister Yakov Litzman said the reference to pigs is offensive to both religions and “we should call this Mexican flu and not swine flu,” he told a news conference Monday at a hospital in central Israel. Both Judaism and Islam consider …

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Panic Attack

Duane Reade, 1st & 72nd, 11am Woman: Hey, where is the Tamiflu?Clerk: Do you have a prescription?Woman: What?? You need a prescription?Clerk: Yes, but your doctor can just call it in.Woman: That’s CRAZY! You people should be giving it out for FREE. People are DYING! She storms out……

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Swine Flu Outbreak Fuels Immigrant Haters On Wingnut Radio

Pam Spaulding points us to this Media Matters recap of swine flu quotes from wingnut radio blowhards Michael Savage, Neal Boortz, and Glenn Beck. Savage: “How do you protect yourself? What can you do? I’ll tell you what I’m going to do, and I don’t give a damn if you don’t like what I’m going to say. I’m going to …

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Swine Flu Flashback

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