I got up this morning and the BBC reports stated that 5 schools have been closed today as pupils have been found to be infected with the H1N1 virus. One of the closed schools is about a mile away from where I live so I know that swine flu is closeby and there is a realistic chance that I will at some point in time succomb.
Over the weekend, I had a touch of fever, aches and pains in my stomach, some coughing as well, however much I tried to dismiss the worse case scenario thoughts at the time, I couldn't helpp thinking, bloody hell, I'm coming down with something.
As it turns out, it was food poisoning, so as uncomfortable as I was at the time, and the next day, I was relieved that I have yet to contract the H1N1 virus. It's funny, but not funny, as I am naturally pessimistic, so I naturally think the worse. I am also a little dismayed that some people here are so blaise about it. One parent of a child who's school has closed today said
it's only the flu, it's not the plague
Yes, sir that may be true, however it didn't stop over 100 people dying in Mexico who had no treatments, and it didn't stop millions from dying a hundred years ago.
We may have better medicines now, but say the virus mutates and the anti-virals stop working? Or worse, the medicine stocks finish before the true extent of the infection becomes known. If the virus hangs around until winter, we may be in big trouble. Just because things seem mild now, doesn't mean it will always be so.
Remember we live in a global world, and the breakdown of infrastructure can lead to all sorts of unforeseen circumstances. We're not isolated populations, and this disease has shown over the past week that it travels well. I would not be so comfortable, unless I know that I was resistant to this strain, that afterall has shown that it can be unpleasant, but also very deadly given the right set of circumstances.
