Z is for Zika

Having just finished season 2 of Z Nation, I had to look it up. Nope, no zombies.

After the Ebola scare, the SARS scare, the H1N1 scare, bird flu, swine flu, snake flu, platypus flu, etc., I have decided to sit out the Zika scare.

Please wake me for the next pandemic that's going to KILL US ALL (stay tuned more on that story after the break).

Jerry wrote: Having just finished season 2 of Z Nation, I had to look it up. Nope, no zombies.

I am THE MURPHY!

In reply to bluebarchetta:

A direct blood borne virus that is also spread via sexual contact has a much stronger chance than any of the previous attempts. I still await word on the Olympics this summer.

captdownshift wrote: In reply to bluebarchetta: A direct blood borne virus that is also spread via sexual contact has a much stronger chance than any of the previous attempts. I still await word on the Olympics this summer.

Well HIV/AIDS has been around (or at least somewhat widespread) for what, 40 years now? Quite frankly, that sounds a hell of a lot worse than Zika and it hasn't doomed mankind yet.

Are you pregnant, or thinking of getting pregnant? If not, then it's no big deal. If yes, then the distinct possibility of significant birth defects makes it a big deal. It's scary because it's spreading so fast and there's so little information about the effects.

AIDS is worse for a person, Zika is worse for mankind.

Maybe I should reconsider that "AIDS is worse for a person" thing:

http://edition.cnn.com/2016/02/04/opinions/zika-guillan-barre-syndrome-vox/index.html

Edit: Oh and here's a good article on the history of DDT use and why it's probably not going to make a comeback now:

http://edition.cnn.com/2016/02/04/health/zika-virus-ddt-what-you-need-to-know/index.html

This virus looks like it's got a pretty high panic to payload ratio. It appears that an infection lasts about two weeks, 80% of the time doesn't even do anything, and does not reoccur. So the main things that it does are that a tiny percentage of cases get serious complications, and that it can cause birth defects. Aren't there existing viruses out there that can do all that plus, well, make most of the people who get them actually get sick?

I heard an interesting twist to the Zika story today: Carnival (the huge party in Rio and other Brazilian cities) starts Friday and will certainly spread the virus a bit more.

gearheadmb wrote: Honestly though, the trillions of dollars that have been dumped into our wars on drugs, poverty, illiteracy, malnutrition, obesity, illegal immigration, teen pregnancy, unemployment, communism, intolerance, littering, global warming, and high school dropouts, we couldn't have at least made an attempt at eradicating mosquitoes?

In college I worked for our local Mosquito Control District, which was originally created in the late 1950s here. I remember when I worked there thinking "what a joke" and "waste of tax payers money" the job and organization was as I didn't think it actually made a dent in the larger mosquito breeding situation. But it was a job that allowed me to work outdoors and have some freedom.

Looks like Zika could be having another effect on fetuses, severe retinal scarring that could cause blindness:

http://edition.cnn.com/2016/02/11/health/zika-virus-damage-vision/index.html

There's better evidence of a link to this than there is to a link to microcephaly.