The Quiet before the Storm...

[Kurmugeon]

So, we've argued, demanded, shaken our heads, recoiled in horror at the grizzly photos of victims, stammered in shock at the stupidity... and finally fallen silent in emotional fatigue and dismay at the American Reaction to the first wave of Ebola events.

Now we lie in silent calm, worn out and numb, in the moments of stillness before the gathering storm.

It is not over, far from it. 150 people a day come to America from Western Africa Hot Zones. Several hundred Americans exposed to Duncan and/or his Ebola Positive Nursing Staff, circulate among U.S.

It is not a matter of IF, it is simply a matter of When.

And of all of the blunders, gaffs, and discovered pitfalls and holes in our Ebola Preparedness... have we actually LEARNED and Corrected ANYTHING?

Have we thoroughly trained and practiced Ebola treatment and containment protocols by our Hospital and ER staff?

Do we have a supply of Bio-Waste Storage Containers, and a plan on what to do with them, once full?

Do we have an extra supply of IV-Fluid Bags, Tyvex Gowns, Nitrile Gloves, Face Masks, Hoods, Tape, Booties and body bags on hand at all hospitals?

Do we have road barriers, spike strips, signage, and roadway choke points identified for cutting off travel from widely affected cities?

Do we have Fuel and Delivery Hardware, Concrete Barriers, and Front Loaders for carrying massed corpses to Box-O-Flame improvised incinerators set aside?

Have you made your peace with estranged family members and God?

By the timing of the virus, and its spread, we are now in calm before the next wave...

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[Big Black Dog]

Isn't your OP just a bit over the top? Sure, Ebola is a very serious disease BUT there's no need to over-react.

 

[Kurmugeon]

Isn't your OP just a bit over the top? Sure, Ebola is a very serious disease BUT there's no need to over-react.

Why don't you tell me in six weeks.

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[S.J.]

The name of the game with this administration is "downplay and deny". Accept no responsibility for mistakes and claim credit for everyone else's accomplishments.

 

[Ernie S.]

I'll mark it on my calender.

 

[Moonglow]

I'd still play it on the safe side and stay indoors on Thanksgiving, that day has more Americans driving drunk than any other day of the year...

 

[rightwinger]

The name of the game with this administration is "downplay and deny". Accept no responsibility for mistakes and claim credit for everyone else's accomplishments.

How many Americans have died of Ebola so far?

Let me count.......um......um......zero

 

[S.J.]

The name of the game with this administration is "downplay and deny". Accept no responsibility for mistakes and claim credit for everyone else's accomplishments.

How many Americans have died of Ebola so far?

Let me count.......um......um......zero

How many have to die before you acknowledge it's a problem?

 

[C_Clayton_Jones]

"So, we've..."

“We've”?

Speak for yourself – only rightwing nitwits are freaking out over this, or trying to contrive the issue into a controversy where none exists for some perceived partisan advantage.

 

[Kurmugeon]

Epidemic Victims do grow in exponential curves.

The Hot Zone - Wikipedia the free encyclopedia

When people state that we have one Ebola victim, and Several Hundred Thousand Heart Attack victims over the last year, and claim that means there is no risk from Ebola, they make a fatal mistake.

They fail to understand the difference between a relatively static hazard, and an hazard with exponential growth potential.

You compare a static, linear growth hazard, to an exponential growth hazard, and think you have evaluated the threat.

From Chernobyl to the Black Death, most of humanities greatest disasters have been based on this principle.

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I note that in all the comments, no one has addressed, even in passing, any one of the questions in the OP.

 

[Kurmugeon]

The Cuban Missile crisis ran a very real risk of killing 2/3 of the people in the United States.

Ebola is significantly higher in threat, both in terms of the percentage of the population likely killed, and the probability that it will come to pass.

I don't see anyone, left or right, then or now, stating that we ( America ) were wrong to find the Cuban Missile Crisis a threat worthy of discussion.
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